The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character--that is the goal of true education. --Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Good morning BVM community!

Good morning Bonita Vista Middle School Learning Community! Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day! Today, we remember Dr. King Jr. and all of his contributions during America's Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s and the 1960s. Among his many contributions, he is often applauded and recognized for adopting non-violent resistance methods in the struggle for achieving civil rights for Black-Americans. To learn more about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his legacy, please click on the following link: https://naacp.org/find-resources/history-explained/civil-rights-leaders/martin-luther-king-jr

In addition to recognizing this year's holiday, I want to wish the entire Bonita Vista Middle School Community a Happy New Year! We were fortunate to welcome back our nearly 850 students to Bonita Vista Middle School Campus last Tuesday, January 10th, 2023. Although we had a rainy week that will continue through the early part of this week, it was nice to see our students welcoming each other back and happy to re-engage with their teachers.

During the first 10 days of each semester, given our contractual agreements with our teacher group, students who have newly enrolled, and balancing classes, among other changes, please be patient with us as we work diligently to balance our student schedules while trying to cause minimal disruption.

I'm also happy to announce that this year, we will be holding our Promotion Ceremony at Bonita Vista High School at their new stadium. We are still working to finalize a date and time, but it will be the last week of our school year at 3:00 pm and at 5:30 pm. We will hold two separate ceremonies to allow families to bring at least 6 guests to the promotion ceremony. Our 8th graders must pass all of their classes during 2nd semester to be able to participate in the graduation ceremony. Once we have secured a final date, we will let our community know as soon as possible! I can't tell you how excited I am to hold our Promotion Ceremony at Bonita Vista High School!

Please join me this coming Wednesday via Zoom for our January Coffee with the Principal at 10:30 am. Please join us by clicking on this link on Wednesday, January 18th, 2023 at 10:30 am: https://sweetwaterschools-org.zoom.us/j/89088173917?pwd=K010YjJsWGlOTUp6WW51SUJRZFRhZz09. I would like to present some data to reflect how, as a school, we performed during our 1st semester.

Lastly, please remember to review the 4 Essential Rules at Bonita Vista Middle School that allow us to not only promote our safety on campus, but it allows us to ensure that our students are fully present and ready to learn:

1. No Cell Phones on Campus: We ask that all students placed their cell phones in their backpacks once they are at school and on our campus. We not only enforce this rule during class time but especially during nutrition breaks and lunchtime. We want our students to interact with each other as much as possible as opposed to being on their screens/phones.

2. No IPAD Misuse: Every student is issued an IPAD for educational purposes only. We ask students to use their devices strictly as implements of learning.

3. No Earbuds: Similar to our cell phone rule, we ask that once students are at school and on our campus, they place their earbuds in their backpacks. We have noticed that students are less distracted in class and engage more with each other when they are not using earbuds.

4. No Hoodie (worn on head): Students can wear hooded sweatshirts but in order to be able to identify our students at all times, we ask students not to wear their hoods over their heads. This rule is in place for student safety. Should a non-student sneak onto our campus, we would want to identify them immediately. Also, we need to ensure during class and outside of class that students do not have their earbuds. We prioritize making sure that students are paying attention in class and our fully engaged with each other at all times.

If you ever need to report a disciplinary or safety concern, please make sure to report any and all concerns to our administrative team. Our assistant principal, Mr. Robert Bonilla roberto.bonilla@sweetwaterschools.org oversees students with last names between A-L and Ms. Estephany Conlon Estephany.conlon@sweetwaterschools.org oversees all students between M-Z. Please visit this link to contact any other staff you wish to communicate with: https://bvm.sweetwaterschools.org/staff-directory-2/.

Thank you

Dr. Salazar

Parents, if you would like to verify the actual work that was submitted:

1. Ask your student to bring you their ipad.

2. Click on the assignment from the list in Jupiter grades

3. Select the assignment submitted and choose view.

*Please see the photos attached. The work does not disappear. It remains submitted even after the teacher views and evaluates the work.

BVM Spelling Bee

January 25, 2030

Google Class sf6rhh2 for info and updates

This year, our Crusaderbots, who always had teams place in the top ten at every competition, featured four teams. Below are the teams and their team members:

Team A: Spencer Macias, Nikolas Liang, Cas Cabarios, Emily Turnuspeed, Daniel Estill, and Sophia Peeples. This team earned the SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD! Congratulations!

Team B: Marley Zumaya, Joseph Sevilla, Niko Zarkos, Caleb Mack, Ava Bryant. This team reached the Semi-Finals. Congratulations!

Team C: Sydney Shatwell, Diego Macias, Mikhayla Amio, Xavier Robinson, Leo Neo Nguyen, Andrea Lopez, Issac Khuong, Max Sanchez-Losada. This team won the AMAZE AWARD! Congratulations!

Team D: Eillie Lin, Logan Downey, David Hurtado, Neveah Ghazee, Ivan Leeper, Leonardo Gonzalez. This team won the CREATE AWARD. Congratulations!

We are grateful to have such a robust and growing program! Thank you so much to our Robotics advisor, Mr. Dougherty and his unwavering dedication to our program, our awesome students who continue making our school look great and have been fierce competitors, their parents who have shown endless dedication at 4 - 8 hour Saturday events often providing food and refreshments, and of course our generous donors that included (this year) Mr. Macias donating $5,000 among others.

We not only commend our winning team: Ms. Bauer, Mr. Dougherty, Mr. Bonilla, Mr. Quijas, Mr. Kennedy, Ms. Hartwell, and Mr. Santos, but we want to thank our entire staff for their collaborative spirit and their overall great attitude! We also want to thank Assistant Principal, Mr. Bonilla, who coordinated and planned this event, and we want to thank our other Assistant Principal, Ms. Conlon, who not only competed but provided orange slices, water, and other delicious snacks!

Before our Over-the-Line-Tournament, our staff received professional development on the International Baccalaureate Program (which we will be applying for candidacy in 23-24), Rigor in the Classroom (as we continue to reflect on and develop our instructional practices), and how to identify Anxiety in our students in the classroom setting.