The Acorn

Greetings AOC Families,

Happy Sunday! Don't forget to set your clocks forward one hour for daylight savings!

Click here to access the Weekly Bulletin. This Friday is a FLEX (Tues./Thurs.) schedule. Inside the weekly bulletin, read about how to get involved in ASB, 9th grade student of the week, Ela Wang, scholarship information, club news and a reminder for free meals for all youth.

Have a great week, AOC!

Sincerely,

Dr. Juliet Fine

AOC Parents and Guardians,

Because LA County has met the necessary requirements for schools reopening, at AOC, we are enthusiastically getting ready for our reopening on March 29th. In preparation, here are a few action items happening behind the scenes for your students. We are preparing for a blended learning environment, which will include both our students physically on campus and online.

• Physical move and temporary relocation to Castaic High School- We will be temporarily located at Castaic High School (CHS) for the remainder of the school year. We plan to return to COC's campus for the 2021 school year.
• Office Operations at Castaic High School starting on March 22nd- You can still reach us at AOC's phone line at 661-362-3056. Mrs. Herrera, Mrs.Walusco, Ms. Perkins and our counselor, Ms. Grijalva and Principal, Dr. Fine will be moved into their temporary offices located at CHS.
• Teacher Move In Day on March 19th and March 26th- Teachers will officially move into their classrooms at CHS on March 19th. You may notice some of them teaching from a different remote location. They are prepping their equipment and readying their classrooms for the opening day!
• Cohorts Assigned and Organized- It takes a lot of work and planning to ensure our cohorts are within the size limits for social distancing in the classroom and balanced. This task is complete. If there are any requests for changes, this is handled on a case by case basis. All decisions have been calculated and organized for March 29th.
• Principal Meetings with Students in Advisory Classes- Dr. Fine is meeting with every advisory class and student to ensure they receive a virtual tour of Castaic and have the opportunity to understand the transition to Castaic. They can ask any questions they have about this transition during the visit or "Virtual Lunch with the Principal".
• Lanyards for Student IDs for Open Periods-We have purchased lanyards for students to wear at AOC. Each student must bring their ID cards everyday to Castaic. This will give them permission to leave campus for their open periods. And, if they are an upperclassman, they are allowed to leave for lunch. I ask that our students wear their lanyard and ID card on campus.
• First Week Welcome- We are preparing for our opening week to celebrate and welcome our students to AOC, temporarily located at CHS.

Here is a web page dedicated to the temporary move to Castaic High School and blended learning. Click here.

• Virtual Tour of Castaic High School
• Q & A on Return to School

We are here to support our students and our families. Please reach out us at AOC with any questions about cohorts and the temporary transition to Castaic. We want you to know that we have been working hard to prepare for this day and are very excited to see our students.

We have received many inquiries about Senior Graduation. Here is some information that we can share with you.

• We have a three week window during which it is more than likely we will hold graduation activities.
• The possible dates for all William S. Hart schools for graduation will be between May 24-June 11.
• If my OPINION was taken, I would say that the end of the week of June 1st is more than likely, after COC finals are completed.
• Unfortunately, we cannot be definitive at this point.
• We cannot be definitive because the County Health Department has not yet changed their Health Order that currently prohibits large gatherings.
• We anticipate this will change and have been lobbying for more flexibility to offer in-person graduation options.
• The district put together proposals for LADPH and have submitted them for approval.
• We anticipate knowing more by sometime in April.
• Whether we can offer a drive through graduation, multiple smaller in-person graduations at the school sites, or one large graduation at COC will change how we have to schedule these activities.

We do apologize for the continued delay. And, we hope you are encouraged that things are looking more hopeful for in-person graduation. Again, in the next few weeks, you will have more information.

Sunrise to Our Future event for seniors is scheduled to take place on the morning of Friday, May 7th, 2021. Students will be encouraged to decorate their cars with the theme of their post-AOC plans. Because college decision day is on May 1st, students can decorate their cars to reflect their college plans (if they're going to college). If they're starting a career, they can decorate their car to reflect that career. If they're going into the military, they can decorate their car to reflect that (of course, no weapons).

Tentatively, and if this event goes well, and depending on the COVID restrictions, the ASB seniors would like to also hold the previously tentatively scheduled Senior Sunset on Thursday, May 27th. This is when seniors usually receive their yearbooks, a day ahead of the rest of the students.

We will keep you posted on these plans and communication will go out through the senior classes.

We are so proud of Joni, our AOC ACSA Award Winner and Scholarship recipient! She was one of seven chosen to go to the next level of competition in April. You can see her speech at the 24 minute mark and the announcement of winners begins at the 1 hour 29 minute mark. We are so excited for her! Thank you to our teachers for encouraging our students to participate. Click here for the video.

The Santa Clarita Sister Cities 2021 Young Artists and Authors Showcase is now underway! Students can apply by April 15th. Students must be at least 13 years old by May 1st. This year’s theme is “United in Hope’ and categories include art, essay/creative writing, poetry, photography, and music (original or reinterpreted).

Visit scvipSantaClarita.org for eligibility, guidelines and criteria, AND to submit entries. Local winners will be announced on April 26th, along with the launch of a virtual exhibit.

The winning Santa Clarita entries will be submitted to Sister Cities International (SCI) in Washington, D.C. to compete with submissions from other Sister Cities organizations across the U.S. for the grand prize of $1,000 in each category. Second and third place winners per category get $250 and $100, respectively.

See link to the Santa Clarita Magazine, our ad is on page 24 for more information:

https://filecenter.santa-clarita.com/Seasons/2021_Spring_Seasons_Magazine.pdf

The William S. Hart Union High School Spring Break is scheduled for the week of April 5th-April 9th.

Located on the campus of College of the Canyons, AOC is proud to be the middle college high school in the William S. Hart Union High School District serving students 9th-12th grades in the Santa Clarita Valley. Students have the opportunity to earn between 24 and 44 transferable college units, prior to receiving their high school diplomas. Upon graduation, the majority of Academy students pursue their post high school education by continuing at COC and completing their college transfer requirements in only one year after high school. Other AOC students go directly into a four-year university, bringing their community college units with them and placing themselves well into their freshman and sophomore years at the college level. While attending AOC as a high school student, community college tuition is waived for established California residents.

Email: jfine@hartdistrict.org
Website: https://www.academyofthecanyons.com/
Location: Academy of the Canyons, Rockwell Canyon Road, Santa Clarita, CA, USA
Phone: 661-362-3056
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Academy-of-the-Canyons-Middle-College-High-School-330158873741614
Twitter: @Academy_Canyons