Information Session on the Lyceum of Santa Clara
February 7, 2013, 7:00 pm, iLearn Studio, District Office

LASD's Gifted Learners Parent Advisory Group invites everyone to attend an Information Session on the Lyceum of Santa Clara.  This parent participation organization provides enrichment and social opportunities for gifted children grades 2 through 8.  Stephanie Rocha and DIane Durbeck, Co-directors of Membership, will provide an overview of the organization and answer questions.  Children are welcome to attend with their parents.

Junior High Information Sessions & Parent Tours 

For more information, contact Blach at 650-934-3800 or Egan at 650-917-2200.

Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Patricia Lucas has ruled in favor of the District on three issues brought to her by the Bullis Charter School with regards to the 2012-13 facilities offer.  In addition, the Court ruled in favor of LASD on an additional issue related to the BCS attempt to recover $1.3 million in attorney's fees from the District.  Included here are links to the full press release which contains additional information on these rulings as well as the court decisions from each case.

In preparing the facilities offer each year for the charter school, the District is diligent in weighing the needs and the limited facilities for all public school children residing within the district boundaries.  As our student population continues to grow, the District is addressing future facility needs through the Superintendent's Enrollment Task Force.  The Board is also interested in receiving public input on the 2013-14 facilities offer at the Study Session on Monday, December 3 at 7:00p in the Covington School Multipurpose Room.

Bullis Charter School (BCS) has submitted its facilities request for the 2013-14 school year.  The school projects an enrollment of 615 in-district students (644 total students)—140 more in-district students than currently enrolled (a 29.5% increase).  As part of the facilities request BCS states that its location preference is the Covington School site.  Details are contained in the request letter submitted to the district. 

Starting Monday, November 5, the LASD school board will be holding two special meetings to receive public input regarding the facilities request and options for the district.  The first will be held November 5 at 7:00 pm in the Covington School multi-purpose room.  The second public meeting will be held Monday, December 3 also at 7:00 pm in the Covington School multi-purpose room.  The district is required by law to make a preliminary facilities offer by February 1.

We have invited a representative from BCS to present their plans at the first meeting (November 5).

To frame the public input, we have developed the set of guiding questions listed below.  The public is invited to use these questions as a starting point to provide useful input to the process of facilities allocation.  By no means are these guiding questions intended to limit the scope of public input.

Premise

BCS is a school in our community for which LASD is required to determine a facilities solution.

Guiding Questions:

1. How does LASD best accommodate BCS growth?


2. What should the LASD Board consider when evaluating the impact of sharing arrangements with BCS co-locating on an existing LASD campus?


3. Assuming meeting Prop 39 will require expenditure of District resources, where do we prioritize?
   1. Providing reasonably equivalent facilities at existing school site on shared basis?
   2. Finding a new, non-District site for BCS?
   3. Reconfiguring district schools to open more space for BCS?
4. Is there a less divisive process by which to address facilities issues each year?

United States Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has announced that Oak Avenue
Elementary School, in the Los Altos School District, has been named one of 219 National
Blue Ribbon public schools. A total of 269 public and private schools have been
recognized. Only twenty-four schools in California were honored with this prestigious
award this year. Oak School was one of only three elementary schools to be recognized in
Santa Clara County.

Click here to read the full press release.

Expanding Horizons with Innovative Strategies, Thursday, October 11 at 9:00 am, Santa Rita Multi

What is LASD doing this year to creatively engage students in learning?  Join Kami Thordarson, the LASD Innovative Strategies Coach, to learn how teachers are helping students discover curriculum, rather than just delivering curriculum.  Using various methods of digital storytelling, design thinking, and project based learning, teachers are igniting their students with a passion for learning and helping them become creative problem-solvers and collaborative learners.  Come and discover how these various strategies are enriching and empowering students in LASD.

We are excited to share information on current learning initiatives that will help us revolutionize learning for all students with the LASD parent community.   Once a month, we will host an “iLearn Parent Education” event at one of the schools.  Presentation content will be available on the district website following each presentation.  All parents and community members welcome.

• Gifted Education - Gifted vs. High Achieving Students, 9/28 at 9:00 am Oak Multi

What are the characteristics of high achieving and gifted students?  Come learn more about how LASD is meeting the needs of your child in the classroom. Amy Romem, Principal of Oak, has expertise in working with Gifted Students and lots of information to share. You will walk away with strategies and resources that are beneficial to parents of both high-achieving and gifted students.

• Expanding Horizons with Innovative Strategies, 10/11 at 9:00 am, Santa Rita Multi

What is LASD doing this year to creatively engage students in learning? Join Kami Thordarson, the LASD Innovative Strategies Coach, to learn how teachers are helping students discover curriculum, rather than just delivering curriculum. Using various methods of digital storytelling, design thinking, and project based learning, teachers are igniting their students with a passion for learning and helping them become creative problem-solvers and collaborative learners. Come and discover how these various strategies are enriching and empowering students in LASD.

• Edtech with Ellen Kraska 11/15  at 9:00 am,  Loyola Elementary.

Edtech is all the craze these days! Join Ellen Kraska, Technology Integration Teacher, to hear how Los Altos teachers are using technology as a tool to engage and inspire students in the learning experience. You will hear about the successful improvements teachers are making to their curriculum as a result of our iLearn Summer Academy 2012, iLearn courses the utilization of instructional coaches. Hear about cool tech  projects, use of Google tools, implementation of Edmodo and more tech resources in classrooms across our district

• STEM Education in LASD & Beyond 12/6, 9:00 am, Location to be determined

Interested in learning more about STEM (Science - Technology - Engineering - Math) instruction in LASD?  Curious about how parents can support their student’s STEM education at home?  Join LASD’s STEM Instructional Coach, Courtney Cadwell, as she provides participants with a vision for STEM instruction in LASD and beyond.

• Upgrading the Curriculum with Common Core Standards 1/17, 9:00 am Covington Multi

All LASD teachers have committed to upgrading units of instruction this school year.  Come learn more from Alyssa Gallagher, Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum & Instruction, about what it means to upgrade curriculum and how Los Altos School District is aligning instruction to the Common Core Standards.

Los Altos School District students continue to perform extremely well as measured by the 2012 Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) test results.  Ninety-three percent of all students in grades 2 through 8 scored at the proficient or advanced range in both English Language Arts and Math.  This is a sustained increase in each content area over the past five years.  Our students continue to excel academically.  We are particularly proud of our students’ performance on the writing test:  97% of all students in Grade 4 scored proficient or advanced and 99% of all students in Grade 7 scored proficient or advanced.  District, school and grade level results can be found at the California Department of Education website.  AYP and API reports will be released in October.   LASD District Staff will share a more detailed analysis with the LASD Board of Trustees at the September 10 board meeting.