Fall Edition 2011 Summer’s Over and it’s Back to School... Careful planning by school and district leaders and staff led to a smooth start of the new school year when Fresno Unified students returned to campuses on Aug. 22. Roosevelt High School students are top left, Bullard High School students are bottom left and top right, and at bottom right, Bullard’s new 50-meter pool is completed for the 2011-12 school year. Center, kindergarten teacher Martha Mendoza talks with student Christian Rodriguez at Jefferson Elementary School. Major Facility Projects Continue to Take Shape New Faces in Including Completion of Bullard High School’s Competition Pool Bullard High School’s new swim a groundbreaking ceremony for the new in athletic upgrades to seven district New Places: complex and nine-lane all-weather track southeast Fresno elementary school high schools. The new swim complex were dedicated Sept. 16 in a celebration just north of Sequoia Middle School at also includes an office, concession that paid homage to the school’s rich Cedar and Heaton avenues. And next building and restrooms, tiered 16 New aquatics history and highlighted the year, construction is expected to begin concrete spectator seating as well as a enhanced athletic opportunities the new on a middle school in southwest Fresno handicap-accessible teaching pool. The facilities will provide students. on an expanded Carver Academy site. competition pool is the first 50-meter Principals The 50-meter pool, smaller teaching The district continues to expand pool in Fresno Unified. pool and all-weather track are among opportunities and enhance the learning “The completion of the Bullard High Take Charge the significant facilities projects recently environment for students and staff School aquatic center represents a completed or underway in the Fresno with upgraded facilities. At Bullard High milestone in the facility improvement Unified School District, including new School, the new pool replaces an aging efforts of the entire Bullard educational >> See NEW PRINCIPALS, PG. 14 schools. On Oct. 5, the district will hold pool half the size as part of $14 million community,” said Principal Brian Beck. >> See FACILITIES PROJECTS, PG. 4 POSTAL CUSTOMER POSTAL Preparing Your Teen Measure Q is FUSD Summer School ECRWSS for the Real World Hard at Work Draws Big Numbers FUSD’s Career Readiness Pathway Campus upgrades and improvements Students take advantage PERMIT NO. 2040 NO. PERMIT FRESNO, CA 93721-2287 CA FRESNO, FRESNO, CA FRESNO, Programs can help. continue thanks to voter approval. of multiple opportunities. 2309 TULARE STREET TULARE 2309 PAID EDUCATION CENTER EDUCATION US POSTAGE US Look for this Read this Read this FRESNO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT SCHOOL UNIFIED FRESNO NON PROFIT NON insert on PGS. 7-10 article on PG. 11 article on PG. 13 2 : BUILDING FUTURES A Publication of the Fresno Unified School District FALL 2011 building futures www.fresnounified.org A Publication of the Fresno Unified School District BUILDING FUTURES : 3 BUILDING FUTURES A PublICatION OF the FresnO UNIFIed SCHOOL DIstrICT FA L L edition 2 0 1 1 SUPERINTENDENT’S MESSAGE Lesson Learned: Finding Opportunity in Our Difficulties If there’s one constant these days, it’s that students. A total of 3,438 Fresno Unified we are all facing difficulties. The economic students took at least one AP exam this year. BOARD crisis that we are enduring at the state and The number of AP exams taken this year was national levels (and internationally) is landing nearly double the amount of exams taken in Michelle A. Asadoorian right in our own family rooms. No one remains 2007. President untouched by this challenging time and that Janet Ryan, Clerk includes our schools and by extension our Opportunity – More Students Applying to Valerie F. Davis students. Four-Year Colleges Lindsay Cal Johnson Our equity and access work uses tools to We are doing more with less and our not only target students who are on track to Carol Mills, J.D. schools are feeling it. But, there’s a lesson to meet college admission requirements but to Larry Moore Michael Hanson be learned here: there is opportunity in the increase the pool of eligible students so that FUSD Superintendent Tony Vang, Ed. D. difficulties we face. It’s easy to see the positive more students graduate with the greatest when great things are happening, but more number of opportunities from the widest election. With state and federal matching administration difficult to seek out opportunities when faced array of options. This work has resulted in a funds this could mean up to $400 million with significant challenges. 52 percent increase in the number of Fresno investment in upgrading and improving our Michael E. Hanson Unified students applying to Fresno State Superintendent schools. Our staff immediately went to work Opportunity – Expanded Learning for over the last three years and the number of to apply for the Overcrowding Relief Grant Ruth F. Quinto, CPA Students applications to UC Merced has increased Deputy Superintendent (ORG) for a number of our schools. To date, Our students need and deserve opportunities from 81 in 2009 to 177 in 2011. Jorge Aguilar this equals $38 million in state funding that Associate Superintendent, Equity & Access and that’s exactly the work of Fresno Unified. has been received or applied for, leveraging Our work is about providing students with Opportunity – Saving Jobs Miguel Arias local Measure Q dollars. Right now more Chief Information Officer expanded learning opportunities and giving Fresno Unified has withstood $144 million in than $60 million in Measure Q projects are them the support they need. In fact, as school reduced state revenues, and we have found Chris Evans either under construction or on the verge Associate Superintendent, Secondary Education districts up and down the state have reduced opportunity in this significant challenge. In of breaking ground. We continue to work Mabel Franks, Ed. D. or eliminated summer school, we expanded fact, our Human Resources leaders did diligently to invest our local taxpayer dollars, Assistant Superintendent, Special Education it the past two summers and even offered incredible work to save hundreds of jobs. The which is not only improving our schools, it is Edward Gonzalez online summer school courses for the first good news is that we were able to bring back creating local jobs so desperately needed. Associate Superintendent, School Support Services time. Now more than ever, our students need the remaining 25 teachers in layoff status due Vincent Harris more opportunities. And we found opportunity to the fact that our student enrollment is up by Let us all demonstrate to our students Executive Officer, Accountability & Improvement among a major budget challenge – the kind about 400 students this fall. this valuable lesson of finding opportunity in Kurt Madden of opportunities that made a big impact on our difficulties. We will continue our work in Chief Technology Officer students. Opportunity – Investing our Community’s Fresno Unified to provide all our students Kim Mecum Dollars to Create Jobs and Improve School opportunities, but we all must ensure that our Associate Superintendent, Human Resources/ Opportunity – More Students Taking Facilities students see the work required to fully realize Labor Relations Advanced Placement Courses and Exams Our community overwhelmingly passed these opportunities. Cindy Tucker Through our partnership with the College our $280 million bond (Measure Q) last Associate Superintendent, School Support Services Board, we continued our work to expand November making it the most successful Thank you for your continued support of Advanced Placement opportunities for school bond in California for the November Fresno Unified School District. building futures Susan Bedi Public Information Officer 2011/2012 Academic Calendar Anne Ellis Community Relations Officer THANKSGIVING BREAK NOVEMBER 21-25, 2011 Photos Provided By: Chau Bui, Webmaster; Michael Delacerda, Media Production Specialist; Tony Bernard, WINTER BREAK DECEMBER 23 - JANUARY 16 Media Technician SPRING BREAK Building Futures is a regular publication APRIL 2 - 9, 2012 of Fresno Unified School District prepared by the Communications LAst DAY of School JUNE 15, 2012 Office. The department can be reached at (559) 457-3733 or online at www.fresnounified.org. To view the calendar in its entirety please visit our website at www.fresnounified.org. www.fresnounified.org building futures FALL 2011 4 : BUILDING FUTURES A Publication of the Fresno Unified School District swimming and water polo southwest regions of the district will at Carver Academy, has been named profile in the Valley. Bullard benefit from new schools designed to principal of the new middle school. The Make thishas a history of swimming relieve elementary school overcrowding campus will have a rigorous academic success, including and significantly improve the educational program for 1,000 students that will your child’sproducing 50 All-American opportunities for middle school students. meet the needs of the neighborhood swimmers in the 1970s The southeast-area elementary students and strengthen the community. and 1980s, 25 Valley titles school will be built on 8.43 acres with As part of the school’s mission to and 24 league titles for the a capacity of 850 students and will serve the entire community and provide BESTgirls teams, and 14 Valley eliminate the need to bus students to a focal point for students, their families titles and 21 league titles the temporary southeast elementary and the neighborhood, the district is FACILITIES PROJECTS school yearfor the boys.ever. site. Teresa Calderon has been named exploring options for flexible space to (continued from Page 1) At the dedication, former swimmers principal of the school, which is expected accommodate workforce development When your child isn’t getting the grades you “Students now and for generations to dating back to the 1950s will be on hand to open for the 2012-13 school year.