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April/May 2005

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As the academic year draws to a close, the Board and I share with you the pride and sense of accomplishment we are experiencing throughout the district. We have been privileged to participate in year-end events with you that recognize our students' many achievements. These are delightful and fun spring rituals that celebrate our many successes. It is clear that despite the many distractions and challenges facing teachers, administrators, and support staffs throughout the year, you are united in your dedication our district's core objective: student achievement. Your hard work and dedication make it all possible, and we thank you for all that you have done throughout the school year.

While the outcome of additional state education funding is still uncertain, we are anticipating the following monies will be available:

• $45 million to be added to the statewide base for per pupil funding.
• The qualifying kindergarten percentages to be lowered from 90 percent to 80 percent based on free and reduced lunch percentages. This would provide TUSD with an additional $1.1 million.
• An additional $85 thousand to be allotted TUSD for transportation.

This, combined with the cuts the Board has already approved, will give the district a realistic opportunity to balance the 2005-2006 budget.

One thing we must keep in mind is that all of TUSD's budget woes will not be fixed in Phoenix. If we are to turn the corner on our financial problems, we need to develop and implement strategies that are both within our reach and ours to control.

Under the leadership of Superintendent Pfeuffer, a concerted effort is underway to "right-size" the district, in part by making strategic budget cuts in order to achieve the right mix of employees and capital expenditures that "fit" the district's budget capacity as presently allowed by the state. This process is more than just attempting to achieve "greater efficiency," though efficiencies are important. More fundamentally, our goals are to eliminate practices and programs that are not essential to achieving the district's core objective to increase student achievement, and then to reallocate our scarce budget resources to better support that essential objective.

What we must remember is that, though we have begun the process of "right-sizing," it will not end by balancing the 2005-2006 budget. It is paramount that the process be ongoing. We are now in an era in which public school districts are facing serious competition. School choice is at the forefront of parents' and students' minds. As a district we must more actively engage in an organized effort to retain current students as well as entice former and potential students to choose TUSD for their education.

One approach the district has recently taken to increase enrollment is to advertise our free, full-day kindergarten program on billboards. Thanks to two local sponsors, United Electric and Farmers Insurance, we currently have eight billboards up around town that I am optimistic will help to raise next year's kindergarten enrollment. For a specific list of billboard locations and sponsors, click here.

A second and critically important aspect of "right-sizing" is to determine how we are going to spend our district's dollars differently to achieve greater student success. One goal I would like to set for the district is to establish an investment fund within the budget. This is a fund of considerable size to be allocated strategically in support of programs or technologies with proven track records, and thus deserve to be expanded or applied more broadly in order to serve more students. By way of example, investment funds could be used to expand our district's nationally recognized OMA Program (Opening Minds through the Arts), which has a record in improving student achievement by building connections between the arts and the core curriculum. Investment funds could also be spent to decrease class size in selected lower grades.

A more long-term goal I would like to see TUSD achieve is to establish a reserve fund within the budget. This district has never had one, and it is time we did. Establishing a reserve fund is a fiscally responsible act for a district that has an overall budget of nearly $350,000,000 annually. A reserve fund will provide fiscal protection to the district by enabling it to address financial needs that we were unable to anticipate or forecast during the time we are adopting the budget. These monies would serve as a safety net similar to a family's savings account that is used to assist with those unexpected expenses that occur in everyone's life. Under state law, districts are allowed by formula to have reserve funds in an amount not to exceed 4% of the total budget. To limit the number and size of the financial shortfalls we might experience in the future, a reserve fund only makes good fiscal sense.

Another prospective goal for the district is to gain voter approval on a budget override. Three neighboring school districts (Amphi, Tanque Verde, and Indian Oasis) have recently won voter approval for budget overrides, which shows us that voters are interested in bettering education for our young people. TUSD is continually assessing items for a potential override, including expanding OMA and reducing class size, but to do an override we need the confidence and support of the broader taxpaying community. Ninety percent of all voters living within the district have no children in the district. For them a key to supporting an override is being satisfied that the district is fiscally responsible and has done all that is realistically possible to manage their taxpayer dollars responsibly. As we go forward next year, we need to pay close attention to these realities and work together to build the public's confidence in public education.

As the year comes to a close and you begin planning for the summer, know that the Board and I are impressed by the commitment you all have made to help reduce the district's budget deficit. Departments and schools have worked to ensure that our funds are spent wisely on our students' education. I hope you have an enjoyable summer.

-- Bruce Burke

The above photos were taken at the four multicultural student recognition events held during the first two weeks in May. Clockwise from top: Pan Asian, African American, Mexican American/Raza, Native American.

Recently I was privileged to attend the University of Arizona's Black Alumni 2005 Phenomenal Woman Award dinner that celebrates African American women who have dedicated their lives to bettering the greater community. The evening's keynote speaker was poet, author, and playwright Maya Angelou. It was a magical evening as she held more than 400 people spellbound with her poetry, song, and story telling. Her humanity and art worked together to form her seamless message celebrating the richness and beauty of diversity in our communities and in our world.

I was reminded of Tucson Unified School District's long experience with diversity and how, lately, with the push for accountability and high stakes testing and many other challenges, the area of what we in TUSD have called diversity competence has had its voice hushed, its energy dampened, its light dimmed. This relative invisibility is cause for concern and Angelou's recurrent theme that evening comes back to me now. It was her breaking into song with "This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine...."

It is my strong belief that it is time for the light of diversity to shine brightly in TUSD once again, and this is why: we cannot allow a city like Tucson to fall into or ignore behaviors or habits that denigrate, belittle, harm, confuse, or destroy in any way peaceful and supportive relationships among the many different peoples, cultures, and languages of our community. In fact, we must settle for nothing less than continuing to improve these relationships.

TUSD is generally considered to be composed of five significant ethnic groups: Native American (or Indian), Caucasian (or Anglo), Hispanic (or Latino), African American (or Black), and Asian American. In truth, those are merely governmental labels; they don't reflect the spectrum of diversity lived and felt by parents and students and teachers themselves. From the peoples' point of view, Tucson is made up of Jamaicans and Germans, Guatemalans and Yaquis, Sudanese and Japanese, Thai and Tohono O'odham, Koreans and Kazakhstanis, Ethiopians and Ecuadorians, Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, atheists, agnostics--and the list goes on. There are 48 different home languages spoken by our students. We have inaugurated a new program for refugee students who now number over 600 registered in our schools. Our Multicultural Studies and Language Acquisition departments work to support students who depend on their help in many essential ways.

In the world we live in today, the issues that come with our diversity will not soon decrease. They will continue to grow in complex ways that will have a dynamic impact on how we educate our children. TUSD must continue its commitment to embrace and honor all students and all of the spiritual and secular values that build unity and enhance the strength of our community. This is no short order and we cannot do it alone. We must work in conjunction with elected officials and business and civic organizations to engage in conversations and exchanges that reveal our differences and affirm our similarities. This must be an ongoing process towards the goal of making both our city and our school district as 'diversity friendly' as possible. I am firmly convinced that this work is key in the mission to educate young people for life in a society where, as Maya Angelou would say, every light can shine and light the way for others.

With summer break upon us, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all employees for a year of hard work well done. I hope you all have time to enjoy some much deserved "R & R" but that you might also reflect upon the ideas I've presented here as seeds that might germinate, sprout and thrive next year and beyond.

-- Roger F. Pfeuffer

Have you submitted your Bright Idea yet? Did you know that ideas previously submitted to the Bright Ideas program have resulted in over $700,000 in savings and many other changes that have made TUSD more efficient? If you have a Bright Idea to share or would like to learn more about the program visit the Bright Ideas website.

6th-graders can opt for elementary school from the Arizona Daily Star 5/12/05

Crystal Apple youth award honors senior on her own from the Arizona Daily Star 5/10/05

Student Achievement nominee: Lauren Marlea Peate, University High School from the Tucson Citizen 5/9/04

Student's 4th time at world science fair from the Tucson Citizen 5/7/05

Student Achievement nominee: Chhitij Bashyal, Tucson High Magnet School from the Tucson Citizen 5/7/05

Student Athlete nominee: Luke Burke Johnson, University High School from the Tucson Citizen 5/6/05

Student Athlete nominee: Tiffany Alexis Hosten, Tucson High Magnet School from the Tucson Citizen 5/5/05

Six TUSD elementary schools add 6th grade from the Tucson Citizen 5/5/05

Student Achievement nominee: Maria Timpani, Santa Rita High School from the Tucson Citizen 5/4/05

Student Athlete nominee: Christina Touraille, Santa Rita High School from the Tucson Citizen 5/3/05

Star-Eyewitness News 4 Student of the Week: Maria Aguiar from the Arizona Daily Star 5/3/05

Bilingual school's staff honored from the Arizona Daily Star 5/3/05

Tucson mentors: Tribe promotes friendships from the Tucson Citizen 5/3/05

Keeping his composure from the Tucson Citizen 5/3/05

Prince of the keyboard from the Arizona Daily Star 4/30/05

Student Achievement nominee: Kyle Aaron Esham, Sahuaro High School from the Tucson Citizen 4/30/05

Student Athlete nominee: Mike Adam Brownstein, Sahuaro High School from the Tucson Citizen 4/29/05

Student Achievement nominee: Shaina Louise Castle, Sabino High School from the Tucson Citizen 4/28/05

Student Achievement nominee: Nicholas Garcia Rodriguez, Rincon High School from the Tucson Citizen 4/27/05

Student Athlete nominee: Brian James Carpenter, Sabino High School from the Tucson Citizen 4/27/05

Student Athlete nominee: Abelardo B. Llamas, Rincon High School from the Tucson Citizen 4/26/05

Star-Eyewitness News 4 Student of the Month: Tess Barrett from the Arizona Daily Star 4/26/05

Student Achievement nominee: Melissa Lynn Lamberton, Pueblo High Magnet School from the Tucson Citizen 4/25/05

Student Athlete nominee: Audugbon Junior Smith, Pueblo High Magnet School from the Tucson Citizen 4/23/05

A feel for music from the Tucson Citizen 4/21/05

Student Achievement nominee: Kenna Dawn Koch, Howenstine High Magnet School from the Tucson Citizen 4/18/05

In tune with mariachi from the Arizona Daily Star 4/18/05

Volunteer thrives assisting students from the Arizona Daily Star 4/17/05

Student Achievement nominee: Kelly Marie Cousineau, Cholla High Magnet School from the Tucson Citizen 4/11/05

Student Athlete nominee: Angelica Marie Riesgo, Cholla High Magnet School from the Tucson Citizen 4/11/05

University High wins economics challenge from the Arizona Daily Star 4/10/05

University High team wins 'green' event from the Tucson Citizen 4/8/05

Student Achievement nominee: Alejandra Romero, Catalina High Magnet School from the Tucson Citizen 4/8/05

Student Athlete nominee: Tobin Neil Johnson, Catalina High Magnet School from the Tucson Citizen 4/8/05

New options for sixth-graders from the Tucson Citizen 4/8/05

School program: arts & minds from the Arizona Daily Star 4/7/05

Area H.S. takes top honors in eco-event from the Arizona Daily Star 4/4/05

Annual MESA Day a winner for youths from 2 local schools from the Arizona Daily Star 4/3/05

TUSD opens center for refugee families from the Tucson Citizen 3/31/05

The Public Risk Management Association, or PRIMA, will award Risk Management's Lauren Eib a 2005 Achievement Award at their annual awards luncheon on June 6 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Her entry "Emergency Management Program" was selected as first place in the Program category. PRIMA's Public Risk Management achievement awards annually honor public entities that have developed innovative and successful risk management programs and products.

The Arizona Speech-Language Hearing Association recognized Exceptional Education's Lori Taniguchi with an Honors of the Association award for her outstanding work as a speech-language pathologist. She was honored at the organization's annual conference held in February in Sedona.

Catalina AFJROTC instructor Lieutenant Colonel August DeRosa was named an outstanding instructor in April by the AFJROTC headquarters. From a total of 1,500 instructors worldwide, about 150 instructors were chosen for their unit's accomplishments for the 2004-2005 school year.

Several TUSD teachers were recognized through Wal-Mart's 10th annual Teacher of the Year program for making a positive difference in the lives of young people. Honorees include: Judy Hintz, Bloom; Kathy Cuprak, Collier; and Maritza Mazon, Lawrence. Award winners received $1,000 for their school.

Guidance and Counseling's Holly Colonna was awarded the 2005 School Counselor Supervisor/Advocate of the Year Award by the Arizona School Counselor Association at their 2005 conference on March 11 in Mesa. She received a plaque and will now represent Arizona for the award on the national level.

The Educational Enrichment Foundation awarded the 2004-2005 Evelyn Jay Excellence in Education Awards in March. Three educators were recognized for their contributions to TUSD children. The top award of $500 was presented to Shirley Chandler of Ford. The two runners up, who received $250 each, were Lisa Thomas of Erickson and Michele Harbour of Cragin.

The American School Counselor Association recognized two TUSD elementary schools' counseling programs as ASCA Model Programs. Schools from across the nation applied for this distinction, but only five schools were chosen to be recognized ASCA Model Programs. Maldonado's Zulema Suarez and Ford's Diana Johnston will be honored at the ASCA national conference at the end of June in Orlando, Florida, for their schools' commitment to delivering a comprehensive, data-driven school counseling program.

Pueblo's Linda Pearman was recently named the 2005 Gorby-Elfbrandt Educator of the Year by the Tucson Federation of Teachers. The award is given to teachers who exhibit extraordinary talent and activism in education.

The University of Arizona College of Education Alumni Council honored numerous TUSD teachers with their 2005 Outstanding Educator Award on May 11 at the college's pre-graduation ceremony. The award recognizes innovative educators who attended or graduated from the College of Education. Award winners received a plaque and will be invited to participate in future Alumni Council events. Honorees included: Tim Daldrup from Blenman; Elizabeth Murrieta-Hoover from Mission View; and Janice Postiglione, Esperanza Canales, Thelma Ruiz, Ellen Murphy, Haydee Hernandez, Yvette Lanz, Gloria Ramirez-Kunz, Alma Murrieta-Armendariz, Pilar Atjian, Maria Miranda, Micaela Campos, Teresa Toro, Leticia Rivas, Sylvia Olivas, Christine Lara, Elizabeth Rodriguez-Quihuis, Tessa Valencia, Jose Olivas, Alfredo Valenzuela, Cecilila Valenzuela-Gee, and Daniel Mejia from Davis.

On April 9, OMA held its first artist showcase. About 100 children and 46 artists performed to raise nearly $15,000 to support the OMA program.

The Rincon/University Ranger Jazz Band was one of 15 high school groups selected to perform at the fifth annual University of North Texas Jazz Festival on April 3 in Addison, Texas. The annual festival educates participants through workshops and spotlights talented college and high school musicians from across the country. The Ranger Jazz Band was chosen as a result of an audition tape they submitted last fall. In addition to performing, band members attended concerts performed by the top university and professional touring jazz combos, viewed presentations about the history of jazz, and worked one-on-one with a jazz clinician.

The 'Girls in Pink' investment team from Gridley placed third out of 284 teams of fifth through eighth-graders in the Arizona Stock Market Simulation in December. The statewide competition tracks student investments in a simulated stock market over a ten week period. The Gridley team, led by Donna Rishor, included Danielle Carpenter, Johanna Davis, Deborah Garcia, and Katrina Pennington.

Magee's Odyssey of the Mind teams are headed to Colorado May 20 through 25 to represent Arizona at the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals. This is the second time the school has earned this honor in two years by placing first on the state level. Team members, coached by Marjorie Letson, include: Jeanette Carpenter, Clare Delillo, Natalie Finley, Caitlyn Hull, Briana Kasel, Stephanie Mast, Brad Thuerbach, Joshua Beneventi, Catherine Boardman, Hannah Haymore, Nadine Merheb, Lindsay Thuerbach, Clare Healey, Stephanie Lane, Richard Matty, Kiley McCarthy, Brad Ness, and Braden Smith.

Catalina's AFJROTC 10-person armed team placed third out of 19 teams in the regulation phase of the 2005 US Air Force Academy National Invitational Drill Meet on April 30 in Colorado. Team members, coached by MSgt Mark Wagner, include: Anthony Adamo, Cory Bunch, Jacob Lee, Joshua Linsell, Sterling Lytle, William Nevels, Michael Schwemmer, Leland Vaughan and Joshua Yoder.

Students across the district read volumes of books in the TUSD inter-school reading contest held from Jan. 3 through March 1. The school with the most pages read per participating student was named the winner. Forty-eight students at Magee, led by Dianne Turausky, read 87,356 pages to place first in the competition. Utterback students placed second with 54 students reading 65,237 pages, Townsend placed third with 89 students reading 88,011 pages, and Secrist placed fourth with 145 students reading 122,948 pages. Magee received a 2.5 by 3 foot trophy to display in the school until next year's competition winners are announced and the trophy will be passed on.

The Careers Through Culinary Arts program recently awarded several seniors at Catalina scholarships to further their culinary education. Two of the students, Samantha Strand who received a total of $30,750 in scholarship monies and Bryce Ward who received a total of $38,500, will attend the Scottsdale Culinary Institute. Taylor Reed received a total of $14,000 and will attend Walnut Hill College in Philadelphia. As a team they won the gold medal at the C-CAP state competition and will represent Arizona at the national competition in San Diego this summer. Other Catalina students who placed at the state competition are Laura Martinez, bronze medal; Gabby Martinez, bronze medal; and Rofaidah Al Shamiri, gold medal.

Tucson Educational Office Professionals, or TEOP, recently announced their annual student scholarship recipients. This year's $800 scholarship winners are: Jenna Perry, Sahuaro; Brian Nichols, Sabino; Heather Rissi and Albert Cota, Howenstine; and, Jorge Morales and Devin Sanera, UHS. The 41 entrants were required to write an essay with the prompt, "If I were elected President of the United States today my role as a leader would be..." Money for the scholarships was raised through various TEOP fundraisers including candy sales and the Bosses Dinner and Silent Auction last October.

Carson's MESA team, which stands for Mathematics, Engineering and Science Achievement, placed first overall in the 14th Annual MESA Day competition on April 2 at the University of Arizona. In addition they won several individual competitions including the windmill, the university display board, the groundwater model, and the reflecting telescope. The state competition included 39 participating schools from across the state. The Carson team received a large trophy and will go on to represent Arizona at the national level. The team, coached by Michael Konrad, included Don Nguyen, Lisa Timpani, Chris Gaspar, Jose Herrera, Elsa Glissendorf, John Du, Amanda Tackas, Shay Sammons, Elise Starkey, Amanda Western, Mathew Martinson, Jaime Dennis, Melody Martinson, Sean Crawford, Chris Delgado and Joseph Haro.

Students from Sabino represented TUSD in the Arizona Regional Science Bowl on March 5 at Glendale Community College. The Science Bowl is a tournament-style, academic competition that challenges and recognizes students' knowledge of both mathematics and the sciences. Sabino participants, coached by Elyse Wexler, included: Andrey Alenin, Charles Cardinell, Paul Frost, Ryan Thomas, Brian Wolfel, Casey Abbott, Nicholas Bielat, Shaina Castle, Sean Mulvey, Richard Tominaga, Cesar Acosta, Melanie Brill, Rachael Dajches, Kurtis Norwood and Benjamin Wilson.

Blenman's Danielle Robertson placed first at the state level of the American Immigration Law Foundation's "Celebrate America" creative writing contest. The contest is aimed at fifth-graders and asks participants to write about why they are glad America is a nation of immigrants. Danielle's winning entry will now be entered in the national competition.

Four TUSD students were selected as winners in the Martin Luther King Jr. essay contest sponsored by the Tucson Education Association. Emma Barret from Borton, Maryam Tanbal from Corbett, James Sanchez from Richey, and Molli Chapman from Santa Rita were honored for their achievement on April 16 at TEA's annual awards luncheon. They also received a $100 savings bond.

Wheeler students participated in both the regional and state Odyssey of the Mind competitions. Placing first in the Division I Regionals and third in the state competition was the 'Get the Message' team. Team members include: Nicole Reed, Kaitlynn Pelot, Kyle Fleming, Kendra Brown, Morgan Lewis, Alyssa Atkins and Anabel Samano Villareal. Wheeler's 'In Your Dreams' team placed third overall at the regional level.

Students across the district participated in TUSD's district spelling bee in January. The top seven finalists, who went on to compete in the Pima County Bee on Feb. 12, were: Isabel Rodriguez, Maxwell; Alex Gleckman, Townsend; Serina Hubbard, Mansfeld; Kristina Guice, Vail; Via Matias, Lineweaver; and Tyler Edgecombe, Blenman.

Corbett's Trevor Criss was named one of 100 winners from around the nation in the Kid Inventor Challenge for his invention the "Yo-Yo Guy," a talking yo-yo. The competition is sponsored by Wild Planet Toys and entrants are required to create a new toy, sketch it, and write a description of it. As a winner Trevor will join the company's kid inventor team where he will test and review new toys on a monthly basis.

The Mexican Consulate named Fort Lowell's Jaime Duarte winner in its art contest titled "This is my Mexico." Over 10,000 entries from across the U.S. were received. Jaime's drawing will be featured on a calendar to be produced by the Consulate and distributed throughout Mexico.

The National Merit Scholarship Program announced 1,070 corporate-sponsored Merit Scholarship award winners on April 20. Benjamin Brysacz, senior at UHS, was awarded the Schering-Plough Merit Scholarship. In addition, they announced 2,500 National Merit $2,500 Scholarship award winners on May 4, including the following seven UHS students: Timur Kalimov, Sarah Lau, Devin Mauney, Celeste Monke, Lauren Peate, Grace Shigetani, and Shirlene Yee.

Sponsored by SkillsUSA, a national career and technical education student organization, the Arizona Region Six SkillsUSA Skills and Leadership Conference was held in February at the Home Depot on Broadway and Pantano and included several competitions. The following is a list of categories and corresponding TUSD winners: Automotive - third place to Mike Weber (Rincon); Carpentry - first place to Andrew Shadle (Santa Rita), second place to Janeson Treadwell (Santa Rita), third place to Brent Penrod (Santa Rita); Internetworking - first place to Hector Hernandez (Cholla), second place to Daniel Wyhle (Cholla), third place to Rudy Smith (Cholla); Welding Technology - third place to Jason Orlowski (Cholla); Photography - first place to Stephanie Lew (Tucson High), second place to Josh Osteen (Tucson High); and Speech - first place to Josie Albertini (Howenstine). In addition, the top five winners of the state SkillsUSA Commercial Photography Contest, held in April, were from TUSD. Stephanie Lew from Tucson High placed first and will now have the opportunity to compete on the national level in June in Kansas City, Missouri. Mandana Nakhai from Tucson High placed second, Ashlie Emert from Tucson High placed third, Lia Griesser from Tucson High placed fourth, and Tim Minker from Sahuaro placed fifth. Lastly, Sahuaro's Annie Ruboyianes, current Arizona Region Six SkillsUSA president, was recently elected to be the next state president for the organization. Sahuaro's Lauren Bays was elected to take her place as Region Six president for the 2005-2006 school year. Annie and Lauren will attend the SkillsUSA Washington Leadership Training Institute in September in Washington, D.C. and will preside over the state leadership camp in November in Prescott.

Students from across southern Arizona participated in the Southern Arizona Regional Science and Engineering Fair in March. TUSD winners include:

• Melissa Lamberton and Oscar Sainz (Pueblo)
• Chelsey Yingling, Jaime Campos, Saman Nematollahi, Brandon Sternberg, Clara Wilch, Mondana Nakai, Sarah Rios, Alexandra Jimenez, Chhitij Bashyal, Michelle Barghout, Dominic Vendell, Lesley Ash and Hailey McNelis (Tucson High)
• Liz Baker and Alice Ferng (UHS)
• Janeth Vega, April McCormick and Amie Kilgore (Vail)
• Ms. Panunzio's Class, Draedon Ledbetter, David Renner and Aaron McNany (Henry)
• Gage Walker, Kylene Wenner, Gabriel Svob and Peter Raptis (Blenman)
• Conrad Hom, Sonia Jolly and Stephanie Liu (Bloom)
• Ms. Fitzgerald Class, Dylan Mamood, Daniel Millstone, Tyler Woida, Erik Wise, Conor Kingston and Alyssa Vanderwood (Booth-Fickett)
• Meagan Bethel (Borton)
• Corina Gallardo (Brichta)
• Drew Sheets, Zekiel Backherms, Kelsey Wright and Shelby Yuan (Corbett)
• Jessica Muñoz-Tucker, Tyler Thompson, Eddie Hutton, Reyman Corral, Jacob Bernknopf, Matthew Arnold and Sarah Arnold (Cragin)
• Collin Adkisson (Davis)
• Carter Smith, Nicolini Ariana, Courtney Humphrey, Matthew McDaniel, Shiana Ferng, Jonathan Ferng, Helena Kooi, Yihan 'Tony' Wei, Bustamante Annete, Inman Samantha, Brigg Jannuzi and Teyvan Lowe (Doolen)
• Ms. Strand's Class (Duffy)
• William Yee (Fort Lowell)
• Steven Giampapa, Gillian Ruiz, Alex McNerney, Matthew Giampapa, Ben Murphy, Gracyn Ruiz, Miranda Riesgo, Laura Graziano, Liam Richards, Jacob Hussey, Maia Schneider, Hayley Beckmann and Allegra Amend (Fruchthendler)
• Shalia Butt, Samantha Duncan, Andrea Mason and Samantha Roell (Gridley)
• Ryan Graham, Diana Garcia, Saraya Wallen, Kailey Moonen, Cassie Wingert and Madison West (Dodge)
• James Shelton (Banks)
• Kyle Takagi, Anthony Sandoval, AJ Mc Brayer, Willow Savage and Brian Clinch (Lineweaver)
• Joshua Landi, Jacob Landi, Michael P. Conover, Tyler Hawkins, Erin Findysz, Braden Smith and Mary Alice Pratt (Magee)
• Christian Diaz and Alejandro Gallego (Ochoa)
• Iliana Gallegos, Viviana Sandoval Brian Gilpin, Dylan Howard, James Carey, Athena Myers, Jana Cary-Alvarez, Rebecca Perez, Chelsea Fraley-Taylor, Peter Siqueiros, Gabriel Rocha and Kevin Radcliffe (Pistor)
• Antonia Parker, Jasmin Fimbres, Stephanie Ramirez, Jasmine Canaletti, Roberto Verdugo, Samiul Ahad, Rodolfo Preciado, Alma Preciado, Daniela Machado, Celaya Janet and Veronica Ochoa (Roskruge)
• Delia Pepper, Mico Archangeli, Sara Page, Malia Moore and Morgan Griffiths (Hughes)
• Ashlyn House, Lanae Finley, Matthew Palmer, Lorena Diaz, Brandon Cradit, Hayden Wilson, Abby McVey and Ms. Riveras' Class (Schumaker)
• Gabriela Elizondo-Craig, Avery Burrola, Christopher Obregon and Ms. Elvick-Mejia's Class (Tolson)
• Manny Montano and Thomas O'Brian (Valencia)
• Jesus Amaya (Wakefield)

Summer Art Program For Teens: Artworks Academy is offering a summer sculpture program for students ages 13 to 18. The course will be held twice during the summer and will focus on learning about and creating three-dimensional forms. Both sessions will be held weekdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and cost $250 per student. Session one will begin June 6 and end June 24. The second session will run July 5 through July 29. To register or for more information contact Manny Salmeron at Artworks Academy at 881-8537 or 861-3340.

Calling All Soon-To-Be Retirees: The Pima County Retired Teachers' Association is currently recruiting retired educators to join their over 400 member organization. PCRTA is a nonprofit organization that provides its members with continued interaction in Arizona education through monthly luncheons and newsletters. If you are soon-to-be retired, or know someone who is, and would like further information on the group please email Cookie Bowes at pcrta@comcast.net.

Mark Your Calendars: The Office of Professional Development and Academics has set the dates for the 2005-2006 New Teacher Institute. The orientation, a new-comers guide to TUSD, will take place from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. July 25 through July 27 at Tucson High and will include a resource fair and information about District support services.

Attention Teachers Grades 1-5: The Nature Conservancy offers educators a free 45-minute program appropriate for grades one through five titled "Tucson: Our Home in the Desert." The lesson teaches about Tucson's unique eco region, how it is changing, and what we can do to preserve its beauty and includes a hands-on activity, slide show, and opportunities for discussion. For more information contact Dorothy Boone by email or by phone at 547-3437.

It's a bird, a plane, an egg salad sandwich... no, it's Captain Underpants! The popular storybook character visited Davidson on April 28 to congratulate students on having high a high attendance rate on AIMS test days.

At their April 12 meeting the Board approved the following bond projects: a three-classroom addition at Banks and Oyama, renovations to the Sabino science wing, and the re-pavement of the Sahuaro parking lot.

They appointed the following administrators to act as dual-site principals beginning with the 2005-2006 school year: Diane Holguin, Drachman-Carrillo; David Overstreet, Van Horne-Wrightstown; Helen Grijalva, Richey-Jefferson Park; and Teresa Melendez, Borton-Holladay.

Lastly, they approved two new policy codes: DFG, titled "Review and Action of Impact to the District Based on Growth and Rezoning" and KB, titled "Parent Involvement in Education." All Board approved policies and regulations are posted on the TUSD web site on the Policies, Regulations, and Guidelines page.

At their May 10 meeting the Board proclaimed May 11, 2005 as School Nurse Day in TUSD. In addition, the Board appointed the following administrators to principal positions: Victoire Vickroy, Banks; Helen LePage, Erickson; Elizabeth Redondo, Mission View; and Roman Soltero, Tully.

The Governing Board approved budget reduction measures totaling $2,705,228 at the April and May Board meetings.

Tucson Unified School District
1010 East 10th Street, Tucson, Arizona, 85719

Governing Board
Bruce Burke, President; Adelita Grijalva, Clerk;
Joel T. Ireland; Judy Burns; Alex Rodriguez

Superintendent
Roger F. Pfeuffer

Interim Director of Public Relations
Estella Zavala

Communications Specialist/Writer
Jennea Moore

Tucson Unified School District does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, religion or disability in admission or access to, or treatment or employment, in its educational programs or activities.

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