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Every 15 Minutes

A publication of Desert Sands Unified School District March 16, 2015

Drinking while driving results in a vehicular death every 15 minutes.

Students at Palm Desert High School were reminded of this grim

statistic in a live-action representation of a two-car accident involving

high school students. Played out on the football field to a packed

stadium of juniors and seniors on a recent Thursday morning, the

scene continued the following day with a mock funeral in the gym.

The enactment will become part of a video that will eventually be

shown on public access television.

Student actors were supported by Riverside County Sheriff’s

Department and Cal Fire. First responders arrived on the scene as if

the accident were a true emergency. The interview with the driver of

the accident-causing car was played live over the intercom system

and students watched and listened to the alcohol-impaired responses.

Those in the stands watched in horror as a body, thrown from the

vehicle, was pronounced DOA and covered in a sheet. A second body

was retrieved using the “jaws of life” and transported by helicopter

for medical attention. On hand, the grim reaper and assistants stood

quietly and watched as they waited to collect victims.

The exercise takes place every two years to remind students to not

drink and drive and to be responsible behind the wheel. Principal Bob

Hicks hopes that the staged accident will continue to grown in

importance with other schools taking part in the exercise.

Covered by local

media, an editorial

on the program was

featured in The

Desert Sun and a

number of

comments can

be found on their

web site.

The Beacon is published weekly by the Desert Sands

Unified School District. Contents are the property of the

district and reprinting or reuse of the material is available

by contacting the public information office at

mary.perry@desertsands.us.

Publisher: Gary Rutherford, Ed.D.

Editor: Mary Perry

Copy Editors: Adriana Romero and

Blanche Ramirez

Photo Editor: Roger Isabell

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Dates of Note

March 19, 20 & 21: Beauty and the Beast presented by

John Glenn Middle School. See information on page 8.

March 20: Blood drive at Indio High School.

March 20: Up with People! Indio High School at 7:00

pm on Friday, March 20. For ticket information, call

712-541-9880.

March 20: Hoover PTC Fundraiser at Chuck E.

Cheese’s begins at 3:00 pm. See information on page 11.

March 20: The Palm Desert High School Band

welcomes the Luther College Concert Band at 7:00 pm.

See page 9 for more information.

March 21: La Quinta High School Wind Symphony in

concert at La Quinta Civic Center Park at 11:30 am. See

page ?? for more information.

March 21: Indio High School Interact Club car wash.

March 22: Palm Desert High School Foundation

Golf Tournament at the Classic Club. Shotgun start at

8:00 am. For more information see page 8.

March 27: Shadow Hills High School Annual College

and Career Day from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm in the gym.

March 30: LQHS Wind Symphony performs at New

York City’s Carnegie Hall.

March: High school seniors can apply for $1,000

scholarships. To qualify, you must have a parent or

grandparent who is an educator. Call Terry Ceja at

760-360-1471 or Patsy Meister at 760-393-3690.

April 8: Texas Hold’Em Tournament to benefit the

United Way. 6:00-9:00 pm at Agua Caliente Casino.

April 15: Fundraiser at Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant

beginning at 11:00 am. Proceeds benefit the Palm Desert

High School PTO.

April 16, 17, and 18: Shadow Hills High School

presents A Midsummer Nights Dream. See page 9 for

more information.

April 23: Desert Roadrunner Division 43 welcomes Ken

Young, Riverside County Superintendent of Schools.

Presentations begin at 2:30 pm. See page 10 for more

information.

Brochure Available Contact Amistad High School for a

brochure on their auto technology program.

The pamphlet details information about the

career pathway that answers many of your

students’s questions. The brochure is hot

off the DSUSD printers.

Farming Field Trip ASES students from

Lyndon B. Johnson and

John F. Kennedy

elementary schools

recently took a first

hand look at local

produce thanks to the

kind invitation of

farmer Brett Manion.

Solo Performance Congratulations to Shadow Hills High School student

Donovan Doran who has made it into the final round for

the Southern California Vocal Association Solo Vocal

Competition. Donovan will be competing against 50

other students from around SoCal on March 21.

Donovan also competed in the Indio Sunrise 2015 Music

Competition, placing fourth, moving him into the Rotary

Regional competition on May 19. Shaun Clark joins

Donovan as participants in the March 26 California

Honor Choir performing in Pasadena later this month.

Pre-Retirement Resource Fair Desert Roadrunner Division 43 of the California Retired

Teachers Association will be holding a pre-retirement

resource fair on April 23 at 2:30 in the Riverside County

Office of Education in Indio, hosted by Kenneth Young,

Riverside County Superintendent of Schools. There will

be presentations by CalSTRS counselors and CalRTA.

Representatives include AARP, HICAP, the Office on

Aging, local senior centers, and more. Snacks will be

served and prizes awarded. For more information

contact calrta.div43@gmail.com.

In addition to The Beacon, individual schools

create their own newsletters with a wealth of

information about the happenings at each site.

Contact the school or schools to receive their

newsletters, too.

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Indio High Students Tour UC Davis

Indio High School FAA members Cera Lopez,

Alexander Paz, and Alexander Gallardo recently toured

US Davis as part of the 2015 Agricultural and

Environmental Science Field Day. They received a

personalized tour by Yousef Byzayan, an Agricultural

Ambassador, and a student majoring in International

Agricultural Development and Economics. All three

students are considering UC Davis for their post-

secondary education. They were also able to visit with

Anel Cabrera, a graduate of Indio High School's

Agricultural Program and currently on a full academic

scholarship in Animal Science.

The IHS students placed third overall as they identified

over 300 bedding, shrubs, ground cover, house plants,

trees, and horticultural tools, many of which are

unfamiliar to a desert gardener. They transplanted

seedlings, gave oral reasons and justifications on

selection of various plant materials, and judged which

plant materials would be best used in a nursery or home.

The 100 question test on horticultural science was a

great way to prepare for the state finals in May.

Paz placed fourth in presenting and communicating the

transplant of plants into a one-gallon container. Lopez

placed sixth in her oral reasons and justification of plant

selection. The team placed tenth in plant ID.

Please send Mary Perry your school newsletters!

mary.perry@desertsands.us.

Enjoy this newsletter? Share it!

New subscribers can win a Chromebook. Drawing is March 31.

www.dsusd.us

IN THE NEWS

DSUSD was featured…

March 9: Local television and newspapers covered the

first responder training exercises at Indio High School.

The media began with notices to the public advising

them of the upcoming training. Additional stories

included coverage of the actual events.

March 7: The Desert Sun ran a lengthy article titled

Fringe science fuels cancer fears regarding allegations

of a “cancer cluster” at a Desert Sands Unified

District school. Comments can be found on their

web site.

March 7: An article on the upcoming performance of

Up With People at Indio High School on March 20 was

noted in The Desert Sun.

March 7: Hard lesson should help kids avoid tragedy

was the title of a Sunday editorial in The Desert Sun. It

followed articles and television coverage of a Palm

Desert High School live-action representation of a fatal

car accident caused by a drunk driver.

March 5: The Neighbors section of The Desert Sun

included a front-page story on the reading-related

activities that took place at DSUSD schools throughout

the week. The accompanying photo was of Indio Police

Chief Richard Twiss reading to students at John Adams

Elementary School.

March 3: Local television reported on Read Across

America Day and noted the participation by community

leaders and reporters.

Cera Lopez, Alexander Paz, and Alexander Gallardo

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College Tour Indio High School AVID and

CSF students recently visited

three California colleges. The

17 juniors toured Pepperdine

University and UC Santa

Barbara before spending the

night at the Fess Parker

Resort. Justin McBride, a

graduate of Cal Poly San

Luis Obispo and now an

engineer with the school,

took students on a tour.

“This trip was amazing. I

gained a deeper understanding

of colleges, what I need to do

to get there, and the variety of

colleges. I gained a deeper

understanding when we went

through the dorms, ate in the

cafeterias, asked questions,

and received advice for applying and living in college…

I thought that all colleges were roughly the same but

there’s a great difference in atmosphere, food, living,

people, and connection.” - Cruzangel Nava

“This AVID trip was a view

-point changing experience.

I learned that the private,

UC and Cal State are very

different… I don’t quite

understand my feelings on

what to want out of a college

because I don’t really know

what I want. These three colleges were amazing and I

am happy I came to see them.” - Seiri Samaguey

Community Meetings All DSUSD schools have had, or will be having,

community meetings to review progress with LCAP

(Local Control and Accountability Plan). Schedule:

Monday, March 16 Franklin Elementary

Tuesday, March 17 Ford Elementary

Wednesday, March 18 Shadow Hills High

Wednesday, March 18 La Quinta High

Wednesday, March 18 Earhart Elementary

Wednesday, March 18 Indio High

Wednesday, March 18 Glenn Middle

Thursday, March 19 Amistad High

Thursday, March 19 Paige Middle

Tuesday, March 24 Paige Middle

Tuesday, March 24 Palm Desert High

Friday, March 27 Lincoln Elementary

Sharing in Education Students in the

Shadow Hills High

School Education

Careers Pathway

recently donned

their new purple

shirts and headed

out to Desert Ridge

Academy where

they used their

newly learned

teaching skills.

A recent trip to Amelia Earhart Elementary School

provided them with an opportunity to observe primary

grade instruction. March through May, the students will

visit DSUSD schools each Wednesday during sixth

period. The classroom experiences are a component of

grade requirements for both Introduction to Education

and Development Psychology.

Foundation’s Payroll Deduction Program (Submitted by Theresa Kachiroubas)

The Desert Sands Unified School District Educational

Foundation is a non-profit organization supporting our

“lighthouse” district. Currently, our primary funding

goal is to support classroom technology.

The foundation has hosted several activities over the

past three years to raise funds.

We have distributed letters to community businesses

and district vendors, soliciting monetary donations,

and donations in kind.

A spring mixer was hosted last spring for

Foundation supporters, including a silent auction.

Two successful Hikes 4 Education have been

organized, with extraordinary participation.

Festival of Trees and Holiday Baskets Raffle was a

huge success, with tremendous community support.

Voluntary payroll deductions help support the

Educational Foundation.

There are 29 district employees currently participating

in our voluntary payroll deduction program with

contributions ranging from $5.00 to $50.00 per month.

Employees interested in participating in the voluntary

payroll deduction program, may acquire a form from

fiscal services at the district office. Questions may be

directed to the foundation’s website at

info@DesertSandsEF.org or call (760) 609-4633.

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From the RCOE Information Office

Local Control and Accountability Plan Electronic Template Field Test: The CDE’S Local Agency System Support

Office (LASSO) is seeking county offices of education and school districts to participate in a field test of the CDE’s

Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) electronic template. The LCAP electronic template is currently

scheduled to be available for field testing in early to mid-April 2015 as part of the 2015–16 LCAP process. The field

test will focus on the creation and editing of an LCAP, the submission of an LCAP for review and approval, and the

review and approval of the LCAP within the system. Participants in the field test will have an opportunity to provide

feedback on the functionality of the electronic template and to provide suggestions for additional functionality to be

included in future versions of the electronic template. Participants will also receive technical assistance and support

from LASSO and technology services staff throughout the field test. COEs and school districts interested in

participating in the field test of the LCAP electronic template are asked to contact LASSO staff by telephone at

916-319-0809 or by e-mail at lcff@cde.ca.gov and to provide a contact name, telephone number, and email. If you

have any questions regarding this message, please contact the Local Agency Systems Support Office by phone at

916-319-0809 or by e-mail at lcff@cde.ca.gov.

Participants will be notified on March 20 and additional information and documentation regarding the field test will be

sent out shortly thereafter.

Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) State Rollout Symposium: Science teachers can take advantage of

professional learning opportunities to prepare them for implementing California’s new science standards. Science

teachers will delve deeply into the philosophy and design of the new standards, explore available resources, and

experience sample lessons plans. There will also be opportunities for participants to talk and share ideas with other

educators from around the state. The symposia are being presented by the CDE, K-12 Alliance/WestEd, California

Science Project, California Science Teachers Association, and the Curriculum and Instruction Steering Committee.

Dates are April 17-18 in San Diego and June 1-2 in Ventura. The cost of each symposium is $200 per participant.

District teams are limited to 4-6 people. For more information and to register, visit the Next Generation Science

StandardsWeb page.

Feeding the Masses

Over 1,800 students had a surprise picnic lunch on March 9. A strange chemical odor caused administrators at

Shadow Hills High School to move the noon time meal outdoors. That meant some quick thinking and team work

as carts were rolled out and a distribution process established to provide lunch outside of the cafeteria. Fire

department authorities believe that the smell was due to an HVAC problem and the odor quickly dissipated. Very

special thanks go to the cafeteria, custodial, and security teams for making this all happen as seamlessly, and, yes,

fun as possible.

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Glenn IB Award-Winning Teachers (By Julie Middlebrook, IBMYP Coordinator)

Two of John Glenn Middle School’s teachers, Chelly

Basto and Kim Ussery, have been chosen as the 2015

recipients of the IBMYP Teacher Training Award and

the IBMYP Exemplary Educator Award, respectively,

from California Association of World Schools (CAWS)

Each year, the CAWS offers the opportunity for

member IB World Schools to apply for approximately

$20,000 in scholarships across the four IB programmes.

Scholarships are also awarded to students and

recognition is additionally awarded to administrators

and legislators for their support of IB. CAWS has long

shown a strong commitment to supporting member

schools not only by offering scholarships, but also by

offering semi-annual seminars, roundtable

collaborations, and advocacy for IB schools at the

legislative and university levels.

Mrs. Basto and Mrs. Ussery received their awards at the

California Association of World Schools Spring

Seminar in San Diego on March 2. Mrs. Basto’s award

came with $2,500 toward teacher training and Mrs.

Ussery’s received $1,000.

Mrs. Basto is the heart and soul, hands

and feet, behind the success of the MYP

Language Acquisition subject at JGMS.

A member of the IB Leadership Team at

JGMS, her knowledge of language

acquisition in the MYP has allowed her

to support her teaching group so that

teachers and students experience the

MYP to the fullest. Mrs. Basto enjoys teaching the IB

Middle Years Programme because “it brings rigor and

purpose to a middle school foreign language program

and makes the teachers always bring back what they

[the students] are learning back to the real world. I think

the thing that excites me the most is seeing the students

actually reach these high expectations that we have set

for them…kids writing 100 or 150 words in

Spanish...having a two minute conversation in

Spanish...and being successful with it…seeing them feel

comfortable in using the language that they’re

learning…and seeing their excitement about

understanding what they’re learning.” Mrs. Basto has

chosen to share her award with her department so that

others can receive official IB-training as she has.

Mrs. Ussery, also a member of the JGMS leadership

team, is a year two (7th grade) language and literature as

well as Science teacher, and brings a creative blend of

focus from her B.S. in environmental science as well as

her M.F.A. in creative writing. She enjoys writing

engaging curriculum that challenges students to think

critically about both subjects. She strives to incorporate

global current events into her unit of inquiry and has

developed units on colony collapse disorder and single-

use plastics. With the recent uprising in Hong Kong and

the protests that were taking place, Mrs. Ussery helped

students to see the protests from the perspective of a

participant by reading newspaper accounts of both the

Hong Kong Protests and the Tiananmen Square

Massacre, then writing diary entries from both the

student and parent perspectives. Students were so

engaged that even one who was a skeptic became a fan

of the inquiry in the end.

“I feel encouraged by the IB curriculum,” she says. “It

gives me more freedom...[to design] creative projects as

the culminating task.” This year,

Mrs. Ussery is also facilitating an

interdisciplinary unit for year two

students based on global disease

that incorporates the Ebola

epidemic and exploration of the

responsibilities of the World

Health Organization in the

affected countries. In addition to

her passion for designing creative curriculum, Mrs.

Ussery founded and has continued to advise the EYE

Environmental Club at JGMS for the last ten years.

Each year, her club picks an issue and conducts a

community service learning project on it. Past projects

have included: raising awareness of the dangers of

plastic water bottles, creating a video for the United

Nation’s World Water Day, as well as creating a video

on the dangers of microbeads. This year, she has

purchased two refillable water fountains for students at

the school and has held two e-waste recycling events.

She also wrote Silent Spring, a play based on the life of

environmentalist Rachel Carson, which was performed

by the JGMS drama department.

Teacher Grant Program March 25 is the final teacher grant program of the year.

It is sponsored by CalRTA. Teachers who have

previously applied but were not selected will

automatically be placed into consideration. New

applications for the 25 $100 grants can be found at

www.facebook.com/CalRTA or www.calrta.org.

Basketball Camp Indio High School boys basketball team is hosting a

camp for students age nine and up. The camp will take

place March 30-April 1. Cost is $75 and includes daily

lunch, water, and a tee-shirt. For details: Coach Ivery at

760-775-3550 or ivery.thompson@desertsands.us.

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UP AND MOVING Although The Beacon does not normally cover sports

news, there were a few things this week that were just

too good to not include…

Congratulations to La Quinta High School Boys

Soccer Team for your first CIF soccer championship!

The PNB Paribas Tennis Tournament each year

begins with the McEnroe Challenge for Charity event.

This year it was attended by over 8,000 people who

were welcomed by the Shadow Hills Regiment of the

Realm. Band members met John McEnroe.

And speaking of tennis...Scott Davis (tennis pro) vs

Scott Davis (principal) played a heated match at the

PNB series of pre-events. Over 700 Ford Elementary

School students attended, cheering on Mr. Castro and

Mr. Davis as they played Davis and Peanut Louis

Harper, grandslam champion and co-author of Inch and

Miles. The event is used to build on the “Pyramid of

Success” and reinforce the

ideal of “doing your personal

best”. While the score was

not provided to the editor,

both Ford players noted that

they did score points and got

some pointers.

A track meet was held at Coachella Valley High

School, open to all elementary age children. DSUSD

students came from Amelia Earhart and Ronald Reagan

elementary schools and John Glenn and Desert Ridge

middle schools. The “sports reporter” from Earhart was

kind enough to send results and photos from her school.

Winners advance to the Inland Valley Track and Field

Championships being held later this spring.

Division 2008

Kalika Macro: 200M-1st, SB throw-2nd

Division 2006

Mark Levine: 100M- 2nd, 200M- 1st

Kai Macro: 200M-2nd, 400M-1st (photo)

Larson Marlinga: LJ-1st, 100M-1st

Lane Wollen: LJ-2nd

Julian Castro: SB throw-1st

Division 2005

Nate Alvarez: 200M-2nd, 400M-3rd

Sinjin Armstrong: 400M- 2nd, SB throw-2nd

Logan DeGraeve: LJ-2nd, 800M-3rd

Division 2004

Kate Raguindin: 200M-2nd, 400M-2nd, SB throw-2nd

Kris Mineo: 200M-1st, 400M-1st

London Shupp: 200M-1st, 400M-1st, LJ-1st

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FUNDRAISERS AND EVENTS

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FUNDRAISERS AND EVENTS

FUNDRAISERS AND EVENTS

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FUNDRAISERS AND EVENTS

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