Welcome to the 2024-25 School Year!

I am excited to support all my students, new and returning, in any way I can this year. In this newsletter, you'll find information on the various ways you and your family can connect with me as well as share some of the programs our Counseling Department offers.

I look forward to connecting with you soon and it is my hope that this year is full of many great and successful experiences for you!

I have been at the Eastvale STEM Academy since its second year starting in the fall of 2017. As the inaugural Counselor working alongside our first Director and small team of teachers in the early years, I was fortunate to be a part of building the eSTEM and eSTEM Counseling programs from the ground up. Last school year, I stepped into an administrative role serving as the Interim Dean for eSTEM and it was a wonderful experience leading a school and supporting a team of teachers and staff members. This year, I am returning to my counseling position to continue to work more directly with students and families.

I was born and raised in Southern California by Chinese parents who immigrated from Vietnam during the war. My parents built up a life for me from nothing and instilled the value of education and determination -- something they wish they had the resources to pursue when they were younger. I am a first generation student who attended the University of California, Riverside right out of high school and double-majored in History and Religious Studies. Right after that, I pursued a masters degree in Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary with the intentions of pursuing a doctoral degree to teach world religion and philosophy at the university level. After I completed my masters, I decided to take a year off while working on research and began substitute teaching at ERHS.

It was during this time I discovered I love working with high school students and I changed my career direction. I had considered a teaching credential in math, however in getting to know my most challenging students, I realized that while I enjoy being in the classroom, I wanted to focus my efforts on helping students through their toughest times and guiding them to make choices for the betterment of their future.

From there, I worked on my second masters degree in Educational and Clinical Counseling with an embedded School Counseling Credential at Azusa Pacific University. During this time, I continued to work as a substitute teacher at ERHS as well as worked as a counselor apprentice at Chaffey College.

My role as your School Counselor is to be your advocate and to meet with you where you are to help push you to where you want to be. I absolutely love building relationships with my students, so please, come by T122 to see me!

Email: ccabal@cnusd.k12.ca.us (preferred method)

• I check emails between 8:15 AM to 3:45 PM during the work week in between meetings and presentations. I will respond to your email as soon as I can.

Phone: 951.736.8262

• Calling this number during business hours (8:00 AM to 4:15 PM) will take you to our eSTEM front office. They will direct your call to me, take a message if I am out of the office, or set up an appointment for you.

Students:

• No appointment needed: Students are welcome to come to my office before school, after school, during lunch, and during passing period without an appointment.
• Non-urgent: You can email/Remind text me ahead of time if you need to see me during your class time.
• Urgent: If you need to see me right away during class time, please notify your teacher and have them call me or the eSTEM front office.

Parents/Guardians:

• Please schedule meetings with me through this Calendly scheduler.

Remind:

• Students and parents/guardians can text me for quick questions to my desktop app. Remind unfortunately has blocked my access from my phone.
• We send quite a bit of information through Remind, so be sure to join below.

Google Classroom:

• Join our eSTEM Counseling Google Classroom to receive information or announcements. The GC will be for all your years in eSTEM.

• Students can join through the code below and parents can join in as a Guardian. Students can reply to announcements (flyers, important info, updates, etc.) and ask questions on GC.

School counselors support students in three domains: academic, personal/social, and college/career. In these three domains, I focus on supporting the whole student throughout their years here in eSTEM/ERHS. I work collaboratively with all stakeholders to ensure equity, access, and success of all students.

I am available to you for scheduling concerns/questions, grade concerns, navigating the college A-G requirements, college applications, financial aid, career navigation/exploration, personal/social counseling, crisis counseling referrals/resources, etc.

I will send periodic email updates regarding our counseling program to students and parents as the year progresses. Additionally, I will send announcements of workshops/events/presentations or reminders through Remind and Google Classroom. Please stay connected with us!

I have reviewed each student's transcript for their needs. I double check to make sure students are on track with graduation, A-G college, CCI, and the STEM stole requirements. I then go through each schedule to ensure the courses they are in are ones that are appropriate for their needs (prerequisites met) and goals.

In scheduling, we prioritize STEM students with STEM teachers, however it is not always possible. Students may travel between ERHS and eSTEM campuses for their classes.

Note: If any special leadership, band, or sports classes are missing from your schedule, please come see me! In the transition of sub counselors last year, there may be some rosters that were missed.

August 3rd: Your list of courses without details will be available on Student/Parent Connect.

August 12th: Official student schedules with teacher and room number information will be viewable on Student/Parent Connect.

July 31st-August 5th:

• See me in my office (T122) during your scheduled Orientation date/time for schedule change requests.
• I'm also available during both make-up Orientations on August 6th (8:30-3:00) and 12th (8:30-12:00).

August 13th-August 16th:

• Come see me before school, during passing, during lunch, and after school for change requests.
• If you go to a class and realize you are scheduled in the wrong one, come see me during that period.

August 16th at 4pm will be last day for schedule changes!

Keep in mind we cannot accommodate all changes. It could be that there is no room in the class, or there are conflicts with your schedule, or it could shift your entire schedule.

We try to accommodate schedule change requests as best we can, following our Schedule Change Policy. Schedule changes for the following reasons cannot be honored:

• Teacher preference
• Lunch time preference
• Period preference
• Personal convenience

Dual Enrollment is available for all students who are interested in taking transferrable college classes, but it is not a requirement.

9th graders can sign up for GUI 47/48 for the spring but no sooner. 10th-12th graders can sign up for all other classes so long as pre-requisites are met.

Be sure to take courses that make sense for your future path and/or are college requirements. I recommend students get comfortable with their high school classes before considering adding on another course.

Bookmark this LINK, as it's updated every semester with new enrollment information.

10th-12th graders: Need help registering for Fall 2024? Ms. Kasey Boyer and Norco College admissions will be available on the following in the ERHS Career Center (by the clock tower and library):

• July 31st: 10:00-11:30am
• August 1st: 10:00-11:30am
• August 6th: 10:00-11:30am
• August 14th: both lunches
• August 15th: both lunches

Join the Dual Enrollment Remind by your graduating year (text to 81010) to keep up to date:

Class of 2025: @2025erhs2

Class of 2026: @26erhs2

Class of 2027: @dual27

Class of 2028: @28erhsde (cannot take DE until second semester of 9th grade year)

Corona-Norco Unified School District

Nondiscrimination Statement

The Corona Norco Unified School District is committed to equal opportunity for all individuals in education and in employment and does not discriminate on the basis of actual or perceived ancestry, age, color, physical or mental disability, medical condition, gender, gender identity, gender expression, nationality, national origin, immigration status, race or ethnicity, ethnic group identification, religion, sex, sexual orientation, marital or parental status, pregnancy, or genetic identification, or association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics. The Board prohibits, at any district school or school activity, unlawful discrimination, harassment (including sexual harassment), intimidation, and bullying of any student based on the protected characteristics named above. BP1312.2; BP/AR4190; BP/AR5145.3; BP/AR5145.7; BP5146; BP/AP5131.2

For any concerns or questions regarding discrimination, equity, Title II, CCR Title 5 or Title IX, please contact:

Dr. RoseMarie Hickman, Coordinator, Human Resources

Corona-Norco Unified School District

2820 Clark Avenue Norco, CA 92860

(951) 736-5000 Contact Dr. Hickman