Teacher Help needed THIS weekend- ONLY on Sunday!

Thank you to those parents who responded. Teachers still need more parents for tomorrow. Saturday activity is cancelled as of now. Please contact Ms. Visa (see email in post below) if you can help even for an hour.

“Many hands make light work.” – John Heywood

DETAILS:

Sunday, June 7, 10 am- 4 pm.

TASKS:

Library – pack the returned textbooks, tape and label the boxes
Library – pack the AR books in some organized fashion, tape and label the boxes

Computer lab – pack the equipment, tape and label

Science – chemicals – pack per the direction of Mr. Louie
Science – other materials – pack as per direction of Science staff

Walk around classrooms, pull down posters, clean boards etc.
Walk around classrooms and check for other supplies inside cabinets that may have been accidentally left behind.

Please contact Ms. Visa {Email: vthiagarajan@magnoliapublicschools (dot)org } to let her know you’ll be coming in.

Thank you very much in advance!

Summer break | Photos| Teachers need HELP this weekend

Summer’s here! I hope the children (and their parents) are enjoying the start of their break. Let the PTO know what interesting things you all are doing this summer (with clear photos)- we’d love to post student activities on our Facebook (Click here) and our website (Click here). Please take a minute to ‘Like’ the FB page and ‘Follow’ the blog, if you’re not already doing so. The Eighth Grade Graduation photos will be posted there in the next week or so.

Meanwhile, teachers are hard at work packing up for the move to the new facility. They’re looking for some parental help this weekend and, as usual, I’m sure our parents will step up and be happy to help 🙂

DETAILS:

Saturday, June 6, 10 am- 12 noon

Sunday, June 7, 10 am- 4 pm.
TASKS:

Library – pack the returned textbooks, tape and label the boxes
Library – pack the AR books in some organized fashion, tape and label the boxes

Computer lab – pack the equipment, tape and label

Science – chemicals – pack per the direction of Mr. Louie
Science – other materials – pack as per direction of Science staff

Walk around classrooms, pull down posters, clean boards etc.
Walk around classrooms and check for other supplies inside cabinets that may have been accidentally left behind.

Please contact Ms. Visa (Email) to let her know you’ll be coming in.

Thank you very much in advance!

EVENT REMINDER: Eighth Grade Promotion Ceremony

It’s that time of year when students move from Middle to High School! To celebrate this rite of passage, MSA-SC and MSA-SC PTO would like to invite all Eighth Graders and their families to the 8th Grade Promotion Ceremony.

CONGRATULATIONS to all the Eighth Graders!

WHAT: Eighth Grade Promotion Ceremony

WHEN: Thursday, May 28 2015

Ceremony 5:30- 6:30 pm

Refreshments & Mingling 6:30- 7:30 pm

WHERE: MSA-SC, 2720 Sonoma Pl, Santa Clara CA

A special THANK YOU to all the teachers, the PTO members and parents working hard to put this day together for the students.

8th Grade Promotion Ceremony

Update: Future Home of MSA Santa Clara

Update for all the wonderful Magnolians who worked hard to prevent a high performing school and above all, their community, MSASC, from closing for a year. You know who you are!

Thank you for all your hard work and unflinching support of the students and the school, from standing in rallies to attending late night SCCOE and SCUSD meetings. You ROCK!!!

Message from the school:

“Dear MSA Santa Clara Parents and Students,

We have great news to share with you; we have found a permanent school site and our board will vote on the new facility on Sunday, May 17th.

The address of the facility is 1161 N. Fair Oaks Ave., Sunnyvale.

Site Attributes

•30,000 SF of space available for MSA SC

•Easy access to highways 101 and 237.

•Adjacent to VTA Tasman Light Rail station and bus stations

•Large parking lot which can be partly used as an outdoor play area

•Secure campus with onsite drop off and pickup

•Onsite gymnasium

•Zoned Appropriately

•Adjacent to residential and commercial areas

•ADA Compliant, Sprinklered Building

We are currently working on signing a 10+ year lease and getting Magnolia board approval and are in contact with the city of Sunnyvale for planning and city approvals. The time line for the facility is:

•Sign Lease May 21, 2015

•Planning and Design June 27, 2015

•Receive City Approvals July 5, 2015

•Begin Construction July 5, 2015

•Complete Construction August 21, 2015

•Final Inspection and COO August 22, 2015

•Occupy the Space August 24, 2015

It is a tight timeline and therefore we have revised our school calendar to start on August 24th. Please find attached our new calendar:  MSASC School Calendar: 2015-16 “

Thank you, teachers: Teacher Appreciation Week

It’s Teacher Appreciation Week! Thank you to all the teachers who make a difference in students’ lives. You have helped a young person positively in his/ her path in life.

Also, thank you to all the generous parents who brought in food for the Teacher Appreciation Breakfast yesterday and the Teacher Appreciation Lunch today!
The teachers and the PTO appreciate your generosity and support.

Teacher Appreciation Week: Thank you Teachers

 

EVENT REMINDER: Town Hall Meeting, Fri May 8, 7- 8 pm

You are cordially invited to a town hall meeting on Friday, May 8th with Magnolia Public Schools’ Board President Dr. Umit Yapanel and CEO Dr. Caprice Young. Dr. Young will be discussing updates on the school facilities for 2015-2016 and ongoing efforts to ensure that our program continues uninterrupted in the fall. We look forward to seeing you Friday night.

Town Hall Meeting

When: Friday, May 8, 2015
Time: 7:00 PM ~ 8:00 PM
Where: MSASC Cafeteria, 2720 Sonoma Place, Santa Clara
Subject: Update on school facilities

Town Hall Meeting

Update: Apr 23, SCUSD meeting || Thank you for YOUR support || Photos

Thank you to all the parents and students who came to the SCUSD Meeting last week! You DID make a difference!

Some photos on the MSA-SC PTO Facebook page: Click HERE . And if you haven’t done so already, please  ‘LIKE’  the Facebook page while you’re there.

The principal, Mr. Ak’s update on the SCUSD Board Meeting and its decision:

“Dear MSA Santa Clara Parents and Students,

Last night the Santa Clara Unified School District Board of Trustees voted to not extend our lease at our current campus for the upcoming school year. While we are disappointed in the board’s decision, I would like to assure you that we are committed to remaining open, and we are actively exploring alternative campuses that meet our educational needs for next year.
The district’s board approved a motion that directs the district’s superintendent and staff to work with us to find an alternate site on a district campus. We plan on meeting with the district as soon as possible to explore this option.
Additionally, we are currently engaging in negotiations for a temporary campus that is not on district grounds, and which would serve us in the upcoming school year. As we explore both of these options, we plan to dedicate our time and resources to make sure that we choose a campus that best serves our community, as we continue to provide a rigorous, STEM-focused education to our students.
We will keep you posted on our efforts to secure a campus, and I am confident our high-quality program will continue uninterrupted in the coming years.
I would like to personally thank our parents, students, teachers and staff for their ongoing support and efforts to secure a campus for next year. I am so proud to call MSA Santa Clara my home and look forward to graduating our very first class next year.
Warmest regards,
Yilmaz Ak
Principal”

V. IMP: Come to SCUSD Meeting TONIGHT || Protests, Petitions, Politics || Put children FIRST!

TONIGHT is the night! After a long, frustrating, hard fought struggle- in the course of which we Magnolians learned a lot: support, solidarity, tears, ‘together we can’, protests, petitions, politics and the unfortunate fact that often the children are not placed FIRST but LAST; it comes down to this, we need to show up for the SCUSD board meeting TONIGHT. It could be the ‘Make or Break’ moment!! Let’s remind the SCUSD that our ‘Kids Count‘, too!

The last couple of board meetings, the Magnolia students and parents have asked the SCUSD board to put the Magnolia school lease extension on the agenda, and at the last meeting President Gonzalez said that MSA-SC would be on the Agenda for tonight. Click for Agenda

So, show up tonight, stand together tonight, speak up tonight! Let us make our presence count, let us show our support.

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.
– Margaret Mead

WHAT: SCUSD Board Meeting

WHEN: Thursday, April 23, 2015. Meeting runs from 5 pm onward. Please come by 6:15 pm at the latest. You’re welcome to come earlier.

WHERE: Board Room, Santa Clara Unified School District Office (Google Maps), 1889 Lawrence Road, Santa Clara 95051

WHAT TO DO/ BRING: Please come prepared with a 1 minute speech. (If you do not want to talk, show up for support! ) Have a good snack before to make sure you have the energy to speak and to stay till the end 🙂 Bring another small snack, some water, a book or something to do as we may have to wait till the end of the meeting. Bring your positive attitude 🙂 Wear your UNIFORM! 

SEE YOU TONIGHT!

Kids count!

IMP: MSA-SC is on the SCUSD meeting agenda this Thursday, April 23! We need YOU to be present to show your support

Hello Magnolians,

MSA-SC is finally officially on the agenda this Thursday, April 23rd at 6:30 pm.

We, the Magnolian community, current and future students, need YOU to be there to show your support for the requested one year school lease extension at the current facility.

In the end, it’s as simple as that- just SHOW UP!

Thank you!

SOS_Save Our School

MSASC students and parents unitedly wait at a board meeting

SCUSD needs to show, as the BOTTOM LINE of their existence, they care about CHILDREN!! Board Meeting TONIGHT!

Never Give Up! The new/ old motto for Magnolians fighting to keep MSA-SC up and running next academic year- to keep a high quality educational choice open for their kids, and other kids, now and down the road…. children who would not get the chance to attend a school which lets them stretch their boundaries, STEM or otherwise.

The children look forward to YOUR support TONIGHT! We will be there at every SCUSD meeting till they put the MSA-SC lease extension on the agenda AND then extend the lease- it’s NOT about SCUSD POLITICS, it’s NOT about POWER BLOCS, it’s NOT about Various LOBBYISTS, it’s about the LIVES of OUR CHILDREN!!

SCUSD needs to show that they care about EDUCATION, they care about parents; eventually, as the BOTTOM LINE of their existence, that they care about the CHILDREN!!

Thank you to the speakers who spoke at the SCUSD March 5th meeting

MSA-SC community speaking at SCUSD meeting, March 5, 2015

WHAT: SCUSD Board Meeting

WHEN: Thursday, April 9, 2015. Meeting runs from 5 pm onward. Please come by 6:15 pm at the latest. You’re welcome to come earlier.

WHERE: Board Room, Santa Clara Unified School District Office (Google Maps), 1889 Lawrence Road, Santa Clara 95051

WHAT TO DO/ BRING: Please come prepared with a 1 minute speech. (If you do not want to talk, show up for support! ) Have a good snack before to make sure you have the energy to speak and to stay till the end 🙂 Bring another small snack, some water, a book or something to do as we may have to wait till the end of the meeting. Bring your positive attitude 🙂 Wear your UNIFORM! 

SEE YOU TONIGHT!

Kids count!

Mercury News article talks about MSA-SC’s Fight for Facilities

Read the Mercury News article on how charters including MSA-SC are being squeezed out of  San Francisco Bay Area facilities: Click here

Excerpt from the article:

Santa Clara Unified spokeswoman Jennifer Dericco , “….. We need to take care of Santa Clara Unified students first,” she said.

But charter parents point out that they, too, are district parents — who simply have chosen an alternative permitted under state law.

Please take a moment to share this article (http://bit.ly/charterSF) by Sharon Noguchi of the Mercury News with your mailing lists (friends, families, other people interested in education), corporate distribution lists and social networks (Facebook, Twitter etc) and also ask them to sign and then share our PETITION:  http://bit.ly/extendMSASCpetition

Let’s work together to make this happen!!

Students from the Magnolia Science Academy rally outside the Santa Clara Unified School District Board Meeting, March 5, 2015. Magnolia hopes to get an extension for its lease so that they can find a permanent facility. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

REMINDER: SCUSD Board Meeting TONIGHT| The students & the school need YOU!

Time to wade out into the breach again. MSA-SC community members, thank you for your support in trying to keep the school and the community intact, alive and existing. Your support has and will make a difference. Many of you have asked what else you can do or when you should show up again at SCUSD  (Santa Clara Unified School District) meetings.

Well, the time is here again! We invite you to come stand with all of us, together, to show our solidarity. Again, every person, parent, student, teacher who shows up does make a difference!

“One person can make a difference, and every person should try.”
― Thomas E. Cronin

WHAT: SCUSD Board Meeting

WHEN: Thursday, March 26, 2015. Meeting runs from 5 pm onward. Please come by 6:15 pm at the latest. You’re welcome to come earlier.

WHERE: Board Room, Santa Clara Unified School District Office (Google Maps), 1889 Lawrence Road, Santa Clara 95051

WHAT TO DO/ BRING: Please come prepared with a 1 minute speech. (If you do not want to talk, show up for support! ) Have a good snack before to make sure you have the energy to speak and to stay till the end 🙂 Bring another small snack, some water, a book or something to do as we may have to wait till the end of the meeting. Bring your positive attitude 🙂 Wear your UNIFORM! 

SEE YOU TONIGHT!

REMINDER: March Monthly PTO Meeting tomorrow at 7 pm

Look forward to seeing you at the March monthly PTO meeting !

WHAT: Monthly PTO Meeting

WHERE: Cafeteria

WHEN: Thursday, March 19 at 7 pm

AGENDA: Click here

Join us for the monthly PTO meeting

EVENT REMINDER: Town Hall Meeting Tuesday, Mar 17 at 7 pm

MSA-SC will be holding a Town Hall Meeting with Dr. Caprice Young, CEO Magnolia Public Schools, TOMORROW, Tues, March 17.

What: Town Hall Meeting with Dr. Young

Where: MSA-SC Cafeteria

When: 7 pm-  8 pm

Message from Mr. Ak:

“You are cordially invited to a town hall meeting tomorrow with Magnolia Public Schools CEO, Dr. Caprice Young. Dr. Young will be discussing the campaign to extend the lease at our current school site, as well as ongoing efforts to find alternate campuses to ensure that our program will continue uninterrupted in the fall. Your continued support and involvement will be critical in the coming weeks as we make our case to the district to keep the doors of MSA Santa Clara—one of the highest-performing schools in the district—open. We will discuss what the campaign will look like and how you can help us get our voice heard. We look forward to seeing you tomorrow night.”

Town Hall Meeting

Save MSA-SC: SIGN and SHARE Change.org PETITION

It was inspiring and humbling to see your support for your school at the SCCOE board meeting a couple of days ago. 300+ MSA-SC students, parents and teachers turned out to show their solidarity and to urge elected officials to find a solution to the situation facing us: closure of the school. It was this show of community spirit which made the SCCOE board members urge the SCUSD to consider the ‘human factor’ in the situation while considering the school closure- the human factor which involves a life changing school closure for ~500 students, their parents and staff.

We are asking for a one year school lease extension. The SCUSD plans to leave the campus empty for the next year- we are urging them to let our students stay! Please sign our Change.org PETITION and share it with your whole friend circle, your extended family, everybody you know! It doesn’t matter if they are local or not, if they believe in EDUCATION and CHOICES, then it is an easy decision to sign our Petition.

Click to sign Change.org petition

We’ve come so far together, let’s continue this journey to make our children’s lives better!

Thank you for reading, signing and sharing with as many people as you can via email, facebook, Twitter and other social media.

 

MSASC students and parents wait at a SCCOE board meeting