What's New in GUHSD

Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee Issues 2016 Annual Report

The independent Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee (CBOC) has issued its 2016 Annual Report to the community.

It is publicly accessible here. It will soon be available in all school offices, county libraries within the district, and at CBOC and Governing Board meetings.

CBOC community volunteers review project planning, conduct project walk-throughs, and review expenditures to ensure that bond funds are spent only on projects listed in bond language approved by voters. In addition, they review the district’s Deferred Maintenance program, and the annual performance and financial audits of the bond program completed by an independent auditor.

The CBOC annual report provides a comprehensive review of the CBOC’s role as well as challenges and accomplishments of the Prop U program and an introduction to the new Measure BB program approved by voters last November. Included in the report is a review of the financial status, projects, results of the latest audits, and a specific project review completed under the auspices of the CBOC.

We appreciate the work of these volunteers’ steadfast commitment to actively review and report on the proper expenditure of taxpayers’ money for school construction.

Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District Garners $1.5 Million State Grant for High School-to-College Transition

East County educators are celebrating a $1.5 million state grant to further the work of the East County Education Alliance, a partnership between the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College and Grossmont Union High School districts to help students make the transition to higher education.

The two-year grant will fund the Alliance’s Jumpstart Program, which will include outreach efforts such as college campus visits, Parent Nights, mentoring programs and career workshops to introduce ninth through twelfth-grade students to the demands and expectations of college and careers. It will also be utilized for an online student support and data collection system to improve student retention and completion rates.

The cornerstone of the Alliance, created in 2014 to smooth the transition between high school and college, is the Higher Edge Promise Scholarship, which will offer a free year of classes at Grossmont or Cuyamaca College to qualifying high school graduates beginning with the class of 2019. The scholarship promise was created to provide a pathway to higher education and to better prepare students for college by increased collaboration between the college and high school districts.

The Foundation for Grossmont & Cuyamaca Colleges has launched a major philanthropic effort to raise the money needed to support the Higher Edge Scholarships. In addition to funding the Jumpstart Program, the state Promise Grant will provide $100,000 toward scholarships.

For more information about the work of the East County Education Alliance is available here. 

Annual PTA Founders Day Celebration

GUHSD Shows Support for PTA Leaders & Santana Teacher of the Year Brooke Crocker

On Wednesday, February 22, I joined school administrators, principals, teachers, school board members, superintendents and Parent Teacher Association (PTA) leaders from across San Diego County to celebrate the founding of the PTA and its rich history of accomplishment.

This year’s Ninth District PTA Annual Meeting/Founders Day Celebration Brunch was held at the Scottish Rite Center. Several of our local PTSA presidents were in attendance including Foothills Secondary Council PTA President Lisa Stewart. We deeply appreciate our local PTSA leadership and its service on behalf of our youth.

L: Beth Bacting, Foothills Council PTA President Lisa Stewart & Cathy Roth

The Founder’s Day event featured recognition of the San Diego County Teachers of the Year, including Santana High School’s Brooke Crocker. PTA leaders Cathy Roth (Grossmont alumna) and Beth Bacting (Monte Vista alumna) both received the prestigious PTA Honorary Service Award. In addition, IDEA Center received a gavel for the school’s newly constituted PTSA.

The Founder’s Day event underscores the dedication and commitment that the members of our school PTAs offer. Parent involvement and presence makes a positive difference at our high schools.

If you are not a member of your school’s PTSA, I encourage you to get involved.  Membership forms are located in your school office and on your school or PTSA website.  Please join today.

Laurels for Leaders Luncheon

Dr. Glover with GUHSD's ASB Presidents at the Laurels for Leaders Luncheon

On Wednesday, February 22, GUHSD principals, ASB Presidents and Advisors and District Administrators attended the 59th Annual San Diego County Laurels for Leaders Luncheon. The event honors San Diego County’s high school student body presidents.

School ASBs enhance campus life. They are concerned with the entirety of the high school experience and maximizing student activities and options while on campus. During the event, leadership awards were presented to high school ASB presidents.

I am very proud of our ASB students for their participation in the 7th Annual Martin Luther King, Jr., High School ASB Food Drive Challenge. Granite Hills High School was recognized as the third place winner for the number of cans its students donated for needy families. Their efforts, combined with other participating county schools, will provide nutritious meals to San Diegans in need.

Thanks to all of our student leaders for your hard work & dedication!

Local Sheriff's Captains Spearhead Computer Donation

Mount Miguel Students Receive Laptops from Local Sheriffs

San Diego County Sheriff’s Captains Hank Turner and Marco Garmo, along with deputies from the Alpine and Rancho San Diego Sheriff’s Stations presented four laptop computers to Mount Miguel High School students in a surprise ceremony last Friday, February 17.

Students Calista Alvarado, Sevannah Cardiel, Lorraine Maraan, and Angel Vaca, were selected as recipients based on their demonstrated leadership on campus. All four of the students have attended Camp LEAD and returned to campus making positive contributions to the campus community through programs including the Medical Academy, LINK Crew, Book Club, and athletics.

The San Diego Futures Foundation (SDFF) donated the computers to the Sheriff's Department. The SDFF is a local nonprofit whose mission is to improve lives in San Diego County by making information technology available to underserved populations. They provide technology equipment, training, support, IT outsourcing, and digital media services to nonprofit organizations, disadvantaged small businesses, low-income households, people with disabilities, and seniors. SDFF is working hard to bridge the digital divide in our community. The Deputy Sheriff's Association of San Diego assisted with financial support.

Special thanks is extended to Sheriff’s Captain Hank Turner for his hard work on this effort.

GUHSD Students Participate in High School Hospitality Conference

GUHSD Culinary Students Observe a Filleting Demonstration

On Thursday, February 16, five district schools participated in the High School Hospitality Conference hosted at Golden Hall in Downtown San Diego.  Students from the Culinary Pathways at El Cajon Valley, Santana, Granite Hills, and IDEA center, as well as the Marketing, Sales, and Service Pathway from Mount Miguel High School attended the event.

The students were welcomed with a continental breakfast and Keynote speech by Claudia Sandoval, the Season 6 winner of Fox Network’s hit TV series MasterChef. Following the Keynote, students were grouped up and given tours at a variety of restaurants and hotels from downtown San Diego to Coronado. These hotels and restaurants included Tom Ham’s Lighthouse, Lou and Mickey’s, Omni San Diego, and the Coronado Island Marriott just to name a few. 

Students were given a behind the scenes tour at each establishment and treated to samples of the restaurant favorites.  After the tours, the students returned to Golden Hall where they attended a Career Fair to learn about careers in the Hospitality Industry along with a catered lunch.

Academic League Final 2016-2017 Standings

Santana Clinches Top Spot as GUHSD's 2016-17 Varsity Champions

The 2016-17 Academic League Junior Varsity first place team is the West Hills Wolf Pack, coached by Corrie Biggerstaff and Michelle Liddell. They finished with a 9 and 1 record, just edging out the Steele Canyon Cougars, coached by Betty Jensen, with a record of 8 and 2. Congratulations to all of our JV teams on a great, competitive season.

Last week's Varsity dual match at Grossmont High School, determined the 2016-17 Varsity GUHSD first place team. The Grossmont Foothillers, coached by Christina Alley were 10 and 0 as were the Santana Sultans coached by Brooke Crocker and Rebecca Short, in the battle of the undefeated teams. Only one team can be the Varsity winner to compete in the Spring at the County Academic League Finals. The match went back and forth and the final outcome came down to the last question. The end result was a score of: Grossmont 74 and Santana 75, making the Santana Sultans the first place Varsity team.

Click here to view a brief video from the final match, created by Ron and Karen Cook of Ron Cook Media.

Click here to view the final 2016-17 standings for all schools.

Congratulations on a great season for all of our wonderful schools and Academic League teams!

CTE Golden Apple Winner Announced!

CTE Golden Apple Winner Mick McMurray is honored by GUHSD CTE & Principal Kim Hedrick

The College & Career Readiness Department congratulates Mick McMurray from Mount Miguel High School for his selection as the CTE Golden Apple Award winner for 2016-17.

Mick McMurray has been a teacher leader in Career Technical Education in the Arts, Media and Entertainment Pathway. He is always willing to participate on district and school level committees to share his expertise, as well as to help individual teachers by providing them the support they need to be successful. 

Mick has a unique combination of artistic skills with a deep understanding of advanced technologies required in an Arts, Media, and Entertainment Pathway to keep his teaching current and relevant to the industry. Mick is also a teacher leader at Mount Miguel High School, where he has served in many roles to ensure that all students have access to a quality education with the support they need to thrive.

Congratulations Mick McMurray!

Save the Date: 4/1 Girls Empowerment Conference

The annual Girls Empowerment Conference which was founded at Mount Miguel High School, has evolved from a high school gym in 2006, to the Manchester Hyatt, and promises to be the best one yet. Sylvia Sposato is the chairperson for the Girls Empowerment Conference, and along with Girl Force USA and iheart radio, would like to personally invite GUHSD girls to this year’s conference on April 1, 2017.

As special guests, the $40.00 fee is being waived for all students from the Grossmont Union High School District using the guhsdstudent promo code.  Please accept this as a personal invitation to your young women. Amenities will include a light breakfast, lunch, workshops, giveaways and many more opportunities.

Hosted by Channel 93.3 radio personality Geena The Latina, special guests including: Season 6 MasterChef winner, Chef Claudia Sandoval, iHeart Media Region President, Melissa Forrest, Julie Pilat from Beats 1 & Apple Music, Coordinator of the Academy of Medical and Health Sciences, Bridgett DeSonia, NBC7 San Diego Meteorologists, Kimi Evans and Jodi Kodesh, Jam’n 95.7 San Diego Radio Host/On-Air Talent, Cedes, 102.7 KIIS FM Los Angeles and Channel 93.3 San Diego Radio Host/On-Air Talent, Alex G, Public Speaker and Coach at Alliance Training Center, Jamie Del Fierro, ECVHS Drop Out Prevention Specialist, Tammy Ullsperger, and more. A special performance by Multi-Platinum Singer/Songwriter/Producer/ Grammy Nominated Artist, Frankie J will be featured.

The event flyer is available here.

Dr. Tim Glover

Superintendent

What's New in GUHSD

Santana Students Dominate Engineering Competition at SDSU

Santana Engineering Students Celebrate their Accomplishments

On Saturday, February 11, San Diego State University hosted an inaugural Engineering Olympics competition that was open to all high schools located in San Diego.  Santana students showed tremendous interest with 16 students signing up for the competition.  A total of 64 students from around the county showed up to compete. 

The morning commenced with a paper bridge competition. Santana students Nathan Garrett, Victoria Hilke, Colton Gerry, and Cole Stromberg earned first place in this competition with their bridge holding 25 lbs, while Santana's all-girls team consisting of: Narrie Loftus, Sarah Wilson, Makayla Mcfarland, and Morgan Boyce earned third place with their bridge holding 15 lbs.  The next competition consisted of wiring an electronic breadboard and answering questions related to electricity. Nathan Garrett's group again dominated and earned first place while another Santana team consisting of Brandon Taing, Derek Cantor, Shane Kirk, and Trevor Seddon earned second place.

 

The final competition of the day consisted of a Rube Goldberg design. The teams used simple parts and physics to create a design that would ultimately land a golf ball in a cup.  At the end of the day after all of the scores were tallied, Santana students won First and second place at the all-day Engineering Olympic competition.

Congratulations, Sultans!

Grossmont Middle College Student Tops Poetry Out Loud Competition

Signe Laundrup Wins Regional Poetry Out Loud Competition

Grossmont Middle College High School student Signe Laundrup has been chosen as the San Diego County representative for the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation’s National Poetry Out Loud Recitation Contest.

She performed three poems at the February 7 local competition held at the Downtown Central Library. She now advances to represent San Diego County at the statewide competition on March 12-13, 2017, in Sacramento. If she is a finalist in that competition, she will move on to the national level and compete in Washington, D.C., and have the opportunity to win a $20,000 scholarship.

Poetry Out Loud is sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts and The Poetry Foundation.  It is managed in California by the California Arts Council and is coordinated in San Diego County by Write Out Loud. Other participating schools included: Bay Front Charter High School, Helix Charter High School, Mater Dei Catholic High School and San Diego Virtual School.

More information on Poetry Out Loud is available here.

Congratulations and Best Wishes, Signe Landrup!

4th Annual Girls Rock! Conference at Grossmont High

Grossmont High's Girls Rock! Conference Attendees

On February 1, fifty freshman and sophomore girls from Grossmont High School participated in their 4th Annual Girls Rock! Conference. This empowering day consisted of activities and motivational guest speakers focusing on issues impacting young women today.

Issues discussed include body image and the media’s influence on it, self-esteem, healthy relationships, self-defense, and resilience. Statistics show that one in four women is likely to be assaulted in her lifetime and that she will know the perpetrator 90% of the time. Grossmont counselors believe that it is more important than ever that our young women are equipped with the knowledge and tools to keep themselves safe and in healthy relationships. They will also hold a self-defense class on March 2.

Special thanks is extended to the Grossmont High School Education Foundation along with guest speakers Gabriela Delgado, San Diego County Office of Education; Tracie Arlington, Play It Safe Self-Defense for Women and Children; Shannon Kopp, founder of Soul Paws workshops and author of Pound for Pound; and Kristie Lyons, Core Power Yoga.

Adult Learners Benefit from Partnership

Adult Students Integrating Math into their Design Program

Last month, Grossmont Adult Education, the GUHSD CTE office, and Santana High School partnered to open new advanced manufacturing classes for adult learners. The evening classes offered are Introduction to CADD and Introduction to Digital Fabrication. These courses are being offered to address the regional need for a skilled workforce in the manufacturing sector.

When approached, Santana Principal Tim Schwuchow and CTE Coordinator Doug Coffin saw the advantages of offering adult learners the opportunities that their high school CTE manufacturing and engineering students receive. By allowing access to Santana's shops and labs, adults are retraining for modern, technology-based work environments.

Additionally, the classes are offered as an iBest program. In the iBest model, students have two teachers in the classroom.  Ivan Rubio is the technical manufacturing teacher and Teresa Stanley is the academic support teacher. By teaming, the teachers are able to teach the technical skills necessary for success and provide additional support for the mathematics and literacy components. 

Students completing these classes will have access to entry-level manufacturing jobs, as well as opportunities to take courses at Grossmont-Cuyamaca and San Diego City Community Colleges for advanced certifications.

Cathi Brady Named Third Quarter Outstanding Classified Employee

Governing Board Recognition of Cathi Brady

At the Governing Board meeting on Thursday, February 16, 2017, Cathi Brady was recognized as the Outstanding Classified Employee of the Third Quarter for 2016-2017. Ms. Brady serves the Grossmont District as a Personnel Specialist I in the Human Resources Department.  She is recognized for being highly dedicated and enthusiastic, her wealth of knowledge and “can do” attitude, and for having a great impact on employee livelihood!

Classified employees provide critical support to the District’s overall mission. Congratulations, Cathi Brady, on being selected as the Third Quarter Outstanding Classified Employee of 2016-2017!

Dr. Tim Glover

Superintendent

Budget Update from Dr. Glover

Dear GUHSD Employees & Families:

The Grossmont Union High School District has made significant progress in upgrading its educational programs over the last several years as the economy has improved since the Great Recession. We have reduced class size, implemented the FutureForward initiative to create technology access for all of our student programs, expanded our Career Technical Education pathways, and added many other exciting enhancements at our school sites.  

In his January Budget Proposal, Governor Brown has signaled concern about the future condition of the economy as state revenues from various sources have been trending below forecasts.  Accordingly, the Governor has proposed a conservative state budget for next year (2017-18). This, in turn, will bring lower revenues to many school districts across our state.  

Based on current fiscal projections using data from the Governor's Department of Finance, we are forecasting a budget deficit for next school year of approximately $11 million, representing about 5% of our total General Fund budget. 

There are several reasons for this deficit, many of which are coming directly from the State and some of which are local:    

• The Governor's budget proposal for revenues to schools is essentially flat from the current year and provides only a very small Cost of Living Adjustment.  

• Compounding this, the State is requiring School Districts to pay an ever increasing amount for employee pensions (STRS/PERS). Sadly, the cost of living adjustment mentioned above does not even provide enough funding to cover the pension increases for next year.  

• The District expects continued declining enrollment next year, which means lower state revenues as we receive funding on a per student basis.    

• As the local economy has improved slightly, our District's poverty counts have declined. This is great news for our community overall, but also means lower revenues to the District to support our students in need.  

• The District has used fund reserves to mitigate the effects of reduced revenues due to declining enrollment over the last several years. These reserves have now been depleted and are no longer available as we have reached the minimum required reserve amount. 

  

With guidance from our Board of Trustees and input from stakeholders, we must and we will take action to resolve this deficit and balance our budget. We will do so in a very thoughtful and deliberative manner, keeping our students' needs at the forefront of our planning.  

We will move through the budget planning and evaluation process with some essential student-focused tenets in mind:

• Maintain safe learning environments on all of our campuses;

• Maintain access to rigorous educational programming that allows students to earn a high school diploma and meet college admissions requirements;

• Maintain the District core initiatives such as our FutureForward technology and learning efforts, College and Career Readiness skill building, and maintaining positive school climates with welcoming learning environments for all students; and

• Maintain our refined Career Technical Education pathways aligned to students’ interests. 

It is important to share that additional information and data will be needed from the State that will greatly influence the final GUHSD budget that must be adopted by June 30, 2017. Our state legislators and the Governor will be working through the state budgeting process over the next 19 weeks. We will be monitoring their efforts and look forward to the Governor sharing additional budget projections in early May and the final state budget in June.

In closing, please plan on receiving additional budget messages from me through our District website or my Superintendent’s Newsline. I also want to extend an open invitation to our Board Budget Workshop on Thursday, February 16, 2017, from 4:30 - 6:00 p.m. at the East County Regional Education Center located at 924 East Main Street, in El Cajon. 

Keep the faith,

Dr. Tim Glover

Superintendent

This entire message is also available by clicking here.

What's New in GUHSD

February is Career Technical Education Month

The mission of the GUHSD Career-Technical Education program is to provide quality programs that support academic achievement resulting in post-secondary options for all students as they acquire the tools for lifelong success. The Grossmont Union High School District has Career Pathways at each site that prepare students to be college and career ready and prepare them for high-wage, high-demand career fields. The pathways represent 12 high-demand industry sectors in California and include:

AGRICULTURE

ARTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

BUILDING TRADES & CONSTRUCTION  

EDUCATION

ENGINEERING     

FASHION AND INTERIOR DESIGN

HEALTH SCIENCE   

HOSPITALITY    

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

MANUFACTURING

MARKETING

TRANSPORTATION

Monte Vista Auto Pathway Brings Home the Gold from SkillsUSA

Monte Vista Students Participating in a SkillsUSA Competition

On Saturday, January 28, 18 students from MVHS Automotive Pathway participated in the California SkillsUSA Region 6 skills competition.  Ashley Martinez, a senior who has been in the pathway all four years, took first place (gold medal) winning the advanced division against top schools like Ontario, Apple Valley and Ramona High School.

She is the program's first female gold medal winner in this event. In the basic division, Monte Vista took second and fourth place with two teams of four students. It was the largest group of participants SkillsUSA Region 6 has seen for the automotive competition. The Region 6 competition included schools from San Diego, Imperial, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Inyo, and Mono counties.

By winning the event, 9 students have qualified to participate in the state championships. The accomplishments occurred through the hard efforts of each student. For three months, students practiced the necessary automotive skills on lunch breaks, after school and on Saturdays. They are all committed to continue this effort in preparation of representing Monte Vista High School and the Grossmont Union High School District in the automotive state championship, which will be held April 20-23 at the Town and Country Hotel in Mission Valley.​

Mount Miguel Matador Business Academy Competes in State Trade Show

Mount Miguel Business Academy Students Showcase VE Radio

Mount Miguel High School Matador Business Academy (MBA) students have competed in a number of trade shows including the San Diego Trade Show and the Virtual Enterprise California State Trade Show in Bakersfield on January 18-19.

These competitions are part of the MBA Virtual Enterprise (VE) class where students create and manage their virtual businesses from product development, production and distribution, to marketing, sales, human resources, accounting/finance and web design.

This year, the students created VE Radio, an online radio to podcast events.  At the San Diego Trade show VE Radio took home honors for Video Commercial-Gold, Trade Show Flyer-Bronze, Website Design-Gold (third in Show), Creative Booth-Silver, and Sales- Bronze. In Bakersfield, the students were second in the Apprentice competition, third in Video Commercial, and fifth in Website Design.

More information is available here.

Education Pathway Students Explore Careers in Education

Grossmont High School Education Pathway Students with Teacher Nicole Thren

On Friday, February 3, students in the Education Pathway at Grossmont, Mount Miguel, El Cajon Valley, and Granite Hills High Schools participated in the 2017 Educators Rising California - San Diego Conference at San Diego State University. The conference began with an introduction from Dr. Julie Evans followed be a keynote address by David J. Johns from the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans.  Students were offered insights into teaching careers, including participation in select breakout sessions.

The Education Pathway students experienced an authentic industry-related conference and came away with essential information regarding the education profession. Tonette Salter, Program Coordinator for the Joint Special Populations Advisory Committee (JSPAC) stated, “I was deeply impressed, filled with excitement and joy to see the students of the Education Pathways from the Grossmont Union High School District engaged in the various breakout sessions at the conference.”  Many of the students commented that they felt inspired by what they learned.

Health Occupations Center Celebrates Vocational Nursing Graduates

Class 63 Vocational Nursing Graduates

Recently, the Health Occupations Center celebrated the graduation of 28 students in the Vocational Nursing program, “Class 63.” They have completed 18 months of rigorous classroom instruction, campus lab simulations, and clinical rotations at hospitals and clinics across the county. The event commemorated their hard work, many achievements in the medical field, and passion for the nursing field. The audience was full of proud supporters as the students took their Nurse’s Oath.

Many of these students are planning to continue their journey as Registered Nurses, while others will find their special niche as Licensed Vocational Nurses. Whichever road they choose, we know they will help many patients and touch many lives. We are always happy to support a student’s journey in healthcare education. 

 

Congratulations, everyone.

Special Governing Board Meeting/Budget Workshop on 2/16

Next week, the Grossmont Union High School District Board of Trustees will host a Board Budget Workshop on Thursday, February 16, from 4:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. The meeting will be held at the East County Regional Education Center (ECREC), which is located at 924 E. Main Street in El Cajon.

Dr. Tim Glover

Superintendent

What's New in GUHSD

GUHSD Hosts Goals & Objectives Workshop

Students participating in the Goals & Objectives workshop

The Grossmont Union High School District Board of Trustees held a Goals & Objectives workshop on Saturday, January 28, at Foothills Adult Education Center to receive input from all stakeholder groups on the district’s goals and objectives. The goals and objectives which were last revised in 2013, are a critical foundation for the district and are used to prioritize action steps designed to focus our efforts on the educational success for every student.

In addition to the Governing Board, stakeholder groups who attended the workshop included parents, students, business community members, teachers, classified staff, and administrators. All feedback from these groups has been recorded and will be used to review and revise existing goals.

Thank you to everyone who attended the workshop and provided their insight and guidance regarding the district’s priorities.  It is our intent to ensure that the fundamental beliefs that guide our district are timely, meaningful, and responsive to the needs of our students and community.

Santana Engineering Students Attend Project Lead the Way Conference

Santana students demonstrate Google Cardboard Virtual Reality

On January 24 and 25, Santana high school's engineering teacher Jason Kay and three of his engineering students Victoria Hilke, Nathan Garrett, and Cole Stromberg, attended the 6th annual California Project Lead The Way (PLTW) Conference in Riverside.  Having won the California state championship engineering design challenge three times in the last seven years, Santana and its team were invited to host a breakout session at the conference. The breakout session was standing room only. Mr. Kay began the presentation with best practices in preparing students for the competition. Victoria, Nathan, and Cole finished the presentation providing information about the competition from a student's perspective. The session received positive feedback and the audience was extremely impressed with the professionalism and student engagement of the presentation.

The students then attended a Google Cardboard Virtual Reality session where they were able to create their own virtual reality device out of cardboard and magnets. The students also attended a session put on by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).  The most exciting part of the conference was hearing from guest speaker Andy Weir.  Andy Weir is the author of the book "The Martian" that became a blockbuster movie hit starring Matt Damon. Victoria, Nathan, and Cole were inspired by Andy Weir's story and are looking forward to their future opportunities.

Grossmont High School's NJROTC Marksmanship Team Competes in Area 11 Championship

Competing Grossmont High NJROTC Marksmanship Team members

Grossmont High School’s NJROTC Marksmanship Team recently competed in the Area 11 Championship Match at Westview High School in Poway. The team consisted of Cadets Andrew Nguyen, Cynthia Cortez, Kailani Hill and Calista Zaenger.

Over 60 Marksmanship Teams compete for a spot in the Area 11 Championship each year. This year, 13 schools achieved the qualifying score or 1900 and earned a spot in the match. This is the third consecutive year that Grossmont’s Cadets have qualified for the Championship Match. The team did well, finishing eighth, with three out of the four cadets firing personal bests.

Grossmont’s top marksman Cadet Andrew Nguyen, earned the third place medal in the kneeling position, placing him in the top one percent. Over 300 cadets compete annually during the Area 11 Season. This season has seen several excellent performances by Grossmont marksmen, including Cadet Cynthia Cortez’s outstanding season-long performance. Cadet Cortez is the first second-year shooter to break 500 points in a 3X20 match. She scored over 500 three times this season and has a very bright future in NJROTC competitive shooting.

Three big matches still remain this season: the Junior Olympic Qualifier, the NRA sectionals, and the CMP Western Regional Championships.

Grossmont High Collaborates with Cajon Valley School District for Logo Contest

An interesting collaboration has been underway between Grossmont High School and the Cajon Valley Union School District in preparation for their upcoming TEDxKids@ElCajon event on June 3, 2017. The Cajon Valley TEDxKids@ElCajon Branding/Marketing Committee reached out to partner with Carolyn Jungman's digital art class at Grossmont High School to design a logo for their event this year and resulted in a friendly competition amongst student designers.

In November, the TEDxKids@ElCajon Branding/Marketing Committee visited Carolyn Jungman's class to describe the logo requirements and to respond to questions from student designers. Following this meetings the design process got underway. 

In December, committee members returned to hear student presentations, and later selected four logo finalists. These final logos were presented at the full TEDx Committee meeting. In mid-December, students and all Cajon Valley district employees were invited to vote and the winning logo was announced on December 16.

Cajon Valley was grateful for our students' efforts to make these logos happen. Over 1,000 votes were cast. The top two submissions were very close, with the winning logo at the top of this story.

More information on the TEDx Event is available here.

2017 District Cheer Showcase

GUHSD District Cheer Showcase participants

GUHSD’s District Cheer Showcase was held on Saturday, January 21, at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. Varsity and JV Cheer squads from El Capitan, Granite Hills, Monte Vista, Santana, Valhalla, West Hills, and Steele Canyon along with the Mt. Miguel Dance team exhibited their amazing skills before a crowd exceeding 1,000 spectators. Their 2 1/2 minute routines involved cheer, dance, stunts, jumps, and tumbling. These outstanding athletes will perform their polished routines at a variety of competitions throughout the Spring.

The District Cheer Showcase offers a unique opportunity for the teams to come together to compete and showcase their skills in the same venue. It encourages school spirit, promotes school morale and crowd sportsmanship, supports interscholastic athletics and demonstrates high standards of leadership.

Granite Hills Basketball Scores Points On and Off the Court

Granite Hills student David Guevara with the basketball coaching staff

David Guevara is a Senior at Granite Hills in the Moderate-Severe Special Education Program. He is one of the most positive students on campus, always smiling and loves basketball.

This year, David told several staff members, including Principal Mike Fowler, that he was going to try out for the basketball team. Though he didn’t make the team, his enthusiasm touched several players who asked Coach Anderson if they could make a place for him. Coach Anderson agreed and David has been working as the team manager all season. He loves every minute of it. When they win, David celebrates wildly. When they lose, he feels it deeply.

Last Friday night, when Granite Hills was playing Santana, Coach Anderson looked for an opportunity to put David into a game. Confident in their lead, he pulled the team's starters and gave the bench players some play time. Santana had done the same.

As the clock wound down, the Granite Hills student section began chanting "We want David... We want David." With two minutes left, Coach Anderson put David in the game. David's teammates fed him the ball several times and Santana's defense backed off a bit. David launched a few unsuccessful 3-point shots.

In the final seconds, David took a pass and made a beautiful 3-point shot. The gym exploded, as you'll see in the video posted here. The students rushed the floor. What you don't see in the video is the students carrying David out of the gym on their shoulders afterward. This was a very proud moment for all in attendance who witnessed the great caring and concern for the life of another.

GUHSD Honor Band and Orchestra to Perform Tomorrow

The GUHSD Honor Band and Orchestra will perform on Saturday, February 4, at 7:00 p.m. in the Cuyamaca College Theater. The Honor Band and Orchestra are comprised of talented high school musicians who have auditioned from throughout the District.

The ticket booth opens at 6:15 p.m.; the admission charge for adults is $8. We hope to see you there!

Grossmont Alums to Play in Super Bowl!

As we head into Super Bowl weekend, keep an eye out for the New England Patriots’ Joe Cardona, Long Snapper #49, and Atlanta Falcons’ Levine Toilolo, Tight End #80. Cardona is a Granite Hills alumnus and Toilolo is a Helix Charter graduate. We’re proud to have these men join the lengthy list of pro athletes coming from our District schools.

Dr. Tim Glover

Superintendent