Taylor Junior High School
705 South 32nd Street
Mesa, AZ  85204

Greg Fowler
Principal

Jeremy Arnett
Vice Principal

www/mpsaz.org
(480) 472-1500

GET  PHYSICAL

Join Mesa’s Fit City Challenge! Starting in January, the City of Mesa will kick off a new program to help families increase activity and get healthy.

The Fit City Challenge will include a health-oriented activity each month, beginning with the 5k fun run and fitness fair on January 19th at Red Mountain Park.  In between events, the Web site will support healthy habits with tools and tips on eating right and moving more.

You want more family time and you want the kids to be healthy-put the two together and you can master the Mesa Fit City Challenge.  Register your family online at www.mesafitcity.com or pick up an enrollment form at any of the Mesa Public Schools.

REGISTRATION INFORMATION NIGHT
JANUARY 23, 2008, 6:00 – 8:00 PM
MESA HIGH AUDITORIUM & CAFETERIA

Students and their parents are invited to attend the annual Mesa High School registration information night.  This event highlights the courses, programs, and athletics available to incoming and current students.  Added this year is financial aid information for seniors.

This program will be presented in English and Spanish.

Title 1 general information
   Newsletter
   Parent nights
   S.I.A.C. news
  
Special Education Parent night
Possible graduation changes

 
 Proposed changes in graduation requirements 

The district is considering a proposal to change high school graduation requirements.  If approved, the recommendations would begin in the 2008-09 school year with ninth graders. Proposed changes are:

• Require three credits in math for the Standard Diploma. Two credits are required now. This change would increase the total required credits from 21 to 22.

• Align the Scholastic Diploma to Arizona university entrance requirements by requiring one credit in fine arts.

MPS welcomes comments—
-by e-mail to gradoptions@mpsaz.org

-fax at (480) 472-0227
-by U.S. mail to Educational Services, Mesa Public Schools, 63 E. Main St., #101, Mesa, AZ
85201-7422
-at public meetings conducted by the Community Curriculum Advisory Panel—
-6-7 p.m. October 8, Brimhall Jr. High auditorium, 4949 E. Southern Av., Mesa
-5:30 -6:30 p.m. October 22, Board room,
549 N. Stapley Dr., Mesa

ARE YOUR KIDS OUTSMARTING YOU?

Mesa Supporters of the Gifted and Talented (MSGT) will sponsor an entertaining and educational opportunity to hear Linda Levitt’s humorous and heartfelt advice for smart parents whose kids are outsmarting them.

Join parents throughout Mesa Public Schools:
7-8:30 p.m. Nov. 7th, Board Room, 549 N. Stapley Drive, Mesa, $5 per family (adults only, please) at the door.

Leavitt is a parent, teacher and advocate for children. She has survived 30 years of educating children in the Valley and 18 years of hair-raising parenting. She is the author of “Handling the Disruptive Child in the Regular Classroom,” “What To Do When Your Kid Is Smarter Than You” and “Lifelines: Stories of Life, Love, Loss, Families and Hope.

For more information, log on to www.mpsax.org. Or contact Kris Mason at krismason@msgt.org or (480) 832-6450.

Come to Special Education Parent Night

Parents and educators are invited to Special Education Parent Information Night from 6:30 to 8 p.m. November 29 in the Taylor Jr. High cafeteria, 705 S. 32nd St., Mesa

Learn about community resources, meet other parents and professionals. Have your questions answered. Enter a prize drawing. Child care will be provided. Spanish interpretation will be available. Representatives from the following agencies will be there to visit with you:

• Raising Special Kids
• Arizona Disabled Sports
• Child and Family Support Services
• Division of Developmental Disabilities
• East Valley Resource Center
• Arizona Center for Disability Law
• Family Involvement Center
• Mentally Ill Kids in Distress
• Parent Information Network Specialist
• The Mesa Partnership

For more information and to reserve your place, call (480) 472-0632

Vegan a la Noche de Educacion Especial para los Padres

Los padres y los educadores son invitados a la Noche de Informacion de Educacion Especial para los Padres de 6:30 a 8 p.m., Jueves, 29 de noviembre en la cafeteria de Taylor Junior High, 705 Sur Calle 32, Mesa.

Aprenda sobre los recursos de la comunidad, oportunidad para conocer a otros padres y profesionales. Obtenga las repuestas de sus preguntas. Oportunidad de ganar un premio. Se proporcionara vigilancia para los ninos. Una interprete estara presente.

• Criando Ninos Especiales
• Deportes para Discapacitados de Arizona
• Servicios de Apoya para Ninos y sus Familias
• Division para el Desarrollo de los Discapacitados
• Centro de Recursos del Valle del Este
• Centro de Arizona de Leyes para Discapacitados
• Centro de Participacion para Familias
• Ninos con Discapacidades Mentales en Peligro
• Red de Especialistas de Informacion para los Padres
• La Asociacion de Mesa Public Schools

Para mas informacion y para reservar su lugar, llame al 480-472-0653 (Irene) o 480-472-0644 (Elsa)

Dear Parent/Guardian:

Student achievement is our top priority at Taylor Junior High, and we are held accountable for that achievement in many ways.  The Arizona Department of Education rates schools using two different methods.  The first, called Arizona Learns, judges schools based on how students perform overall and how much improvement students demonstrate. Under Arizona Learns, Taylor Junior High has been awarded an “Highly Performing” school label based on the number of students who have met or exceeded AIMS and he academic improvement students have shown during the year.

Our school receives additional funding from the federal government to provide additional academic support to our students.  As a result, our school must meet the requirements of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law. NCLB requires that our school must make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) by meeting criteria for all indicators.

Taylor Junior High is judged on 73 criteria on the percent tested, the percent passing AIMS, and student attendance.

To make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) a school must meet all 73 criteria. Taylor achieved 69 out of 73 criteria.We made the goals for the percent passing in math and reading for all groups, the attendance rate and the percent tested for all ethnic groups in reading and math. We did not make the goals for testing, special education students in reading and math in seventh and eighth grade. As a result, our school is currently identified to be in Year 1 of Title 1 School Improvement.

We are currently amending the School Improvement Plan to address these criteria and other areas we want to improve. To assist us, our state is providing the following support: grant fiscal support for school planning, communication with staff and district staff, training of the Arizona School Improvement Plan (ASIP), and providing a solutions team to facilitate our school plan and comprehensive needs assessment.

The district has developed and implemented a professional development leadership plan that supports instructional leadership
training through ongoing seminars and classes aligned with professional learning communities and transformational leadership. The district has made available funds to support strategies for remediation of students who failed to meet the standards on mandated testing.  Title 1 funds are also available to supplement additional instructional staff to decrease the class sizes in reading and math.

Our school is implementing the following strategies to address the indicators of not making AYP:

1. Parent/Department nights: Each department will invite parents to visit during a specified night of the week. This will give the parents the opportunity to learn strategies and information that will help parents with their student at home. The parents will gain insight to the expectations and rigor of the department.
2. Parent night: On September 4th and 6th, there were meetings for both regular and ELL classes. Three items were discussed: uniforms, first year improvement plan for Taylor – AYP and student planners. There were approximately 250 parents attending for both meetings.
3. School within a School: Students will attend a 45 day program where the students are in small groups (12-15) and get one on one help in all areas of academics. Students will start a transition back into the regular classes at 20 days into the program. These classes are given back one at a time in 5-day intervals. By the end of the 45 days, students will have a complete transition back into the classroom.
4. Pass Class: Students that are at the D or lower mark in 2 or more academic classes will be removed from their first elective class and placed into the PASS class. Students will stay in this class until they have their grades improved to a C or better.
5. SOS: Save one student. Students will be placed with teachers who will meet 2 times per week. During this meeting students will show grades and homework for the week. Students will have to report to the teacher after school.
6. Planner Program: Students are stamped for coming to class on time, having materials, doing homework. Students will stay in 7th hour if they have not received a yes stamp for the day.

Parents can be involved in developing this plan.  If you are interested, please contact Mr. Fowler at 472-1501. We will be having meetings to discuss this and other issues related to our federally funded Title 1 program in the near future.

Sincerely,

Greg Fowler
Principal of Taylor Junior High

Open enrollment allows Arizona students to attend public schools outside their attendance area or district. Mesa Public Schools offers many choices in education and welcomes open-enrollment students from another Mesa school or another district.

For students to change schools or to remain on open-enrollment status for the 2008-09 school year, applications should be submitted to the school of our choice by February 1. Applications are available in school offices and at www.mpsaz.org

The school will notify parents before May 31 if the student has been
accepted.  Families must notify the school within two weeks if they plan to enroll the student. If openings are insufficient, eligible applicants will be placed on a waiting list and notified if openings occur.

After May 31, schools will continue to accept applications and maintain waiting lists. Schools will notify applicants if a student is accepted from a waiting list and request confirmation that the student will attend.  Acceptance and confirmation will continue until the school meets capacity.

Open enrollment reminder

For open enrollment guidelines and applications, stop by any school office. Or logon to www.mpsaz.org. Please submit applications to the school of your choice by February 1.
 

La matricula abierta permite a los alumnus de Arizona asistir a escuelas ublicas fuera del area o distrito que les corresponds.  Las Escuelas Publicas de Mesa ofrece muchas opciones en educacion y da la bienvenida a los alumnus de matricula ab iertga de otras escuelas de Mesa o de otro distrito.

Los alumnus quienes quieran camb iar de escuelas o permanecer en el estado de matricula abierta para el ano escolar 2008-09, deben solicitar a la escuela de su eleccion antes del 1 de febrero. Las solicitudes estan disponsibles en las ofiicinas de las escuelas y en el sitio Web www.mpsaz.org.
Las escuela notificara a los padres antes del 31 de mayo si el alumno ha sido aceptado. Las familias deben  de avisar a la escuela dentro de dos semanas si planean inscribir al alumno.
Si las vacantes son insuficientes, el solicitante elegible sera puesto en una lista de espera y sera notificado si orurre una vacante.

Despues del 31 de mayo, las escuelas continuaran aceptando solicitudes y mantendran una lista de espera. Escuelas avisaran al solicitante si un alumno es aceptado de la lista de espera y se les pide que confirmen su asistencia. Acceptacion y confirmcion continuara hasta que la escuela realice capicidad.

Recordatoria de matricula abierta
Para las normas y solicitudes de matricula abierta, pase a cualquier oficina de escuela o entre al www.mpsaz.org. Por favor entregue las solicituedes a la escuela de su eleccion antes del 1 de febrero.

TITLE 1 INFORMATION FOR ALL PARENTS

DEAR PARENTS,

TAYLOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL RECEIVES ADDITIONAL SUPPLEMENTAL FUNDS THROUGH A TITLE 1 GRANT FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO PROVIDE EXTRA SUPPLEMENTARY SERVICES FOR ALL OF OUR STUDENTS.  YOUR CHILDREN WILL BENEFIT DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY FROM THIS EXTRA HELP.  AT TAYLOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL THESE FUNDS ALONG WITH OTHER FEDERAL RESOURCES WILL BE CONSOLIDATED TO SUPPORT SCHOOLWIDE POSITIVE CHANGES. FUNDS CAN BE USED TO:

• HIRE INSTRUCTIONAL PERSONNEL TO ASSIST   TEACHERS WITHIN THE CLASSROOMS
• PROVIDE TRAINING FOR STAFF AND TEACHERS
• PROVIDE ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS AND TECHNOLOGY
• ENSURE HIGH-QUALITY SCHOOLWIDE
• PROGRAMS
• INCREASE PARENT INVOLVEMENT PARTICIPATION

WE ARE PLEASED TO HAVE THESE FUNDS TO PROVIDE HIGH QUALITY INSTRUCTION FOR ALL CHILDREN

INFORMACION PARA TODOS LOS PADRES DE TITLE 1

QUERIDOS PADRES,

LA ESCUELA SECUNDARIA de TAYLOR RECIBE FONDOS SUPLEMENTALES ADICIONALES A TRAVEZ DE UNA DONACION PARA TITLE 1 QUE ES CONCEDIDA DEL GOBIERNO FEDERAL PARA PROPORCIONAR LOS SERVICIOS SUPLEMENTARIOS ADICIONALES PARA TODOS NUESTROS ESTUDIANTES. SUS NINOS SE BENEFICIARAN DIRECTAMENTE O INDIRECTAMENTE DE ESTA AYUDA ADICIONAL. EN LA ESCUELA SECUNDARIA DE TAYLOR ESTOS FONDOS JUNTO CON OTROS RECURSOS FEDERALES SERAN CONSOLIDADOS PARA APOYAR CAMBIOS POSITIVOS A UN AMPLIO NIVEL ESCOLAR. LOS FONDOS SE PUEDEN UTILIZAR PARA:

• EMPLEAR A PERSONAL EDUCACIONAL PARA ASISTIR A PROFESORES DENTRO DE LAS AULAS DE CLASE
• PROPORCIONAR EL ENTRENAMIENTO ADICIONAL PARA EL PERSONAL Y LOS PROFESORES
• PROPORCIONAR LOS MATERIALS Y LA TECNOLOGIA ADICIONALES DE INSTRUCCION
• ASEGURAR PROGRAMAS DE ALTA CALIDAD A UN AMPLIO NIVEL ESCOLAR
• AUMENTAR LA PARTICIPACION DE LA IMPLICACION DEL PADRE

ESTAMOS SATISFECHOS DE TENER ESTOS FONDOS PARA PROPORCIONAR LA INSTRUCCION DE LA ALTA CALIDAD PARA TODOS LOS NINOS.

SIAC NEWS

Members present: Jim Klein, Lila Hayter, Patti Farnsworth, Tina Durazo, Diana Stradling, Val Stupar, Karen Rascon, Anne Parra, Kaylene Jones, Susan Drake, Delia Alston, Janice Wilstead, Greg Fowler and guest teacher Kasey Kerber.

First item: Kasey Kerber, English teacher at Taylor, presented three trips for his chess team for approval. Two trips are local, one is in Georgia. He has all expenses itemized for each trip, and has chaperones lined up as well.
After a few questions, a motion was made and seconded to approve the three trips. Motion passed.

Second item: Reading and approving as read the last four minutes from meetings. All minutes were approved as read, motion passed.

Third item: The by-laws that were worked on in a past meeting were tabled as there is a question about one policy. More information will be brought to the next regularly scheduled meeting. Motion to table was passed.

Fourth item: Parent night topics. Gang taskforce, tech night. i.e. smart boards, airliners, etc., and my space. Counseling had their first parent meetings on the 14th and 15th. This will be an on-going counseling program for parents and students. Parent nights will be kept to only one meeting per month, the 2nd Tuesday and Wednesday of the month, time will be 7 pm in the auditorium. Tuesday will be for English speaking, Wednesday for non-English speaking parents. Taylor will furnish a translator for the Spanish night also may use headphones. Eventually Mr. Fowler wants only one parent night with all parents in attendance. A flier was also suggested as a questionnaire for suggestions on future parent meetings.

Fifth item: Food Service issue. Per Mr. Fowler, SIAC money cannot be used to pay for students’ lunch when they come to school without either. The school provides a lunch for any student that has nothing to eat. There was a problem with student servers not having the correct information for students with this problem. Mr. Fowler will make sure the criteria is covered with the kids that work in the cafeteria.

The next regular meeting will be Monday, December 3rd at 4 p.m. in the Principal’s conference room at Taylor Jr. High

Meeting was adjourned at 5 p.m.