Orenda Superintendent Newsletter

BELONGING - INDEPENDENCE - MASTERY - GENEROSITY

Students across the nation, including Orenda Charter School students, celebrated Red Ribbon Week October 24-27 with activities promoting the 2022 theme, "Celebrate Life. Live Drug Free".

The US Department of Education and Department of Justice has development a guide for parents on a variety of substances and how to talk with your child. A Parent's Guide to Growing Up Drug Free can be found here.

Governor Abbott has partnered with state agencies to raise awareness about the impact of fentanyl in Texas and to provide resources to schools, families and students.

Key information about fentanyl, its lethality, and the prevalence:

• Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50–100 times more potent than morphine, often lethal with as little as 2 milligrams.
• More than 71,000 Americans died from fentanyl in 2021, an increase of 23 percent from the previous year.
• Over that same period, Texas saw an 89 percent increase in fentanyl-related fatalities, with provisional data showing 1,672 deaths in 2021 as compared to 883 in 2020.
• These are steep increases since 2018, when there were 214 fentanyl-related deaths in Texas.
• Drug traffickers disguise pills that include dangerous fentanyl to look like legitimate prescription drugs, and even candy to target children.
• Fentanyl is impacting individuals with and without substance use disorders.

More information and resources can be found here.

An important right we have as Americans is the right to vote. Early voting is now open. We encourage all eligible voters to participate in the upcoming election either through early voting or on election day Tuesday, November 8, 2022.

More information on the voting process can be found at VoteTexas.gov. The Texas Tribune has also put together a Voter Guide for Texans that can be found here.

We celebrate the veterans in our communities who have served our country, and those who are still active in the armed forces.

Thank you to all our veterans for your service to our country!

November is Generation Texas or GenTX month which focuses on the path to college and career education beyond high school needed for students to reach their future career goals. GenTX includes information for all K-12 students on future careers, types of post-secondary education and institutions, taking the right classes, applying to colleges, and finding the money to pay for higher education.

For graduating seniors, now is the time to complete your college applications through Apply Texas, the Common Application, or directly through the college or university. The FAFSA and TASFA are also open to apply for financial aid for the 2022-23 school year. Funds can run out so apply early!

More information and resources for students and parents can be found on the GenTX website.

With the increase in illnesses during this season, such as flu and COVID, this is just a reminder that remote conferencing continues to be available for students who meet the following eligibility criteria.

• The student's temporary medical condition is documented by a physician licensed to practice in the United States. The documentation must include a statement from the physician that the student is to remain confined to their home or hospital for less than 20 days; OR
• The student has a positive test result from a communicable condition listed in 25 TAC §97.7 (includes COVID plus other conditions), this includes symptoms and waiting on a test; OR
• The student has been identified as having been in close contact with COVID-19.

Students are considered present when they participate in remote conferencing. More information on remote conferencing can be found here. To participate in remote conferencing, parent will report eligible absences by email to the principal at Nolan Creek, Kingsland, Gateway Tech, and New Horizons Schools and to gcpscovid@orendaeducation.org at Gateway College Preparatory School.

November 11 - Deadline to register to AP Exams

November 23- 25 - Orenda Charter School District Office and All Campuses CLOSED - Happy Thanksgiving!

December 6- 16 - STAAR End of Course Assessments

Carla Silber, Superintendent

Email: carla.silber@orendaeducation.org
Website: www.orendaeducation.org
Location: 2951 Williams Drive, Georgetown, TX, USA
Phone: (512) 869-3020