Dear AUSD Community,

As we move into the second month of the school year, I hope you and your children are settling into the “routine” of school. Most schools have completed their Back-to-School Nights (just one more to go!) and they were a rousing success. It’s always impressive to see the hard work and preparation that our teachers, administrators, and staff put in to ensure a smooth opening of school and to keep the lines of communication open.

One thing that most of our schools emphasize at Back-to-School Night is the importance of the home-school partnership, which plays a vital role in shaping your child’s educational experience. Your involvement is invaluable and we encourage you to volunteer if you are able and to join your school's Parent-Teacher Association (PTA). Our high schools have Parent-Teacher-Student Associations (PTSA) with our students taking on leadership roles in activities and fundraisers. PTA/PTSA is a fantastic way to connect with other parents, share ideas, and contribute to the positive development of our school community. Later in this newsletter, you will see information about joining PTA/PTSA and getting more involved. We currently have two elementary schools without a PTA, but we would love to bring PTA back to both campuses. If you are interested in taking on a leadership role and helping to bring back PTA to Granada and Repetto Schools, please reach out to the principal or AP for more information.

In closing, I wanted to share a few thoughts about the recent wildfires that devastated Lahaini, Maui. As Southern California residents, we are fortunate to have relatively easy access to Hawaii. Many of us have enjoyed vacations there or have family or friends who call Hawaii home and have been personally affected by this tragedy. There are many worthy organizations helping the residents and businesses of Lahaina. The County of Maui has created this website with verified information about ways to provide support, donations, and assistance for those affected by the fires: www.MauiNuiStrong.info.

Warmest regards,

Denise R. Jaramillo, Ed.D.

Superintendent

• OPENING FEATURED EVENT: South Korean Educators Visit AUSD Schools
  

• August 29th Board Meeting Items
• - Staff Report: 2016 General Obligation Bonds - Second Series Issuance

• - Communication Item: Recognition of San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments, Regional Food Recovery Program
• Educational Services
• - LCAP Parent Advisory Committee (PAC) Meeting
  
• - College & Career Center Workshop
  
• - Alternative Income Form (AIF)
• - Technology News
• Student Support Services
  
• - Community Check-In: Library Card Day
• - SSS Community Conversations
• - Hazel Health Telehealth Mental Health Services
• - Medi-Cal Redetermination
  
• Facilities and Construction
• - Facilities Updates
• - Construction Updates
  
• SMALL SPOTLIGHTS (News and Information from Around AUSD)
• Food & Nutrition Services: Cafeteria Menus
• - Central Production Kitchen 10-Year Anniversary
• Parent Resources: Community Offerings & News
• - Parent-Teacher Association (PTA)
  
• - Parent Academy

• Scholarship Opportunities
• Non-Profit Partner Organizations (AEF, ALA, AAA)
• News from AEF
• News from ALA
  

• Human Resources
• - Game Changers
• - Employment Opportunities

• AUSD Calendar
  
• - Upcoming Events and Important Dates
• - High School Athletics Calendars
• CLOSING FEATURED EVENT: AUSD Back-To-School Nights
  

• Publicity Requests
• AUSD Featured in Local Papers
• Alhambra USD YouTube Channel
• - FEATURED VIDEOS: Welcome Back, Granada Lions!
  
• AUSD Website & Social Media - Stay Connected with AUSD!
  
• "AUSD Connection" Archive

Throughout the newsletter, please CLICK ON IMAGES AND HEADLINES to access additional information, embedded links, and larger versions of the photographs/graphics.

AUSD is excited to announce an international partnership we have started with educators from South Korea. We started this relationship with Alhambra High School students who participated in an amazing cultural exchange, which we will soon expand to other schools.

We are now doing something similar with our teachers. In August, over 40 teachers from South Korea visited AUSD classrooms to begin a cross-cultural educator adventure. The guest teachers visited classrooms for several days and taught lessons to foster cultural understanding and provide enriching learning experiences. We’ve included a few photos to highlight their visit. In the future, AUSD hopes to send some of our teachers to South Korea to visit their schools, teach lessons, and experience South Korean culture. We look forward to sharing updates in the future as we embark on this exciting partnership and opportunity to learn about education from a more global perspective.

Although the slide deck gives you an overview and basic information on this topic, we encourage you to attend our BOARD MEETINGS and listen to the detailed staff reports as they are presented to the Board. Click on the image below to access a PDF of the presentation's slide deck.

To read more about how SGVCOG has supported the ATA Food Pantry, please click HERE.

Please join us at our September 11th LCAP Meeting. All parents are welcome and encouraged to attend. See the flyer below for details and Zoom link. The LCAP is a tool to help AUSD set goals, plans and actions to improve the welfare of our students, staff, and community. Click HERE to access the LCAP website for resources to help illustrate AUSD's implementation of the LCAP.

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Help ensure that Alhambra Unified School District receives the maximum amount of federal funds for our schools. The collection of household income is a necessary step to receive millions of dollars in federal funds for the school that your child attends. REMINDER: ALL PARENTS ARE REQUIRED TO RESPOND TO THE ALTERNATE INCOME FORM (AIF) survey in order to gain access to other pages of Parent Portal. Click HERE for AUSD AIF Directions.

Los Angeles County of Education (LACOE) is working collaboratively with the County of Los Angeles encouraging families that are eligible sign up for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). The ACP helps ensure that income-eligible households can afford home internet services that are essential for school, work, healthcare services, and more by providing a discount of up to $30 a month. Click HERE to apply online or print out a mail-in application.

Student Devise Care Best Practices: We'd like to remind our students to make sure to take good care of their Chromebooks, as they are an essential tool for learning.

Please join Student Support Services Superheroes at their next Community Check-in on Saturday, September 16th from 11:00am-1:00pm. Staff will be at three locations across the community: Alhambra Civic Center Library, Monterey Park Bruggemeyer Library, and Rosemead Library. Click HERE to access the flyer.

The Community Empowerment Team from AUSD’s Student Support Services Division would like to invite you to a 2023-24 SSS Community Conversations Event. Join us for an hour of powerful conversation surrounding student health and wellness and the impact they have on your child’s achievement. This event will take place at San Gabriel High School on Friday, September 8th from 8:30 am to 9:30 am. Click Here to register. We hope to see you there. (Photo shown was taken at the SSS Community Conversation at Ramona School).

We continue to partner with Hazel Health to provide telehealth mental health services for AUSD students. Telehealth mental health services are available at home for any Alhambra Unified School District student. We are also rolling out availability on our school campuses. Parents can reach out directly to Hazel to sign the e-consent and to arrange for services for your child. Get more information and/or sign up at: my.hazel.co/alhambrausd. This service is offered at NO COST to you. (Hazel will still need to collect your insurance information and/or verify your uninsured status, but you will not be billed.)

During the pandemic, the federal government waived the annual requirement for states to annually verify eligibility for Medi-Cal, a process known as redetermination. Because of that flexibility, millions of Medi-Cal members maintained their coverage. With the pandemic entering a new phase, the state of California has made this requirement mandatory again on April 1, 2023. Health Net and L.A. Care Health Plan strongly urge all Medi-Cal members to take steps to help families keep their Medi-Cal coverage by updating all contact information, report changes in household and answer all requests for information from the county office. Members can visit BenefitsCal.com to learn more, update their information, or enroll in Medi-Cal.

The District's Facilities Services Maintenance team has completed remodeling projects at Mark Keppel and San Gabriel High Schools.

Brightwood School Modernization Project is on schedule with ongoing site improvements. Currently, the roof of Building F has been removed in preparation for Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) upgrades and seismic enhancements.

HVAC Equipment and control upgrades at Fremont, Garfield, Granada, Northrup, Park, and Repetto Schools have been completed. Repetto School still has DSA work in progress in the Cafeteria.

LITTLE BITS OF GOOD NEWS & INFORMATION FROM AROUND THE DISTRICT

Ten years ago, AUSD centralized school meal production and warehousing in order to provide more standardized and efficient service to our students. Additionally, it created more job opportunities in the Food & Nutrition Services department. This past week, we are celebrated a new milestone: the 10-year anniversary of the grand opening of our Central Production Kitchen!

Parent-Teacher Associations (PTAs) play a vital role in fostering a caring and successful school environment. We encourage all staff members, parents/guardians, and other family members to get involved in your site PTA. AUSD currently has 14 schools with active PTAs. To join one, please visit: https://jointotem.com and select the school you would like to support.

In conjunction with Asian Youth Center, we are excited to offer our 2nd Annual Parent Education Academy to the AUSD community. The classes are FREE, and will include dinner and childcare. Courses will be held weekly in the AHS Dream Center beginning the week of September 21 from 5:00pm to 8:00pm. (Exact day of the week is still TBD, but probably Wednesday or Thursday.) Translation will be available in Chinese, Spanish and Vietnamese. Click HERE to register.

The Alhambra Educational Foundation (AEF) has several fun and enjoyable events coming up. Each event is also a fundraiser and helps to support important programs for elementary and high school students in AUSD. Please attend these events and help AEF to improve the lives of our students and community.

Nominations for the 2023-24 AUSD Game Changers is now open. Want to reward an extra-special AUSD employee? Nominate a deserving certificated or classified manager to be a Game Changer HERE.

Join the AUSD Team! Please click HERE for full-and part-time positions. We have competitive salaries and excellent benefits! AUSD posts all job opportunities at EdJoin.com/alhambrausd. Make sure to check back often.

https://www.ausd.us/apps/events/

• September 4: Holiday: Labor Day (All AUSD offices and schools are closed)
  
• September 8: SSS Community Conversations at SGHS 8:30am-9:30am (Flyer)
• September 10: AUSD Booth at Alhambra Farmers Market 9:00am-11:00am
  
• September 11: LCAP Meeting 6:45pm-8:00pm (Zoom Link, Flyer)
• September 16: SSS Community Check-In: Library Card Day 11:00am-1:00pm (Flyer)
• September 16: AEF 17th Annual Service to Education Dinner & Gala 6:00pm (Flyer)
• September 17: AUSD Booth at Alhambra Farmers Market/Fiesta Alhambra 9:00am-11:00am
• September 19: Board of Education Meeting (Agendas & Minutes)
• September 21: AHS Back-To-School Night 5:30pm-8:00pm
• September 22: "AUSD Connection" Newsletter Emailed to Parents & Staff
• September 24: AUSD Booth at Alhambra Farmers Market 9:00am-11:00am
• September 30: AEF 18th Annual Shopping Extravaganza 9:00am-9:00pm (Flyer)
• September 30: ALA Noche de Loteria 6:00pm-8:00pm (Flyer)
• October 1: AUSD Booth at Alhambra Farmers Market 9:00am-11:00am
• October 3: Board of Education Meeting (Agendas & Minutes)
  
• October 4: 16th Annual College Fair, SGHS 6:30pm (Flyer)
• October 6: "AUSD Connection" Newsletter Emailed to Parents & Staff

Click on the high school logo to access their current athletic calendars.

There was an amazing turnout of parents as teachers presented wonderful presentations at this year's Back-to-School Nights across AUSD. THANK YOU to the schools that provided photos of their successful evenings. We have just one more Back-to-School night left. The last Back-to-School Night is for Alhambra High School, and will be on September 21st, beginning at 5:30pm.

All Back-to-School Nights are special, but the one for our LIFT (Learning Independence for Transition) program was EXTRA special because it signaled the end of the two separate campuses of LIFT North and LIFT South. Both LIFT programs are now united under the same roof at their Marengo campus (the former home of Century High School). In addition to the traditional Back-to-School Night class presentations, LIFT staff, students, and families celebrated with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, dinner together, and fun activities like swinging at a piñata (created by one of LIFT's many micro-businesses).

Click on the masthead images below to view digital versions of the current issues. AUSD students, staff members, and programs are heavily featured in both papers.

Thank you to Granada School intervention teacher Harvey Chin for creating this wonderful video commemorating the start of the 2023-24 school year. You can access the video below or by clicking HERE.

In order to reduce the number of Blackboard-Connect messages you receive from the District, many of our initial notifications and announcements will now come through this newsletter. Fewer reminders will be sent via Blackboard, so please follow/like us on social media if you want our notifications/reminders to show up on your timeline.

CONTACT US:

Website: www.ausd.us
Address: 1515 West Mission Road, Alhambra, CA, USA
Email: AlhambraUSD@ausd.us

Phone: (626) 943-3000

Facebook: @AlhambraUSD
Instagram: @AlhambraUSD

Twitter/X: @AlhambraUSD

YouTube: @AlhambraUSD