Welcome and Weekly Message

Dear Anderson Valley Community,

Another week of school zooms by and the warmer weather certainly is reminding us that graduation is around the corner. Please mark your calendars for these important dates.

Preschool District Office Lawn–May 22

The following events are all at the high school  gym:

6th Grade Promotion–Tuesday, June 4

8th Grade–Wednesday, June 5

High School Graduation–Thursday, June 6

Measure M Ground Breaking–High School Oval–Thursday, June 6 at 12 noon

The big news of the week was the gargantuan task that technology manager Wynne Crisman accomplished, by himself, replacing all of the district phone hardware and software systems. 

When Wynne first approached me about the idea a few months ago, which was definitely needed as often people could not reach the sites due to glitches in the decades old technology, I thought it was going to be a messy task. It was further compounded with the phone service carrier that said they could only perform the  critical switch during a specific, not ideal time of 8:00 a.m., on a weekday morning!  I was worried, we would be  in a big old mess with a telephone company thousands of miles away unable to support our remote location.  However,  much to my delight and relief thanks to Wynne’s efforts,  it went off without a hitch. I am super grateful to Wynne for his dedication and expertise in getting this done.  One of the new features of the system is if a call is received on an extension and it is not picked up, the voicemail that is left can be sent to the person's computer. We also have a recorded message in English and Spanish for families to report absences on the absence line to ensure that parents can report a message without being required to call back.

Panthers were on the move this week!  Many of the  sixth graders were on their field trip to the Mendocino Woodlands with Ms. Cruz, and some high school students journeyed up to the Ashland Shakespeare Festival with Mr. Folz and Mr. Ballentine. They are enjoying two plays and several workshops.  The big FFA plant sale is tomorrow. So be sure to stop by and get your starter plants!

Both sites have completed their State testing and we are appreciate Ms. Sweet and Ms. Ewing getting that done. Spring was definitely in the air with the chicks hatching in Ms. Mayne’s room and the beautiful bulb planters sprouting and growing rapidly in Ms. Soto’s room!  Colorful art is hanging in the hallways and it is always  great to see a student’s face light up when they realize you are looking at their creation!

Speaking of pride in work–be sure to visit the Elementary Open House on May 21 at 5:30 p.m.  and the High School Exhibition from 3:30-6:00.

We thank you for your partnership as you continue to ensure your students attend school on time and ready to learn.  We are in the home stretch, but we still have a “whole lotta learning to do!”

I would like to close with deepest gratitude to the staff for their on-going work and care for kids.  We are celebrating staff appreciation next week, and while celebrating for one week everyone’s contribution is terrific, I want to recognize and express my deepest gratitude for the on-going commitment, energy,  and investment our staff gives every day.  

Sincerely yours,

Louise Simson

Superintendent