MARCH 2015 | Volume 4 • Issue 4

GRACE DAVIS HIGH SCHOOL1200 W. RUMBLE ROADMODESTO, CA 95350

N E W SFor the parents, students, and community supporters of

Grace Davis High School

DAVIS HIGHADMINISTRATION TEAM

Mike Rich Principal

Delilah Martinez Associate Principal

Curriculum & InstructionRyan Reynolds Assistant Principal

Pupil ServicesRichard Caldwell

Assistant Principal Supervision

CALIFORNIA LEAGUE OF HIGH SCHOOLS It is my great pleasure to nominate Mrs. Norma Rosas as the Grace M. Davis High School candidate for the California League of High Schools Educator of the Year award. Norma is a true professional and a pivotal member of our faculty. For the past 15 years Norma’s classroom has been a bastion of rigor and respect. Normahasaninnateabilitytoinstillconfidenceinallwhomsheteaches.For the last several years her assignment has been to teach the Spanish for Spanish Speakers courses. GDHS houses a unique program called the Language Institute, which takes in all 9-12 students in the city of Modesto who have been in the country less than four years and are in need of intensive English language instruction. An important facet of the institute is for Spanish speakers tocontinuelearningtheirfirstlanguage.Thisresponsibilityrestssolelyontheshoulders of Mrs. Rosas. When you walk into room 615, be prepared to speak in Spanish. Students are taught to rise when an adult walks in the room and greet them appropriately in Spanish. Mrs. Rosas’s expectations are not just for the students, but for the principal as well. For the past seven years, Norma has taught our AP Spanish Language class. As anyone who has ever taught an AP course before knows, the content is rigorous and demands vigilance throughout the entire school year in order to pass the AP exam victoriously. Mrs. Rosas’ students have done just that. Duringher seven-year tenure, herAP students have a100%pass rate.Thatfeat is unmatched in any other discipline on our campus and is a direct result of Norma’s daily efforts to pursue excellence. I am proud to have Mrs. Norma Rosas as a member of our Spartan family. She makes Grace M. Davis High School a better place.

Mike RichPrincipal

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GETTING ORGANIZEDSchoology Calendar Long before the toaster oven was invented and dinosaurs roamed the Earth (ahem…maybe not that long ago), high school students struggled with keeping track of their school work and knowing due dates for their many assignments. Students at Davis High School have the privilege of using Schoology to keep track of their assignments. Did you know there is a built in calendar in Schoology? Every time a teacher assigns their students a project or something else to complete (example: Homework, Classwork), the assignment is automatically added to their students’ calendar in Schoology. Take sometime today and find your Schoologycalendar.

EXTENDED SUMMER SCHOOL (ESS)January 2015 to May 2015 Are you or have you failed a class in high school? If so, you are probably NOTontracktoGRADUATE!Youcanmake up failed classes and get back on track to graduate by completing “online” classes in ESS (afternoon classes). See your counselor to get a ballotandSIGNUPnow! You can take up to two extra classes per semester.

The supervision office is proud to announce that through the first semester we have seen a significant drop in every major discipline statistic. For example our suspension numbers have gone from 103 last year to 46 this year. We have also experienced a large drop in classroom referrals, tardies, and safety incidents such as fights to name a few. Along with this improvement we have also added some key additions to our schools PBIS (Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports) plan. Our staff and students have worked together to develop our school wide behavioral expectations (please visit the supervision tab on the school website to see this chart). These expectations demonstrate the behaviors that we strive to see from students on our campus. The key characteristics from the expectations include the deliberate day to day effort to demonstrate Davis Pride. By Davis Pride we mean a number of key character characteristics such as; P ositive R espectful I ntegrity D etermined E xcellence

When students demonstrate these characteristics they are incentivized by staff with golden tickets. Every Friday we conduct a drawing and a number of our students who have turned in golden tickets receive a reward. We look to continue this tradition and are now striving to integrate student created videos into our daily curriculum in order to systematically teach our school wide behavioral expectations.

Mike RichPrincipal

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE

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C&I OFFICE It may seem too early for planning for next year, but the time has come for students to plan for the classes they will be taking in the 2015-16 school year. Starting the end of January through February your students will bring home their paper ballot on which they have chosen their classes for next year. Students will be able to go online to ballot for their classes and then met with a counselor who will check their ballots toensurethateachstudentisontracktograduate. Theseforms have a place for a parent signature, and need to be returned, signed to their Social Science teacher. Course additions for next year will include: Veterinary Science for juniors and seniors, and the addition of two more college classes in our Spartans 101 – Middle College program. Parents with questions about the Middle College program are invited to attend a parent information session onFebruary11that6:30intheDavisLittleTheater. FREE COLLEGE TRIP to Sacramento for parents andstudentsonSaturday,February7th.Thedistrict’sParentandCommunity Support Services office is sponsoring a freetriptoSacramentoState.Thereisseatavailabilitytotakeamaximum of 60-65 which includes students, their parents and siblings. On the day of the event the bus will depart at 10:00 A.M. to arrive by 11:30-11:45 A.M. From 12-2:30 P.M. Parents and their students will be able to attend workshops in both Spanish and English, and visit college booths. At2:45wewilldepart toCSUSacramento for atour and following the tour we will return back home. If interestedcalltheDavisHighSchooloffice. Parent empowerment classes will be offered this spring ontheDaviscampus.Thiswillbeaseriesofclassesdesignedto assist parents with their high school students’ needs and plans for their future. Stay tuned for more information to come with dates and times.

SATURDAY, MARCH 7TH, 2015 St. Joseph’s Catholic Church/Father O’Hare Hall 1813 Oakdale Rd. Modesto, CA 5:00 PM—Cocktail Hour 7:00 PM Dinner Served Menu includes: Crab, Tri-Tip, Pasta, Salad, Dinner Rolls Drinks can be purchased: Beer/Wine/Soda/Water NOOUTSIDEALCOHOLPLEASETickets are $45 per person in advance ($50 at the door) For tickets call (209) 985-6378 or (209) 872-7090 Reserved seating for groups of 8+, Silent auction begins at 5pm ends at 6:30pm Live music by: Neil Buettner & Matt Harrington

LEAVE YOUR MARK! Many put everything into their high school years leaving with only memories. This new and amazing opportunitywill allow for the making of permanent memories…this fundraiser will allow students and alumni to leave a piece of them behind. Bricks may be purchased throughout the year and inscribed with the names of existing or former students. These commemorative brickswill be permanently affixedto a planter box in the Activity Court near the cafeteria. Prices vary from $35-$40. Don’t miss out on this fantastic opportunitytomemorializeyourtimespentasaSpartan!

CINDERELLA CinderellawillbeperformedMarch13,14,15atDavisandMarch19attheGalloCenterfortheArts.TicketsfortheDavis shows are $7-9 and can be reserved by emailing Bryan.L@monet.k12.ca.us. Gallo tickets can be purchased through theGalloboxofficeatwww.galloarts.org.

BALLOTING FOR NEXT YEAR’S CLASSESWhat Should You Expect? It’s that time of year again! Studentswill be provided ballots to select their classes for next year. A great deal of consideration should be given to selecting your classes. Choosing the wrong classes could prevent you from being eligible for a 4 year university. Counselors will visit classrooms beginning in January and talk to students about their options and graduation requirements. We will also discuss how to electronically ballot for classes using PowerSchool. If students wish to gain access to higher level classes, it will require a signature on the paper ballot from a current teacher indicating the students are ready for the higher level course.

Some basic considerations should include:• Higher level classes for college

readiness.• Which elective classes will prepare you

best for your goals after high school? What are your top choices? What are your “back-up” choices if you don’t get yourfirstpick?

• Are you interested in a special program such as Middle College, Public Safety (Fire/Police), Health Careers, Agriculture, AVID.

• Do you need a certain class for college such as a foreign language?

• Are you interested in playing a sport next year?

• Ifavailable,wouldyouliketofitinanextra class through 0 or 8th period?

Students will be given a deadline to finishtheironlineballot.Afterthedeadline,counselors will meet with students to review what they have selected.

OPERATION 9-2-99Tuolumne River Clean-up project Do you want to make a difference in your local community? The Tuolumne River needs your help! YourtapwaterandelectricitycomesfromtheTuolumneRiver. However, the area of the river from the 9th Street bridge to Highway 99 has been heavily polluted with tires, shopping carts, and garbage.

We need volunteers to: ü Haul tires and shopping carts out of river ü Remove trash and camps along riverbank

Positive Outcomes: ü Restoration of a natural habitat ü Safe, beautiful park for our community

to enjoy ü Community service hours for students ü Certificateofcompletion

For more information and To sign-up: • www.tinyurl.com/operation9-2-99• Chris Guptill - guptill.c@monet.k12.ca.us

Partnered With and Supported By: • TheTuolumneRiverTrust• DryCreekTrailsCoalition• Love Modesto