Tags
7 Habits, A2Z Bus Sales, Allison Slattery, Bonsall, Bonsall High School, BUSD, culture, Davidson Communities, Pala, Riverview Church, The Leader In Me
Welcome back! The beginning of the 2016-17 school year is the start of our best year ever! It has been wonderful to add a new grade and building to the high school, along with courses from Palomar College. We are adding new robotics, engineering, and bio med classes to our middle school. We also have a new personalized assessment and digital learning support system throughout the district helping us to achieve our purpose of “Academic excellence and support for all students to be highly competitive in their chosen career path and/or college”.
We are welcoming excellent new members to our school community. One of the benefits of our Bonsall School Community culture was discussed in yesterday’s Union Tribune article.
One part of that interview that the reporter didn’t include in the article was the moral imperative our Bonsall School Community has as the base of our culture. Our teachers know they have an incredibly important impact on the quality of our society, economy, military, and government. Often our teachers are upset when professional development interrupts their time in the classroom. Our philosophy of “Dedication to continuous improvement” is also a large part of our culture. This year all staff will be trained in “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” so that next year our students will be developing the same habits in “The Leader in Me” program. We are doing this because so many skills required for success and happiness are not just academic, but behavioral.
Watching the drop off and pick up traffic during these first few days of school has shown wonderful growth of a culture of kindness and patience by those driving their students to school. We have had a couple of bumps in this start of the school year however; our Transportation Department has experienced great frustration with bus breakdowns of vehicles that are almost new! The vendor, A2Z Bus Sales, refitted them with improved cooling parts this past summer, which might be the core of the problem. We are currently adapting and are meeting this week with A2Z to rectify this issue. We would like to commend everyone involved who showed great kindness and patience while addressing this frustration situation.
WONDERFUL kindness and patience has been extended to our Bonsall School Community by Davidson Communities, the developer of the homes around Bonsall Elementary School; in consideration of the traffic stress of the first couple weeks of school, they delayed roadwork which was creating traffic stops. This hiatus will last for the first couple of weeks of school. We feel very fortunate to have such thoughtful and generous partners in our Bonsall School Community.
Speaking of thoughtful and generous partners, the Pala Band of Mission Indians has again shown the wisdom and generosity of supporting our children’s schools by presenting the Board of Trustees with a $90,000 donation at their meeting last week. This is added to the transportation and counseling support they also provide.
The Riverview church has once again shown its great kindness and support for Sullivan Middle School. Last weekend scores of volunteers from Riverview worked in the hot sun to beautify the campus. They are also a wonderful example of the incredible support that makes the Bonsall School Community so amazing. We are so grateful for the blessings of their time, toil, and energy they have shared with us.
The Bonsall School Community is also grateful to our Pathways Charter Academy and their Excel Academy’s innovative and successful K-8 summer school program held at Bonsall Elementary School for almost ninety students. The enrichment programs and academic support were a first year success, and we look forward to expanding this offering next summer.
In a few weeks, September 10, at “A Salute to Teachers” , our very own Bonsall West fourth grade teacher, Allison Slattery, will participate in this gala selection of the county teachers of the year.
Every year I feel our teachers are the best, and this year I feel it even more.
Sincerely,
Justin Cunningham, Ed.D.