May 14, 2023
In EUSD, every student is an Empathetic Collaborator – an individual who actively listens, engages, and recognizes diverse perspectives to achieve a common goal.
An Empathetic Collaborator is one of the six whole-learner outcomes that comprise the new EUSD Learner Profile in our Blueprint for the Future. The 2022-2023 Design Team has been focused on developing a Learning Model that establishes the learning experiences to achieve our whole-child outcomes.
In our schools, an Empathetic Collaborator ensures equity of voice, ideas, and compromise; builds on the strengths, interests, and assets of others; and honors others’ experiences and points of view through respectful dialogue.
As we prepare to launch the Blueprint for the Future for the 2023-2024 school year, we are proud to share how the characteristics of our students as Empathetic Collaborators stand out through our music education programs – in particular, our concert band classes, which begin in 4th grade, and continue through 8th grade. Learning to read music, play an instrument, and perform as a group build essential collaborative skills for students, who are working together with their credentialed music teachers toward a common goal. About 1,500 EUSD students in 4th through 8th grades take part in band. These young musicians recently demonstrated their growing musical skills on the stage of the beautiful Concert Hall at the California Center for the Arts, Escondido.
These annual concerts – two for our elementary schools, one for our middle schools – bring musicians from across the district together to perform in a professional setting, and requires extensive collaboration. While students learn and practice as a class throughout the year at their own school site, these concerts call for bands from multiple schools to perform as one group, often with just one rehearsal to listen, practice, and adjust to one another’s strengths to reach that common goal of performing for an audience.
“Music is a powerful tool in education for fostering teamwork,” said Jessica Thicksten, Bear Valley Middle School music teacher. “My young musicians have to work together for a cohesive performance. Being part of a school music program also gives students a sense of belonging and of responsibility.”
Visit the EUSD Blueprint for the Future website to learn more about this journey and to get to know the EUSD Learner Profile and Learning Model.
Here are this week’s updates and reminders.
Preschool applications: EUSD State Preschool is now accepting online applications for the 2023-2024 school year. Enrollment is open to children whose birthdate is between September 2, 2018, and July 31, 2020. Children whose birthdate is on or after August 1, 2020, may apply on or after their 3rd birthday. To learn more, visit the EUSD Preschool website or email preschoolenrollment@eusd.org or call 760-489-4131. Preschool classes are available at seven EUSD elementary schools: Central, Juniper, Glen View, Lincoln, Oak Hill, Pioneer, and Rose. EUSD Preschool is offered through the California State Preschool Program and licensed through the California Department of Social Services. Eligibility for the program is based on household income.
Mental Health Month: May is Mental Health Month, and addressing the mental health needs of our students is an essential component of ensuring a safe and welcoming learning environment. The educators on our Integrated Student Supports team invite you to learn more about mental health and explore resources and tools from Mental Health America, the nation’s leading community-based nonprofit dedicated to promoting the overall mental health for all, as well as addressing the needs of those living with mental illness. Learn more here, and explore resources here.
Summer on the horizon: As we head into the final month of the 2022-2023 school year, be sure to stay connected with your school site for the schedule of end-of-the-year events, including on-campus promotion ceremonies and the collection of all district-issued materials such as textbooks and iPads. Every school day counts when it comes to student success, and we appreciate your support of consistent student attendance for a strong finish to the school year. The last day of school for students is Friday, June 2. It is a minimum day for students. Please review the bell schedule for your child’s school.
– Luis Rankins-Ibarra, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools