May 5, 2012

Hello Charger Parents and Students:

I am writing this letter with great joy, excitement, pride. This school year our students have had many successes. Just last week, during TUSD's Courage to Be Kind week, students created a beautiful Be Kind wall mosaic. This amazing art piece is located on the wall entering the Commons so all can see it. I want to thank Salyssa and Sabryna Alers, Jeremy Nasta, Alexis Romero, Ms. Conwill , and the Student Council for their tireless dedication and passion for this project. Also this week, on Friday, April 27th, we held Cholla's Relay for Life. These student-led events had approximately 500 participants coming together to honor and commemorate the lives of cancer survivors and their families. The inspiring event was coordinated by David England and Daisy Arevalo, and supported by the wonderful Student Council students and their dedicated sponsor Mr. Parra. I want to give a special acknowledgement to Tucson High Magnet School and the local Fire Fighters for showing support to the Charger Community during this event.

Another accomplishment for our Cholla Chargers was that over 200 students attended the Cholla Afterschool Program (CAP). The staff of the CAP worked closely with coaches, teachers, and administrators to increase participation numbers, and all 200 students will receive free summer school in courses they may have failed this past school year...Kudos to the entire CAP Team!

This year our teachers and administrators implemented a Response to Intervention model to ensure all students receive tiered academic interventions to help improve student success. Tier I focused on teachers' instruction through their implementation of Essential Elements of Instruction (EEI), which are strategies designed to engage all students at all times. Tier II was the implementation of Common Formative Assessments (CFA) which was periodic tests administered in the ninth and tenth grade English and Math classes to monitor every student's continuing academic progress. Also, in the tier II intervention, students participated in Math and Reading support classes to further improve their academic abilities. Tier III interventions were also delivered during the CAP program. As a result of all the new interventions, and after reviewing CFA data and earlier data indicators from the Arizona Department of Education, we saw that within this year's student Cohort of 2014, students demonstrated an increase in their Arizona Instrument of Measurement Standards (AIMS). This seems to show us that our strategies of tiered interventions and the studies of relevant data were quite helpful in strengthening our school's academic core for teachers and students.

I would like to add an important reminder: school begins on Thursday, August 2, 2012, approximately two weeks earlier than usual. We intend to include a one-week break in the fall and a one-week break during the spring to compensate for missing break time. Please adjust travel plans so your child is prepared to start the first day of school on August 2, 2012. Please take advantage of all summer school opportunities so your child is current with his/her credits and can graduate on schedule. Cholla will be offering a mandatory Freshmen Bridge program for incoming Freshmen Chargers; they will receive elective credit and vital academic survival skills. And please be aware that your children must read during the summer too. Research shows that students who do not read during the summer, will generally lose two grades of reading ability.

In the end, this school year was full of academic and personal success for all, which is why I am so proud to be your child's Principal! Please continue to support our vision: Every student, every day, charging fearlessly towards academic and personal excellence.

Please share your story about how we are doing at www.greatschools.org. Remember, the best compliment you can give Cholla is enrolling a new Charger.

Thank you,
Frank Armenta,
Principal
frank.armenta@tusd1.org
520-225-4004 (office)