Signature. Signature Schools. The. Enroll Today - School Starts July 31st. From Traditional to Montessori, we offer many choices in our

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1 Summer 2013: News, Events & Resources for Students, Parents & Our Community The Signature From Traditional to Montessori, we offer many choices in our Traditional Montessori Performing & Fine Arts Dual Language Acquisition Global Investigations Math, Science & Technology Community Schools Our Schools Offer: A Safe, Happy Learning Environment Highly Qualified Teachers State of the Art Facilities Free Before/After School Care Free Breakfast & Lunch Free Full Day Kindergarten Please call the school office or for questions regarding enrollment. Copia de Español Si desea una copia de este informe en español, por favor llame al o visite nuestro sitio web en Enroll Today - School Starts July 31st Every day of learning is critical to a child s success in school. Therefore, we strongly encourage you to be sure your children are enrolled prior to July 31st and ready to be in the classroom on the first day to kick off a great new school year. A list of our fourteen schools is provided here and includes the start and dismissal times for each school. Please do all you can to support your child s learning by insuring they are in school each and every day for the full day of learning. If you need to find the right school for your child, please call our enrollment specialist at Each school year marks a fresh start for learning and provides the perfect opportunity to talk with your child about the importance of school and their goals for the school year. If your child has an excellent track record in school, it is the perfect opportunity to reinforce how proud you are of their hard work and school successes. On the other hand, if your child has struggled at school in the past, it is the perfect time to talk about a fresh start and set new goals for successful learning and relationships at school. Goal setting can be very effective and set the tone for a great new school year for you and your child. We are looking forward to an excellent school year! Please visit our website for a detailed calendar for the school year Bethune (PreK-8) 1310 S. 15th Ave :55 am - 3:55 pm Capitol (PreK-8) 330 N. 16th Ave Dunbar (PreK-8) 707 W. Grant St :55 am - 3:55 pm Edison (PreK-8) 804 N. 18th St Emerson (PreK-6) 915 E. Palm Ln Our Montessori (PreK-8) 910 E. Washington Main Campus 8:45 am - 3:45 pm & Shaw Campus 8:35 am - 3:35 pm Garfield (PreK-8) 811 N. 13th St Heard (PreK-8) 2301 W. Thomas Rd Herrera (PreK-8) 1350 S. 11th St Kenilworth (PreK-8) 1210 N. 5th Ave Lowell (PreK-8) 1121 S. 3rd Ave School (K-8) 2602 N. 23rd Ave :20 am - 2:20 pm Shaw (PreK-8) 123 N. 13th St :55 am - 3:55 pm Whittier (PreK-8) 2000 N. 16th St Preschools 9:00 am - 1:30 pm

2 Welcome New Principals Ms. Laurie Nelson - Kenilworth School Ms. Laurie Nelson joins us as the new principal at Kenilworth School from Creighton Elementary School District where she served as assistant principal for the past 5 years at Loma Linda School. Prior to that she was the dean of students in Pendergast Elementary School District and also served as a student advisor in the Wilson School District. Ms. Nelson holds a Bachelor of Arts from Westminster College in Pennsylvania. She received her Master of Arts from Northern Arizona University (NAU) and also holds an Administrative Certificate from NAU. You can reach Ms. Nelson at or laurie.nelson@phxschools.org. Mr. Kevin Sotomayor - Herrera School Mr. Kevin Sotomayor joins us as the new principal for Herrera School for Performing Arts and Dual Language from Madison Elementary School District where he was principal of Madison Park Middle School. His experience also includes assistant principal at Madison Meadows Middle School and principal at L. Thomas Heck Middle School in Litchfield Elementary School District. His experience in bilingual education and English Language Learner (ELL) education in Isaac, Deer Valley, Scottsdale and Dallas School Districts, will be strongly leveraged in his new role at Herrera School. Mr. Sotomayor holds a Bachelor of Arts and Masters in Education from Arizona State University. You can reach Mr. Sotomayor at or kevin.sotomayor@phxschools.org. Dr. Gary Zehrbach - Director of Principal Effectiveness Dr. Gary Zehrbach has been named Director of Principal Effectiveness and will focus on working with principals across our schools to ensure the highest levels of instructional leadership are working effectively in our schools to promote student achievement. Dr. Zehrbach has been a principal at Herrera School for the Performing Arts & Dual Language since During his tenure, student achievement has grown and his practices for developing teacher and leadership effectiveness have not gone unnoticed. Fluent in Spanish, Dr. Zehrbach is known for his ability to facilitate student, teacher and administrator success in challenging environments. He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration and Masters in Education from Notre Dame and Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis from University of Wisconsin Madison. Prior to returning to Phoenix, he served as principal of Nuestro Mundo Community School in Madison, Wisconsin where he secured a competitive charter school grant to open the school. He also served a year as middle school principal at Arizona State University Preparatory Academy prior to joining Phoenix Elementary School District #1.

3 Thank You Taipei Chinese Cultural Camp Thanks to Ms. Lin Ling Lee and the Taipei Chinese Cultural Camp, our PEER students engaged in the cultural camp again this year. The camp enriches and unites our community as we all learn to enjoy, respect and honor the culture and heritage of our brothers and sisters with whom we are united in Phoenix. Our students had the opportunity to engage in folk arts, traditional and classic dance, martial arts, Chinese calligraphy and so much more. It is a joy to see these performances and honor our students and staff and our guests from Taipei. Ms. Lee, your work with the Taipei Chinese Culture Camp and the Phoenix/ Taipei Sister Cities is unprecedented in Phoenix and we are honored to be part of it. Thank you for all you do to enrich the lives of our students. Contribute Your AZ Tax Credit Make a Difference in the lives of Our Students Arizona state tax law enables you to receive a tax credit up to $200 ($400 if married filing jointly) when you make a donation to a public school. These credits are available to individuals filing Arizona state returns. They help support extracurricular programs for our prekindergarten through grade eight students in the heart of Phoenix. Donations are accepted any time throughout the year but must be postmarked by December 31st of the calendar year. It s Simple. It won t cost you a cent. 1. You can contribute your tax credit donation to our students online at 2. Or, you can mail or drop off your contribution to: Phoenix Elementary School District #1 Tax Credit Contribution North 7th Street Phoenix, AZ However you choose to contribute, we will provide a receipt for you to submit with your tax returns. And, we will spend your contribution wisely. Thank you. Bethune Capitol Dunbar Edison Emerson Garfield Heard Herrera Kenilworth Lowell Shaw Whittier

4 Planning for a Healthy School Year As the school year begins and children are back together in classrooms, on playgrounds and before and after school activities, it is inevitable that the cold and flu season will kick in and other communicable diseases will be at hand. Let s all work together to minimize the spread of illness and focus on a healthy, happy year for our students. Here are a few important tips to consider for your children s health and safety: 1. Although school attendance is important, sick children belong at home. The following rules will help control communicable disease. Please keep this sheet in a convenient location for reference. Do not send your child to school if he shows any signs of illness; such as a fever over 100 degrees, active vomiting or diarrhea, a severe cough, or pain. Do not send a sick child to school for the nurse or teacher to decide whether he should be in school. If in doubt, call your doctor or accompany your child to the school nurse for evaluation before school begins. If your child is sick, keep other children away from him. Some of the signs and symptoms of acute illness are: Restlessness at night Rash Fever over 100 degrees Nausea or vomiting Very runny nose Red watery eyes Frequent sneezing and coughing Flushed face Severe sore throat Headache If your child shows any of the above signs, he should be kept away from interaction with other children. Please call your doctor or school health center if you have questions. 2. Immunizations If your child needs vaccinations and they have AHCCCS or are not insured please speak to the staff in the school health office as free vaccines are available at school. You will need to complete paperwork and the vaccines. For free vaccines, you may also visit the local county clinic at 16th Street and Roosevelt, across from Ranch Market. Roosevelt Clinic 1645 E. Roosevelt St., Phoenix, AZ Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday: 8:00 AM 5:00 PM (Closed Wednesdays) Closed for lunch: 12:30-1:30 PM 3. For your child s safety, it is always best for tennis shoes to be worn at school to protect feet during recess activity and physical education class. 4. Nutritious meals and a good night s sleep are critical to success at school. Please be sure your children arrive early enough at school to eat breakfast and come to school well rested. District Calendar July 31st, Wednesday First Day of School August 8th, Thursday at 6:15 pm 22nd, Thursday at 6:15 pm September 2nd, Monday No School - Labor Day Holiday 12th, Thursday at 6:15 pm 26th, Thursday at 6:15 pm October 7th - 11th, Monday - Friday No School - Fall Break 10th, Thursday at 6:15 pm 14th, Monday No School - Teacher Professional Development Day 24th, Thursday at 6:15 pm November 11th, Monday No School - Veteran s Day Holiday 14th, Thursday at 6:15 pm District Governing Board Meeting 25th - 29th, Monday - Friday No School - Fall Break & Thanksgiving Holiday December 12th, Thursday at 6:15 pm District Governing Board Meeting 23rd - January 3rd, 2014 No School - Winter Break Dates are subject to change. Please visit for up-to-date calendars and a full listing of school and District events.

5 Governing Board Letter from Dr. Marston Superintendent Letter from Dr. Roa Dr. Ruth Ann Marston Dr. Myriam Roa Dear Phoenix Elementary #1 Community: It is with great pride I share with you a new initiative taken on by our District Governing Board. For the past 7 years the District has been guided by our strategic plan that was developed with input from our entire community and is revisited consistently to ensure we stay focused on the goals of the plan and reprioritize as needed. The plan is known as Our Blueprint for Student Success, and it guides our daily work. In our most recent review of the strategic plan, the District Governing Board is implementing a goal that will further engage our board members with parents across the District to focus on high school preparedness for our 8th grade students. We will actively meet with 8th grade parents from all of our schools to provide information to parents and help them prepare their children for this critical transition from 8th grade to high school. And, we will communicate the importance of a rigorous education in the middle school years (especially in math and science) to ensure students are academically prepared for high school. We know this transition time and preparedness are key to success and have a big impact on predicting high school graduation and academic success in high school and beyond. We are determined to engage with our parents on this important topic and are anxious to get started. Stay tuned for meeting dates for your school, and please be sure to attend! Dear Phoenix Elementary #1 Community: As you are probably aware from articles you have read in our newsletter or else where, this is the year when the Arizona legislation takes effect that requires school districts to retain students who are not reading at grade level in 3rd grade. Known as Move on When Reading, we take this state initiative seriously and are working very diligently to ensure all of our students are reading on grade level in 3rd grade. In fact, we are focused on ensuring that students are performing in all academic areas on grade level. Reading on grade level is fundamental to success in all academic areas so we certainly embrace this state initiative. Your dollars are being wisely spent from the most recent capital override and those dollars support this reading initiative as we purchased English Language Arts (ELA) instructional materials to support instruction and drive academic success. These ELA instructional materials were sorely needed and our teachers and instructional staff are delighted to have the new materials in our classrooms. Thank you for your support of the capital override. We are very fortunate in Phoenix Elementary School District #1 to have a community that supports our initiatives and enables us to make good decisions regarding instruction and academic success for our students. Please watch for factual information to be published soon regarding our M&O override on the November ballot. As with each election, we will post the factual information regarding how the dollars will be spent on the home page of our district website at That information will be posted soon and referenced in our October newsletter to our community. Again, thank you for your ongoing support!

6 1817 N. 7th St. Phoenix, AZ NONPROFIT ORG U.S. POSTAGE PAID PHOENIX, AZ PERMIT NO. 738 Bethune Capitol Dunbar Edison Emerson Garfield Heard Herrera Kenilworth Lowell Shaw Whittier Copia de Español Si desea una copia de este informe en español, por favor llame al o visite nuestro sitio web en From Traditional to Montessori, we offer many choices in our Traditional Montessori Performing & Fine Arts Dual Language Acquisition Global Investigations Math, Science & Technology Community Schools All of our schools are FREE - even Montessori! We have all the programs many schools have dropped - art, band, music, orchestra and physical education. No matter where you live, we have a K-8 school that is just right for you! *FREE before and after school care is available every school day from 7:00 am to 6:00 pm, during intersessions, including summer, for students enrolled in the district with working parents. Space is limited School Starts July 31st. Enroll Today. Our Schools Offer: A Safe, Happy Learning Environment Highly Qualified Teachers State of the Art Facilities Free Before/After School Care* Free Breakfast & Lunch Free Full Day Kindergarten Call today to reserve priority placement in our K-8 schools. Bethune Capitol Dunbar Edison Emerson Garfield Heard Herrera Kenilworth Lowell Shaw Whittier