The Blazer Bulletin

Hello Trailblazers!

What a memorable and special week! I would like to extend our most enthusiastic appreciation for all of the incredible support during Teacher Appreciation Week. From notes written with care, to flowers, to treats galore, our teachers and staff certainly felt the love. Stone Ranch is home to some of the hardest working and most dedicated teachers and staff that I've ever seen. I know that it meant the world to them to receive your gratitude this week!

I also want to take a moment to recognize a change in the parent volunteer structure at Stone Ranch. On Thursday, May 8th, the PTA Association passed a vote to disband. This means that effective immediately, we now have one parent volunteer organization (The Stone Ranch Foundation). All previous programming is planned to continue under this new organization. We look forward to partnering together to continue supporting our Stone Ranch community. Read more about this transition below in the SRES Foundation section.

Lastly, I want to wish a very Happy Mother's Day to all the moms, stepmoms, grandmothers, and moms at heart.

Warmly,

Principal Heard

May 15: International Art Fair, 4:30-630pm

May 16: National Speech Pathologist Day

May 16: Community Gathering

May 16: Trading Post (Grades 3-5)

May 19: Trading Post (Grades TK-2)

May 21: Classified Staff Appreciation Day

May 23: VAPA Vision

Calling all incoming TK and Kindergarten parents. Stone Ranch is hosting an informational night on Wednesday, May 28th. See the attached flyer for details.

Hope to see you there!

Students are loving the opportunity to earn Blazer Bucks for demonstrating the RIDE qualities. Take a look at how Mr. D's 3rd grade class demonstrates RIDE!

As a reminder, the Trading Post is an opportunity for students to cash in their Blazer Bucks in exchange for cool prizes.

Each class has a 10 or 15 minute window of time to shop. It takes at least 4 adults in the store to help all of the students make it through in time.

We need your help to run the store! Please consider signing up for a volunteer spot at the upcoming Trading Post events at this link.

Our next Trading Post will open on May 16th for students in grades 3-5 and May 19th for students in grades TK-2.

Don't forget to return your library books it helps everyone enjoy them! Take a few minutes to look in all the usual (and unusual!) places: under your bed, on bookshelves, in your backpack, or even the car. Let’s get those books back home to the library where they belong. Thanks for being a responsible reader! 💙

We are beginning the process of planning for the 25-26 school year. Principal Heard will work closely with grade level teams and our Special Education department to thoughtfully develop class lists. We take great care to consider a multitude of factors when developing our class placements. Classes are balanced on several criteria including but not limited to academic performance, learning needs, social-emotional dynamics, and peer relationships.

As mentioned above, there are several factors that go into intentionally placing each student to find their best learning environment. Therefore, we do not take parent requests for class changes or teacher assignments. Parents will be notified of their child's new teacher when we return in August.

PUSD Enrollment is an online process. Enrolment packets are digital and can be completed using any computer, tablet, or smartphone with an internet connection. You can contact your assigned school of residence to schedule an appointment if you do not have access to a device/internet or if you need assistance with completing the online enrollment packet. Please visit the PUSD Enrollment page for directions and access to the online enrollment portal.

The window for New Student Enrollment is now open. New Student Enrollment is an online process. Packets are completed digitally using any computer, tablet, or smartphone with an internet connection. Please reach out to our front office if you do not have access to a device/internet or need assistance with completing the enrollment packet.

School starts August 13, 2025 for the 2025-2026 school year!

Transitional Kindergarten (TK) and Kindergarten Lottery Information

If a school reaches near capacity for TK or Kindergarten, a lottery may be needed to determine student placement. To be included in the lottery (if required), families must submit their new student enrollment packets between April 1, 2025, and April 9, 2025, by 11:59 p.m. Only students who enroll during this period will be eligible. If a lottery is necessary at our school, families will be notified. District conducts the lottery for each site.

The Fall 2025 ESS Interest Application opened last week on Tuesday, April 22. It will remain open through Friday, June 6. All interested families may apply at any time during this initial application window. There is no advantage or disadvantage to applying earlier or later within this period, as all applications will be processed simultaneously.

Parents are encouraged to wait patiently until their child's enrollment has been completed by the school site and they have received access to their ParentVUE account before attempting to use the ESS Application Management System.

Families who apply during the initial application window will be notified on June 13 whether their student has been offered a placement in the ESS program for the 2025–26 school year or if their student has been placed on the waitlist.

If you have any questions about ESS enrollment, please email enrollment-ess@powayusd.com.

As many of you know, this week, on May 8th, a vote was presented to the Association to disband the PTA. We had 76 members (parents and teachers) in attendance to have their voice heard on this very important topic. At the conclusion of this meeting, the vote to disband the PTA passed by an overwhelming majority, and became effective immediately.

Moving forward, the school will have one parent-led organization, the Stone Ranch Foundation, which will handle all of the fundraising and programming that we have all grown to love. As we say goodbye to the PTA, I want to both personally, and on behalf of the current PTA Board, acknowledge and thank the many PTA Board members that have served over the years at Stone Ranch, bringing to life these programs for our Stone Ranch kids. The countless hours of hardwork and dedication by these Board members are too numerous to count or to properly recognize.

Now, we look forward to unifying with the Foundation where these programs will continue for our students.

The Poway Unified School District (PUSD) invites you to participate in an important curriculum adoption process. Our district is in the process of selecting a California State-approved Reading Difficulties Risk Screener (RDRS)—a tool used to help identify students (in grades K-2) who may need additional support in learning to read.

We value your input! To learn more and share your feedback, please visit Poway Unified School District’s Curriculum Adoptions webpage.

Protecting personal information is a critical part of helping children build safe and responsible digital habits. Setting strong privacy controls on apps, devices, and accounts helps safeguard your child’s data and limits unwanted access. It is also important to talk with your child about why privacy matters—helping them understand how to manage their own settings and make thoughtful choices online. By staying informed and setting up privacy protections together, we can teach students to take ownership of their digital safety and build a foundation for lifelong responsible technology use.

Elementary Resource: What Are the Best Privacy Settings for My Kid's Apps and Devices?

Nondiscrimination Philosophy and Policy Statement

The Poway Unified School District (PUSD) is an equal opportunity employer/program and is committed to an active Nondiscrimination Program. PUSD prohibits discrimination, harassment, intimidation, and bullying based on actual or perceived race, color, ancestry, national origin, nationality, immigration status, ethnicity, ethnic group identification, age, religion, marital or parental status, physical or mental disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or gender expression or association with a person or a group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics. For more information, please contact: Title IX/Equity Compliance Officer, James Jimenez, Associate Superintendent of Personnel support Services, Poway Unified School District, 15250 Avenue of Science, San Diego, CA 92128, 1-858-521-2800, extension 2121, jjimenez@powayusd.com. For students, you may contact Title IX Coordinator/504 Coordinator Jamie Dayhoff, Director of Attendance and Discipline, Poway Unified School District, 1-858-521-2840, jdayhoff@powayusd.com.

Stone Ranch Mission: To create an environment where each and every child feels safe, valued, and inspired to be their authentic self.

Principal email: theard@powayusd.com

Website: stoneranch.powayusd.com

Location: 16150 4S Ranch Parkway, San Diego, CA 92127

Phone: 858-487-8474