The Horizon
December 2023
Winter Break is here and a new year is just around the corner. When students return, we head into the second half of our school year. This is a very busy time as students gear up for testing, and we begin planning for graduations, promotions, and exciting end-of-the-year activities.
During our break, I hope you will pause to enjoy special moments with friends and family. Time goes so quickly and it is important to stop and appreciate those around us. I am grateful for our students, staff, parents, and community partners. You all make Jurupa Unified a special place.
One of the most gratifying activities we hosted this fall was our first-ever JUSD Family Reading Challenge. It was so wonderful to see more than 500 entries. Even more heartening were the responses from parents who said they were delighted to hear students gaining fluency, being so engrossed in a story that they couldn’t put the book down, and having time to bond together while reading. These special moments are invaluable and prepare students for success now and into the future as they become lifelong readers and lifelong learners.
I also am always so moved to see our community helping one another. Our empathy for others is especially visible at this time of year. Our staff, students, and families joined multiple efforts to ensure that those in need had food, clothing, toys, and other necessities. We often take for granted simple things that make a big difference in the lives of others. In this month’s newsletter, for example, you can read more about how our students collect socks to help those who are less fortunate.
Enjoy your well-deserved Winter Break. Appreciate special moments, and we’ll see everyone back at school on Monday, January 8, 2024.
Students collect socks for those in need
A clean, dry, pair of socks may seem like a simple everyday item that most take for granted. But for those in need, new socks can mean so much more – a sense of warmth, comfort, and hope.
Students across the Jurupa Unified School District help those who are less fortunate each fall with Socktober sock drives. Students at Nueva Vista High School and Van Buren Elementary School were among those who participated in this year’s sock drive.
Nueva Vista has participated in Socktober for many years. This year, students collected 437 pairs of socks, which were donated to the Path of Life Ministries in Riverside.
Teacher Leslie Naupari coordinates the effort.
JUSD Family Reading Challenge encouraged literacy
This fall, JUSD elementary school families read more than 37,000 minutes together as they participated in the JUSD Family Reading Challenge.
The fun fall event encouraged families to read with their children for at least 10 minutes per day as part of the district’s Literacy Without Limits campaign to support reading proficiency for all students.
Winning classes were:
First place: Ms. Espinal’s sixth-grade class, Indian Hills Elementary (4,825 minutes read); second place: Ms. Gonzalez’s kindergarten class, Stone Avenue Elementary (2,085 minutes read); third place: Ms. McAllister’s second-grade class, and Camino Real Elementary (1420 minutes read).
JUSD honors outstanding team members
Congratulations to our JUSD Employees of the Year. These outstanding team members always give their best for our students and families.
Our Employees of the Year are:
Classified Employee of the Year – Dominic Rutigliano, General Maintenance Journeyman, Maintenance and Operations
Co-Administrator of the Year – Evelyn English, Assistant Principal, Del Sol Academy
Counselor of the Year – James Marnell, High School Counselor, Patriot High School
Site Support Person of the Year - Delia Nguyen, Community Schools Teacher on Special Assignment Rubidoux High School
Classified Administrator of the Year - Shannon Nelson, Coordinator, Human Resources
Confidential Employee of the Year - Cindy Vasquez, Executive Assistant, Education Services and Expanded Learning and the Arts
Principal of the Year - Tammy Patterson, Principal, Granite Hill Elementary School
District Certificated Administrator of the Year - Nicholas Blake, Director of Program and Funding Accountability
Honorees will be recognized at the district’s Employee of the Year celebration in March. They also will be considered for further recognition by Riverside County. Teachers of the Year will be announced in the new year.
We are so grateful for the many contributions of our incredible JUSD team.
Dr. Hansen named a National Superintendent to Watch
Jurupa Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Trenton Hansen has been named a 2023 Superintendent to Watch by the National School Public Relations Association. He is one of only 25 superintendents nationwide chosen for this honor, which recognizes district leaders who have shown exemplary leadership and communication.
“This year’s honorees understand the critical role that effective, two-way communication plays in building trust with students, families, employees and community members,” said NSPRA Executive Director Barbara M. Hunter, APR. “Each of these leaders have demonstrated an unwavering commitment to championing innovative communication strategies to advance their district’s success.”
You can learn more about the Superintendents to Watch Award at: www.nspra.org/superintendents-watch
JUSD Wins 12th Golden Bell
JUSD is proud to have won a California School Boards Association Golden Bell Award for our JUSD Dell Student TechCrew. Our district also received the CSBA Business Affiliate’s Award.
Dell Student TechCrew is a unique Career Technical Education (CTE) pathway that provides students the opportunity to gain highly marketable IT skills, and even certification, before high school graduation. The program is available at all JUSD high schools and middle schools. This is JUSD’s 12th Golden Bell.
Congrats, Team JUSD!
