sept 2010 ptsa pony express newsletter

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Principal’s MessagePrincipal’s MessagePrincipal’s MessagePrincipal’s Message

Welcome back to school! The

summer sure flew by, but I’mexcited to start this year as

your new PTSA president. I’ve worked hard to build and grow a new board and we’ve come up with some great plans for the year. Everyone is very dedicated to our children, teachers andschool and I’m impressed with each of them.Our goals are high and I hope you’ll all help ussucceed.

A favorite quote of mine comes from WarrenBuffett. Talking about our children, he said,

“They are better than they think they

are, and not yet what they’ll grow to be.” That’s probably true of all of us, but thatidea is what is directing our PTSA boardthis year. We want to do many new things, but above all, we want to bringmore programs to our students-to helpthem discover who they are, to dream bigdreams, to build character and foster op-portunities. Because we are a PTSA,(Parent, Teacher and Student Associa-tion) we want our students involved andpart of the group – as members and lead-

The Pony Express

Volume 1 Issue 1

Sept 2010

Trabuco Hills High School PTSA—Pony Express

27501 Mustang Run, Mission Viejo, CA 92691 www.thhsptsa.org

(949) 768-1934

Trabuco Hills High School PTSA

Saddleback Valley PTA Council 4th District PTA California State PTA National PTA

Inside this issue:

Spotlight on: Mr. Collins 3

Volunteer Spotlight,

Volunteering, Hospitality

4

Grad Night, Parent

Education

5

Reflections, Member-

ship

6

Guidance Corner 7

Special Events, Website

information

8

Legislation, Calendar 9,10

Please join us for our first

MEETING of the 2010-2011 year!

Monday, Sept 20, 7 pmMonday, Sept 20, 7 pmMonday, Sept 20, 7 pmMonday, Sept 20, 7 pmIn the Library

Craig Collins

Principal

Cindy Ashley

Editor

Andrea Padian

President

By Craig Collins, [email protected]

Welcome to the 2010-2011 school year, and if you arenew to THHS, welcome to Mustang Country! Thispromises to be a very challenging year and I have every confidence that our teachers and staff will rise to meetthese challenges.

While we have dealt with shrinking supply and textbook budgets for the past three years, this year will presentmany new challenges. Our school year has been short-ened by five days. While this may not seem to be a greatdeal of time, it will certainly challenge all of our students

who will experience three days less of school as they pre-pare for their CST and CAHSEE tests, as well as thosestudents preparing for the Advanced Placement and IBtests. Fortunately, the other two days are scheduled af-ter the May tests in June.

While the students and teachers are both losing five

school days, the teachers are losing an additional fourdays. In past years, these were our In-Service, or train-ing, days. As a school, our challenge will be to continueto move forward with instruction without any scheduledtime dedicated to working together. We will continue touse our brief snack and lunch times, as we always have,

but the loss of these four days will certainly put a strainon our creativity. These were valuable days to our teach-ers, providing them with many opportunities to commu-nicate with each other and learn new and better ways toteach their subjects.

I am happy to tell you that your PTSA is once again step-ping up to help our school through these difficulttimes. This year PTSA will be offering “mini-grants” toteachers so that they can purchase items for their class-room to maintain the high level of instruction that ourstudents deserve. While our supply budget has steadily

decreased, the needs of our students are constant and theneed to maintain and stay current with technology strainsthose budgets. PTSA will help our teachers maintain andeven expand the learning opportunities for our stu-dents. Thank you for your membership dues that supportPTSA and this endeavor.

By Andrea Padian, PTSA President, [email protected]

A Message from Andrea



Hi Everyone,

It is my pleasure to serve as the editor of the new PTSA Newsletter, the Pony Express. My hope isthat this newsletter helps everyone to be a littlemore connected and informed. Look for great arti-cles in every issue from our principal, Andrea

Padian (our new President), one of our GuidanceCounselors and various PTSA Board Members.

One week before each of our seven PTSA meetings, be on the lookout for the latest newsletter. DebiHope will be e-mailing each newsletter and all is-sues will be available on at thhsptsa.org.

Thanks for reading!

A Message from AndreaA Message from AndreaA Message from AndreaA Message from Andrea (cont. from page 1)(cont. from page 1)(cont. from page 1)(cont. from page 1)


ers. In high school, these “almost adults” have amazingideas and I feel their input is essential. We already have

eight student board members (and growing) and I lovetheir energy. It’s heartwarming and infectious. I feel privi-leged to work with them.

We’re also trying to increase our generalPTSA membership – students, parents andteachers. A school with 3300 studentsshould not have a small PTSA. Our membersnot only help our school, but our advocacy efforts in Sacramento. I encourage you all to

join. We work for all students at our school,as well as our teachers and parents, but weneed your support.

We generally meet every third Monday at 7

PM in the library for our association meet-ings. Please join us there, be part of our decisions and getinvolved. We’ll also have guest speakers at many meetingsthat we think will interest you, and we hope teachers, par-ents and students will attend. At our first meeting, we willdiscuss our budget and fall plans. I hope to see you there.If that isn’t possible, at least join the PTSA and watch what

we can do.

It’s a challenging time. Our school budgets have been

slashed for the last five years, particularly last year - $33million dollars alone! The simplest things- like paper and

supplies aren’t being fully funded. We now all know aboutfurlough days and what that means to our students andteachers. We have to fight for more funding. It’s not just

our school district, it’s the entire state. While wepay some of the highest taxes in the country, ourstudents are paying a high price with the budgetcuts - no librarians, for example. It’s almost animpossible thought! It’s our job, as a PTSA, toadvocate for all our kids. I still need two advo-cacy representatives on our board. If you’reready to inform and fight the fight, we need you.It’s about our kids and their futures.

Please don’t stand on the sidelines and watch

our kids’ educational aspirations and dreams wither. They need to discover the wonder of themselves. They need the opportunities to grow, dreamand shine. We can help. But we must do it together.Please join PTSA and be part of the solution.

Until next time, have a great new school year, and while we’re all busy doing a million things, don’t ever forget toenjoy your kids. They grow up very fast once in highschool and the days go quickly.

It’s our job,

as a PTSA,

to advocate

for all our

kids.

Welcome to the PonyExpress!!!!

By Cindy Ashley, Newsletter Editor

Support the PTSA and Win

a Car!!!For just $50, you can purchase a raffle ticket to wina 2010 Toyota Corolla LE 1838 from CapistranoToyota.

Only 600 tickets will be sold and every ticket pur-chaser will receive a coupon for 50% off an oilchange at Capistrano Toyota.

When will you ever have these kind of odds? Don’tlet this chance slip away. For more details andpurchase information, visit thhsptsa.org.

(must be 18 to purchase a raffle ticket)



September 2010, Volume 1 Issue 1

Spotlight on: Craig Collins, PrincipalSpotlight on: Craig Collins, PrincipalSpotlight on: Craig Collins, PrincipalSpotlight on: Craig Collins, Principal

Since many of you are new to Trabuco Hills, and since this

is the first issue of our PTSA newsletter, I would like to tell you a little about myself.

This year will mark my 28th year working in education. Iam a native Californian and have spent my entire life inOrange County. I graduated from Katella High School in

Anaheim and then went on to receive both my Bachelor'sDegree and Teaching Credential from Cal State Fullerton.

I began teaching in special education as an Adaptive Physi-cal Education instructor. I then received a second creden-tial in science and began teaching in that department. I

worked on my first Master's in Computer Applications andtaught in the computer lab.

After 18 years of teaching science and coaching four differ-ent sports (ten of those years in the Saddleback District), Ireceived my second Master's from Azusa Pacific in Admini-stration. I worked as the Assistant Principal for Disciplineat El Toro High School for three years and then moved to

the role of Assistant Principal for Curriculum and Guidance. Last year was my first year as Principal at TrabucoHills.

I can honestly say that I love what I do and my career has been blessed with some of the finest mentors for whom anyone could ask. I look forward to serving you as your principal and working to make Trabuco Hills HighSchool the finest in the district, state, and country.

GO BLUE!!!

1. Buy a raffle ticket! (see previous page)

2. Sell raffle tickets and earn 10% of ticket sales for your THHS group!

3. Register your Ralphs card. Visit http://www.thhsptsa.org and scroll downto “Ralphs Club Card” in the Latest News section.

4. Recycle your used printer cartridges and cell phones. Drop box located near

Mrs. Hope’s desk in the office.5. Buy a Mustang Discount card for only $10 and get great discounts at 28 lo-

cal businesses. To see the complete list, visit thhsptsa.org, click on “Forms”and scroll down to THHS PTSA Discount card flyer.

6. Visit http://escrip.com and earn money for the PTSA while you shop. OurGroup ID is 10482514.

Supporting PTSA Has Never Been Easier!Supporting PTSA Has Never Been Easier!Supporting PTSA Has Never Been Easier!Supporting PTSA Has Never Been Easier!



Brenda Hanrath is a PTSA Superstar.

Her energy and drive are unmatched and we appreciate all her hard work.

Brenda is the PTSA Vice President of Ways & Means and all summer she has worked endlessly getting a amazing array of businesses to participate in our Mus-tang Discount Card Program. She hasalso set up our first car raffle with hopesof bringing more programs to the stu-dents with funds raised from the raffle.It was a lot of work and she never seemsto tire.

She has arranged our recycling program,

Italian Ice for the kids every Friday, theRalphs Community Contribution Pro-gram and more.

She is wonderful and we thank her forher passion and dedication to our stu-dents, teachers, parents and school. GoBrenda. Go Mustangs! We thank you!

PTSA Mustang Marvel: Volunteer Spotlight!PTSA Mustang Marvel: Volunteer Spotlight!PTSA Mustang Marvel: Volunteer Spotlight!PTSA Mustang Marvel: Volunteer Spotlight!

also to check students into the dancesin the evening. Parents are alsoneeded to help set up and serve at theCIF Luncheons. As part of Interna-tional Week, the school has a FoodFair in March. Parents are needed tosell tickets before and during theevent.

In June, there are several opportuni-ties to help out with senior activities.

And Ms. Hinesly, our media clerk, will use volunteers to help collect text-

books during the last two weeks of school.

Mrs. Hope, our school receptionist,forwards volunteer requests to her e-mail list. To be on her list, visit:

http://thhs.svusd.org/

subscription.html

First, a tremendous ‘Thank You” to allof the volunteers who helped out withpreparing registration packets andMustang Round Up. With your help,

we are able to prepare the packets inrecord time and to keep those linesmoving during Round Up.

If you are new to the school, let megive you an idea of what type of volun-teer opportunities there are at THHS.

Volunteers are needed to sell dancetickets during snack and lunch and


Brenda Hanrath

VP Ways and Means

Volunteer OpportunitiesVolunteer OpportunitiesVolunteer OpportunitiesVolunteer Opportunities

By Cindy Ashley, Volunteer Coordinator, [email protected]

HospitalityHospitalityHospitalityHospitality

By Karyn Gustafson, Hospitality Chair, [email protected]

This year, PTSA Hospitality will be or-ganizing some fun meals for ourteacher and staff. Today, we started

the year off with our “Back to SchoolBreakfast.”

Our big event of the year is the Holiday lunch and cookie exchange. Last year,each teacher and staff member got totake home 3-4 dozen

homemade cookies! This was madepossible by our wonderful parentsans students baking all those yummy

treats. We hope to do the same this year as well.

Throughout the year you will receivee-mails for your time or donations.

We hope you choose to participate atsome level. It is very appreciated!

By Andrea Padian, PTSA President, [email protected]




Parent EducationParent EducationParent EducationParent Education

By Kim Dennis,Parent Education Coordinator,

[email protected]

As Parent Education Coordinator for PTSA, I will be bringing to you speakers and resources that willhopefully help you with the challenges and new ex-periences you and your child face in high school.

Some of the programs we will be bringing to you are:Master Drive, WITH HOPE (Helping Others PreventSuicide through Education) and FADD (Friends

Against Drinking and Driving). I am hoping to broaden the scope of programs we provide to meet

the ever-changing needs we have as parents.

Please contact me if you have any specific concerns orif you have an idea or a program that you are inter-ested in seeing.

Watch for program announcements on our PTSA website and through the Daily News e-mails. Send

your ideas or questions to [email protected].

Grad Night 2011!!!Grad Night 2011!!!Grad Night 2011!!!Grad Night 2011!!!

By Lisa Bauer, Grad Night co-chair

It’s the start of another school year,

yet not too early to start planning forthe 2011 Senior Grad Night party.

This year, students and parents are joining together in a collaborative ef-fort to plan an event that reflects whatour seniors want as their final memory of Trabuco Hills High School.

During Mustang Roundup, we sur- veyed seniors stopping by the PTSA table regarding their preferences andprovided some possible options from

which to choose. We were able to survey 38% of the seniors, and based onthis survey, the top three choices, inno particular order are:

A) An on campus surprise theme party with a myriad of activity areas such as:dancing, casino, photo booth, rock

video production plus a variety of en-tertainment options.

B) An off campus theme party at a fun

location with a variety of activitiessimilar to option A.

C) Knott’s Berry Farm which wouldinclude rides and a dance area plusadditional options, possibilities in-clude a hypnotist, photo booth orother choices.

All choices would include a meal and breakfast in the morning plus otherrefreshments.

Please note that Disneyland is not anoption this year because graduation is

on a Tuesday and Disneyland only offers the park for Grad Nights onThursdays.

We appreciate your understanding,collaboration and assistance as weplan what will hopefully be an enjoy-able and memorable evening for the2011 graduating class.

We will continue to poll the Seniors to

find out what they prefer. Surveys will be distributed the second week of school (look for them on or aroundMonday, Sept. 20th). It is importantthat all surveys be returned to yourteachers no later than Friday, Sept.24th so that we can tally the votes and

begin planning this final Senior event.Make your vote count and have a voicein your Grad Night!

Support the PTSA!

Buy Italian Ice

Fridays after school




Reflections: “Together We Can”Reflections: “Together We Can”Reflections: “Together We Can”Reflections: “Together We Can”

By Karrie Coon, Reflection Chair, [email protected]

We are so pleased to bring the Reflections program to Tra-

buco Hills this year. Reflections is a national PTA pro-gram to provide opportunities for students to expressthemselves creatively and receive positive recognition fororiginal works of art. This year’s theme is “Together WeCan” and entries are due October 8th, 2010.

There are six different art areas. Students may submitoriginal works of art in one or all of the six areas as many times as they desire:

Literature — Not to exceed 2,000 words.

Musical Composition — Not to exceed 5 minutes.

Photography — Not to exceed 11 x 14 inches, including

mat. Photos must be taken by the student. Visual Arts — Must be flat, no thicker than 3/8 inch, not toexceed 24 x 30 inches, including mat.

Video/Film Production— Not to exceed five minutes.Story, editing and filming must all be done by the student,

who can appear in the film if using a tripod. Actors areOK.

Dance Choreography—May not exceed 3 minutes. No

more than 3 dancers, which may or may not include thechoreographer.

To obtain more information and specific rules visit:http://www.thhsptsa.org. Click on the “Reflections Pro-gram” link on the left. Scroll down to the “Attachments”section and download THHS PTSA Reflections Pack-et2010.pdf. The application is on pages 43-44.

All entries must have a student entry form.

If you have any questions, please contact Karrie Coon [email protected] Andrea Padian at

[email protected]

Entries are DUE FRIDAY, OCTOBER 8th, 2010, andmay be turned in at the Reflections table between the of-fice and the MPR before school or during lunch.

Be creative, have fun, and good luck to everyone!

Membership Matters!Membership Matters!Membership Matters!Membership Matters!

By Vanessa Braaksma, VP of Membership, [email protected]

Hello Mustangs!

Thank you to all of our students and parents for support-ing the Trabuco Hills PTSA. During Mustang Round-up,

we had 720 students and parents join! If you happened tohave missed our table during round-up you can still jointhe PTSA. Visit our website at www.thhsptsa.org and click on the Membership link on the side. There, you candownload our membership form. Just drop off your com-pleted form with your membership dues to Mrs. Hope, inthe office, in an envelope marked “PTSA”. Checks can bemade check out to THHS PTSA. You can also order yourMustang Community Discount Cards for only $10.00.This year we have 28 stores and restaurants participatingon this card with great deals and discounts! Check our

website for the complete list.

This year, for the first time, we have students on the THHSPTSA Board to help voice their ideas and opinions. Weencourage all students to get involved and join. Those stu-dents who came by our table during round-up and joinedreceived a raffle ticket with a chance to win $50 from thePTSA. If you are a student and still want to join, it is nottoo late to enter into our drawing. You have until the endof the school day on Thursday, September 16th to be en-

tered. We will announce the winners on Monday, Septem-

ber 20th. There will be four winners in all - one studentfrom each grade level.

Also for the first time, we are having a membership battleof the Hills: Trabuco Hills vs. Laguna Hills! The school

with the higher percentage of Staff PTSA memberships will have ice cream sundaes served up by the losingschool's principal, PTSA president and membership! Helpus by encouraging your teacher to join the PTSA.

If you are undecided about joining the PTSA, please re-member we are an advocacy group that promotes educa-tion for all students. By joining the PTSA, you will bemaking a difference at THHS by supporting student pro-

grams such as: Reflections (Art Program), Every 15 Min-utes (Drunk Driving Program), speakers to help guide you

with college financial aid, senior scholarships and muchmore! By becoming a PTSA member, not only will youhelp with the programs here at THHS, but you will also be

joining one million other parents who have joined thePTSA to strengthen our voice with the policy makers inSacramento to help bring back money for our studentseducation! If you have any questions please contact me at

[email protected].




Meet the New Superintendent: Dr. Clint HarwickEveryone is invited to a reception welcoming Dr. Clint Harwick, Ed.D. on Thursday, Septem-

ber 16, 4 pm—6pm in the Saddleback Valley Education Center Board Room, 25631 Peter A.Hartman Way, Mission Viejo, CA. Dr. Harwick was the Superintendent at Charter Oak UnifiedSchool District in Covina and Rim of the World Unified School District. Prior to beginning hiscareer in education, Dr. Harwick was a baseball player for the Chicago Cubs.

PTSA Student Programs Presents: College Funding PresentationJoin us September 27th, 6:30pm—8:30pm at THHS (Room TBD) for an informative talk on the ins and outs of college funding. Our guest speaker will be Tom Bottorf, College FundingStrategist. Seating is limited. Reserve your seats at http://www.getcollegefunding.org/events/seminars/ or call (949) 485-2632.

Prescription and Over-the-Counter Drug Abuse Prevention Workshop We are very pleased to have Michelle Mar, Health Educator with Project PATH, speak to us onthis important topic on October 18th, 7:30pm—8:00pm in the Library, immediately follow-ing our PTSA meeting. Snacks and refreshments will be provided.

For more details on these events, please visit our website.

Special Events: Mark Your CalendarSpecial Events: Mark Your CalendarSpecial Events: Mark Your CalendarSpecial Events: Mark Your Calendar

You can also follow us on Twitter andFacebook:

http://twitter.com/THHSPTSA

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Trabuco-Hills-High-School-PTSA/115969895087565

We look forward to your visits on the web!

This year we are very excited to bring more in-formation to parents, teachers and studentsabout activities and events the PTSA coordinates

and supports for our school on our completely revamped website.

Meeting information, fundraisers, membership,Grad Night, Reflections, regional and nationalPTA links are just a few of the things you canfind out about on our site.

Always be sure to check our website for the very latest information on PTSA events.

Have you VisitedHave you VisitedHave you VisitedHave you Visited http://www.thhsptsa.orghttp://www.thhsptsa.orghttp://www.thhsptsa.orghttp://www.thhsptsa.org Lately?Lately?Lately?Lately?

By Deb Johnson, Webmaster, [email protected]



Legislative/Advocacy NewsLegislative/Advocacy NewsLegislative/Advocacy NewsLegislative/Advocacy News

By Joan Rosenberg, Legislative Rep/Advocacy, [email protected]


Hello, My name is Joan Rosenberg and I am the current Advocacy/Legislative Representative for the Trabuco HillsHigh PTSA. I represent our school and students, along with other district wide advocates, exploring ways to obtain morefunding from the State for our school, as well as to inform the parents, teachers and students at THHS about educationalissues important to them.

Last year, we got together to sign banners that were delivered to Sacramento requesting fair and adequate funding forour schools. We were trying to get the legislators to listen, and dozens of such banners were delivered to their desks, inperson, by advocates representing the entire Fourth District at their annual Fourth District PTA Sacramento Safari. TheSacramento Safari is an annual event, generally held in March, where every school in our district is asked to send theiradvocates to Sacramento for a day of pounding the pavement and visiting as many of our legislators as possible to fightfor our schools.

During Open House, we met parents in the courtyard in an effort to obtain needed signatures for a November ballotmeasure for this year's election in November. The measure dealt with alternative funding for schools, but not enoughsignatures were submitted to put that measure on this year's ballot.

A new cause we are hoping to explore this year is how to help and support foster care students in our state and at ourschool. This is a pioneer area and reaching out will be exciting. If you can think of ways to help, please let me know.

I look forward to the new year as our PTSA Legislative Representative/Advocate.

2010201020102010- -- -2011 PTSA Meeting Dates2011 PTSA Meeting Dates2011 PTSA Meeting Dates2011 PTSA Meeting Dates

The PTSA General Meetings are an excellent opportunity to hear personally from the principal, Mr. Collins,and stay informed about what is happening at Trabuco Hills. It is also the chance for all PTSA members to

vote and get involved! All meetings will be at 7pm and will be in the Library (unless otherwise notified).

September 20

October 18

November 16

February 7 (tentative)

March 21

April 25 (tentative)

June 6 (tentative)

Words to Ponder….

I was taught that the world had a lot of problems; that I could struggle and change them; that intellectual and

material gifts brought the privilege and responsibility of sharing with others less fortunate; and that service is the

rent each of us pays for living, the very purpose of life and not something you do in your spare time or after you

have reached your personal goals.

Marian Wright Edelman, President and Founder of the Children’s Defense Fund



The Pony Express

Mark Your Calendar...

• September 16—Last Day for students to join PTSA and be entered in raffle

• September 16, 4-6pm—Reception to welcome Dr. Clint Harwick, Superinten-dent:

Saddleback Valley Education Center Boardroom

25631 Peter A. Hartman Way

Mission Viejo

• September 17—No school (Fall Recess)

•

September 20—registrations begin for PSAT in Student Store ($30)• September 20—PTSA student membership drive raffle winners announced

• September 20, 7 pm—PTSA General Meeting, Library

• September 24—Grad Night surveys due

• September 27, 7pm—College Funding Speaker

• October 6, 7pm—Senior Parent Night

• October 7—Banners due for the Battle of the Bands (see our website for de-tails)

• October 8—Reflections Entries Due• October 8—Battle of the Bands for the Rock N Road Red Ribbon Week Celebra-

tion deadline (see our website for details)

• October 14—Back to School Night (Minimum Day)

• October 16—PSAT

• October 18, 7pm—PTSA General Meeting, MPR, with special guest speaker,Michelle Mar presenting “Prescription & Over-the-Counter Drug Abuse Pre-

vention Workshop”

•

October 23, 2-8pm—Rock N Road Red Ribbon Week Celebration at the Block in Orange (See http://www.rocknroadoc.info for details)

• November 11—No school (Veteran’s Day)

• November 12—No school (California Admission Day Observation

• November 15—deadline for seniors to apply for State PTA scholarships (seehttp://www.capta.org for details)

sept 2010 ptsa pony express newsletter

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