Dear Parents,

Here is my monthly newsletter with a few items of celebration, a look back at some important events, anticipation of some upcoming important occasions, and some key reminders. Have a great end of the month!

Sincerely,
    Barbara Dill-Varga, Ed.D
     Superintendent, Aromas-San Juan Bautista USD

Some of the opportunities included:

• Working in the snack shack for volleyball, for basketball, for football, and for soccer

• Assisting with Anzar athletics outside of the snack shack = scorekeeping, ticket entry, parking, door duty, etc.

• Babysitting for ELAC once-a-month meetings at San Juan and Aromas Schools

• Helping coach a younger kids' team (soccer, basketball, volleyball, baseball, softball, etc.)

• Peer Tutoring , translating for Anzar's ELAC (Weds. mornings/ once a month)

• Helping the Anzar Boosters with fundraisers

• San Benito Land Ag and Trust

• Azevedo Ranch- Horse Play

• Church volunteer work

• Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and 4H volunteer work

• Helping at a homeless shelter or an animal shelter

 For many it was an opportunity to also explore careers or future jobs. 47% of last year’s class exceeded the required number of service learning  hours.

Website Committee Convened

We continue to work on our goal of improving communication.  One apparent need is for us to improve our website to make sure that the information is current and easy to find. Our newly formed committee is comprised of parents, a student, teachers, and administrators. 

We spent some time identifying criteria for a new site and sent out a survey to collect feedback from different stakeholder groups. At the end of October, we had three vendor demonstrations and will make a decision by December to take to the Board for approval.

During second semester, we will begin the migration and development of content. We hope to go live at the start of the next school  year with an improved site that makes it easier to find information.

Town Hall Meeting was held on October 17

Information was shared about facility needs that are being addressed by Measure O (San Juan School) and the ones that remain to be supported by a future bond passage of Measure D. 

Participants were asked for some initial feedback and discussion about what improvements are needed at Aromas School and the following list was discussed: 

Safety issues (alarms, fencing, entrance access points), replacing 5 portables, rethinking/expanding preschool, development of outdoor learning spaces/ science lab, addressing water issues/flooding problems/water pipes, adding shade structures, renovation of cafeteria and HVAC for it, general bldg maintenance and repairs, water bottle refilling stations, upgrade library and room 7 as maker space, and improve sports areas/track. 

Anzar High School concept design was also shared and discussed with David Jakes who zoomed in to present an initial idea for renovating the main admin building.

DATA confirmation- why we need it

Even with the numerous texts and emails we have sent to strongly encourage all parents to complete our data confirmation, we are still only at about 50% response rates. That means that nearly 500 families have not responded!

Please know that we are mandated to ensure that every family receives the information, signs the requisite documents, and updates their information with us. Not only is this important for emergency contact information, but we use the information to qualify for state funding in different categories, particularly to support our ability to provide FREE food to all children in the morning, at lunch, etc.  We also have resources for those who may be homeless and need to have accurate counts in this category, too.

PLEASE either complete the paper packets that we will be sending home to those families who did not complete the process online.  These signature packets will soon be distributed by the classroom teacher to your child and we will be checking off names as packets are returned. You will be asked to verify that you have used the link to access and review the full document online.  Follow up phone calls will occur to ensure we have 100% compliance.  Next year, we are considering making this process a “before school starts mandatory requirement for enrollment.” PLEASE HELP US COMPLETE THIS PROCESS AND THANK YOU IF YOU HAVE BEEN ONE OF THE FAMILIES WHO HAVE RESPONDED!

Sponsoring an Anzar student’s college application fee

I am sure you know that college tuition has increased, but you might not be aware that application fees are also very expensive.  It is our goal that all student who can qualify to apply to a U of California school or a California State University School can do so even if they don’t have the funds for the application fee.  We want every student to be able to at least complete one application for free. 

To that end, Anzar Principal Crawley has solicited donations to a fund to cover these fees.  We’d like to invite you to “Sponsor a Senior”.  The cost is about $70.   If you are willing to join many of us in supporting at least one student, please contact Angela  at acrawley@asjusd.org.  One of the benefits of being a small district in a close knit community is that we care for each other and for our young!  Please consider contributing! And thanks!

Measure D on the November 5, 2024 Ballot

ASJUSD’s school board has placed a question on the ballot to seek $44 million in bond funding to:

1. Complete phase 3 of the construction of San Juan School

2. Make needed improvements at Aromas school and

3. Improve the facilities of Anzar High School as we address future needs for our students.

This is a reminder to please look for Measure D on your ballot. 

Important Dates:

• Next Regular Board Meeting is November 13, 2024 at 7PM in Anzar Library.

• The Facilities Committee meeting is October 30, 2024 at 5:00 PM in the District Annex.