News from the OPA Central Office

Contributions to future newsletters are always welcome, please send stories you feel are worth sharing with the OPA community, to communications@opaschools.org.

Ms. Trish Luckeroth, Director of Student Services and Accountability, retired on October 3, 2024.

"Over the past three years, I have cherished the opportunity to support students and staff across all three OPA schools. I will deeply miss the relationships I've built with my colleagues and the wonderful students and families I've had the pleasure to work with. However, I am excited to explore new passions and pursuits in this next chapter of my life. I was drawn to OPA because of its commitment to recognizing every student as gifted and unique, and I will always hold the OPA family close to my heart."

Ms. Luckeroth had a distinguished career in public education spanning over 30 years. She served as a Southern California Regional Director, Director of Guidance and Student Services, Director of Curriculum and Instruction, and a founding Principal. before joining OPA as the Director of Student Services and Accountability. She had a tremendous impact on OPA during her tenure and will be greatly missed by students, families, and colleagues. We wish her a happy retirement!

Be prepared and receive critical information!

AlertOC is a mass notification system designed to keep Orange County, California residents, and businesses informed of emergencies that may require immediate life-saving actions. By registering with AlertOC, time-sensitive voice messages from the County or City in which you live or work may be sent via text, email, landline, and mobile phone numbers.

Calm Corners are quiet, safe spaces in a classroom where students can regulate their emotions and calm down. Many classrooms at OPA have calm corners where students can do quiet activities such as reading or drawing when they choose to spend time in a quiet space. Calm corners have been shown to help students develop mindfulness skills and increase their self-awareness, leading to greater emotional intelligence.

Parenting OC magazine recently named OPA as the Best Charter School in Orange County!

Thank you to our OPA parents and community for all your votes and for making OPA the school of choice for so many families. We appreciate you!

OPA recently completed a three-year implementation of Write From the Beginning. Write From the Beginning is a developmental curriculum that builds on the power of Thinking Maps to outline and deepen thinking as students respond to prompts in each domain of writing (Narrative, Expository/Informative, or responding to text). Write From the Beginning helps to establish a schoolwide focus on effective writing across all grade levels and content areas.

Thinking Maps, found in all OPA classrooms, are a set of 8 visual patterns used by teachers to build critical thinking, comprehension, and communication skills necessary for academic success in every domain. For examples of Thinking Maps, click the image.

Date: Tuesday, October 22, 2024

Time: 5:30 - 7:00 P.M.

Location: Saddleback Valley/Middle School Honour Hall

The cyber safety seminar for parents is a 90-minute, engaging, and eye-opening presentation about what is really going on in our children's digital world. The seminar will prepare parents to effectively supervise their children on social media sites, protect them from online threats, and bring technological balance back to homes. The presentation is taught by law enforcement officers and educators who have extensive experience working with children and who are also parents.

Registration is requested so we can plan accordingly. Click the image to be routed to the registration page.

Congratulations to OPA-SV and OPA-SOC on receiving recognition for the successful implementation of Positive Behavior Interventions and Support (PBIS)! OPA-SV received recognition at the Platinum level and SOC at the Gold level.

PBIS is a multitiered framework designed to teach children appropriate behavior and provide support to sustain that behavior. It helps create more safe and effective schools while helping students feel valued and supported.

Way to go SOC and SV!!

Have you used the shiny new crosswalk at the Middle School? Located on Dune Mear Drive, it provides additional crossing options for both Middle School and Saddleback Valley students. Give it a try!