In what was either an abundance of confidence, or a severe lack of judgment, Germain St. Elementary School Principal Sonya Ugarte promised last year’s student body that she’d “take a pie-to-the-face” if the school’s API (Academic Performance Index) score increased by just 12%. Instead, students boosted the school’s score to 13% — perhaps expecting a cherry on top. True to her word, Principal Ugarte not only took a pie-to-the-face this morning, but — decked-out in protective attire — she invited all families to witness, and even let one lucky child do the dirty work.

According to the California Department of Education, “The API Report is required by the state’s PublicSchools Accountability Act (PSAA) of 1999. This report shows how much a school is improving from year to year based on its API. A school’s API is anumber that ranges from 200 to 1000 and is calculated from the results for each school’s students on statewide tests. The state has set 800 as the API target for all schools to meet.”

Thanks to this year’s API score of 850, Germain St. Students and their teachers have earned the school a state-wide letter grade of “A”, surpassing state performance targets. According to our school’s report, every demographic and socioeconomic group scored above performance targets, so every Germain St. family should be very proud. However, our school’s greatest API increases have been achieved from the previous year’s lowest scoring students — a whopping 4-times higher than their growth target! It’s really quite an achievement, and it proves that every child can excel with the right support and motivation.

Covered in cream pie, Mrs. Ugarte promised students that she would top this year’s event for a 20% API increase. It seems a face-full of dairy will make even the most optimistic principal a little more conservative.

Also announced this morning: “Open Mondays!” Beginning in October families are encouraged to join students and faculty on campus for Monday morning assembly and coffee at the NEW conveniently located school-yard-adjacent Parent Center. This is a weekly opportunity to learn about upcoming events, student and family activities, witness student-lead presentations, and get to know other Germain St. families. We look forward to seeing you there!

For those who missed it, check out the YouTube video, and the rest of the photos below. (All graciously shot and submitted by Germain St. parents.)

 

Photo Credit: Rena Durham. Rena is a professional photographer, and proud mother of a Germain St. Elementary Student. You can see more of her work at RenaDPhotography.com.

We are searching for a photographer who can come to volunteer at our Valentine’s Dance on February 11. If you are interested or know someone who is please let the PTA know. We would like to have portraits taken and available for sale.

PTA Fund Raising News: There will be a spring Festival planning meeting on Friday January 21 at 8:15 am. We NEED parents to come and sign up to help this event or else we cannot move forward. This years festival is planned to be on Saturday April 30th.

5th Grade News: The 5th grade class is running for money. A Jog-A-Thon to raise money for added field trips and culmination. It takes a village to help kids grow and become productive adults. It also takes money. Help sponsor a 5th grader run laps on the field. They are getting exercise and raising money. The Jog-A-Thon will be on Friday January 21 during the school day.

Yearbook News: Pre-orders will begin soon for the yearbook. The pre-order will have Happy Ads. Buy a Happy Ad for your special student for only $3. The pre-sale cost for a yearbook will be $18. After February 19th it will be $21.
Keep taking photos of your student and activities. Send us your photos from the assemblies, field trips, or class parties. Upload info was in previous emails.

Other upcoming dates to remember…

Jan 18 – PTA Association Meeting at 7:00 pm
Jan 21 – Spring Festival Planning Meeting @ 8:15 am in the Parent Center room 30

This Saturday & Sunday, October 23 & 24
6:00 PM – 10:00 PM

Devonshire Police Station: 10250 Etiwanda Ave., Northridge
(By Northridge Park)

There will also be a raffle, an appetizer pot luck (bring your tastiest creations).
Don’t forget to bring your Box Tops too!
YMCA will be there to watch children. Parents please walk kids to the YMCA room to sign them in.

When: Tuesday Oct. 10-20-09  @ 7 pm

Where: Auditorium

Why: Because you care about the students

Come and listen, share, learn, laugh, vote and eat too!!

See you tomorrow night!

Germain Street Elementary School 2009 3rd Grade Academic Achievement Award Recipients

Germain Street Elementary School 2009 4th Grade Academic Achievement Award Recipients

Germain Street Elementary School 2009 5th Grade Academic Achievement Award

Recipients of Perfect Mathmatics Scores

 Facebook users, please share your photos @ http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=74256739588&v=photos

So, I want to tell you why we have asked you to give us permission to communicate with you online, what we have planned, how we’ll protect your privacy and that of your child, what you can expect in the future, and how you can participate.

First, let me start with the benefits of the PTA web site:

• It costs the school nothing!
• It costs YOU nothing!
• It’s instant, 24/7, where you want it, and when you want it. Get your communications in as many, or as few, places as you like. Your home, your office, your phone — your choice! Use your control panel to choose what kinds communications you want to receive.
• It saves resources, including paper, toner, and wear and tear on the school’s precious photocopying equipment, so that those resources can go where the belong — to the students.
• It saves human resources. No one needs to be reminded that this year we have fewer teachers and less staff per child. By embracing modern communications we can help them focus on what’s important — our children.
• It’s good for the environment in numerous ways, and it shows our children that we care about their planet. Obviously, we’re saving paper by using the Internet. But, we’re also keeping paper out of the trash. Even recycling consumes energy.
• Perhaps most significantly, it’s a way to stay connected with your children, both literally, and metaphorically. This medium is and important part our children’s future, and so is this school. We have designed this web site in a way that allows for you, as a parent, your child’s teacher, and the school administration to be directly involved with your child’s education, from anywhere in the world, at any time. To what degree, is all up to those who use it. We have built a robust framework, and we look forward to seeing how you would like to use it.

What can you expect in the future? That really depends on the feedback, input, and participation we get from the parents. Here are some of the possibilities open to us:

• Language: This is really more of a request than a possibility. I would like to see this web site equally accessible to all. Remember, the PTA is about more than just communicating with parents. We need to bring the families and friends of our students into the fold. If there is a language barrier, we should address it, and we may need to enlist some help to do so.
• The site itself already allows for multiple contributors to add information that may be of interest to the entire school, or just a small group, and its easy. If you can send an email, you can post information to this web site. It’s that easy! I would be happy to facilitate that capability for anyone interested.  We can, for instance, make pages available for teachers, room parents, and staff to keep families updated. Best of all, updates from those specific pages can go only to those who ask to receive them.
• Online voting can be facilitated to gather consensus from those who can’t attend meetings.
• We will likely make use of an online calendar on the web site.
• Currently we’re working on a smartphone-friendly version of the site.
• Some have even suggested an electronic bulletin board where parents, friends, families and neighbors might be able to post job opportunities, and other helpful information.

What else? That’s up to you. Please add your comments or suggestions in the comment space below, or contact the PTA directly at GermainPTA@Yahoo.com.

What about families who don’t have Internet access? Not a problem — yet. While our goal is to go paperless, right now, our objective–with your help–is to reduce our demand on the school’s resources. Plus, you can always find up-to-date informatin on the PTA bulletin board in the school entrance, and on the marquee out front.

Another thing we will not do… We won’t ever share your private information with anyone. What you share with us you share in trust. Also, remember that you can always take your own email address out of the mailing list, or add and remove subscriptions, at any time by logging into your control panel.

Please help us meet our objectives of reducing the use of school resources, and contributing to the environment by joining the PTA’s mailing list and staying involved.

Remember, you can also follow us on Twitter, and find other Germain St. families on Facebook!

Please also consider making a direct donation to the PTA, and don’t forget to collect your Boxtops 4 Education and sign up for eScript.

Ever wonder what Germain St. Elementary School looked like back in 1969, when many school parents weren’t even old enough to go there?

How about 1952? (Click on the images for a larger view.)

HistoricArials.com is a web site the whole family can enjoy and cross the digital divide together. (Then, try to explain to the kids how they took these photos without satellites.) Make sure you hit the “Pan Image” button at the top of the picture and tour the rest of the neighborhood at different points in history. You only have to go back to 1980 to see how Porter Ranch got its name, and how you could have safely told your kids to go play on the highway.

Enjoy! Happy time traveling!