Superintendent Community Update

Translation: Para ver este boletín en español: 1) ubique el ícono que ve a la derecha de este artículo ( la figura de palo en un círculo) ... está en la parte superior derecha de su pantalla. 2) Haga clic en la imagen. 3) seleccione "Traducir" en la parte superior derecha de su pantalla (computadora). 4) Seleccione Spanish/Español.​

Dear JUHSD Community,

I hope this message finds you well!

Every other Monday night President Tejada, Trustee Salahuddin and I meet with the Student Advisory Council. Student Advisory is comprised of student trustees from all of our comprehensive high schools. They discuss issues that they feel strongly about, provide opinions on board agenda topics, and bring student voice to our decision making. Student Advisory is one way our district ensures that we hear directly from our students. I want to thank these young people (10th - 12th graders) for committing a significant amount of their time in service to their schools and our district . This group of leaders are bright, thoughtful, funny, and very engaged and I am excited for what they will accomplish this year!

2022-2023 Student Advisory Council / Student Trustees

Fletcher Edwards - Terra Nova

Alliyah Encarnacion - Westmoor

Keith Guevarra - Westmoor

Alana Heusser - Terra Nova

Jasmin Khuu - Westmoor

Eden Magbilang - Jefferson

Grace Moevao - Westmoor

Andrew Ou - Westmoor

Lauren Ryan - Terra Nova

Nadia Shaw - Jefferson

Dante Umtuch - Jefferson

Julianna Woehl - Oceana

Sharon Wong - Westmoor

Bethany Zhao - Oceana

School Visits

I am on our campuses and in classrooms each week, and it has been particularly heartening to see all of the activities our teenagers are involved in. Posters for club fairs and dances, Senior Sunrise, Unity Days, fall sports, and other activities line the halls of our campuses. Students are engaged and learning in classrooms, and it makes me happy to hear the banter of students in the hallways. High school life feels more and more "back to normal." Woot!

High School Fair

Please help us spread spread the word that our annual High School Fair will take place this coming Thursday, September 29 at 6:30 pm in the District Office Galleria at 699 Serramonte. Representatives from each of our high schools will be on hand to answer any questions and provide enrollment information for the 2023-2024 school year. For additional information, please click on the electronic flyer for this event found in today's Community Update!

Have a delightful weekend and if you're in Pacifica, swing by our JUHSD booth #126 at Fog Fest!

Warmly,

Toni Presta

Superintendent

#juhsdproud

Important information is shared during Board of Education meetings, yet not everyone is able to attend or view the entire meeting. View highlights from this past Tuesday’s Board Meeting by clicking here.

Students! Raise your hand if you could use help with your homework. JUHSD teachers and students have free access to Paper’s professional tutors, 24/7! Take advantage of this amazing service by clicking HERE, or check out paper.co for more information.

JHS Principal John Harrigan chats with 11th grader T. Masaniai during the school's first round of Unity Days hosted by San Mateo County Office of Education's Camp LEAD program. Camp LEAD engages students, over three days, in a series of activities designed to improve understanding and respect between students and foster leadership development. It is often a transformative event for students as they engage in self reflection and focused discussions and build community with other students and adults at the camp.

To learn more about this rewarding program, please watch this video clip from San Mateo Office of Education.

Please join AMC Theatres and Just Like You Films for a special screening of Just Like You - Anxiety + Depression! After the screening, star of the film Dr. Ali Mattu, PhD. and Anne Fischer, Executive Director of NAMI San Francisco, will lead a talk-back style conversation. Click here to reserve your tickets. For the "Associate ID #" box, please enter "0".

Just Like You - Anxiety + Depression

Sunday, September 25th, 2:00 pm

AMC Metreon, 135 4th Street, San Francisco

This past Wednesday, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) released a statement addressing the fentanyl crisis sweeping its way through the state.

As many are aware, drug overdoses, specifically fentanyl overdoses, are at an all-time high. In 2021, over 100,000 people died from drug overdoses driven by fentanyl, with the fastest growing group under the age of 19. As a district, we take this very serious.

The first step in addressing the crisis is awareness. Research strongly suggests that having ongoing discussions with students about the harms of substance abuse can have a lasting positive effect. We hope this document from a leading organization on drug prevention, Natural High, and this information for California's Overdose Prevention Initiative, opens up the door to having honest conversations. After all, one life saved can start with one conversation.

If you feel your student needs extra support, please reach out to our amazing JUHSD Wellness Team.

Many have asked if they can use FDA-authorized at-home COVID diagnostic tests that have expired. The FDA does not recommend using these tests beyond their authorized expiration dates as some of the parts they are made of may degrade, or break down, over time. Because of this, expired test kits could give inaccurate or invalid test results.

However, the expiration dates for at-home COVID-19 diagnostic tests may be extended as additional stability data is collected. You can check the Expiration Date column of the List of Authorized At-Home OTC COVID-19 Diagnostic Tests to see if the expiration date for your at-home OTC COVID-19 test has been extended and how to find any new expiration date.

As a district, we embrace inclusion, value diversity, and educate ourselves in order to confront and dismantle systemic inequities to bring about a more just society. JUHSD commits to engaging, educating, and empowering ALL students, with an intentional focus on those under-served, inadequately served, or disenfranchised by educational institutions and systems, eliminating disparities in educational outcomes.