One week to go!

Hello Serra Family--

WOW! what a week we had. We started very rocky on Monday and I want to apologize. I thought I had communicated clearly about who was coming on that day and at what time and apparently it was miscommunicated as it felt like everyone showed up! It was really exciting so see everyone but it was very stressful and when those things happen I take full responsibility so again you have my apologies. Every day after has gone so smooth. I also would like to thank my staff who stood out their in 90 plus degree heat to attempt to get you what you needed. I am already getting emails that certain schools are getting waivers and if SDUSD will be asking for one since we are officially off the watchlist. The answer is no. I believe when the Board of Education said "months not weeks" they mean it.

Good news coming--We are getting a new school website in the next week or so. We are so excited as the last one was a lemon! (not chosen by us). I have seen a draft and it looks amazing and will be so user friendly. In addition all of your students now have a district email so teachers can communicate through a secure platform with their classes. The students email is their IDnumber@sandi.net! More on how to use this to come when we start school. Lastly, we had a great turnout on ballots to change the name, mascot and colors, and will be submitting our petition with the choices in a week or so for board decision (yes there will be change). This is a complicated process; after the board decides a name etc then we can announce it. The entire process could take time as I have mentioned even after a decision is made.

However the work to open school must continue and we have been doing just that and are excited!

Few Reminders before we get to the good stuff:

Senior Photos:

A email and call went out about Senior Pictures. It was from Sherri Jo Topping from Lifetouch/Prestige. Please book your appointment and they are deemed approved my the Board of Education for the plan for sanitary procedures.

Communication is key moving forward. I hope you find my blogs useful as communication was an issue before I came and while we can always do better I'm hoping this helps and I commit to doing every week. I also think that during the year you need time to interface with me. I will be holding Principal Coffee's the first Friday of every month on Zoom! Mark your calendars! These will be on the SHS calendar as well. Here are the dates and how to log on. We have already added these dates to the Serra calendar. This will be the last week we run it.

New Information:

Distance Learning Handbook for Families and Students: This document is LIVING; that means it is constantly changing. Please review it with your family but please refrain from printing as it will be edited almost daily. All changes are logged in the document so that you can see clearly what has been edited. Before school starts we will have it on the front page of our website! Click here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1GzVV-NGcRScj4OJmzNfXHB_GfeeYpUZQalDvSVzR-ps/edit?usp=sharing

Office is OPEN: We are now open from 9-1 everyday next week to meet your needs. If you didn't get your packet or didn't drop it off we will be open.

First Week of School: You will have in a Special Edition as it is coming from the district. As soon as I get it I will send it out. We are having OPTIONAL night events the entire first week that are Serra created since you will be doing district curriculum during the day. These are optional and you are under no obligation to attend but we thought it would be a good morale boost. You can not click on these links. Please go to the Serra website to access the links if you decide to participate as we will be posting them Monday.

Textbook Distribution: Coming Soon but the week of September 7 - 11th and ONLY for classes outside of the core (basic Math, Science, English, Social Studies). You will be notified if you need to attend. Many or most will not as everything will be digital.

Schedule and MORE Questions!

QUESTION:

My child has an IEP, what will services look like? What can I expect?

We will have a Student with Exceptional Needs Meeting similar to the AP Night the first week of school. Schedule is below and other questions below as well.

QUESTION: What if my child has Math in the fall. That will mean my child will go a whole semester without math and behind which means ___________.

To the best of our ability we scheduled courses to be in the appropriate semester, either spring or fall, accounting for the potential loss of continuity.  That said, it is not possible to offer only, for example, all math in one semester and all foreign language in the other.  Counselors will be able to check individual students’ schedules and make adjustments if possible. 

QUESTION: Please give details on the new, standards-based guidelines for grading mentioned by Supt. Marten.

The guidelines are still in draft form but will most likely be presented to the Board for approval soon.  Serra High’s own grading policies for academics and citizenship are already in place and are aligned to them. 

QUESTION: What, if any, guidance has been given to make distance learning more equitable (i.e., where parental supports are not the sole dependent variable)?

All schools have limited the number of courses a student takes at a time.  Serra High made the decision to have 3 courses run uninterrupted for S1 (Sept – Jan) to better accommodate students to focus on these.  We believe this will be most beneficial to our students with learning needs.  Although each course meets each day for 60 minutes, every course has a built in 14 minutes of office time, as well as 120 minutes of asynchronous learning after lunch – everyday. 

QUESTION: The language of 'revise/retake' could mean accumulating piles of assignments and student confusion when work doesn't align with teaching focus.   This is precisely what doesn't work for many students with IEPs.

Serra High has come a long way from having assignments (particularly large assessments and performance tasks) due and graded and done.  Teachers all have opportunities for revision and retake to give students opportunity to improve their grades, as we are grading based on standards, not assignments.  We have also removed non-academic features from our grading in order to not penalize students who may need more time, who wish to improve their assignments and demonstrate their mastery of content and skills. Those policies are in our distance learning handbook.

QUESTION: Concern regarding the STARS multi-skills course "requirement" causing STARS students to take just 2 credit-earning courses at a time.  Or will multi-skills slide into asynchronous?

STARS students’ schedules have wide variety.  Many students have study skills with our STARS teachers, and we believe that our STARS ed specialists will have additional time for support both during period class time as well as during the asynchronous time provided in every day.

QUESTION: I'm anxious about how quarters will work with credit recovery.  Especially with IM3.  If a student takes IM3 fall and fails, will it be offered again in spring? There are issues with learning loss and regression/recoupment. 

We have added online credit recovery courses into our fall and spring semesters, both during the 3 period day and immediately following.  If it fits into their schedule, there may be opportunities to retake courses the next semester.  However, our schedule is, at its essence, a 6 period schedule split in half.  Students take 12 credits a year in the traditional system as well as during this year. 

QUESTION: Will students have access to elective programs, VAPA, CCTE, AP, IB, and dual enrollment community college courses?

Electives and dual enrollment college courses will still be included as part of the regular course offerings.

Our Advanced Studies, VAPA, and CCTE resource teachers have been working over the summer to ensure there are resources and enrichment opportunities for all of our specialized programs that both site teachers and students can access throughout the school year.

QUESTION: What is "Flex Time"?

“Flex Time” is designated time for students to participate in independent learning at their own pace.

This time can also be used to participate in enrichment opportunities, such as extracurricular activities, or for additional support as needed.

Flex Time will be included as part of the daily bell schedule, however, students can choose to use the designated time frame for Flex Time or log on later in the day depending on their schedule needs.

Thanks,

Dr. Erica Renfree