Superintendent's Update
Back to School Edition
Dear CUSD Leadership Team,
Welcome to the 2018-2019 School Year!
Wow…not sure what happened to the summer, but it is quickly ending. I know several of you got out of town, out of state, and even off to a completely different continent. Even if you did not travel far, I hope each of you enjoyed your summer vacation and were able to relax and refresh. While we have a few more days before teachers, staff and students are all back, I know many of you are already hard at work getting ready for their arrival.
Compared to our 13 new administrative hires last year, this year we are small in numbers but huge in talent. We are happy to welcome four administrators that are either new to CUSD or taking on new leadership positions.
Please welcome:
· Principal, Chico High: Doug Williams
· Assistant Principal, Marsh Junior High: Amy DeLuna
· Assistant Principal, Fair View High: John Gunderson
Also congratulations to Brandon Kessler who moved from Assistant Principal at Fair View High School to Assistant Principal at Chico High School, his Alma Mater.
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Mark Your Calendars
We are about to hit the busy “Back To School” season and want to take this opportunity to review the important dates that are quickly approaching.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 2 - Leadership Team Mtg.
8:00am – Noon (Marsh Multi-Purpose Room):
I love meeting with our Leadership Team…but we heard you! It is an incredibly busy time of the year so in order to allow more time on the site, we reduced the length of our Leadership Team Advance to four hours. We will meet those new to our leadership team as well as briefly review the Board adopted annual goals. The Educational Services staff will also provide short updates on new programs and procedures. As we will have less time together as a group, we will push more in-depth discussions to our Elementary Administrative Council (EAC) and Secondary Administrative Council (SAC) meetings.
MONDAY, AUGUST 6 - Title IX Workshop
8:30am - 3:30pm: Title IX Workshop (Marsh Multi-Purpose Room)
Title IX is no long just about sports. It encompasses harassment and is an increasingly complex area that is also highly litigious. To make sure we are aware of the rules and know what to do when accused of being in violation, I encourage all administrators, particularly those at the secondary level, to attend this training.
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 8 - Title 1 Mtg.
8:30am – 11:30am: Title I/Homeless/School Site Councils (BCOE Center for Transformative Education)
This is another area of changing laws and high expectations. If you have not been to a recent Title I/Homeless/School Site Council training, please be sure to attend this 2-hour meeting to help ensure your site is legally compliant.WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 8 - i-Ready
1:00pm – 4:00pm: i-Ready (Elem Admin: McManus Room 27; Junior High Admin: Marsh Conference Room)
MONDAY AUGUST 13 - New Teacher Training
8:00am - Noon: NEW TEACHER TRAINING (Marsh Conference Room)
Administrators are not required to attend the New Teacher Orientation, but if your schedule is free and you would like to join us, please feel free to stop by and meet our new teacher hires. They are an impressive group! As we have done in prior years, the afternoon (1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m.) is time for new teachers to meet at the school site with their principal and District Leadership Council (DLC) representative.
TUESDAY, AUGUST 14 - Staff Development Day
8:00am – Noon: Back to School Staff Development Day for All Certificated Staff (Chico High School)
This is the first day of the school year for all CUSD Certificated staff. Our Back-to-School Professional Development Day will begin at 8:00am in the new Chico High School Stadium. Our Key Note Speak will feature Dr. Jason Richardson who will discuss teamwork and mindset.
Following our Key Note Speaker, snacks and beverages will be provided as staff move to breakout sessions. Breakout sessions will be held from 9:30 to Noon on the Chico High campus. We will cover more on this at our Leadership Team Advance.
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 15 - School Site Mtg.
8:00am to 3:00pm: School Site Level Meetings
This is the second day of school for all certificated staff. This day is reserved for meetings and work at your school site. Please send your agendas and communication to teachers for this day to either Ted Sullivan (Elementary principals) or Jay Marchant (Secondary principals).
FRIDAY, AUGUST 17 - CUSD Welcome Back BBQ
3:00 pm - 7:00 pm (Elks Lodge, 1705 Manzanita Ave.) Nutrition Services will be cooking up some delicious food for the annual Back to School All Staff BBQ. Make sure to invite your staff - and grab all the new employees - to enjoy ribs, shredded BBQ chicken sandwiches, coleslaw, fresh fruit and corn bread muffins with honey butter as we celebrate the start of a new school year!
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THURSDAY, AUGUST 16, 2018: FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS!
Knowing how crazy the first day of school can be, District staff will again deliver lunches to our site administrators. This is a small token of appreciate for all you do. Our District office focus continues to be on building relationships and providing support—and this starts with the support we provide to our site leaders. Please do not ever hesitate to let us know how we can best assist you and your school.
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REACH OUT TO THOSE STAFF MEMBERS NEW TO THE CUSD FAMILY
While fewer than in previous years, most sites have new employees on either the Certificated or Classified side, if not both. Please personally welcome them to your site and introduce them to other staff members at your site. Most new certificated employees have already attended at least one New Teacher Training. Classified staff members receive orientations throughout the year before they begin work at the site. However, the most important orientation is the introduction to their work site and the colleagues they will be working with during the school year.
New CUSD Certificated Employees
- Caroline Roady (SDC Teacher) NEAL DOW
- Gabrielle Homesley (Counselor) HOOKER OAK/PVHS
- Tamara Willard (Title 1) Parkview
- Erin Lipski (Speech) LOMA VISTA
- Emily Kostuk (Kdg) EWE
- Thomas Melton (Soc Sci) MARSH
- Christine Bomann (Elem Music) NEAL DOW
- KATHRYN BROWN (Math) CHS
- Rebecca Carriere (4th Grade) CITRUS
- Monica Carroll (Psychologist) DISTRICT
- Elva Castillo (ANDERSON) (Agriculture) CHS
- Autumn Chesebro (1st Grade) HOOKER OAK
- Amanda Coorough (SDC) Teacher
- Phillip Graber (English) CHS
- Jon Macalutas (Math) PVHS
- Esther Martin (ASP) Neal Dow
- Esther Martin (Title 1) Parkview
- Miko Wilson (Counselor) SHASTA/MARIGOLD
- Joseph Ahmadi (Psychologist) Chico High
- Bree Akins (ASP / Title 1) CITRUS
- M. Dolores Alaniz (ELD) Bidwell
- Michael Bhojak (Soc Sci) FAIR VIEW
- JENNIFER CARLSON (Math) BJHS
- Stephanie Catrett (Title 1) CITRUS
- Casey Crowson (RSP) CHICO JR
- Jennifer Denzel (1st Grade) SHASTA
- Paul Gadbois (English) PVHS
- Kelsey Gullick (2nd Grade) CITRUS
- John Gunderson (Asst Principal) FAIR VIEW
- Andrew Gutierrez (3rd Grade) CITRUS
- Douglas Hesse (English) PVHS
- Nora Hunter (Elem Music) ELEM SITES
- Adriana Jimenez (4th Grade) ROSEDALE
- Austin King (Music) PVHS/ELEM MUSIC
- Hannah Metzger (Science) Marsh
- Lindsay Meyer (ASP/Title 1) MCMANUS
- Jens Nielsen (3rd Grade) CHAPMAN
- Angelee Petersen (Title 1) McManus
- Angelee Petersen (1st Grade) Shasta
- Katie Rose (5th Grade) PARKVIEW
- Julie Scalet (Nurse) DISTRICT
- Kevin Sherald (RSP) FAIR VIEW
- KAITLYN SIGLER (1st Grade) MARIGOLD
- Dolores Soto (Counselor) EWE/ROSEDALE
- Gary Story (Athletic Director) CHS
- Ruth Testman (SDC-SH) PVHS
- Marinda Thomas (Math) CHICO JR
- Michael Thompson (SDC) SIERRA VIEW
- Paige Thurlow (Speech) LOMA VISTA
- Mary Triantafyllou (SDC) CHS
- Victor Valdez (Counselor) PVHS
- Douglas Williams (Principal) CHS
- David Wilson (ASP) Rosedale
- Rebecca Wion (Speech) LOMA VISTA
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New CUSD Classified Employees
- Eileen Cusick (Office Asst. Elementary Attendance) Hooker Oak
- Mineth Garcia (Instructional Paraprofessional) PVHS
- Shoko Horikawa (Parent Classroom Aide) Hooker Oak
- Lindsey Lipski (Library Media Assistant) Marigold
- Leah Pauley (Parent Classroom Aide) Hooker Oak
- Andrea Petersen (Instructional Paraprofessional) Sierra View
- Alexandra Peterson (Parent Classroom Aide) Hooker Oak
- Jeovonna Urrutia (Cafeteria Assistant) CHS
- Monica Vega (Instructional Paraprofessional) PVHS
- Daniel Wright (Instructional Paraprofessional) McManus
- Sylvie Allione (School Office Manager) Emma Wilson
- Michaela Duarte (Instructional Paraprofessional) BJHS
- A.J. Madeiros (Instructional Paraprofessional) Loma Vista
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2018-2019 CUSD BOARD ADOPTED GOALS and STAFF EXPECTATIONS
At the July 18, 2018 Board Meeting, the CUSD Board adopted the following District-wide goals. These are the goals worked on during the Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP) process so most of you are very familiar with them. We are each accountable for progress towards the district-wide goals. Please discuss the CUSD Goals and Expectations with all groups on your site or in your department. Each department and site administrator, as well as members of the District Leadership Council (DLC), will work directly with staff, parents and students to more specifically define the needs of your individual schools and departments and develop goals specific to your site.
Click on image to expand.
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SUMMER FACILITY PROJECTS
Our CUSD Maintenance & Operations and Facilities Departments continue to impress! I encourage you to drive through Chico to see the multiple facility projects underway. The M&O staff barely had time to sleep this summer as they cleaned, painted and repaired sites across the district. These are our unsung heroes—when you have a chance, please say or send a thank you to our amazing M&O and Facilities staff.
Click on the image to view all of the Measure K project updates.
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I will see you all Thursday at the Leadership Team Advance and look forward to visiting your school site throughout the year. You are always encouraged to call, email, or drop by my office if you have any questions, concerns or just need to talk through an issue. My cell phone number is (530) 521-3000. Please do not hesitate to call, day or night, if you or your site need assistance.
Sincerely, Kelly
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Connect With Us
Email: erica.smith@chicousd.org
Website: http://www.chicousd.org
Location: 1163 East 7th Street, Chico, CA, USA
Phone: 530.891.3000
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChicoUnifiedSchoolDistrict/
Twitter: @ChicoUSD