Sweetwater Must Sees Newsletter

Dear Sweetwater Community,

Since March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant challenges to our education system. Campuses were closed to in-person instruction, athletic programs were paused and for the Class of 2020, in-person graduation and promotion exercises were canceled.

This month, we have reopened schools across the District to more students. This year’s seniors, the Class of 2021, have been invited to return to schools for these last weeks of in-person instruction.

On April 6, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) issued new guidance regarding graduation and promotion ceremonies for schools. This guidance provided recommendations to help us properly celebrate the momentous milestone of graduation and promotion, while also preventing the spread of COVID-19. The guidance from state and local agencies will be monitored on an ongoing basis and we will make adjustments to our planned ceremonies, as needed.

We are excited to announce that beginning on June 2, should the COVID-19 conditions allow, we will host modified in-person graduation ceremonies for our 12th graders and in-person promotion ceremonies for our 8th graders.

In order to minimize large crowds, these ceremonies will be scheduled in small cohorts of 200 students or less. Each school will schedule a sufficient number of small cohort ceremonies to ensure that all eligible graduating and promoting students have an opportunity to participate.

Please note: These in-person graduation and promotion ceremonies must follow all COVID-19 health and safety protocols. Specifically, the current guidelines require us to limit the number of guests invited to the ceremonies. As such, the spectator limits and protocols are as follows:

• Each graduate or promoting student is allowed to have FOUR (4) guests. These four guests are expected to be from the student’s primary household and may NOT be transferred to another student. Further, the guests MUST arrive with the graduating or promoting student in order to be admitted to the venue.
• All students and guests must sign a District waiver prior to entering the graduation/promotion venue.
• All students and guests must submit to a health screening and temperature check prior to entering the venue.
• All students and guests must wear a mask (covering both the mouth and nose) at all times— before, during and after the event.
• Prior to entry into the ceremony, the student and guests must wait together, maintaining at least six feet of distance from other groups.
• Once in the venue, students will be seated together (six feet apart) while guests will be seated in the stands or other observation area. Guests from the same household will be expected to sit together, maintaining six feet of distance from other groups while seated in the stands.
• There will be no concessions within the venues.
• Each cohort session is expected to last 30-45 minutes.

These are the initial guidelines for the District’s graduation and promotion ceremonies. In mid-May, your individual school will provide more information, such as the specific dates, times and locations of the ceremonies, as well as other important protocols.

Please contact Student Support Services at 619.691.5564 or student.services@sweetwaterschools.org, if you have any questions.

Summer Session begins June 7, 2021. We’re excited to offer a hybrid (in-person/online) set of programs to help students continue to reach their educational goals!

• Submit 2021-2022 Applications via Campus Parent Portal

Explore Careers at CreaTech Event

Students in grades 8 to 12 can learn about careers in engineering and information and computer technology as part of the CreaTech online career exploration event.

The free, three day event will feature engaging presentations from the region's cutting edge tech employers. Virtual sessions will take place from 10 to 11 a.m. and 1 to 2 p.m. April 27 to 29. Visit the event webpage to learn more and register.

It's been a long year since our last Festival, but we're proud to say that we're back for 2021! It's going to look a bit different since we won't be in person like we normally are, but that's not going to stop us from creating special #STEAM moments and memories for the whole family.

In this new virtual format, we're excited to bring the Festival back to an even larger audience. Programming will be FREE and accessible from any device with an Internet connection, so please share the event far and wide to anyone you think might be interested. More info HERE

Staff Drive Through Breakfast by PTSA

On Friday, April 9th, PTSA celebrated the hard work and dedication of the Eastlake High School staff by hosting a drive through breakfast. Thanks to all the volunteers who made this event possible!

Montgomery Middle School welcomed students to campus for the Mayan Quest! Students safely entered campus, many for the very first time, where they went to 3 interactive stations to be immersed in the Mayan school culture. Students had the opportunity to meet some of their teachers in person, take part in the tradition of ringing the Mayan Gong, La Fortaleza, as well as take pictures for yearbook.

Shout out to Olympian High School science teacher, Ms. Shannon Nembach, for always being dedicated to making future scientists and medical personnel. This year, despite COVID-19 and distance learning, she welcomed her students back on a Saturday to complete a Sheep Heart Surgery Lab. The kids were really happy to get to have some hands-on learning and see their peers! Their favorite part was learning how to suture and getting to pretend to be Cardiovascular surgeons.

It is an honor to announce that one of our very own seniors has been selected as a 2021 Gates Scholar! The goal of the GMS program is to promote academic excellence and to provide an opportunity for outstanding minority students with significant financial need to reach their highest potential.

Kimberly Gonzalez-Zelaya was selected through a rigorous process and is one of 300 out of over 34,900 applicants, representing better than the top 1% of all applicants nationwide. She truly belongs to an elite group of young leaders and will receive a full ride scholarship for all her undergraduate work. She is headed to Stanford University in the fall.

This year, Sweetwater High School turns 100 years old! We were able to honor and celebrate Sweetwater High School at our Centennial Homecoming game on April 16th. Congratulations to our Centennial Homecoming Court, and to our BMOC Sean Cruz and our Queen Baneen Altoby. Also a congratulations to our 5-0 Red Devil football team! Our undefeated record shows the dedication, teamwork and effort from coaches, athletes and families during this difficult COVID-year. Happy 100th birthday SUHi!

The 24th Annual Adelante Latino Conference once again was a huge success according to Montgomery High Assistant Principal Mark Patterson. The event was held virtually on Saturday, April 17th and was attended by middle and high school students.

The purpose of the event is to expose students to professionals in various careers in an effort to solidify their dreams. This years keynote speaker was Dr. Adolfo Gonzales, current Chief Probation Officer of the Los Angeles County Probation Department. Dr. Gonzales is also the former San Diego County Probation Chief, he brings over 40 years’ of experience in law enforcement, institutional rehabilitation, investigations, and community engagement.

Share your story with us!

Website: http://www.sweetwaterschools.org/
Location: 1130 5th Avenue, Chula Vista, CA 91911, USA
Phone: (619) 691-5578
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SUHSD
Twitter: @SUHSD