SLVUSD Charter News

Hello Charter families!

SLV Charter Logo Vote:

Exciting news! Now that we have our new mascot, we need a new logo! We want YOU to help us decide! After thoughtful discussions and creative brainstorming, our student body has narrowed down the choices to a short list of 8 finalists (The initial goal was to have 5, but we had a 3-way tie).

Now it's time for our students, parents, teachers, and community members to cast their votes for the final design!

Our new logo will represent the spirit, values, and energy of our school for years to come! It will be used to create new school swag (t-shirts, sweaters, etc.) and will be used on all official school communication. Your voice matters in this important decision, so take a moment to click here and review the options and vote for your favorite.

Voting is open until Thursday, May 22nd.

Thank you for being part of this exciting milestone in our school's history!

Chromebook return

Please read this info if you have a chromebook checked out from Charter this year.

Please read further for some important Charter updates and announcements. Remember to click here to add our Website Calendar to your google calendars to see all Charter events! Your child's teacher will have shared their specific program calendar as well.

Have a wonderful week!

Kerry

kleroux@slvusd.org

T. 831-335-0932

Welcome to Rachelle Kenny, who will be joining us as our 50% part time Resource Specialist next school year - we are so excited to have her join the Charter team. Here she is in her own words:

"Our family moved to SLV 9 years ago from the hustle and bustle of the San Francisco Peninsula, where I was born and raised. We feel so fortunate to have landed here and to raise our two kiddos in these beautiful mountains. Before “mom” life I was a Special Education teacher (RSP) and have worked with 1st-10th graders. The bulk of my teaching, however, was done with middle and high school students. I’ve been fortunate to have opportunities to provide both dedicated pull-out and push-in programs, design curriculum, develop and implement staff training, as well as participate in child-find strategies that culminated in running an after school academic support program. In most recent years I have been homeschooling our daughter, which has tested me in many ways while also helping to grow. Many of you have seen me in your classrooms as a parent volunteer, since both of our kiddos have attended charter programs. In my free time I love tending to my summer garden, writing, sewing, hiking and reading. I currently find myself ready to spread my own wings and jump back into working outside our home. I’m looking forward to immersing myself in everything charter and having this opportunity to give back to our amazing community."

Hello SLV Charter Community!

This year the Redwood Mountain Faire is on May 31st and June 1st at Roaring Camp in Felton. This local music festival is a fun way to make money for your child's Charter program! SLV Charter School has been invited back as a beneficiary because of our volunteers' ability to show up and be dependable. We have collectively raised thousands of dollars for our students each year by taking volunteer shifts at the faire. This annual event is run by local nonprofit volunteers and the proceeds are distributed to beneficiaries in our SLV community like our school! So sign up, spend a few hours helping out a local festival, and watch our students' field trips and special events get funded. It's win win win! The musical line up this year looks excellent, too! Check it out at their website: https://www.redwoodmountainfaire.com/

The festival organizers are streamlining their operations a little this year in order to deal with the current economy. So we were not assigned as many shifts on the alcohol sales/pourer teams as in recent years, and we have been offered some new roles to fill...

... but remember that every volunteer at the Faire gets to hear the same awesome music and earns the same exact amount of funds for your student's program!

We have a total of 42 shifts this year, split between three types of jobs —

- Trash/Recycling/Compost Monitors

- Selling Band Merchandise

- Volunteer "Floaters"

Here are the details on the three types of jobs available and the links to their sign up pages:

1) Trash/Recycling/Compost Monitors

Task description: Walk around the grounds and reline trash and recycling containers with fresh plastic bags. (Bags provided. Other volunteers will pick up and take away the full bags.) Help fairgoers figure out where to put their items in the bins. Sometimes pick up trash off the ground with trash grabbers and bins.

This may not be such a glamorous role, but it is a super important one! The county has gotten more strict with their trash separation requirements for festivals, and of course, its a chance to help protect the environment! This job is also a good fit for our family community. Shifts are designed for students to volunteer together with their parent/guardian, and thus will count as two shifts! (We need to fill 24 shifts.)

Recycling & Trash Management Sign-ups: https://slvrmf.ivolunteer.com/2025recylingandtrash_25#

2) Sales at the Band Merch Tent

Task Description: Bands will be arriving at all different times dropping off their merchandise to sell. You will display and sell their merch. They also return to collect their merch and money at all different times. We are responsible for the cash and merch and only our volunteers are cleared to be in the booth hanging out. If a band member or their employee wants to stay and sell their own merch using their own change, that is fine. Only Charter volunteers should have their hands in the Charter cashbox. This is a fun job and close to the music. You may want to bring ear plugs. Adults over 21 only. (We need to fill 12 shifts.)

Band Merchandise Booth Sign-Ups: https://slvrmf.ivolunteer.com/2025bandmerch_25#

3) Volunteer "Floaters"

Task Description: These shifts are for flexible volunteers who will fill in where needed at various booths. Volunteers may be assigned to the alcohol sales booths, so you must be over 21 and feel comfortable with the sales devices (Square readers, with onsite training), giving change, and/or may serve alcohol if needed. These will be busy and fun shifts, where the action is. (We need to fill 7 shifts).

Volunteer "Floater" Sign-Ups: https://slvrmf.ivolunteer.com/2025volfloater_25#

PLEASE NOTE: When signing up volunteers will receive an email to confirm your shift. You will need to CLICK A LINK on that confirmation within a certain time frame, or the shift will be put back into the system for signing up!

It is critical that we get all our shifts filled so we are invited back next year for this fun fundraising opportunity! So ask your family to work a shift if they can. For the Band Merch and Volunteer Floater shifts, we ask that they are filled by adults only. Your kids can check in with you from time to time, but cannot hang out at the booths during your shift.

When signing up for your shift please put your program's initials in parentheses by your first name. e.g. "Violet Awesome (HW)" This way we can keep track of where to send the money earned when we get paid. Please use one of these abbreviations after your name:

(QHHS) for Quail Hollow Homeschool

(HW) for Heartwood Homeschool

(QHIA) for Quail Hollow Integrated Arts

(NA) for Nature Academy

(CRMS) for Coast Redwood Middle School

(CRHS) for Coast Redwood High School

All shifts are typically 4 hours, and you can attend the faire and park for free that day. Just check in at the Volunteer Booth when you arrive to get your wristband. Plan to arrive on time to the booth for your shift.

Thank you for participating! I will be sending out more specific details to volunteers as the dates get closer. Please share this email with incoming families for next year as well. Remember to help promote the faire on social media and with your friends. The better the faire does, the more funds will be raised for all the local nonprofits.

Our Charter's beloved Julie Chapin is handing me the baton as the RMF Volunteer Coordinator for the Charter this year. Feel free to email me directly with any questions (melissaRsniffen@gmail.com).

Looking forward to a fun Redwood Mountain Faire!

~ Melissa Sniffen, SLV Charter's RMF Volunteer Coordinator

You will find all these events and more on the google calendar shared by your Program teacher and on the Website calendar.

May is Asian American, Jewish American, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, and also Mental Health Awareness Month!

Tues, May 13

- 11:30am Lego in the Library

- Gaga ball pit reserved at lunch for Elementary

Wed, May 14

- GSA meets weekly in room 19 at lunch

Thurs, May 15

- Wild, Wacky Wonky Day! (Last Spirit Dress Up day of the year)

- Student Council meets at 8am in the Library - last meeting of the year!

- Chess Club meets at 12:15 under the shade structure

Mon, May 19

- 12:30pm Fire Dept demo - Nature Academy

Tues, May 20

- 9:30am Principal's Coffee and Parent Advisory Committee (last of the year)

- 11:30am Lego in the Library

- Gaga ball pit reserved at lunch for Elementary

- 9:15am - Fire Dept demo - TK - 1st

- 10:30am - Fire Dept demo - 2nd and 3rd

- 11am - Fire Dept demo - CRMS, 4th and 5th grade

- 12:30pm Fire Dept demo - CRHS, QHIA

- 1:45 - Fire hose cool down and popsicle party on the field

Wed, May 21 - GSA meets weekly in room 19 at lunch

- District Music Festival at Roaring Camp.- 4pm

Thurs, May 22

- Last Enrichment day for homeschool programs

• Heartwood Homeschool Year End Celebration - 9am
• Quail Hollow Homeschool 5th Grade Celebration - 10am

Fri, May 23

- 2:15pm WISE penpal elder/penpal gathering after school

For planning further ahead:

Mon, May 26 - Memorial Day - NO SCHOOL

Tues - Fri, May 27 - 30 - Nature Academy overnight excursion

Wed, May 28 - QHIA 8th Grade Advancement - 9:30am

Fri, May 30 - Joint Charter/SLVMS 8th Grade Dance - 6pm

Sat, May 31 - Redwood Mountain Fair at Roaring Camp

Tues, June 3 - CRMS 8th Grade Advancement - 10:30am

- Month 12 paperwork due for homeschools

Wed, June 4 - Nature Academy 8th Grade Advancement - 12:30pm

- Volunteer Tea - 1:30pm

Thurs, June 5 - CRHS Graduation - 10am

- Last day of school!

Thurs, Aug 7

- First day of school 2025-26

Fri, Aug 8

- All-Charter Homeschool Beach Day

- Nature Academy Beach Day

Tues, Aug 26

- Homeschool programs - first day of school (assessments)

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Nature Academy parents, don't forget to check the Nature Academy Google Calendar to be sure which bell schedule we're on each day! (You can also click here if you are not a Google Calendar subscriber)

• A1 Mondays are 1:19pm dismissal at Nature Academy
• A2 Mondays are 2:05pm dismissal at Nature Academy
• A3 Mondays are 3:00pm dismissal at the tricampus
• O days are Tues/Thurs, dismissal 2:05pm;
• E days are Wed/Fri, dismissal 2:20pm (Wed) and 2:05 (Fri);
• Minimum Days dismiss at 12:05;
• Excursion Days - times are individual to the excursion, but typically 3pm dismissal

Hello Charter students!

My name is Zasha Sterling, and I am an 8th grader at QHIA, working on an art project called Scrapbook. I’m hoping you can help me with it!

Every week for five weeks, starting Monday, April 21, I will email anyone who signs up for this project an Artist’s Prompt. There will be 5 prompts in total, and you will have a week to complete each prompt by sending me a piece of art work. Prompts will only be released the week of, and not in advance, so you won’t know what’s coming until you receive the email prompt.

You can use any medium: clay, woodcarving, spoken word art, crafting, digital art, painting, drawing, you name it!

After you’re done, you will send me your creation in the form of either a picture you’ve taken, a PNG file, or a digital link to your art. My email address is 29zsterling@slvusd.org. l will put each piece into a slideshow that will be shared with all of SLV Charter.

This is not a competition; it’s a collaboration. No-one will be judged or ridiculed (made fun of) for what they draw or make. This project is for anyone who likes to draw or do art, no matter your age or experience.

At the end of the 5 weeks, before we go on summer break, we will have a giant digital scrapbook containing everyone’s art!

My goal is to create a safe space for artists of all ages and skill levels to share their work, and I highly encourage anyone who likes to draw to sign up.

There is currently a sign up sheet in the Library at lunch. You will need to give your full name, your age, teacher’s name, and your school email address. Please note that your name will be put next to your art in the Slideshow UNLESS you indicate on the sign up form that you wish to remain anonymous.

The prompts will be emailed to you on each successive Sunday night.

Note: You are not required to do all five prompts! You can sign up any time before Thursday of that week, to get the Sunday email.

From Superintendent Chris Schiermeyer: "Providing a safe place for students to learn and grow is one of the most important responsibilities of our school system. All San Lorenzo Valley Unified School District schools have a School Safety Plan in place. Drill procedures for emergencies and disasters are regularly practiced at each school.

Starting the 2024-2025 school year, we have changed our countywide codes for emergency drills in collaboration with law enforcement and the fire departments. Our new codes are as follows: Evacuation, Reverse Evacuation, Hall Check, and Lockdown. Please see the Standard Command Emergency Response Poster for more details on these types of drills that will be practiced at our school sites as required by law.

Along with school staff, your family plays a critical role in preventing and responding to school emergencies. The information posted on the Emergency Information website page is intended to provide parents/guardians with the steps you can take “before”, “during”, and “after” an emergency. Please note the emergency information has been revised to be in alignment with the newly adopted codes. Please take a moment to review this information."

SLV Charter will be starting our monthly/quarterly evacuation drills (elementary/secondary) shortly. Please be sure to sign in to get a visitor sticker if you're coming on campus so that if you're on site for a drill we can account for you. Please contact me if you have any questions!

3rd through 9th grade parents, please continue to encourage daily keyboarding practice with Touch Type Read Spell, the "award winning multi-sensory course that teaches typing, reading and spelling" aimed at students from elementary to high school. We are now requiring all students to spend a minimum of 1 hour a week or longer. This program license lasts until May of 2025, and after completion of all 24 levels* (approx. one year), your child should show a substantial improvement in keyboarding fluency. 24 levels over one year equates to 15 modules per week. If you did not receive your welcome email with login details, please contact your child's teacher or email me!

"Based on the average completion time, a student using TTRS for one hour per week should complete approximately 744 modules in a year. The main TTRS Course consists of 24 levels, with 31 modules in each level, totaling 744 modules. On average, students complete the entire course in about 12 months when dedicating one hour per week to the program.

It's important to note that individual progress may vary, and some learners might complete the course faster if they spend more than an hour per week on TTRS."

Parents of students in TK - 9th grade! Have you struggled when helping your child with Math? We are once again offering a once-monthly Thursday morning Math training for parents, presented by an awesome instructor from the Silicon Valley Math Initiative (SVMI). Please sign up here for one or all of the sessions on offer - they will build on one another over the course of the year. (Note there is a new tab for 2nd semester at the bottom of the spreadsheet.)

6th - 9th parents come from 9:15 - 10:15am

2nd - 5th parents come from 10:30 - 11:20am

TK - 1st parents come from 11:30 - 12:20pm

Remaining Dates: Apr 17, May 8

Parents can now sign out loaner Chromebooks through the library for their students to use at home, starting tomorrow, Tues 8/20 and every Tues-Thurs according to the times below:

Charter Library

Tues, Wed, Thurs

8:30-9:30am or 2:15-3pm

Students can’t sign out a Chromebook without a parent; it requires a parent's signature. If there’s a problem, parents can email Mabel at CHlibrary@slvusd.org to make arrangements.

Students should not be bringing a personal laptop to school unless it’s part of an IEP. All teachers have class sets of chromebooks for students to use if it's required as part of the lesson.

If your child is in 6 - 12th grade, your teacher most likely uses Schoology to record assignment and test scores.

How a parent logs into Schoology:

1. Get your parent access code from your teacher or administrator.
2. When you have your parent access code, go to app.schoology.com/register.php.
3. Click the “Parent” button below the “Instructor” and “Student” buttons” in the “Sign Up for Schoology” section.
4. Enter the access code you received, and click Continue.
5. Enter your name and email (not the student’s) and choose a password.

Refer to the Parent Schoology Handbook to learn more.

Attendance matters!

Our attendance rate improved last year - thank you for your ongoing partnership in supporting good attendance! Students need to participate consistently, whether it be in a homeschool program, where work completion counts as attendance, or in our classroom-based 5 day a week Nature Academy.

Students who are absent 10% or more in a school year are typically "less proficient in reading, writing and math than their peers with good attendance" (Source: CA Dept of Ed.)

Volunteer application hours - PLEASE NOTE: The Charter Office and SLVUSD Human Resources Office hours will process volunteer registrations at the following times:

Tuesdays from 7:00-11:00 am

Thursdays from 12:30-3:30 pm.

The Human Resources Office is located at 325 Marion Avenue, Ben Lomond, CA 95005.

All Charter parents are encouraged to register with the District as a volunteer and a field trip driver. (All parents are asked to drive on excursions...)

Please click here to access the required volunteer paperwork. Hard copy paperwork is also available at the Charter Office.

To use your personal vehicle to transport your own or other students, we will need updated driver information on file as well - please click here for the form.

Ø New Volunteer: You will be required to fill out the volunteer paperwork and obtain a signature from the principal. Once complete, please bring your signed paperwork to the Human Resources Office. You will be required to provide a current TB result. Also, all new volunteers will be required to be fingerprinted.

Ø Returning Volunteer: You will be required to provide current TB results (within the last 4 years). If you don't know whether your TB is current, check with the Charter office. If you are turning in updated TB info, you can bring it to the Charter office or directly to the Human Resources Office.

• All SLVUSD students are eligible to receive a free breakfast and lunch through the cafeteria. Breakfast can be picked up any time from 8:15am - 8:45am, no order needed.
• Lunch no longer needs to be ordered online. Our lunch lady will bring enough hot lunches for everyone who wants one, but should these run out we will have healthy cold alternatives available (salads, sandwiches, etc.)
• Meals are be served from our Multi-use Room in the central area of the campus
• Lunch times vary per program, but generally happen in the 11:50 - 12:30 window
• Elementary students will have lunch cards (kept in the MPR).
• Secondary students will need to key in their student ID on a keypad

Although a meal application is not necessary for your child to receive free meals during the 2024-2025 school year, households are asked to complete a meal application to ensure that your school receives accurate funding. As well, your child’s eligibility for free or reduced lunch could qualify you for additional outside services or benefits including Free/Reduced Bus passes, student fee waivers, P-EBT, discounted utilities, and more.

• Link to SLV Student Nutrition Services website

If your child takes the bus to or from school, please remember you will need to purchase a bus pass.

ALL Nature Academy students have to be registered to take bus transportation on A1 days to the tricampus. (No need to pay.) Registration form link.

Students at Coast Redwood High who need afternoon transportation to the tricampus for concurrent enrollment classes can take the TK bus that leaves the District Office at noon each day. They will not need to pay for a bus pass. However, they still need to register. Rides will be denied if students are not registered.)

Please click here to access the Transportation web page for any other information you need.

The Charter Office staff ask families to call in before 1:50pm if they have a message for their student about changing that day's bus transportation arrangement.

If you’re interested in following our Instagram account, showcasing news and events from SLVUSD Charter School, here is the info:

“I'm on Instagram as slvcharterschool. Install the app to follow my photos and videos, or click this link: https://instagram.com/slvcharterschool?igshid=MzMyNGUyNmU2YQ==

(Please know that we will be very careful not to post pictures of students on the "Do not Photograph" list.)

And if you haven't started following the District Instagram accoount, look for "slvusd" and click "Follow!"

Charter students are eligible to try out to play in all sports at SLVMS and SLVHS. Please keep an eye on the respective websites so your child is aware of the tryout schedule for each season's sports. We will also share that information as we receive it.

Athletes, remember that eligibility rules require you to carry at least a 2.0 GPA (C average) to remain eligible to complete in the middle school athletics practices and competitions.

Parents, please read this updated Spectator Code of Conduct from SLVMS Principal Shanna Urbancic.

Please click here for a link to the Panther Athletics website (SLVMS)

Click here for a list of the tryout dates for 24-25

Fall Sports (August - October)

Boys Soccer

Girls Basketball

Cross Country (No cuts)

Winter I Sports (October - December)

Girls Soccer

Boys Basketball

Winter II Sports (January-March)

Girls Volleyball

Wrestling (no cuts)

Flag Football

Spring Sports (March- May)

Girls Softball
Boys Volleyball
Golf

Track and Field (no cuts)

Please click here for a link to the Cougar Athletics website (SLVHS).

Did you know that our district maintains a "Community Opportunities" website? This is for parents / students to receive information about current local events and opportunities for adults and/or children.

Note: The San Lorenzo Valley Unified School District does not sponsor or endorse any of the organizations or events that are located here. They are non-school sponsored events and are not being promoted by the school district. All postings are provided as a courtesy to the parents/students.

Homework Help at the Public Library

Bring your assignments to one of the FREE drop-in Homework Help sessions at one of the following public libraries.

Tuesdays from 3:00p to 5:00p.

Downtown, 224 Church St., Santa Cruz

Felton, 6121 Gushee St.

Capitola, 2005 Wharf Rd.

La Selva Beach, 316 Estrella Ave.

Open to all students up to grade 12.

Call 831.427.7713 for more information.

And also from the Santa Cruz Public Libraries:

SCPL are particularly excited to offer a new resource from Brainfuse called CollegeNow, which offers support with college applications, essays and more. This is in addition to HelpNow live tutoring.

Please click here for a press release containing comprehensive information on the many resources SCPL offers to all students. SCPL looks forward to welcoming your students to any of their 10 branches, Annex and Bookmobile during this new school year!

Guide to Resources for Families in SLV

Here's a handy one-pager listing various organizations and resources for families in the San Lorenzo Valley.

Mental Health resources

National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) - with a link to their March newseltter

Brightlife Kids, an organization that provides free online support in behavioral coaching for parents, caregivers and students aged 0 - 12.

Please click here for a link to a flier from the Community Action Board of Santa Cruz, containing a number of useful resources for families. CAB's mission is to "partner with the community to eliminate poverty and create social change through advocacy and social service. "

Triple P/First Five of Santa Cruz County offer ongoing parenting classes for parents of students of all ages. Please click here to see their workshop offerings.

Triple P also offers 1:1 sessions for parents who are needing intensive 10 week session and add-on sessions for people who are divorcing or separating (Family Transitions), for couples wanting to work on their relationship (Enhanced) and for people wanting to work on their strong emotions, like anger (Pathways). If interested in 1:1 sessions, please contact First 5 of Santa Cruz: https://www.first5scc.org/contact

Email: kleroux@slvusd.org
Website: charter.slvusd.org
Phone: (831) 336-5167