Smore logo
remove_red_eye 4.9K
page background

#TeamPUSD

Sharing the Good News and Good Work of Students and Staff

#TeamPUSDSharing the Good News and Good Work of Students and Staff

October/November 2017 Edition

Fall always seems to sneak up on me. One minute I'm on the beach, and the next minute I'm digging in my closet for jackets and socks. So much happens at our schools and District office in October and November, with learning in full swing and celebrations thrown into the mix. I hope you enjoy this edition of the #TeamPUSD newsletter, with two months' worth of news and information. I tried to remember and include as much as possible (but thanks to the cooler weather and the early sunsets, I think my brain is ready to go into hibernation too!). Submissions are always welcome, send them to: cpaik@powayusd.com.


Sincerely,

Christine Paik, Director of Communications

zoom_out_map

Superintendent's Message

The month of October held many celebrations and recognitions including Homecomings, Character Counts! and Red Ribbon Weeks, National Custodial Workers Day, National Principals Month, National School Lunch Week, to name a few. I just want to take this opportunity to acknowledge how many members of #TeamPUSD it takes to keep our District running and succeeding. It is so exciting to see so many of our stakeholders engaged and contributing to PUSD. I have seen this firsthand during my visits to each site and District office, as I'm greeted by staff, students, and volunteers so proud to show off their work in support of our schools.


One event where you could see #TeamPUSD so clearly at work is the PUSD College and Career Fair, in support of college and career readiness for our students. Over 130 colleges and vendors were represented, along with helpful workshops on financial aid, trades, military branches and more. I want to thank our volunteers from the Palomar Council and PUSD Foundation as well as the students and staff at the host school, Rancho Bernardo High School, for all of their hard work in planning and executing this event.

I also want to share my excitement about a new partnership bringing Korean language and culture for the first time to a school in PUSD. What started as a summer learning trip to Korea for Principals Eddie Park (Adobe Bluffs) and Joe Erpelding (D39C), developed into a partnership with the Korean Ministry of Education, and a commitment to provide funding from the Korean American Education Foundation for a Korean elective at Design39Campus. This supports one of my goals of developing and implementing innovative programs and learning experiences that allow our students to be competitive in a global society. We can create more multilingual students through new and existing foreign language K-12 pathways throughout PUSD, including Spanish and Mandarin.

Tierra Bonita Elementary School has once again been named an Apple Distinguished School, for their successful and innovative implementation of technology to transform students’ learning. It’s exciting to see our young students growing up to be tech-savvy and future contributors in high-demand STEM industries. They even train students to serve as tech support for their fellow students! Great job to Principal Mandy Bedard and her team. Their school will serve as a model for other schools that might want to do the same.


Finally, during this season of thanks, I wanted to express how grateful I am to be entrusted with the honor of leading this District. Even through loss and hardship, I've seen the true strength of our people as they come together to support an injured student, a grieving family, victims of a natural disaster, or a struggling coworker. This is what #TeamPUSD does so well. I am proud to be your Superintendent.


-Marian Kim-Phelps, Ed.D.

"Excellence in Education" Video Series

PUSD's Studio 701 internship is back! This year's group of interns includes: Noelle Betz, Zach Camerino, Seth Dacio, Sabrina Darian, Nika Mirnezam, and Nathan Xia. Every month they will be working with the Communications Department to create “Excellence in Education” videos that highlight how PUSD is achieving its mission of college and career readiness throughout the District. October's piece focuses on PUSD’s first-ever CTE Expo which took place last Spring. November's piece shows off the new partnership between the Center for World Music and Highland Ranch Elementary School. Please take a moment to watch them below.
https://youtu.be/EmIqlV43p_s
https://youtu.be/ifpvj12ZdBE

PUSD Podcast Episode 3

Understanding school finances can be confusing and complicated. Why is #PowayUnified facing budget challenges? What about lottery money, property taxes, and Mello-Roos? Listen to this month's podcast with Ron Little, Associate Superintendent of Business Support Services, to learn about how our district is funded.

PUSDPodcast Ep.3 - Ron Little by Poway Unified School District

Student, School, and Staff Achievements Student, School, and Staff Achievements

zoom_out_map

National School Ambassador

Design39Campus kindergarten teacher, Megan Power, is one of six educators to be named to the Department of Education’s 2017 School Ambassador Fellowship. "The Fellowship program is designed to improve education for all students by involving practitioners in the development and implementation of national education policy," said U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos. Read more about Megan's work in this article here.

zoom_out_map

California Teacher of the Year Finalist

Del Norte High School Computer Science Teacher, Mark Lantsberger, was named a finalist for California's Teacher of the Year. He is also one of Poway Unified's and San Diego County's Teachers of the Year. You can see the California Department of Education's announcement here.
zoom_out_map

National Merit Semi-finalists

63 Poway Unified School District seniors have been selected as semifinalists in the 63rd annual National Merit Scholarship Program. About 1.6 million juniors in more than 22,000 high schools entered the 2018 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2016 PSAT, which served as an initial screen of program entrants. See the complete list of names in this article.

zoom_out_map

All-Southern Honor Choirs

14 PUSD students have been selected for the Southern California Vocal Association's All-Southern Honor Choirs. Women's Honor Choir: Lauren Springett, Jadyn Ponder, Collette Cribbins, Laine Carter, Cassandra Lidstad, Jessica Trost; Men's Honor Choir: John Lettang, Luke Sommer, Evan Bartholomeusz, Alexander Pruetting, Aaron Hayne; Mixed Honor Choir: Nandini Rajgopal, Nidhi Deshiikan, Esheta Garb.
zoom_out_map

Apple School

Tierra Bonita Elementary School has been recognized as an Apple Distinguished School for 2017-2019 for its successful and innovative implementation of Apple technology to transform students’ learning. Apple Distinguished Schools are centers of innovation, leadership, and educational excellence. They use Apple products to inspire creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking, with documented results of academic accomplishment. Watch this video to see how Tierra Bonita is leveraging iPads for learning and teaching.

zoom_out_map

First Lego League

Poway High School's Robotics Team Spyder 1622 hosted the FIRST Lego League Poway High Qualifying Tournament, with 15 local teams competing. The following PUSD teams are advancing to the Championship at Legoland December 2-3!
-Championship winner: 5680 Falconers
-Championship winner: 422 R.O.B.O.T.
-Project winner: 31330 Technological Terrors
-Robot Design winner: 20726 Robo Stars
-Core Value winner: 2606 Mechanical Munsters
-Robot Performance Award: 20726 Robo Stars
zoom_out_map

CyberAegis Teams

Congratulations to the CyberAegis teams from Del Norte High School, Oak Valley Middle School, and Design39Campus! They competed in the "Cyber Day L.A." cyber security competition, entering the most advanced categories against some of the top competitors in the country. PUSD students won 1st place in the Nationals division, 1st and 2nd in the High Schools advanced division, and swept 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in the Middle Schools advanced division.
zoom_out_map

NBC7 Teacher of the Month

Creekside Elementary 2nd Grade Teacher Diana Thomas was selected as NBC7/San Diego County Office of Education's Inspirational Teacher of the Month. She received a surprise visit on November 15th. She was chosen for her passion for teaching, inspiring students to love reading, and providing extraordinary communication with parents and encouraging parent involvement. Her episode will air in December.
zoom_out_map

CIF Southern Regional Girls Volleyball Champs

Tweet from @DavidLLemaster: "Your Division 4 Southern Regional State Champions! Congratulations ladies."
zoom_out_map

Band Champions

Tweet from @Principal_Magno: "It is a 3-peat for MC Band and Colorguard! Another championship performance in Band Championship at Arcadia! Great work Sundevils! @MtCarmelRedSea @PowayUnified @SCSBOA"
zoom_out_map

CIF Section Girls Golf Champs

Tweet from @calistalouise54: "Your 2017 CIF Champs!! So proud of this team! Regionals here we come! #backtoback #gobroncos – at Admiral Baker Golf Course"

EVERYDAY HEROES AWARDS EVERYDAY HEROES AWARDS

Twice a year, PUSD honors "Everyday Heroes," classified employees who demonstrate excellence in work performance, school and community involvement, and leadership and commitment to our District and students. For a full description of their achievements click here, pages 9-11. (Not pictured below: Maria Amaya, Administrative Assistant II, Special Education Department)
zoom_out_map

Michele Cass

Administrative Assistant II, Alternative Programs
zoom_out_map

Aaron Davis

Lead Custodian, Midland Elementary School
zoom_out_map

Beth Engstrom

School Administrative Assistant-Elementary, Painted Rock Elementary School
zoom_out_map

Cheri Gracey

Extended Student Services Supervisor, Sunset Hills Elementary
zoom_out_map

Myra Prather

Extended Student Services Supervisor, Stone Ranch Elementary
zoom_out_map

Angela Keirn

Office Specialist, Preschool Department

TEAM PUSD AWARDS TEAM PUSD AWARDS

"TEAM PUSD" is designed to recognize an admirable team of employees, who together accomplish an exceptional task or project. The recognition is for a group of two or more classified and/or certificated individuals who have made a significant contribution to the benefit of PUSD, an individual, his or her work site, the community, or other volunteer or service organization. For a full list of their achievements, click here, pages 12-13.
zoom_out_map

Transpor-tation Department

Phillip Medved, Vehicle Maintenance Supervisor; Kristopher Contino, Assistant Mechanic.
zoom_out_map

PSEA Partners Program

Kimberly Carroll, High School Registrar, Westview High School; Teresa Small, Attendance Accounting Assistant III, Ranch Bernardo High School; Nancy Schiffer, School Administrative Assistant - High School, Poway; Nancy Brundrett, Instructional Assistant II Special Education Highland Ranch Elementary School; Bonnie Loparo, Instructional Assistant II Special Education, Westwood Elementary School; Robby Boyd, Health Services Technician, Stone Ranch Elementary School; Heather Barnard, Health Services Technician, Del Sur Elementary School; Monique Cordeau, School Administrative Assistant - Middle School, Black Mountain Middle School; Shelley Fleming, Library Media Technician, Park Village Elementary School; Janet Crews, Department Operations Technician, Maintenance and Operations; Cris Rollins, School Administrative Assistant - Elementary, Valley Elementary School
zoom_out_map

Teachers On Special Assignment

Hilary Cuevas-Balanon, TOSA, Learning Support Services; Stephanie Martin, TOSA, Learning Support Services; Kristin Thomas, TOSA, Learning Support Services; Vickie Carroll, TOSA, Learning Support Services
In the Poway Unified School District, Fall brings a much-anticipated field competition season for the high schools' marching bands and color guards. This is the cumulation of months of practice and hard work, providing spectators with visually stunning shows, full of precise movements and music and artistry. We wanted to bring some of those striking images to you. Click here to see the story.
Del Norte's student body took to the streets to celebrate homecoming with their annual parade. This year’s theme is “Around the World,” and each class built a float depicting a different city. Poway Unified and San Diego County Teacher of the Year Mark Lantsberger kicked off the parade in a red convertible. He was joined by "Faces of the Flock," a group of student honorees selected by their fellow students based on good character and hard work (replacing the traditional homecoming court). Check out the parade photos here.

More Homecoming Fun More Homecoming Fun

zoom_out_map

Homecoming Dances

Instagram post from @mcsundevils: "It's a full dance floor at tonight's Marvelous Homecoming. #whereyouatmc"
zoom_out_map

Speed Painting

Tweet from @KeithOpstad: "Westview High School pep rally Speed Painting. 45 minutes, 4 teams, 2304 square inches of canvas and 2,550 students."
zoom_out_map

Rotary Cup

Post from Rancho Bernardo football: "Looking forward to a great game tomorrow in the 26th Rotary Cup, which happens to be our Homecoming game! Should be a fun night!"

#PowayLove #PowayLove

PUSD's College and Career Fair, brought to you by the District Foundation and Palomar Council, drew hundreds of high school students and their families to the Rancho Bernardo High School campus. Over 130 colleges, vendors, military, and trade representatives attended, giving students many options when planning for their futures. Workshop topics included financial aid, application tips, and apprenticeship programs. Thank you to all of our participants and volunteers for making this event a success!
zoom_out_map

Colleges

zoom_out_map

Military

zoom_out_map

Workshops

Character Counts! and Red Ribbon Weeks

Painted Rock

Facebook Post by @PaintedRockPanthers: "Crazy hair day at Painted Rock!!"
zoom_out_map

Deer Canyon

Tweet from @MisterDelaCruz: "Kicking off #RedRibbonWeek @ DeerCanyonElem! 4th grade students discovering their strengths!@PUSDinnovate @PowayUnified @thrively"

zoom_out_map

Midland

Tweet from @SidiaLeadership: "#STOMP helping us celebrate red ribbon week! #drugfree #anti-bullying"
zoom_out_map

Pomerado

Tweet from @PomeradoPUSD: "Wildcats showing off their rainbow of Good Character! Red Ribbon Week Rocks! #CharacterCounts


@PowayUnified #PomeradoWildcats"

zoom_out_map

Canyon View

Tweet from @JeHalsey: "Our amazing CVES moms painting our Character Counts Poles! So thankful for our parent community! #CVESRocks"
zoom_out_map

Highland Ranch

Tweet from @KatieMorganEDU: "@rbhsbroncos ambassadors visited #HRES to kick off #RedRibbonWeek2017 ! They loved Billy the Bronco!"
zoom_out_map

Turtleback

Pajama Day for Turtleback Elementary at Friday Flag to cap off a week of dress-up days to show school spirit and character.

Fun Photo Gallery Fun Photo Gallery

zoom_out_map

Abraxas

Tweet from @PowayUnified: "Thank you Rancho Bernardo @Rotary Club for fruit tree donations to @AbraxasHigh organic garden, which has so far donated 2,500 pounds of produce to needy families." You can read more about it in the article here.
zoom_out_map

Park Village

Tweet from @IAmDarshPatel: "Successful disaster drill at @PowayUnified Park Village ES. #teampusd"
zoom_out_map

Oak Valley

Tweet from @PowayCTE: "@OVMS_Falcons in Ms. Garver's Gateway to Technology classes got to tour the Qualcomm Institute (CalIT2), and see how STEM professionals are working with University researchers to integrate science, culture and technology to improve the world! @PowayUnified #CTEinCA"
zoom_out_map

Twin Peaks

Tweet from @TwinPeaksRams: "Ms. Rubacky’s students hear from WWII veteran TL Shelton about his service. He made them promise to get all the education they can get. And, yes, that is a PurpleHeart!"
zoom_out_map

San Diego County

Tweet from @SanDiegoCOE : "Beautiful morning at @SanDiegoCounty Board of Supervisors to celebrate 2018 Teachers of the Year! Thanks @dianne_jacob @KristinDGaspar@RonRobertsSD @SupervisorCox for giving #teachers their day! #SDTOYs @PowayUnified"
zoom_out_map

Mt. Carmel

Tweet from @Principal_Magno: "MC’s annual Veterans Day Flag raising. Thank you to our local VFW Post, our veterans, NJROTC, the choir, staff and all of our guests! #sundevilway @VFWHQ @MtCarmelRedSea @PowayUnified"
zoom_out_map

Design39C

TK-8 students planned a rummage sale which included costumes, sports equipment, books, toys, lemonade and baked goods, a slime-making station, succulent garden, and hand-made masks. On October 6th from 2-5pm the campus hosted the #RebuildPortA Fundraiser to benefit Port Aransas hurricane victims.
zoom_out_map

Unity Days

For two days, guest speaker Keith Hawkins led Unity Days at Westview High School. Members of the sophomore class spent the time having real conversations and learning about respect and doing what is right.
zoom_out_map

Sunset Hills

Tweet from Anne Smith @AnneMFS: "5th grade students adding conductive material to their @makeymakey mazes. Next step writing a program in @scratch @sunsethillsneu @PowayUnified"
zoom_out_map

Garden Road

Tweet from @GardenRoadES: "Celebrating love of reading and learningAll You Can Read Diner #GardenRoadEagles"

zoom_out_map

Westwood

Tweet from @Dinhgineers: "Student Council announced we've collected 641 pairs of socks for #SOCKTOBER so far @WestwoodPUSD @PowayUnified"

zoom_out_map

Bernardo Heights

Tweet from @BobcatsBHMS: "Great night of music with Mr. Holmes and the BHMS bands! @BHMSASBnews @PowayUnified"

zoom_out_map

Rolling Hills

In honor of Veteran's Day, Rolling Hills Elementary had a special celebration for the military members in our community. There were songs, poems, and readings, and students brought their military guests to the front and introduced them to the crowd.

zoom_out_map

CTAE

Tweet from @PowayUnified: "Great job to @PowayCTE and Adult Ed, collecting professional clothing for @DressCodeCA for women going from military to civilian workforce!"

zoom_out_map

Valley

Tweet from @ValleyElemPUSD: "Valley Tigers enjoying the Boogie Bash."
zoom_out_map

Mesa Verde

Tweet from @PicTrumpet: "Mesa Verde kids as part of the Sousa foundation honor band. #PowayUnified"
zoom_out_map

Meadow brook

Tweet from @MBMS_Mustangs: "Our Mustang Leaders are working hard at building teamwork."
zoom_out_map

Monterey Ridge

Tweet from @XplorationModel: "@mattsterling01 @PowayUnified @scratch

First graders at Monterey Ridge learning to code on X-Ploration Day!!!"

zoom_out_map

Rancho Bernardo

Tweet from @PhotoNess: "Photo 3/4 and AP environmental science collaborating at the Safari Park this week! Stay tuned for the final results! #iteachphoto @rbhsbroncos @PowayCTE @PowayUnified"
zoom_out_map

Del Sur

Tweet from @VanNormanJosh: "Grateful for amazing students & staff @DelSurExplorers ! @SharelleVenable class celebrating Thanksgiving :) @PowayUnified"
zoom_out_map

Poway High

Tweet from @AggieMary03: "Students in Poway High’s Floral Design classes got to take their finals home for the holidays today! @PowayCTE @PowayHighTitans @PowayUnified"
zoom_out_map

Del Norte

Tweet from @DNHSNighthawks: "Nighthawks at Petco Park sign their National Letters of Intent today. #soaring #NighthawkStrong"
zoom_out_map

Black Mountain

Tweet from @Thankabit_Lab: "Amazing class from @PowayUnified left us some tear-jerking reflections. #ThingsThatMakeYouGoAwww"
zoom_out_map

Chaparral

Tweet from @BuhrCHES: "Our little preschool Hawks at the jog-a-thon. #CHESHawks @PowayUnified"
zoom_out_map

Morning Creek

Thank you @MissionFed and @1057MAXFM for “Maxing our” Nicol Marshall’s classroom at Morning Creek Elementary! #PowayUnified #TeamPUSD
zoom_out_map

Adobe Bluffs

Tweet from @ABESAztecs: "FLEP Foreign Language For Elementary Parents in Mandarin taking place #ABES #PowayUnified"
zoom_out_map

No Place for Hate

Tweet from @MKimPhelps: "It takes empathy, courage, learning, trust, respect, and listening to create campuses where there’s #noplaceforhateSD #PowayUnified"
zoom_out_map

Stone Ranch

Facebook post from @StoneRanchFoundation: "Future business leaders are at their Biz Town interviews today. Thanks to all of our volunteers that help make this 5th grade experience a success. We can’t wait to see where the world takes these kids!!!"
zoom_out_map

Willow Grove

Facebook post from @WillowGroveElementary: "Willow Grove’s 1st Family Fun Day is today from 3-6 PM! Come join the fun!!!"
zoom_out_map

Los Pen

Tweet from @XplorationModel: "Los Penasquitos Elementary kids work together to make predictions at Xploration!! @XPlorationModel @PowayUnified"

Click here to see Halloween photos from around PUSD, including the parades at Adobe Bluffs, Sundance, and D39C! Students and staff had a lot of fun dressing up in spooky, silly, or clever costumes.

zoom_out_map

News Minute

Are you catching our weekly news updates on social media? These are one-minute video recaps of the week’s news with PUSD Director of Communications, Christine Paik. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook so you don't miss out!


  • News Minute 11-16-17
  • News Minute 11-9-17
  • News Minute 11-2-17
  • News Minute 10-26-17
  • News Minute 10-18-17
zoom_out_map

Election District Map

At its November 9th hearing, the Board of Trustees selected Map 131 as its preferred map to establish trustee areas for the 2018 and 2020 elections. You can view the PDF of Map 131 here. Map 131 is also now the default map on the interactive map viewer.

Next, Map 131 will go to the County Committee on School District Organization for a TBD hearing and vote. For more information you can go here.

Important Dates:

  • Board Meeting: Thursday, December 14, 2017 at 6pm
  • Winter Break: December 25, 2017 to January 5, 2018
  • Non-Student day: Monday, January 15, 2018 (Martin Luther King, Jr.)
  • Board Meeting: Thursday, January 18, 2018 at 6pm
  • Non-Student day: Friday, February 2, 2018 (Professional Growth)
  • District Recess: February 19, 2018 to February 23, 2018
zoom_out_map

Poway Unified School District

The Poway Unified School District is located in northern San Diego County, California. PUSD operates 25 elementary schools (K-5), one elementary & middle school combination (TK-8th), six middle schools (6-8), one continuation high school, five comprehensive high schools (9-12), and one adult school. 24 schools are located in the city of San Diego; 11 schools in the city of Poway; and 3 in the County of San Diego. The District serves approximately 36,000 students and is the third largest school district in the county.

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

#TeamPUSD Newsletter Past Editions

  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • Oct/Nov 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
Loading indicator

close

Created with

Communicate quickly and effectively with interactive newsletters.

Smore empowers educators to connect with their community, streamline school communications,
and increase engagement.

Create a newsletter