The Mustang Messenger

It has been a pleasure walking through classrooms and seeing students engaged in their learning this week.

Please check students' grades online and reach out to teachers if you notice students struggling to keep up. Middle school can be a challenging transition for some students, going from one teacher to six takes some getting used to. All students are given a student planner that helps keeps them organized. After progress reports, Rancho Pico will offer additional academic support through after-school tutoring.

Have a great weekend,

Catherine Nicholas, Ed.D.

Thursday, August 31st is Rancho Pico's Back to School Night from 6:00 - 7:55. Back to School Night is for parents / guardians to attend only. Extra parking will be available across the street at West Ranch High School. We will be sending out more details and information closer to the date. We look forward to having you! That day is a minimum day and students will be released at 12:10.

Thursday, August 31st is a two period minimum day.

On Thursday, August 31st students will attend periods 6 and 2 and will be released from school at 12:10 pm.

On Wednesday, August 30th will be a four period day and students will attend periods 5, 1, 3 and 4.

Every Tuesday is Early Release Tuesday for teachers to meet for Professional Development, Collaboration and Department Meetings.

Rancho Pico’s PBIS (Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports) program is excited to roll out our Digital Points system this year. You may have seen students come home with DASH tickets last year, or maybe seen some kind of ticket system at their elementary school.

This is that but digitized. This year we are using PBIS Rewards for our DASH points.

PBIS Rewards is a digital PBIS management solution that assists schools in teaching appropriate behavior. Most PBIS programs use paper tokens as a way to keep track of student points. However, paper tokens are difficult for students to keep track of and can be a burden for teachers, as well. PBIS Rewards digitizes your token economy and helps make it easy to recognize students for acting responsibly.

PBIS Rewards also makes the reward/track/redeem process easy for all involved. Teachers can easily recognize students for Doing the Right Thing, Acting Responsibly, Showing Respect or Having Integrity. Students can then see their points and redeem their accumulated points in the school store for tangible and intangible rewards. Think of it as a student debit card for their PBIS points.

We have already seen students’ excitement to get into their account. So please tell your student to be on the lookout for an email after Back to School Night to activate their student account!

Looking forward to a great year! Let’s all DASH for Success!

Rancho Pico and the PBIS Team

Labor Day is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday in September to honor and recognize the American labor movement and the works and contributions of laborers to the development and achievements of the United States. There will be no school on Monday, September 4th in recognition of Labor day.

Rancho Pico students are opportunity Ready!

Students are encouraged to wear a college shirt or a shirt that represents a future career goal on Thursdays. It is great to see all of the college and industry shirts out on campus.

Fridays are Spirit Days and students are encouraged to wear Rancho Pico Spirit wear.

At Rancho Pico and the Hart District safety is a primary focus. We ask that you partner with us in making sure your child is wearing their Rancho Pico ID every day. Replacements can be purchased in the ASB/ Counseling office for $5. If a student does not have the money at the moment they need a replacement, we always say that is okay, they can pay later.

This school year we will practice lock down, fire evacuation, and earthquake drills. This week we reminded students about the safety equipment in each classroom and how to behave in a lockdown scenario. Safety practice can sometimes trigger feelings of anxiety in students and adults. Please remember that we have counselors available to talk with your student if you sense they need support. Contact your child’s counselor if you would like for us to check on your student. Thank you for your support as we maintain a safe and caring atmosphere at Rancho Pico.

Thanks to our generous PAC, the library has several games for students to check out to play outdoors in the shade. Students can check out:

• Giant Chess
• Giant Checkers
• Giant Jenga
• Giant Uno
• Rubiks Cubes

The William S. Hart Union High School District prohibits unlawful discrimination against and/or harassment of any student, employee, or job applicant on the basis of actual or perceived race, color, ethnicity, national origin, immigration status, ancestry, religion, age, marital status, pregnancy, parental status, physical or mental disability, medical condition, military or veteran status, political affiliation, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, sexual orientation, or any other basis prohibited by state and federal nondiscrimination laws, respectively, at any District site and/or activity. The William S. Hart Union High School District also provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. All inquiries regarding discrimination, civil rights, Title II, and/or Title IX should be directed to Mark Crawford, Director of Human Resources. Complaints regarding 504 plans should be directed to Erum Velek, Director of Student Services and Equity. Both can be reached at the William S. Hart Union High School District, 21380 Centre Pointe Pkwy, Santa Clarita, CA 91350, or by phone (661) 259-0033, or by email: UCP@hartdistrict.org.

El Distrito de Escuelas Secundarias William S. Hart Union prohíbe la discriminación ilegal y/o el acoso de cualquier estudiante, empleado o solicitante de empleo basado en raza actual o percibido, el color, el origen étnico, el origen nacional, el estado migratorio, la ascendencia, la religión, la edad, estado civil, embarazo, estado parental, discapacidad física o mental, condición médica, estado militar o de veterano, afiliación política, sexo, género, identidad de género, expresión de género, información genética, orientación sexual o cualquier otra base, prohibida por leyes estatales y federales. Leyes de no discriminación, respectivamente, en cualquier sitio y/o actividad del Distrito. El Distrito de Escuelas Secundarias William S. Hart Union también proporciona igualdad de acceso a los Boy Scouts y otros grupos juveniles designados. Todas las consultas sobre discriminación, derechos civiles, Título II y/o Título IX deben dirigirse a Mark Crawford, Director de Recursos Humanos. Las quejas relacionadas con los planes 504 deben dirigirse a Erum Velek, Director de Equidad y Servicios Estudiantiles. Se puede comunicar con ambos en William S. Hart Union High School District, 21380 Center Pointe Pkwy, Santa Clarita, CA 91350, o por teléfono (661) 259-0033, o por correo electrónico: UCP@hartdistrict.org .