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The View—Volume V, No. 6 | February 2007PTSA Home | Westview Home | Past Issues (Best viewed with Internet Explorer) Click here for a printer-friendly version |
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The View—Volume V, No. 6 | February 2007PTSA Home | Westview Home | Past Issues (Best viewed with Internet Explorer) Click here for a printer-friendly version |
PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGEI am reminded daily that
Westview
has an extraordinary instructional staff. On any given day you
will see teachers giving up their free time to tutor students before
and after school and during lunch. They sponsor clubs and
attend student performances, activities and games. It is
always gratifying when we receive emails from parents and students
recognizing teachers who have “gone the extra mile” to ensure
that all are learning. I am pleased to share some
special recognitions of our staff during this past year.
SUMMER VACATIONS
 Now is the time
that many families begin to plan their summer vacations and we want
to encourage you to please wait until after
June 20, 2007
to take your students out of town. In most instances,
teachers will be unable to arrange for early final exams, so
students who leave early will have to take their finals upon their
return during the summer. When this happens, a grade of
Incomplete is recorded on the transcript and is not changed until
fall when the teacher returns to grade the final exams. Besides
the obvious potential impact this can have on a student’s ability
to do well on the exam, this can also cause problems with CIF
eligibility. Thank you for scheduling your vacations after
June 20 to ensure that your students don’t miss valuable
instruction and assessment time.
SPRING SPORTSSpring Sports begin February 17th. Anyone interested in playing a Spring Sport should visit the Westview Athletics page for more information.
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Baseball
ROLLER HOCKEY TEAM MEMBERS
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Feb. 3 |
Mock SAT & ACT Exams |
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Feb. 6 |
PTSA Meeting - Library |
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Feb. 13 |
Back to School Night/Junior Parent Night |
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Feb. 19-23 |
District Recess - NO SCHOOL |
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Mar. 16 |
Professional Growth Day - NO SCHOOL |
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Mar. 31 |
Mock SAT, ACT, & PSAT Exams |
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Apr. 16-20 |
Spring Break - NO SCHOOL |
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May 25 |
Professional Growth Day - NO SCHOOL |
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May 28 |
Memorial Day - NO SCHOOL |
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Jun. 20 |
Last Day of School |
Daily
Bulletin – visit the daily bulletin to see what’s happening today!
School
Calendar – see what events are coming up throughout the year.
General
Information – can’t find what you’re looking for? Try this link.
Athletics – support your Westview Wolverines – visit the athletic
pages to see when your favorite team is playing.
Counseling
– graduation requirements, colleges visiting Westview, scholarships,
course catalog, etc.
College fairs and expo events are listed on our counseling website.
Westview’s Choral Department will be performing their Romance
Concert on February 6th at
Congratulations to the following
students who have been selected for the 2007 California All State
Honor Choir:
Alicia Archambault
Rufina Bavin
Kelly Tran
Tasha Blancvh
Gabrielle O’Leary
Peter Yoon
These students will perform at the Convention Center in
Each time someone stands up for an
ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against
injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope.
- Robert F. Kennedy
Dear Parents,
We have a slight change in plans! Our February Association
meeting was scheduled for February 13, but with Junior Parent
Night and Back-to-School Night, that was just way too much going
on! It has been rescheduled for Tuesday, February 6 in the
Library. It begins at 7:00pm with a short business
meeting, followed by a presentation by Westview's Student Support
Services on Suicide Prevention. February is Suicide
Prevention Month, so please join us to preview what your students
will be hearing and learning throughout the month. More
details are in this newsletter.
One of the agenda items for our February meeting is the
election of the Nominating Committee. This group will be
choosing our elected officers for the 2007-2008 year. If you
are interested in being on the Nominating Committee or are
interested in one of our elected positions, please contact Anne
Smith at 484-0540 or annemfs@san.rr.com. Other agenda items are approval of the mid-year audits for the
association and Grad Nite, approval of Grad Nite contracts,
adoption of State PTA's Professional Governance Standards and
announcements of last year's Gifts to School.
On January 3, PTSA sponsored our fall semester Student/Staff
Recognition Awards Ceremony. The participation was
wonderful! Thank you to Chair Yvonne Weinstein and her
committee, Colleen Salzetti, Gloria Lew, Leslie Stebbins and Vikki
Lammers. Also thank you to Christine O'Hara, Cindi Wade,
Gail Durso and Cindy Ruecker for their assistance that evening. If you've never attended this heart-warming event, plan on joining
us for the Spring Semester ceremony on May 29.
On January 23, our Character Counts! Chair, Cindy Ruecker, along
with Charley Bartley of Student Support Services, attended a
National Character Counts! Training session, which was held for
all middle and high school chairs in Palomar Council. Thank
you to both of them for re-arranging their schedules to attend.
This month, Cindy's newsletter article discusses
Responsibility, so please read it elsewhere in this newsletter.
And a huge thank you to Executive Vice-president, Jennifer
Kuhlman, for her many hours of work on soliciting information,
compiling and submitting the MY PTA/PTSA award application to
California State PTA. This award recognizes units for their
membership creativity, student, administration, teacher and
parent involvement, outreach and collaboration with allied
agencies or community partners. With all we do at Westview,
we were able to apply for all categories! Westview PTSA won
the state award for Outstanding Unit in 2003 -- the first
year of our existence! I'll keep you posted.
Happy Valentine's Day and enjoy the District Recess, better known
as Ski Week! Stay safe and enjoy time with your family.
Carolyn Epple
PTSA President
Previous newsletters (past issues)
contained articles regarding the first two pillars of the Character
Counts! program adopted by our school district several years ago –
these being TRUSTWORTHINESS and RESPECT. This month’s
article will focus on the third pillar – RESPONSIBILITY.
Nothing is more core to a person with excellent character than
responsibility – someone who does what needs to be done, when it
needs to be done, and demonstrates reliability and dependability. A responsible individual is accountable for his or her own actions
– never making excuses or blaming others, but acknowledging and
meeting obligations.
Our teens face many challenges during these years – not the least
of which include the commitment of schoolwork, extracurriculars,
community service, etc., and balancing socializing, with (perhaps)
working part-time, along with some of life’s major milestones such
as obtaining a driver’s license and being a new driver on the
road, taking college entrance exams, applying to those colleges,
etc. Therefore, it is critical that our teens take charge of
their own lives, set realistic goals for themselves in all areas,
make the right decisions and – most important of all - do the
right thing.
Join the Westview PTSA and Student Services on campus in promoting
character education by talking with your child about why it is
important to behave responsibly and how irresponsible behavior can
damage relationships with others. Show them how being a
responsible person will earn them others’ trust and respect, and,
in turn, enhance their own self-respect and personal satisfaction.
More information regarding the Character Counts! program can be
found by visiting www.charactercounts.org.
Cindy Ruecker
Westview
PTSA Character Counts! Liaison
High School is a joyful and festive experience for most teens. However for some, the stress of keeping up grades, doing well in sports, and fitting in can be overwhelming. Westview Student Support Services presents:
About one teen dies by suicide per month in San Diego County, 138 deaths ages 15-19 between 1995-2004
The faster growing age group is 10-14
For each completed suicide, there are an estimated 8-25 attempts
80%-90% of suicide deaths have some form of diagnosable mental illness, usually depression
Suicide
is a complex and devastating event for all those it touches.
Fortunately, there are concrete strategies, warning signs, and risk
factors that may enable you to help prevent this tragedy.
PTSA invites you to join Student Services to learn about the
different services they offer, and to hear more about suicide
awareness and prevention. Light refreshments will be provided.
When: Tuesday February 6, 2007
Where: Wolverine Library
Time: 7:00pm
Dear Westview Parents:
Please consider doing some early "spring cleaning" and
save those household discards to donate to the Grad Nite committee to sell at
the Foundation rummage sale (the exact date of the
rummage sale is not yet set, but it will likely be on a Saturday in March).
Grad Nite's fundraising efforts are important to ensure that a fun, safe
environment is provided for seniors to celebrate graduation. Your
donations can be dropped off (or picked up) the night before the rummage
sale.
Please call (538-0490) or write
(heycindy@san.rr.com) if
you think you will have donations, to arrange for a reminder email for pickup/delivery. Also, please feel free to
call if you're interested in helping work a shift at the rummage
sale for Grad Nite, that Saturday morning in March. Your contribution to
our Grad Nite efforts is very important and greatly appreciated.
Thank you!
Cindy Ruecker
Grad Nite Rummage Sale Chair
(858) 538-0490
Want a night of singing
showgirls, gambling gangsters and a dancing New York City?
Come join the Westview Theatre Company in their spring
musical Guys and Dolls. Eight chances to watch: February
1, 2, 3, 8, 9, and 10th at
7:30, and
2:00
matinees on both Saturdays. Tickets are $8 general admission,
$12 premiere seating, and $6 for the matinee.
Any seniors interested in
participating in class competition air bands? Join us for our
final year, and our dance Peter Pan. Any seniors interested
should email Kristen Nevarez and Kirsten Layug at girl4god15@sbcglobal.net
or find us in the ASB room.
| This Issue |
Scholarship Federation Membership
Suicide Awareness & Prevention
CSF is a statewide organization that recognizes high academic
performance. Students who qualify for membership for at least
4 semesters, one of which must be based on senior year grades,
become a CSF Life Member. We
honor our graduating CSF Life Members at an end of the year banquet,
during which we present each student with a certificate and their
CSF gold cord, an honor cord that they can wear proudly at
graduation. In addition, his/her HS diploma will have the official
CSF gold seal.
CSF applications will be
accepted every Friday at lunch in MS. Loo's room, L-110 from Feb. 9
to March 9. Please send students with 2 report cards from the
Fall term (Quarter 1 and Quarter 2), a completed application, and a
check for $10, made payable to WVHS. Remember that students
must reapply for membership EVERY semester. If your student
applied last semester, you may verify that we have recorded your
student's membership by checking the list of members for FALL 2006
on the website. We will post the new list of members for
Spring 2007 by the end of March. For many of our seniors,
this is the critical term of membership that will determine
their Life Member status for graduation!
If you have any further questions about
CSF, please see the school's
website or contact Ms. Loo,
780-2000, ext 3182.
You can
use this link to find out more about CSF,
print an application, and view list of members for all previous terms.
The Grad Nite Committee had the idea of
asking the bunco groups in our community to consider donating the
proceeds of one month’s get together to Grad Nite.
None of us hopes to get rich on a $5-$20 pot but a $60 donation really
adds up and can make a big impact. So far two groups have committed so
we’re on our way. Just think, if we have 20 groups donate $60 we’ll
raise $1,200 for our seniors. How easy!
Please pass the word since many of you belong to more than one group.
Jennifer Kuhlman is spear-heading the effort on behalf of the Grad Nite
Committee and will be happy to come and collect the donation of cash or
checks. Checks should be made payable to “Westview PTSA Grad Nite”.
Thank you all. Let’s see what we can raise “hassle-free” in the next two
months! Please pass it on….
Jennifer Kuhlman
484-2701
Help raise funds for Grad
Nite 2007 and make your life a little simpler at the same time!
Westview has teamed up with
Dream
Dinners in
Poway
to run an exciting fundraiser in February.
Dream Dinners provides everything you need to assemble delicious,
nutritious dinners for your family. Gone are the hassles and
headaches of planning and preparing meals. In their place are Dream
Dinners' wonderful entrees that you assemble once and serve to your
family in the weeks ahead. Choose your selection from a menu of
meals voted all-time customer favorites. Then come to Dream Dinners
to assemble your entrees. Everything you need is provided, from
easy-to-follow instructions to easily measured, pre-cut ingredients.
Best of all, there is no clean-up! Once you have assembled your
dinners, they are ready for your refrigerator or freezer. Just thaw,
cook and enjoy a delicious family meal.
To preview a current menu visit
www.dreamdinners.com.
Make plans to sign up for a session in February online or call Dream
Dinners,
Poway, at (858) 679-DREAM (3732). Sign up with a friend or neighbor and
have a fun time.
Be sure to let Dream Dinners know that you are from Westview so that
the school receives credit for your visit.
For questions, please
email Beth
Byloff.
Click
here to view flyer
The wonderful people at Bamboo Hut in Mira Mesa
would like to invite you to visit the restaurant. Every time you go
bring one of the coupons and they will donate 10% of your total bill to
Westview Grad Nite!
Print out all three coupons and give them to
your friends. See coupon for map and restrictions. If you have any
questions email Beth Byloff.
P.S. You can find the Wades and the Byloff's there most Friday evenings,
come and join us!
View Coupon
SENIORS
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Although the application is based upon your tax returns, which are
often not completed until the last minute (April 15), many colleges
need the FAFSA to be filed by March 2. You can complete the FAFSA with estimated tax information, if the actual numbers are not
available. The easiest way to complete it is by logging on to www.fafsa.gov.
As a bonus, if the FAFSA is completed by
February 26th, 2007
and a confirmation page is printed and submitted to Mr. Seiple by
this date, your son or daughter will be entered into a drawing to
win a FREE LAPTOP COMPUTER!!
So, log on to www.fafsa.gov now
and finish this process. For more information to help in the
application process, have your son or daughter stop by the Wolverine
Center and pick up a FAFSA tip card or have them speak with their
counselor.
JUNIORS
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Parents of Juniors:
A
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The San Diego Business Healthcare Connection is able to help parents
find low or no-cost Family Health Programs for your children.
Healthy Families
Low-cost health insurance for children up to age 19
Premiums between $4-15 per month (not more than $45 for all children)
A family of 4 can earn up to $50,000 per year and qualify
Comprehensive medical, dental, hearing, prescription medication and vision benefits
Certain prescription drugs and physician visits require $5 payments
Child must be a U.S. citizen or legal resident and must not be eligible for no-cost Medi-Cal
Medi-Cal for Children
No-cost state funded health care program for low-income children
Comprehensive healthcare services through private health plans
Child must be a U.S. citizen or legal resident to be eligible
AIM: Access for Infants and Mothers
Low-cost insurance program for pregnant women and their newborns
Coverage includes prenatal visits, hospital delivery, full health care services during the pregnancy and for 60 days after the pregnancy
Full health care services for the infant for up to two years
Total cost is only 1.5% of the family income
Must be a California resident for six months prior to apply
For
more information on any of these healthcare programs, contact the
San Diego Business Healthcare Connection by phone at
(619) 231-0333
or by email at info@sdbhc.org.
Please visit their website at www.sdbhc.org.
Dance
Equestrian
Gymnastics
Ice Skating
Swimming
Tennis
Applications can be picked up from Lori Hath, Athletic Secretary, February 26 to March 2, 2007. COMPLETED applications must be turned in to Chris Carter, Athletic Director, NO LATER THAN March 23, 2007. No late applications will be accepted.
THE VIEW —
WESTVIEW
13500 Camino Del Sur, San Diego,
CA 92129
Westview
Palomar
Council of PTAs | Ninth District PTA,
Inc./CCPTS
Principal Dawn
Kastner | PTSA President Carolyn
Epple |
Editor Crystal
Ranj |
Webmaster Margaret
Lupfer
