Mark Lantsberger
Mark Lantsberger, a 20-year teaching veteran, is a computer science teacher at Del Norte High School. Mark developed his curriculum from scratch, giving students insight and a deeper understanding of both "C" and "JAVA" programming languages, preparing them for careers as computer and software engineers.
Susan Michelena
Susan Michelena has been teaching for 25 years in PUSD. Susan is a social studies teacher at Rancho Bernardo High School. Susan says one of her greatest accomplishments is teaching the values of American democracy and the principles of the Constitution that shape future public servants and leaders.
Keith Opstad
Keith Opstad, art teacher at Westview High School, has been teaching for 22 years in the Poway Unified School District. Keith is a strong advocate for the visual arts both in the District and San Diego County. His students consistently produce artwork of the highest caliber, winning top awards and scholarships.
Linda Farmer
Linda’s colleagues describe her as very helpful, knowledgeable, and committed. She is always willing to assist her coworkers. When the PeopleSoft software was implemented in the District, Linda was at the forefront of training her colleagues.
Bridgette Padilla
Bridgette Padilla is an Administrative Assistant at Sunset Hills Elementary School.
Bridgette encourages everyone to adopt the No Excuses philosophy and truly believes in Universal Achievement for all students. She does whatever it takes to ensure that all staff has access to tools to make a difference in a child’s life.
Update from Acting Superintendent
Dear Team,
I wanted to offer my sincerest congratulations to the 2017 PUSD Teachers of the Year and Classified Employees of the Year. Each of you has a unique and powerful contribution you are making in our District. Mark Lantsberger is preparing students for 21st century in-demand careers. Susan Michelena is empowering future public servants and leaders. Keith Opstad is transforming students into visual artists. Bridgette Padilla is the glue that holds her school together. Linda Farmer is at the forefront of training her colleagues. You are all shining examples of the passion and dedication that make #TeamPUSD what it is today.
I’d also like to send our warmest welcome to our Superintendent, Dr. Marian Kim-Phelps, who will be joining our team on Monday, April 3rd. Please take a moment to introduce yourself to her and let her know why we are so proud of the work that we do together. She is excited to be joining our outstanding District and we are excited to have her join our team.
You have been receiving updates on our budget. There is ongoing work that needs to be addressed moving forward into the 2017-18 and 2018-19 school years. Budget reductions will need to be made, affecting our overall LCAP Plan. I appreciate the input that each of you put in at our schools site LCAP forums or through the District online survey. This feedback frames our work and budget moving forward. While these are challenging times, I know that we will make it through together as we focus on the success of our students.
Our next steps include presenting our LCAP plan and budget at our May 30th Board meeting. The plan will be available for public input until our June 26th meeting. Some changes you will find are the California School Dashboard data that was just released from the State which measures student, school, and District success. As more data becomes available, we will report it throughout the year.
Take care and enjoy your spring break,
Mel
Oak Valley Middle School
Jeff Walker, Custodial Supervisor; Ramon Mahilum, Custodian; Noel Lopez, Custodian; Paul Sweeney, Lead Custodian; Irma Ortiz, Custodian; Laura Sweeney, Substitute Custodian
Testing Department
Linda Meloney, Testing Supervisor; Pauline Moroz, Data and Assessment Technician; Noli Motos, Data and Assessment Technician; Michele Crabtree, Data and Assessment Technician; Linda Campos, Data and Assessment Technician; Zoe Ng, Senior Information System Support Analyst
Cyber Cup Challenge
The following Poway Unified schools competed and placed in the top three at the annual “SoCal Cyber Cup Challenge” on March 25th. In the competition, the students work as a team to defend and secure computers against hackers. The SoCal competition is open to all San Diego County middle and high schools and sponsored by the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) as one of its science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) outreach initiatives. The top finishers were awarded prize money and will advance to state and/or national cyber challenge competitions. Watch this video interview with two students from the winning team!
High School Division
1st: Del Norte High School
2nd: Westview High School
Middle School Division
1st: Oak Valley Middle School
2nd: Black Mountain Middle School
3rd: Design39Campus
Odyssey of the Mind
On Saturday, March 11th, 20 teams from the following PUSD schools participated in the Coastal Region Odyssey of the Mind Tournament: Adobe Bluffs Elementary, Black Mountain Middle, Design39Campus, Shoal Creek Elementary, Stone Ranch Elementary, and Westview High School. Odyssey of the Mind is an international creative problem solving competition where students come up with all of the solutions and do all of the work! The following schools had teams that qualified to advance to the State Tournament on March 25th in the San Francisco Bay Area: Adobe Bluffs Elementary, Black Mountain Middle, Shoal Creek Elementary, Westview High.
First Tech Challenge
Stacey Campo
Kathleen Porter
Kathleen Porter, Executive Director of Career, Technical, and Adult Education, is the 2017 State Winner for Career Technical Education Administrator of the Year for the Association of California School Administrators (ACSA). Kathleen will be honored and presented with her award at the ACSA Leadership Summit in San Jose on Thursday, November 2nd, 2017.
Robbie Bowers
Pi Day
Innovation Day
Spelling Bee
Mandarin at ABES
8th Grade Night
Pearl Harbor Veteran
Race for Autism
CUE Conference
Parachute Challenge
Learning with Kahoot
ASES Robotics
10th Annual Golf Classic
Announcing the PUSD Foundation Friday, May 5, 2017 at Maderas Golf Club
Join other education, business, and community leaders at this special event that will include lunch on the golf course, $100,000 Shootout, Helicopter Ball Drop, a post-golf reception, and an auction and awards dinner. Since this falls on Cinco De May, we will have a Mexican celebration with a dinner included for the players and sponsors.
Don’t play golf, but still want to help? You can:
Participate in the ball drop fundraiser (you do not need to be present to win)
- Join us for a Cinco de Mayo dinner celebration only
What I Wish My Parents Knew
Have you ever wondered what today's teenagers are really thinking? Join other parents in discovering what our students really wished their parents knew about the following areas:
- Handling academic pressure
- Communicating with your teen
- Managing social media
- Drugs/alcohol
- Depression/suicide
Tuesday, April 4, 2017, from 6:30-8:45pm at Rancho Bernardo High School
Tuesday, April 18, 2017, from 6:30-8:45pm at Del Norte High School
Register online at www.whatiwishmyparentsknew.com
Youth Enrichment Programs for Summer 2017
Registration is now open for PUSD's Youth Enrichment Programs for the summer. From art and foreign language to computer science and theater, there's something for everyone. Click for the catalogue of classes. All classes will be held at Mt. Carmel High School, unless otherwise noted.
Poway Unified School District
Email: cpaik@powayusd.com
Website: www.powayusd.com
Location: 15250 Avenue of Science, San Diego, CA, United States
Phone: (858) 521-2700
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PowayUSD
Twitter: @PowayUSD