Tustin Connect News

Issue 35 is coming to you with another award for Tustin Connect, updates on end-of-year activities, enrollment, and other news and notes. This week's background features our two awesome administrative professionals Mrs. Alpay (Kerri) and Ms. Ramirez (Cookie). They work so hard for our students, staff, and families and we took the day to let them know how much we care and appreciate them. Thank you to our PTA as well for the special deliveries as well! As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to Mr. Fineberg, our principal, at efineberg@tustin.k12.ca.us.

I wanted to thank all that completed the 2021-22 TC Student Enrollment Survey and provided feedback on your experience along with your plans for next year. If you have not completed the survey for each of your students, please do so ASAP. It is linked above. It has been wonderful to see more and more of our students returning to campus. If you are comfortable doing so, we are ready for you. Please reach out to your teacher and confirm there is space. Lastly, be sure to check out the information on 5th, 8th, and 12th-grade end-of-year activities below. It's going to be awesome! As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to reach out at (714) 430-2052 ext. 52103 or efineberg@tustin.k12.ca.us

Mr. Fineberg

Congratulations to our very own Michelle Castillo who earned the honor of Orange County's Every Student Succeeding champion. Michelle was nominated as Tustin Connect's representative for the annual recognition for a student that overcame significant obstacles to succeed. Michelle was then chosen to represent all of TUSD and recognized by ACSA (Association of California School Administrators) and awarded a medallion, tablet computer, gift card, and more. We are so proud of Michelle and all that she has accomplished. The computer will no doubt come in handy as she attends community college on her way to SDSU.

In case you missed it, here is a reminder of the plans for end of the year for 5th, 8th and 12th graders.

5th Grade: Wednesday, May 26th is our 5th-grade promotion picnic. See flyer for details. It will be held on the field behind P11 at the B Street Campus. We are still looking for speakers for the event. Please see the flyer for additional details.

8th Grade: Wednesday, May 26th at 5:30 pm at our TC B Street Campus parking lot is the date and time. This year, Dr. Franklin and Board Member Stone will be joining us for the ceremony. Families will have access to their assigned spot in the parking lot beginning at 3 pm. It will be all yours to decorate for the ceremony and dinner if you choose. Please see the flyer for additional details for 8th-grade speeches and talents.

Seniors: Cap and Gown, swag bag pick up, and Ice Cream Man will be May 19th from 1-5 pm at the San Juan Street campus, Students will be able to pick up a bag, cap and gown, yard sign, and more as well as a special treat from the ICE CREAM MAN. In addition, we are also looking for students interested in giving a speech at graduation, performing the National Anthem, and/or sharing their talents at the ceremony. Please see the flyer for additional details and timelines.

END of YEAR

Graduation and Promotion activities are quickly approaching and the excitement is building! If you would like to volunteer to set up or help in any way please reach out to Linda Ly for Teacher Appreciation (linda@grandsoirees.com), Janice Park-Kim for 8th-grade promotion janicekimdds@hotmail.com, Tracy Gwozdz for 12th-grade promotion tracygwozdz@sbcglobal.net, or myself for any volunteering at smw196@sbcglobal.net.. A huge thank you to Janice- Park-Kim, Mariel Franco-Ellis, Tracy Gwozdz, Linda Ly-Pang, Kerri Alpay, and our teachers for doing all you have done to make sure our graduates have a memorable end to this year!

Looking Ahead

PTA is filling positions for next year. Please consider giving your time and lending your talents to this wonderful school by volunteering for the following available positions.

President – Coordinates meetings and activities for PTA.

Treasurer – Maintains all financial records for review by general PTA. Tustin Connect PTA is small so we anticipate only a handful of transactions a year. This position requires only a few hours a month.

Parliamentarian – Attend meetings and ensures all parliamentarian rules outlined in our bylaws regarding votes, elections, and rules are adhered to.

Spirit wear – Coordinate design and ordering of spirit-wear at the beginning of the year. This is a once-in-a-year commitment. All orders are placed online.

Garden – Help maintain gardens and coordinate any new plans with the school and volunteers.

Website – PTA is looking for someone to maintain PTA's website. We currently use WIX which is simple and intuitive. The site is set up and would require updating once a month or so. We anticipate 4 hours a month is needed for this position.

We welcome parent volunteers to head up book clubs, family nights, art activities – just to name a few. If you have a vision, passion, or area of interest you think would benefit students and that PTA can facilitate please let us know! We can’t do it without you.

Book Fair

Thank you to everyone who participated in this year’s Scholastic Book Fair. We look forward to having a Book Fair again next year.

Thank you,

Melissa Weiss

Smw1196@sbcglobal.net

714-719-3782

Teacher Appreciation Week: May 3-7

Senior Cap and Gown, Swag Bag, and More Pick Up: May 19th, 1-5 pm @ HS Campus

8th Grade Promotion: May 19th, 5:30 pm @ B Street Campus

HS Course Request Due: May 21st, 3:00 pm (don't delay in getting your requests in)

5th Grade Promotion Picnic: May 26th @ 10:30 am B Street Campus Field

End of Year Virtual Event: May 26th @5:30 pm

Senior Graduation: May 27th, 12 noon @ THS Stadium

Tustin USD is excited to announce the next two opportunities for our no-cost COVID testing on a voluntary basis for all students. TUSD has partnered with LivingFit Nation to provide this opportunity on April 28 at Estock Elementary and May 5 at Beckman High School.

Here are the details:

• • No cost
  • April 28 at Estock Elementary from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m
  • May 5 at Beckman High from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m
  • The linked April 28 flyer or May 5 flyer has links with information on how to register and schedule your time
  • Walk-ins will only be accepted after 3:00
  • On your scheduled day, park and look for the pop-up tents set up in the parking lot
  • Lab results are provided within 48 hours
  • Students do not need to quarantine after voluntary testing

The TUSD Board of Education is committed to student and staff safety and is offering no-cost testing to help prevent the spread of the virus. TUSD strongly encourages you to take advantage of this opportunity.

Registration is now open for the TPSF Summer Academy. The Academy runs over 4 weeks split into 2 2-week sessions. June 7-17 and June 20-July 1 M-Th from 8:30 - 12:30. There are options for in-person and online courses for students in K-12 grades. In case you didn't know, Mr. Fineberg is the director of the program. It's pretty amazing. Check out the different options at www.tpsf.net/summer or you can always ask Mr. Fineberg.

Social-Emotional Learning at Home Resource

Topic: Resilience

English Copy

Spanish Copy

K-2nd Grade Workshops: Please take a look at the linked flyers regarding an SEL workshop offered after school for K-2 students to help all students learn ways to identify and communicate their feelings, develop problem-solving skills, and learn strategies to help them build success in school and life.

• Link for Flyer: English
• Link for Flyer: Spanish

Mental Health Newsletter

Below is an outstanding resource for families to access with a wealth of resources that is created by our Mental Health Professional team at the district level.

• Link for Flyer

As we return from Spring Break and head into the summer months, it is also a time when many of our students are thinking of enrolling in community college courses. If you are thinking of doing so, please take a moment to review the linked document. It provides an overview of the enrollment process and related websites as well. It's super helpful and a great place to start. If you're considering taking a community college course, please reach out to Mr. Moreno and/or your advisory teacher. We can help you not only pick the best courses for your graduation plan but also help you navigate the process.

If you have not heard, IVC offers a Promise Program that provides two years of free tuition and other fees. The deadline to apply has been extended to April 16, 2021. Prospective IVC students must complete the steps to becoming an IVC student and submit a FAFSA or California Dream Act application before that deadline in order to be considered for the Irvine Valley Promise Program. For more information or to learn about the Promise Program please visit www.ivc.edu/promise or email ivcpromise@ivc.edu.

That's right, all TC 6-12 students have access to this terrific resource. Take a moment to check it out! It's terrific.

Paper/Grade Slam: Don't forget to use this 24/7 free tutoring service! You can even use it for college essay review and SAT and ACT prep. Here are links to a few resources.

Video Tutorials

• Getting Started on Paper (8:36)

• How Teachers Use Paper (10:48)

• Introduccion a Paper (10:44)

• Paper for Parents (7:05)

• Paper para Padres (14:23)

• Student Dashboard Walkthrough (3:12)

• Teacher Dashboard Walkthrough (2:18)

Online Learning Guide for Students - PDF

Upcoming Parent Nights the second Tuesday in English and every second Thursday in Spanish.

• Tustin Parent Night (English) - Second Tuesday every month. Register using the following link: https://pages.paper.co/webinars-for-parents-and-guardians

• Tustin Parent Night (Spanish) - Second Thursday every month. Register using the following link: https://pages.paper.co/es-us/presentaciones-para-padres-o-representantes

Tustin Unified has a growing collection of over 750 read-along titles available in Sora.

Read-alongs are a great way for students to experience picture books, beginning readers, and easy non-fiction in an eBook format with professionally recorded narration that plays while they read. Read-along features include:

• Narration that you can start and stop

• Text highlighting so the reader can follow along

• Automatic page-turning and speed control

You can find read-alongs by logging into Sora through Clever, select Explore and look for the featured Fiction and Non-Fiction Read-Along collections!

Questions? Visit the TUSD Library Service eBooks & Audiobooks webpage OR contact your site library staff.

The health, safety, and well-being of our students and staff is our top priority as they return to school. When the new school year begins, the on-campus school will look much different than previous years due to new health and safety measures.

Tustin Unified has created a School Opening and Safety Plan that addresses how schools will meet the needs of students in the coming school year. The plan to reopen schools is based on current guidance from public health officials, state agencies, as well as your valuable input from the recent parent survey, and will be updated as the situation evolves. As a result, TUSD has put together two options that will address social-distancing requirements to keep TUSD students and staff safe while also supporting student learning.

For the 2020-21 academic year, Tustin Unified will provide families a choice of two instructional options, including the hybrid model – a blend of in-person and remote learning, and Tustin Connect (K-12) – 100% online virtual school with optional in-person instruction.

The TUSD School Opening and Safety Plan (English linked, Spanish below) covers ​the many procedures and protocols that are being put in place for a successful and safe reopening. The plan can also be found on the TUSD website at https://www.tustin.k12.ca.us.

PLAN DE SEGURIDAD Y APERTURA DE ESCUELAS PARA EL AÑO ESCOLAR 2020-21

To provide students a flexible, yet rigorous, alternative education solution within a caring community that cultivates success, resilience, and advocacy for themselves and others

Email: efineberg@tustin.k12.ca.us
Website: www.tustinconnect.org
Location: (K-8) 14741 North B Street; (9-12) 1151 San Juan Street
Phone: (714) 430-2052
Twitter: @tustinconnect