Staff-O-GramGlendale Unified School District • Glendale, California

16-17, Issue 5, January 2017

“PREPARING OUR STUDENTS FOR THEIR FUTURE”

223 N. Jackson StreetGlendale, California 91206(818) 241-3111www.gusd.netBOARD OF EDUCATION

Dr. Armina GharpetianPresidentNayiri NahabedianVice PresidentGregory KrikorianClerkJennifer FreemonMemberChristine WaltersMemberSUPERINTENDENTOF SCHOOLS

Winfred B. Roberson, Jr.

Message from the Superintendent

Dear Esteemed Colleagues,

Despite the rainy weather, the second half of our school year is off to a bright start!

First and foremost, I want to thank you for your feed-back on our Employee Culture Survey. More than 1,400 GUSD employees at all levels of the organization shared their ideas and suggestions on how we can improve our schools. We will use the survey results to celebrate what is going well in our District and to pinpoint areas of focus to strengthen our organi-zational culture. I look forward to sharing the results with you in the coming weeks.

We returned from winter break on a positive note with Yellow Ribbon Week celebrations at each of our schools. Across the District, our staff and students spread kindness and promoted our culture of caring by participating in Yellow Ribbon Week activities. Schools did everything from making get-well cards for patients at local hospitals, to creating videos for the Great Kindness Challenge, to simply spreading smiles across their campuses.

I want to thank our teachers and classifi ed staff for the hard work you do every day to support GUSD students. The second half of the school year is a busy and often stressful time for staff and students, but if we continue to support one another, stay focused on student learning, and foster our culture of care, trust, and inquiry, I know that we will fi nish the year strong.

Your partner in education,

Winfred B. Roberson, Jr.Superintendent of Schools

Winfred B. Roberson, Jr.

Muir Elementary School Spanish Dual Language teacher Angela Palmieri was inter-viewed by Alejandro Valtierra, from Velázquez Press and DualLanguageSchools.org, a few weeks ago.

Her interview was published and is available for viewing at: http://duallanguageschools.org/post/dual-language-teacher-month-angela-palmieri.

Velázquez Press is quite impor-tant in bilingual education. They assist in the designation of the Seal of Biliteracy to schools and school districts.

Palmieri interviewed by

bilingual education publication

There are times when the number of requests for transla-tors exceeds the Intercultural Offi ce’s availability or they receive a request for languages the district cannot provide.

The Intercultural Offi ce is look-ing for GUSD employees who are profi cient in conducting oral or written translations in the following languages: Armenian, Korean, Spanish, Tagalog, Russian, Vietnamese, Farsi, Arabic, American Sign Language, Cantonese, or Japanese.

If interested, contact Angie Marquez at amarquez@gusd.net. Extra hourly pay, for certifi cated staff, and overtime, for classifi ed staff, will be provided for these services.

On January 19, Glendale High School conducted its annual combined instru-mental music concert where Roosevelt and Wilson Middle School students play along-side the high school musicians.

This year the students and audience got a special treat as our very own superintendent, Winfred Roberson, joined the GHS Jazz Band and played the electric bass guitar with them for one of their numbers.

GHS concertgoers and performers get special

treat from Superintendent

Intercultural Office needs translators

Staff-O-GramGlendale Unified School District | Glendale, California “Preparing our students for their future.”

16-17, Issue 5, January 2017Page 2

Background

Yellow Ribbon Week in the Glendale Unifi ed School District is Violence Prevention Week. It takes place the week begin-ning with the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday commemoration in January every year. This school year it will be the week of January 17-20, 2017. This annual recognition supports our Safe and Drug Free Schools message that our schools must be safe havens for our students to excel and develop skills for a successful future. Yellow Ribbon Week not only raises awareness about keeping California’s schools safe and violence free, but also honors the victims of school violence and reminds us to do all in our power to ensure that these senseless tragedies never happen again. Our students and schools participate in activities throughout this week in partnership with Dignity Health/Glendale Memorial Hospital and The Great Kindness Challenge.

Yellow Ribbon Week and the Great Kindness Challenge

The highlight and centerpiece of our Yellow Ribbon Week is our participation in The Great Kindness Challenge. Because of the active participation of our students and schools the GUSD is recognized as a Kindness Certifi ed School District proudly displaying the Kindness Certifi ed School District Seal on our website as our own GUSD logo is placed on the Great Kindness Challenge website in recognition of our districtwide kindness campaign. The Great Kindness Challenge is a proactive and positive bullying prevention initiative that improves school climate and increases student engagement. The Great Kindness Challenge is devoted to our students performing as many acts of kindness as possible. Using the provided checklist of 50 kind acts, students accept the challenge and show the world that kindness matters! The 50 kind acts are to be accomplished on campus. The students are encouraged to continue sharing their kindness at home, in their com-munities, and in our world. All kids deserve to learn in a safe, supportive, and dynamic environment. The Great Kindness Challenge provides a powerful tool that actively engages students, teachers, administration, families, and community in creating a school culture of acceptance, tolerance, unity, and respect.

Simply put, in the Glendale Unifi ed School District we believe that kindness is strength and has the power to change the world for good.

Glendale students accept kindness challenge on Yellow Ribbon Week

Staff-O-GramGlendale Unified School District | Glendale, California “Preparing our students for their future.”

16-17, Issue 5, January 2017Page 3

Principal for A Day 2016The 25th annual Principal for a Day in the Glendale Unifi ed School District was held on December 7, 2016 and has attracted 30 business and community leaders. The Glendale Educational Foundation (GEF) sponsored the event.

Guest principals spent the morning at their assigned schools, then gathered at noon for a luncheon and “commence-ment” in the Administration Building Board Room. The reception gave the guest principals and their hosts the oppor-tunity to share their experiences and compare management styles in the public and private sectors — one of the main objectives of the program. The roster of participants is as follows, in alphabetical order by school name:

Vardan Stepanyan• , VSS Notary & Immigration Services, Balboa ElementaryRev. Cassis McCarty• , Dignity Health/GMH&HC, Cerritos ElementaryCynthia Guenther• , Avery Dennison, Clark Magnet HighDan Cabrera• , GEF, College View SchoolAlfred Ramirez• , GCC Garfi eld Campus, Columbus ElementaryKevin Hobbs• , USC/Verdugo Hills Hospital, Crescenta Valley HighMelina Sardar• , Sardar Coaching & Consulting, Daily High SchoolRandy Slaughter• , Glendale Arts, Dunsmore ElementaryLeo Zalyan• , Glendale City Clerk Offi ce, Edison ElementaryNeda Farhoumand• , Glendale Council PTA, Franklin Elementary

Robert Gordon• , Friends of the Glendale Public Library, Fremont ElementaryJennifer McLain• , Workforce Development, Glendale HighAnna Luke• , Comprehensive Financial Services, Glenoaks ElementaryJohn Prosky• , Antaeus Theater, Hoover HighAlbert Hernandez• , Family Promise of the Verdugos, Jefferson ElementaryElsa Chagolla• , GEF, Keppel ElementaryHarry Leon• , CV Town Council, La Crescenta ElementaryLeonard Ghazarian• , Caspian Services, Lincoln ElementaryMatt Doyle• , City of Glendale, Mann ElementarySarah Roberts• , Whole Foods Market, Marshall ElementaryMaria Sahakian• , Glendale Arts, Monte Vista Elementary

Lisa Pitney• , The Walt Disney Company, Mountain Avenue ElementaryMiryam Finkelberg• , Finkelberg & Finkelberg, Muir ElementaryHogop Hovsepian• , Glendale Information Services, R.D. White ElementaryMary Hovagimian• , Congressman Adam Schiff, Roosevelt MiddleKate Kammeyer• , Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Rosemont MiddleAustin Israelsky• , Glendale Galleria, Toll MiddleJoylene Wagner• , GEF, Valley View ElementaryDebbie Hinckley,• President, Ascencia, Verdugo Woodlands ElementaryDr. Hamlet Davari• , Hamlet Davari, DDS, Wilson Middle

Principal for a Day strives to educate and enlighten community leaders about the Glendale Schools, giving guests a taste of what it’s like to manage the complexities of a school campus. Visitors have the opportunity to test their management abilities and styles in problem-solving situations commonly faced at a public school.

Over 600 of the most active community leaders from Glendale and the Foothills have participated in Principal for a Day. Guest princi-pals have represented more than 40 professions, ranging from banking and hospital management to law and community service.

Fremont principal Dr. Christin Molano and guest Robert Gordon.

Glendale High guest principal Jennifer McLain (seated) with assistant principals Charlotte Sassounian, Dr. Alen Akhverdyan and Mark Rubio.

Mountain Avenue guest principal Lisa Pitney with principal Jaclyn Scott.

Rosemont Middle School guest principal Kate Kammeyer.

Rev. Cassie McCarty from Dignity Health G l e n d a l e M e m o r i a l Hospital enjoyed reading to K indergar ten students and speaking to 6th graders as Principal for a Day at Cerritos E l e m e n t a r y School!

Fremont has warm welcome waiting for their guest.

Staff-O-GramGlendale Unified School District | Glendale, California “Preparing our students for their future.”

16-17, Issue 5, January 2017Page 4

Two schools report on The Hour of Code activities

Both parents and students at Cerritos Elementary School learned and enjoyed coding!

Fifth graders at Keppel Elementary taught their fi rst and third grade peers the importance of coding and then taught them how to code using Scratch. According to their website, Scratch is a programming language where children can program and share interactive media such as

The Hour of Code is about increasing access to computer science by breaking stereotypes and opening doors. Somebody may learn programming concepts like loops, conditionals, or basic debugging through the Hour of Code. But a much more important goal is for students and teachers to learn that computer science is fun — you can start at any age, in any classroom, even if you don’t have a computer. For more information, visit: https://code.org/.

stories, games, and animation with people from all over the world. As children create with Scratch, they learn to think creatively, work collaboratively, and reason systematically.

GATE Program presents the 23rd Annual Invention Convention winners

The Glendale Unifi ed School District’s Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) Offi ce hosted the 23rd Annual Invention Convention on November 19, 2016.

Eighty-three inventions from 91 inven-tors were on display. GATE students in grades 4-8 participated applying cre-ative thinking and problem solving skills to develop inventions and innovations that help resolve everyday challenges.

All together, GUSD had 17 entries that took fi rst, second and third place at the event. They are:

Fourth Grade1st Place: Julian Duaybis, Jake Mucic, and Jamie Shoemake, Lincoln Elementary, “The Solar Powered Umbrella”2nd Place: Edmunda Li, La Crescenta

Winners pose with GUSD Superintendent Winfred Roberson (back row, middle) and GUSD Board president Dr. Armina Gharpetian (back row, right).

Elementary, “Double Sock Lock”3rd Place (Tie): Tiara Azores, R.D. White“Brush Around”; and Hee Sook and Olivia Lee, Keppel, “Desk Dividers”

Fifth Grade1st Place: Lukas Newman, Lincoln Elementary, “Smart Bookmark”2nd Place (Tie): Carmen Avedian, R.D. White Elementary, “The Specstem”; and Gore Sergsyan, Jefferson Elementary, “Tape-Aid”3rd Place: Arno H. Dionysian, Jefferson Elementary, “Soap-a-Filler”

6th Grade1st Place: Sophie Megumi Ludes, Dunsmore Elementary, “The Tree Table!”2nd Place (Tie): Emma Gonzalez, Wilson Middle School, “Snug and Save;” and Josiah Roh and Joshua

Kim, Lincoln Elementary, “The Blackout Brush”3rd Place (Tie): Nikita Ambatipudi and Catalina Clark-Reed, Glenoaks Elementary, “The Tissue Topper;” and Chloe Addiego, Verdugo Woodlands Elementary, “Sprinkler Runoff Recycling System”

Seventh Grade1st Place: Hunter Pruett, Hayk Ghukasyan, and Narek Azizyan, Toll “Temp-Alert”

Eight Grade1st Place: Alexander James and Mathew Apostol, Rosemont Middle School, “Lambs Wool”2nd Place: Alex Davis, Rosemont Middle School, “The Sock Tracker”3rd Place: Amanda Li, Rosemont Middle School, “The Pencil Lip Balm”

Staff-O-GramGlendale Unified School District | Glendale, California “Preparing our students for their future.”

16-17, Issue 5, January 2017Page 5

On January 18, Fremont Elementary had an amazing assembly presented by “Street Beat” called Boom Tap.

Students had the opportunity to see two drummers and two breakdancers that gave insight to what tools need to be in place when

Fremont students Boom-Tap their way to new skill

The Pasadena City College Tournament of Roses Band has been the offi cial Tournament of Roses Band since 1930, the fi rst year of participation in the parade.

The Pasadena City College Tournament of Roses Honor Band includes the Band, Herald Trumpets and Color Guard. They perform each New Year’s Day as the host band of the Rose Parade. It includes high school students selected by audition and members of the Pasadena City College Lancer Marching Band.

The students are: Bryce Collard, percussion (snare drum); Brad Davis, tuba; Seth Fajardo, percussion (snare drum); Grant Hilburn, percussion (cym-bals); Emma Kupershmidt, color guard; and Libby Morrell, color guard - all from Crescenta Valley High School; and Jacob Gonzalez, percussion (cymbals) and Huriel Moreno, trombone, from Glendale High School.

Eight GUSD Students part of the Pasadena Tournament of

Roses Honor Band

Hoover High School’s art faculty members Allison Stewart and Mary Anna Pomonis displayed their photo project, Resurrecting Matilda, on January 21 at the opening recep-tion of The Collectivists at the Brand Library Gallery. The Resurrecting Matilda series focuses on the histori-cal erasure of women from textbook curricula and their accomplishment were accredited to their male peers. The photo exhibit shows the timeline of women’s works obliteration from the Sumerian poet Enheduanna, the world’s fi rst recorded author, to Laskarina Bouboulina, the fi rst female Navy admiral in history.

The Collectivists photo gallery will be on exhibit from January 21 through March 12, 2017 at the Brand Library and Art Center.

Hoover High School art teachers’ works featured in historical exhibit

Keppel Live @ Lunch gives fourth and fi fth grade GATE students the opportunity to plan their 10-minute segments that air once a week during lunch time.

Students use Google Apps (slides or docs) to share the plan for their mini production. All of the work for their segment is done at home and is optional. They practice during the week with the people that will be in their segment. They can choose their classmates or friends. After the segment airs, students watch, critique, and fi gure out how they can improve their next broadcast. Students are learning what makes a seg-ment get more “likes” and views. This project was requested due to the social media and popularity of YouTube. They are learning what it takes to make a video that people want to watch. Stay tuned!

drumming and dancing successfully together in a show. Re-purposed percussion instruments were used to get the audience engaged and excited about music and dancing.

By the end of the show everyone was clapping and singing along. It was a wonderful time!

Keppel is on the air with Live @ Lunch

Keppel’s littlest learners are being taught this trimester by MKS (Make Keppel Special) resi-dent music teacher Lucia Acitelli.

Miss Baldwin’s kindergarten stu-dents were welcomed into the room and expectations about where and how to sit were explicitly given. Mrs. Acitelli

MKS Resident Artists add value to Keppel VAPA

modeled the greeting song and every student participated with movement, singing, and introducing themselves.

Students then participated in two different activities with musi-cal instruments; one of which was “pass the sound,” a free-form/exploration, but with structure.

Mrs. Acitelli read a Native American story to the class about giving thanks for all that we have on earth. As she read, she had native American music playing in the background. This story reading led

Continued on page 8, MKS

Staff-O-GramGlendale Unified School District | Glendale, California “Preparing our students for their future.”

16-17, Issue 5, January 2017Page 6

Columbus takes home the gold

Columbus Elementary School’s fourth and fi fth grade volleyball team beat Cerritos Elementary’s team in two out of three games. Columbus was newly added to the One Glendale after-school sports program and won the Fall football championship and now volleyball. Columbus principal Dr. Elena Rojas said, “Looking for-ward to a great basketball season, and then soccer season.”

Grant awarded to GUSD middle school lacrosse programThe Beebe Nuetzman Endowment Fund is funding the purchase of lacrosse equipment for the Glendale Middle School Lacrosse Program. This program is in its inaugural year of introducing the sport of lacrosse at two middle schools in Glendale Unifi ed School District (GUSD).

As a 17-year, fully credentialed physical education teacher at Wilson Middle School, Gilbert Aviles recently launched the after-school lacrosse program in an effort to introduce the sport to GUSD students. The program is currently being offered at Wilson and Rosemont Middle Schools.

The Rosemont Middle School cross country program competed in the annual LA84 Run4Fun cross country meet on December 10, 2016. Rosemont’s 39 runners did very well, with the seventh grade teams taking fi rst place (for boys) and second place (for girls); the eighth grade boys team took second place as well.

There were nearly 100 Rosemont students involved in cross coun-try at Rosemont this season. Thirty-nine of them participated in the LA84 Foundation Run4Fun program, a 1.2-mile cross country race held at Elysian Park.

Our individual winners included: 7th Grade, Boys Division: Bryce Bitetti, 1st place; Rowan FitzGergald, 2nd place; Ryan Powell, 3rd place; Isaac Smyth, 5th place8th Grade, Boys: Ian Smyth, 3rd place7th Grade, Girls: Taili Sherwood-Kong, 3rd place; Eden Haack, 4th place; and Emma Walch, 5th place.

Rosemont Middle School teams placed in LA84 Run4Fun track meet

Wilson Middle School ‘tugs’ the tradition forward

Wilson Middle School presented the annual tug-o-war event on November 18 to the delight of the students at the school. The event, organized by the physical education department, encourages collaboration between classmates, promotes a positive school culture, and builds a sense of com-munity for the students and teachers at Wilson.

This event has been happening for more than 50 years and brackets homeroom classes against each other by grade level. The event culminates with the winning 8th grade girls’ and boys’ teams squaring off against the faculty.

This year, the faculty dominated the students, win-ning both the male and female competitions. Rumor has it that the current 7th graders have already started practicing to defeat the faculty in next year’s competition. (Photo credit: Nancy Berger)

Left: Ms. Milton’s 7th grade Science home-room gives it their all with joy and enthusiasm.Below: Wilson students from Ms. Panosyan’s homeroom work together to defeat the other class.

Continued on page 8, Lacrosse

The Wilson female faculty were once again victorious in defeating the winning 8th grade homeroom.

Staff-O-GramGlendale Unified School District | Glendale, California “Preparing our students for their future.”

16-17, Issue 5, January 2017Page 7

On January 18, Marshall fi fth graders enjoyed an educational day of learning at Glendale Community College. Students participated in hands-on science activities, visited the School of Nursing and Engineering and talked with college students about college life.

Teachers Melineh Hambarsumian and Anahit Makhmuryan, teacher specialist Nora Doctorian and principal Carla Walker expressed appreciation to Glendale College for planning a memorable visit.

Marshall fifth graders tour Glendale Community College campus

There was a tree planting cer-emony at John Muir Elementary on December 9, 2016 in honor of Brandon Doronila, the second place winner of the “I Love My Neighborhood” poster contest.

Muir student wins poster contest

American music icon Kenny Loggins visits Wilson’s rock ‘n’ roll classIconic singer and songwriter Kenny Loggins was Wilson Middle School rock ‘n’ roll music class’ special visitor on January 26. He performed one of his most popular songs, Footloose, with the class playing and singing alongside him. He was impressed with all the talents the students showed and encouraged the students to continue their passion for music and songwriting. He offered them tips about the music industry, as well.

Before his visit ended, Loggins presented the class with brand new instruments that were donated by Little Kids Rock, a nonprofi t based in New Jersey whose purpose is to support music programs nationwide. The students said performing with Kenny Loggins is an unforgettable experience and made them more confi dent in themselves. Others said they are honored and are left speechless.

January 27 marked the 100th day of school for the students. Students made 100-designed glasses and visors to mark the day. Parents donated treats to the classroom and students counted and sorted the snacks into

Valley View celebrates day 100 with Zero the Hero

10 piles of 10. Each student was able to create his/her Day 100 snack. There are fewer than 80 days left of the 2016-2017 school year!

Keppel Elementary’s spelliing bee streamed live on UStream. Parents were able to watch from their smart devices at home or work. Congratulations to winners Nathan Lee and Narek Azarian!

Spelling bee streamed live

Staff-O-GramGlendale Unified School District | Glendale, California “Preparing our students for their future.”

16-17, Issue 5, January 2017Page 8

February6 Elementary Spelling

Bee Finals, Admin. Bldg. Board Room, 7 P.M.

7 Board of Education Meeting, Admin. Bldg. Board Room, 6:30 P.M.

15 Elementary Magnet and FLAG Random Student Selection, Board Room, 10 A.M.

16 Glendale Council PTA 2017 Founders Day Dinner, Clark Magnet Cafeteria, 6:30 P.M.

21 Board of Education Meeting, Admin. Bldg. Board Room, 6:30 P.M.

23 Hoover High School Open House, 6 P.M.

24 Elementary Honors Instrumental Music Festival, Glendale HS Auditorium, 7 P.M.

25 Special Board Meeting, First United Methodist Church, Room 151, 9 A.M.

March2 Rosemont Middle School

Open House, 6:30 P.M.2 Toll Middle School Open

House, 6:30 P.M.7 Board of Education

Meeting, Admin. Bldg. Board Room, 6:30 P.M.

9 Wilson Middle School Open House, 5:15 P.M.

9 CV High School Open House, 5:30 P.M.

9 Cerritos Elementary School Open House, 6:30 P.M.

11 GUSD Instrumental Music Festival, Glendale High School, 9 A.M. to 7 P.M.

16 Edison Elementary School Open House, 5 P.M.

16 Columbus Elementary School Open House, 6 P.M.

16 Middle School Honor Band and Orchestra Concert, Glendale High School, 7 P.M.

28 Board of Education Meeting, Admin. Bldg. Board Room, 6:30 P.M.

30 Roosevelt Middle School Open House, 6 P.M.

The Hoover Public Safety Academy (PSA) continued their mission to help those in the community by holding a food drive for the Salvation Army at Hoover High and Toll Middle Schools. Students designed posters and went to each classroom with collection bags giving a short public service announcement telling students and teachers the mission of the Salvation Army and how these items will help feed those in need. Three carloads of canned and dry food items were donated to the food bank at the Glendale Chapter of the Salvation Army.

Hoover High School PSA helped stock food bank

to teaching the stu-dents a gratitude song while Mrs. Acitelli accompa-nied on the guitar. The students were so focused she was able to teach 2 verses to the song! The class ended with a farewell song that will end every class.

The way in which music is being intro-duced to the kids is so enjoyable!

MKS, from page 5

Valley View held its Family Game Night to help promote the annual PTA Toy and Book Drive to help children from our district.

Everyone was treated to sixth graders’ homemade waffl e bar, hot chocolate and board games.

Families were encouraged to bring a new unwrapped toy or book to receive bonus raffl e tickets for the evening’s raffl e of all the games. It was a wonderful way to get the giving season off to a great start.

Valley View’s Family Game Night

Valley View families enjoying quality time.

is coming!Beginning February 1, 2017 through September 15, 2017, start logging those steps and earn gift cards. For the fi rst 25,000 points earned in Walkadoo, you get a $50 Visa gift card. For the next 25,000 points, you get an additional $50 Visa gift card. Watch for emails from GUSD Wellness to learn more. Happy walking!

As a volunteer coach, Mr. Aviles has recruited the support of four other volunteer coaches that are knowledgeable about the sport. On Tuesday and Friday afternoons, they are teaching boys lacrosse skills and for some of the participants, introducing them to a new sport. Over 50 boys have participated in the program. More importantly, it is the only public middle school boys program serving the area and the District. In addition to teaching the boys lacrosse fundamentals and techniques, the program is hoping to develop a Glendale middle school team that will compete in the upcoming spring season.The high cost of lacrosse equipment can be an obstacle to play-ing lacrosse, especially the boys’ game. The need for equipment is more extensive and requires a bigger fi nancial commitment from GUSD families. Gloves, elbow and shoulder pads, as well as a helmet, are required to play the game of lacrosse. Most of our families cannot afford the cost of purchasing this equipment, which averages to approximately $250.00 on the low end.The awarded funds will be used to purchase lacrosse gloves. This will help start the process of acquiring the needed equipment for the boys. The program is grateful for the support of the Alpha Upsilon Chapter of The Beebe Nuetzman Endowment Fund.

Lacrosse, from page 6