Grizzly Community Update

Good afternoon Grizzlies,

Students, I hope you enjoyed your day off!

With so much going on with daily activities and social events, I personally found today a great time to slow down and focus on a couple important things that needed my attention. The March time frame is typically the season that we are focusing on finishing the school year strong while also planning for next school year. Students have been meeting with their counselors to review course selections, which helps us begin determining which classes and how many classes we will offer next year.

This time of year is also a time of school policy and procedure review. I had multiple discussions with parent, student, and teacher groups about the cell phone policy that our district is currently reviewing. With the state passing AB 3216, also known as the Phone-Free Schools Act, our district is required to establish a policy that limits student use of cell phones and personal electronic devices during the school day. It has been interesting to hear each groups thought. It is undeniable that we see the impact of cell phone use on our students everyday, and I believe we will develop a comprehensive plan that will help improve student engagement and help us develop a stronger school community.

Finally, CAASPP testing continues next week. Juniors, keep showing up for CAASPP testing. This testing is important as it is one of the major factors that describes the health of our school. If students don’t take it or do poorly, the state looks at us closely. Results also help us determine some of the courses that we offer. ELA CAASPP will be administered in English 11 classes 3/17-3/21. Keep up the great work Juniors.

Have a great weekend!

Respectfully,

Mr. Ball

The contest features two categories: an “Art in Any Medium” section inviting students to depict their favorite destination in Contra Costa County and their preferred mode of travel, and an “Engineering Design” challenge focused on envisioning a “Smart City” intersection that prioritizes safety through current or futuristic Intelligent Transportation Systems.

A $1,000 grand prize will be awarded to the top overall entry, both category winners will receive $500, and honorable mentions will earn gift cards.

More information, including submission guidelines and important dates, can be found in the contest details here: Art & Engineering Design Contest - Redefining Mobility Summit

One of the special things about our school district is the opportunities that we provide our students to participate in the arts! Here at Cal High our visual and performing arts programs are outstanding and we are so proud that so many students have found a safe and supportive space in our arts programs. Thank you to our Arts Educators for helping develop the skill and creativity of our Grizzlies!

Congressman DeSaulnier’s 2025 Congressional Art Competition is now open for submissions! The competition is open to all high school students living in California’s 10th Congressional District.

The winning artwork of our district’s competition will be displayed for one year in the U.S. Capitol and the winner will be invited to a special ceremony in Washington D.C. on June 11th. The exhibit in Washington will include the winning artwork from all participating districts around the country. The winning artwork will also be featured on House.gov’s Congressional Art Competition page.

Participants may submit one photograph or scan of their artwork to Kaylee.deland@mail.house.gov. Submissions must include the Student Release Form (attached here). The photograph of the artwork will be presented to a panel of judges who will view all artwork electronically. Congressman DeSaulnier’s office will be accepting submissions now through April 11th at 5 p.m. PST. More details including 2025 rules are available on the Congressman’s website.

I want to make a couple reminders. We are a closed campus, meaning students should not leave campus, including hanging out in the parking lot, during their school day. Closed campus also means that or any other food delivery service. Parents are allowed to drop food/items off for their students, but no delivery drivers. We are seeing an uptick in both students leaving campus and drivers delivering items. You will begin to see staff enforcing these rules more frequently.

Along with that we are getting into junior prom and senior ball season and we want all students to participate. In order to do so, students must be in good standing. One of the major barriers may be students with detention time. I encourage students with any detention time get that time taken care of during Monday detention times.

Our feeder pattern schools (elementary and middle schools) are conducting Family First Week, March 17-21. The goal of the week is to encourage families to spend time together and schools support that by not giving tests, homework, or assigning projects. Unfortunately for us at the high school level, based on many course's curricula we are not able to fully participate. I have asked our staff to consider what we can do to encourage families to connect.

This message on Family First week has been shared with our entire feeder pattern.

Iron Horse Middle School PTA is hosting a Multicultural Night during the week, which will be a great way to connect as a family.

The City of San Ramon Teen Council Ambassadors have put out a survey, and SRVUSD encourages all middle and high school students across the district to participate! The survey asks teens about their organizational skills in school, study habits, and academic life. Take the survey today.

Looking for volunteer hours this summer? SRVEF's Summer Imagineering Program is in need of high school students to serve as mentors in their STEAM classes. Week-long Imagineering classes are held from June 16th through July 18th with morning and afternoon sessions. They are in particular need of mentors for their July classes. You can learn more about becoming a mentor, and if you are interested, please apply here.

The American Legion Mount Diablo Region Post 246 needs student volunteer support.

They could use a group of students for set up around 8:00 am and a second group for the take down at 4:30 pm. There is some physical things like set up/take down of tables and pop up tents.

There are other ways to support during the event between 11:00 and 5:00 pm depending upon how many volunteers we can muster.

Students interested in volunteering for the VMB 100th Anniversary, please contact Mr. Ball as soon as possible.

Dear Parent/Guardian/Caregiver of CHS Juniors and Seniors,

The attached letter serves as a reminder that, California High School is administering the ELA and

Math portions of the CAASPP exam to all 11th Grade students. The MATH CAASPP will be administered in US History classes 3/6 - 3/11 and the ELA CAASPP will be administered in English 11 classes 3/17-3/21 .

There is also a Science portion of the exam (called CAST) for 12th graders who will take the exam in Econ/Gov classes 3/27-3/28.

The SRV Council of PTAs’ Exceptional Education Committee is hosting an in-person, interactive workshop that will help individuals gain a better understanding of and empathy for children and adults with dyslexia. Leaders of Decoding Dyslexia CA’s Tri-Valley Dyslexia Support Group will facilitate the experience. The event is designed for adults, but families with older children may wish to participate together. Guests from other school districts are welcome! See their flyer for more information.

WHEN: Thursday, March 20, 2025, from 6:00-7:30 pm

WHERE: SRVUSD Boardrooms

REGISTER HERE

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Our Athletic Boosters hosted their annual fundraiser with the "One night in Las Vegas" theme. They had a great turn out and we are so happy to have so many families committed to supporting our student-athletes.

Congratulations to 10th grader Ved Ikkurti for being selected as our Cal High Danville San Ramon Rotary Club Student of the Month. Ved was nominated by Ms. Faiq for the the positive energy that he brings to our campus along with his willingness to help others.

Cal High Leadership kicked off their 3 v. 3 March Madness basketball tournament this week. The tournament was open to all students with 60+ teams participating over the next few weeks!

Students in Mr. Richman's AP biology class conducted a random "mating" game to determine what random series of biological gene matches can occur.

Students in our AVID 9 class got a really good lesson from our teacher librarians as they begin their personalized college searches.

Our library is putting on a March Madness tournament of their own! Students are able to check out the book matchups throughout the month to determine the top read for the school!

Friday, March 14: No School - Floating Teacher Workday

Monday, March 17-Friday, March 21: English Language Arts CAASPP (English Classes)

Wednesday, March 19: Area Band Festival, 7 pm Event Center

Saturday, March 22: Junior Prom, Oakland Scottish Rite Center, 7-10 pm

Thursday, March 27-Friday, March 28: CAST Testing (Econ/Government Classes)

Monday, April 7-Friday, April 11: No School - Spring Break

Monday-Friday, April 21-25: SPIRIT WEEK

Monday-Wednesday, April 21-23: WASC Site Visit

Wednesday-Friday, April 23-25: Spring Musical

Friday, April 25: Spring Rally

Saturday, April 26: Senior Ball, 7-10 pm

He/Him

Principal

California High School

Email: dball@srvusd.net
Website: https://chs.srvusd.net
Location: California High School, Broadmoor Drive, San Ramon, CA, USA
Phone: 925-803-3210