Weekly TLC Newsletter for the week of December 16th....

Charter Chatter

A weekly newsletter written to parents of the Tracy Learning Center

                 

                            Dec. 20, 2013                                                No.19

Virginia Stewart

As the end of the year draws to a close, I always become very reflective.  While this has been a good year for TLC, it has also been a challenging one.  The charters have to be renewed every five years by the sponsoring district.  Our charters are approved by Tracy Unified School District. 

The schools up for renewal this year are Primary and Millennium.  We have submitted the petition for renewal for Millennium.  There will be a public hearing at the TUSD Board Meeting on January 28.  We welcome your presence at that meeting.  It is important that the board knows we are very concerned and want our charters renewed.  While I believe the charters will be renewed, I know there are things about our schools that greatly concern the district.

We are seeking to relocate the high school to a separate site so that someday we can have a Falcon field and gym.  We will also be able to expand our high school to 800 students.  The district is concerned about this.  Growth on our part means decline on the district part.

We are also seeking to renovate the present site to make it modern and efficient as a K-8 site.  We desire to expand these grades as well.  We have over 1000 students on our wait lists.  This again is a concern to the district. 

There are other issues that have strained our relationship with the district over the years.  We desire a collaborative and friendly relationship with the district, but at this point that seems not to be the case.  I will keep you posted as we proceed to work through getting the charters renewed and our movement in obtaining a lease for the high school.

I believe an informed parent population is important because we need your support and visible presence at meetings as we move forward. 

In the meantime, I wish you a happy end to 2013 and a great and bright future for 2014.

Misc. Announcements

Next Parent Council Meeting

Thurs. Jan. 23, 2014 4:15 in P6

Annual Crab Feed

Crab Feed Tickets are on  Sale Now. Come join us for the 8th Annual Tracy Learning Center Crab Feed – Saturday, February 1, 2014. All you can eat crab, pasta, salad, and bread. Stay for the raffle, live auction and lots of dancing.

Tickets are $40.00 each or reserve a table for $320. Please see the enclosed order form for details.  There will be an opportunity again this year to advertise your business on a placemat that will be placed at each table setting.

Great exposure for your business. A business card size ad is $25.00. Larger ads are available, please contact Donna Baker for details.

If you would like to donate an item or volunteer for this awesome event please contact Donna Baker at (209) 832-1940 or donna@donnabaker.com.  

Thanks a bunch to all who make this event so incredible!!!!!!!! 

Holidays

Winter Break begins Monday Dec. 23, 2013 and all students return to school on Mon. Jan. 6, 2014

Spirit Store

Attention Falcon Fans, Millennium Athletics now has an online SPIRIT store!!  Check out what we have in stock:  FALCON FAN WEAR!!

(https://ssastores.com/store/millennium-high-school-athletics-tracy-ca/)

Check back monthly as we are working on getting designs created for each sport.  We invite TLC Students and Families to help customize the store:  If you have an original design representing MHS Athletics or a specific sport, that you'd like to submit for consideration, design resolution must be 300dpi or higher.

PCS/DCS Lunch Menu Week Jan. 6 – Jan. 10 Mon. –   Pizza Tues. –Chicken Patti Sandwich Wed  – Chicken Chowmein Thurs. – Beef or Bean Tostada Fri. – BBQ Rib Sandwich

Primary Charter

Primary PE:
The following students take pride in their health and have earned their Strong Paw Award for completing 15 (Yellow), 20 (Orange), and 30 (Green) perfect push-ups!!! Way to go tigers!!!!

PCS Sapphire

The Sapphire Team wishes everyone a Safe and Happy 2 weeks off.

We appreciate our wonderful students and the support that we get from all the

great families of the students.

Please have your child continue to read over this break.

P1 Christmas Concert!:

PSC Art

In Art this week, all of the classes finished up their current projects. Then we spent a few days learning how to draw Penguins, Snowmen, and the Grinch.  We ended the week playing a dice game called “Roll a Snowman”, where you gradually draw a snowman with each roll of the die.

PCS Gold

Golden Highlights:

We cannot believe that it is already winter break!! We hope that everyone has a safe and spectacular winter break! Winter break goes from December 23^rd to January 5^th.  We will see everyone back at school in the New Year! Our first day back is Monday, January 6^th!

Student leadership had a great idea to start Mix It Up Mondays where students will be encouraged to sit with someone that they don’t normally sit with at lunch. This will start after our break!

Reminders:

Winter Break will be December 23^rd - January 5^th school will start back up on Monday, January 6^th!

Jackets, lunchboxes, gloves, hats, scarves, etc. are pilling up in the lost and found. If your child lost something at school our lost and found is a great place to check. Lost and found is located in the hallway right next to the office.

DCS 5^th/6^th

    The return of sunshine this week melted the ice that started to form in the outdoor areas of campus. We hope the warmer weather carries into the holiday break so students feel inspired to spend time outdoors.

Pet Shelter Donations:

     Students collected many donations of food and pet care supplies for local animal shelters. These supplies will be delivered over the holiday break. Thank you for contributing to a successful drive.

SWO:

     Personal awareness scrapbook pages and essays were submitted for grading on Friday. It is pleasing to see many students writing scrapbook captions that are creative, interesting, and playful.  The third part of the SWO project will be explained when we return from holiday break.

Garnet:

     Students worked very hard on China projects and presentation boards this week. They practiced research skills, presentation skills, and time-management skills. Students came to school dressed very professionally for the occasion, a true demonstration of their pride and dedication.

Gold:  

    Thank you to the wonderful chaperones who made our fieldtrip to the Academy of Sciences possible. There were so many things to see and do at the museum. Students seemed most impressed by the animal exhibits and expressed a desire to return. We wish the fieldtrip could have been longer, but perhaps you will find time to visit as a family.

      *Science Camp forms and information went home with students on Wednesday, December 18th. Please complete the forms and return them to school no later than February 14. Any questions regarding Science Camp can be directed to Ms. Pelaez.

PHSA 7^th and 8^th

^{A big, huge thank you to our leadership students and all the teacher who help put on our most successful PHSA dance ever!  Extra thanks to Mr. Mitri for all his hard work.  “Club Tyga” was definitely the place to be!}

^{From everyone at PHSA, we wish all our parents and students a safe a joyful holiday.  We will see you all in 2013!}

MHS

 

The spring semester started this week and report cards were mailed out yesterday.  We encourage parents to continue to check Aeries on a regular basis to be a part of your student’s academic success.  Some other helpful actions that parents can take to help their student is ask to see agendas, double check for homework completion, be in communication with teachers, and set aside designated time for studying and homework.

New resolutions go hand in hand with the upcoming New Year.  For many, the spring semester can be a fresh start as well. 

There was a meeting this week with students who took the PSAT.  If your student took the PSAT exam this past October, please ask to see their results and their test booklet.  Students can receive helpful test taking tips fromwww.collegeboard.com

Last semester, Mrs. Stewart conducted a workshop for students, parents, and teachers on “How to Study”. It was a great and educational experience for all who attended.  We have decided to offer this workshop again, so please save the date:

Wednesday, January 15^th from 4pm – 5pm in Homework Support Room M14  

We encourage students and parents to attend who want to learn how to improve their grades and balance their time…studying the right way!

Community Service

1.       Polar Run and Dunk- Wednesday, January 1^st at Eagal Lakes from 7-1:30pm. They are in need of help with set up, registration, parking, and races and clean up. If you are interested please email Anne Langley at anne@eagallakes.com.

San Joaquin Delta College-Engineering

The Delta Engineering Department is pleased to invite students from your school to participate in the 27^th Annual Engineering & Technology Day at Delta College on Friday, January 24^th, 2014 from 8:30-4:00pm for 9-12 grade. The day’s activities will include Drafting Contests in the morning, Career Orientation Seminar in the afternoon, and an Awards Ceremony for closing. Please note the Deadline for receiving entries is 4pm, Wednesday, January 22^nd. If an entry is blank and the entry fee have not been received by the deadline date the student will not compete. IF you are interested please pick up applications/forms from the Science Department. For more questions please contact 209-954-5298 or 209-954-5285.

Other News

Discovery Charter School 5/6^th Grade Science Camp (Volunteers Needed!)

Student volunteers needed for 6^th Grade Science Camp! Discovery 6^th Grade students will be visiting the Santa Cruz Mountains for a week to explore outdoor education and science.  A total of 14 students will be selected to volunteer for this exciting weeklong opportunity.  Students can earn a total of 60 hours of community service for participating.    Upon reviewing applications, select students will be asked to participate in a short interview.  This is a wonderful opportunity to work with youth and earn community service.  The best part is that it’s free! Food and lodging expenses will be provided by The Tracy Learning Center.

To be eligible for this opportunity, please check the minimum requirements below:

·         Be 16 years or older

·         Have a current G.P.A. of 3.0 or higher (Please complete the grade check on the back side of this form)

·         Must be able to commit from Monday, March 31st – Friday, April 4th

·         Application and essay submitted by the deadline has been extended to Friday, January 7^th, 2014!   

·         *There will be a group interview January 9^th, which is the first week back from break.