Youth in Government Day 2016

The San Joaquin Board of Supervisors in partnership with San Joaquin County Office of Education, are providing an opportunity for youth to experience what it is like to work for San Joaquin County on October 27, 2016.   Job-shadowing opportunities in law enforcement, agriculture, community development, and many more are available.

There are only 80 possible job-shadowing slots, so space is limited.  Students will be assigned on a “first come, first served” basis.  The last date to sign up is Wednesday, October 9, 2016.

High School students of all ages are eligible and are to be chosen based on interest, maturity, and ability to secure transportation to and from the San Joaquin Administration Building in downtown Stockton.

The process is as follows:

1.      Students choose and prioritize three occupations that are of interest from the job description list (attached).

2.      Students complete an on-line application.  

3.      Information will be e-mailed to students from the Clerk of the San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors after October 19, 2016.

4.      On October 27, 2016, students will report to the San Joaquin Administration Building at 44 N. San Joaquin St, Stockton (corner of San Joaquin & Weber) at 7:15 A.M. A breakfast and welcome will begin the students’ day.

5.      On October 27, 2016, students must turn in the Release of Liability form signed by a parent or guardian to participate in the day’s activities (attached).

6.      Students will return to the San Joaquin Administration Building by the person they are shadowing and are to be picked up at 2:30 P.M.

Any questions can be directed to Jill Hatanaka at jhatanaka@sjcoe.net , or Denise Irvin at dirvin@sjcoe.net

Important Documents:

1. Student Tip Sheet: Directions for the students to request and complete the job shadowing process.
2. Job Shadowing Opportunities List:  Specific occupation, departments, and positions available for job-shadowing.
3. Release of Liability form to be signed by a parent or guardian.

Last year 11 students from MHHS were selected to participate in Youth in Government Day. We would love to send even more this year to take advantage of this unique opportunity.

MHHS Senior Yearbook Portraits

Are you a senior still needing to take your formal yearbook picture? On Saturday, October 8th, in the high school main lobby, we will have a photographer on site between 9am-11am. Formal yearbook pictures are complimentary, however packages are available for an expanded in studio session. Please click the link to book your complimentary session or contact the studio to schedule an expanded studio session.

Basic Packages Include:

Standard Formal Yearbook Image. Pictures will be taken in formal wear.

Yearbook Plus Package:

This package includes the basic package and also gives you the option to also get an additional image with your cap and gown. The Yearbook Plus Package cost is $30.

Mini Package:

This package includes the basic, yearbook and an additional outfit. You can bring your letterman’s jacket or another outfit as well as props. You can also get photographed with a different background. The Mini Package cost is $60.

To schedule your complimentary formal yearbook picture please click on the link below.

MHHS Formal Yearbook Picture Registration

If you would like to schedule one of the expanded packages for yearbook plus or mini please contact the photography studio directly at 209-830-8830 and you can visit their website at www.thephotographicartstudio.com.

Upcoming Parent Volunteer Opportunities

PSAT Proctors

We are looking for several parents who would like to serve as proctors for the PSAT exam being offered on Saturday, October 15th. No prior knowledge of testing is required as training will be provided. The test itself will be on the 15th from 7:30am-12:00. The training session will be on Tuesday, October 11th from 3:40-4:10. Proctors may not be a member of the household or immediate family of a student taking the test on the same date.

LUSD District Grant Writing Committee

The next meeting will be Monday, September 26th at 6:30pm in the District Office Board Room. We are seeking a lot more parents to attend this meeting in order for us to start researching and writing grants.

MHHS School Site Council

The next meeting of the MHHS School Site Council will take place on Wednesday, October 12th in room A201 from 4-5pm. The site council is a group of teachers, parents, classified employees, community members and students that works with the principal to review and develop school programs. These are public meetings, and anyone who is interested is welcome to attend. This is a great opportunity to learn more about what we are doing and to provide input into our various programs.

If you are interested in any of the above opportunities please email Brian Schum bschum@lammersvilleusd.net to RSVP or request more information.

MHHS Cap & Gown's

It's all happening so fast! It seems like yesterday our seniors were just babies and now here they are ready to start the next chapter of their lives. Next Thursday, September 29th, Josten's will be onsite selling cap & gown's as well as offering day of discounts. Student's who spend more than $250 in senior swag will get their cap & gown FREE! Can't wait until Thursday? Feel free to check out the awesome MHHS Josten's Keepsakes.

Independent Citizens' Oversight Committee Application - Measure L

The Lammersville Joint Unified School District is recruiting applicants  to serve as representatives on the Citizens' Bond Oversight Committee (CBOC) for the Measure L Bonds approved by voters in the District on June 7, 2016. The CBOC is tasked with the responsibility of overseeing the spending of general obligation bonds. Oversight includes the review of construction and financial reports for proper expenditure of taxpayer money. The CBOC is responsible for the yearly review of a financial audit and is required to present this information to the public each year. The CBOC is required to have at least 7 members and 3 must represent specific organizations/associations, including a business association, senior citizen’s organization, bona fide taxpayer association, and one member has to be a parent or guardian of a child enrolled in the district. Members serve two-year terms and are allowed to serve 3 consecutive terms. Interested applicants should complete and submit the application found on our website  www.lammersvilleschooldistrict.net/measurel.

MHHS Debate Team

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This weekend the Speech & Debate team, otherwise known as Forensics, competed at their very first tournament; needless to say, they talked their way into trophies!
Their competition was held at Lodi High school, against 15 other schools, and at the Home of the Flames, the only thing on fire was the Mountain House team! Literally burning down the house, the following debaters had a perfect record with (3) wins and (0) losses:

*Vishwas Shukla & Sawera Haq
*Zaid Umar & Passa Pungchai
*Jacqueline Azah & Seema Shaik

These debate students were required to debate on both sides of the topic:

Resolved: In United States public K-12 schools, the probable cause standard ought to apply to searches of students.

However it ought to be known, out of the 13 debate teams that went, every single one of them won at least one debate round, if not two ... perfect record or not, that was an awesome showing!

Also, making history the following students took unbelievable placings as well ...

Justin Frances - 2nd place Impromptu ...
Vishnu Pratik Vennelakanti - 4th place Impromptu ...
Vishwas Shukla - tie for 4th place Impromptu ...
For those of you who don't know, this is where the student is given three topics, they have 10 seconds to choose one and then two minutes to prepare a five minutes speech; and it has to make sense!

Aditi Sen & Misa Sanjan  - 1st place DUO...
Adya Mishra & Chinmayi Mutyala - 2nd place DUO ...
For those of you who don't know, DUO is a two person interpretive event; the students are to tell a story, 10 minutes in length, with NO costumes, NO props and they may NOT touch each other; they do this all while playing multiple characters, various voices and a ton of sound effects.

Tanaya Kollipara ... 2nd place DI
For those of you who don't know, Dramatic Interpretation is an interpretive event where the students need to find a script, play, book or short story and recounts the story from memory, 10 minutes in length, specializing in dramatic events. There are NO props, NO costumes and it can be one, or multiple, characters.

Anya Nayyar - 3rd place OI
Seema Shaik - 4th place OI
For those of you who don't know, (OI) otherwise known as Oratorical Interpretation, is reciting a speech that has been given publicly before, like a Ted Talk, closing arguments of a court case or a commencement address; the idea is to believe in the message of the speech so much that it needs to be said again. While it is not the students work, nor an acting piece, it combines the message they would want to write, with the presentation that is uniquely theirs.

These students did an unbelievable job this weekend, and despite first time jitters they know how to say what they gotta say ... and they say it well!

Well done Mustangs ...

Teens and Social Media: Avoiding Conflict and Reinforcing Responsible Use at Home

Over the past 5 weeks MHHS students have been working through an orientation course offered during our SUCCESS! Period. The content in the course is designed to give students a foundation in everything from working in our digital environment, to getting organized, what to do in the event of emergencies, and understanding our grading system. The final lesson today focused on conflict resolution and how to solve problems in a healthy and productive way.

At MHHS, the number one cause of conflict that we see among students are things that are posted on social media. Smartphones open up an amazing number of ways in which teens can communicate with each other and many are using them at all times of day and night. While we restrict the use of phones during class time, the ubiquitous and addicting nature of the connections that are possible with peers means that the urge to use them is great. Many teens use those tools in very positive ways but there is also a tendency to spread rumors, post negative comments, or share private and potentially embarrassing information about others. When teens decide to confront each other over things that are often not even posted during school hours, conflicts on campus arise.

The solution to this problem is not simple given that fact that social media use is integrated into the daily lives of most of us. At MHHS we focus on digital literacy and the responsible use of technology as a common theme in our weekly advisory classes. We also want to make sure that you are aware as parents and ask that you reinforce the responsible use of social media at home.

The following articles from Common Sense Media (a site that we get a lot of our digital literacy curriculum from) give information about many of the popular apps that teens are currently using. Many of the apps such as Twitter, SnapChat, and Instagram are well known but there are a variety of others that are used in ways that you may find surprising. As one of the articles states, “The more you know about each, the better you'll be able to communicate with your teen about safe choices.”

• 16 Apps and Websites Kids are Heading to After Facebook
• 9 Social Media Red Flags Parents Should Know About

NEW ! PLTW BioMedical Opportunities for Students

AP PLTW BioMedical Pathway

Students who complete the requirements of their chosen pathway earn the AP + PLTW student recognition from The College Board, a qualification that demonstrates to colleges and employers that the student is ready for advanced course work and interested in careers in this discipline.

To earn the recognition, the student must satisfactorily complete three courses in the pathway – AP Biology or AP Chemistry course; one PLTW BioMed course; and a third course, either AP or PLTW BioMed – and earn a qualifying score of 3 or higher on the AP Exam(s) and a score of Proficient or higher on the PLTW End of Course (EoC) assessment(s).  You can find more information at AP Students + Project Lead the Way

PLTW College/university opportunities:

Colleges and universities across the U.S. recognize and reward PLTW students for their great work. These post secondary institutions recognize PLTW students with scholarships, admissions preference, course credit, and more.  Learn about opportunities at PLTW Student Opportunities. Scroll down to Search for Student Opportunities. 

PSAT Registration Deadline

The PSAT/NMSQT test will be offered at Mountain House High School on Saturday, October 15th. Any interested sophomores or juniors are eligible to take this test to prepare for the SAT exam. The PSAT is a multiple-choice assessment of verbal, mathematics, and writing skills.

The PSAT/NMSQT is an optional test that provides practice for the SAT Reasoning Test through personalized feedback of student performance with suggestions for improvement. The SAT Reasoning Test, taken later in the junior year can be used as a standardized test in college applications and may be helpful for students wanting to pursue admission to highly competitive colleges or universities. PSAT also serves as the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (NMSQT). Top performing juniors nationally (approximately 1%) may be eligible for money through National Merit, National Achievement, or National Hispanic Scholarship funds.

Seats for the exam are limited and students are encouraged to sign up as soon as possible. The cost for taking the PSAT is $20 and can be paid for in person at the front desk or online at the MHHS webstore. The deadline for purchasing a place for the October sitting of the test has been extended and is now Friday, September 16th.

More information about the PSAT including sample test questions can be found here.

The College Board also has excellent resources, guides, and action plans to help students and parents plan for college: Big Future by the College Board

The PSAT 8/9 specifically designed for students in 8th and 9th grades will also be offered this year. More details will be coming out soon.

Canvas Parent Orientation

Thursday, September 8th at 7:00 PM we will be having a Canvas Parent Orientation Night for parents of students 6th through 12th grade in the multi-use room at the high school. This is your chance to learn about the parent portal, blended learning, and how Canvas can support your student.

Over this past weekend, August 27th & 28th, we unfortunately had our beautiful school vandalized. Suspect(s) spread graffiti throughout the school vandalizing numerous areas. If you have information regarding the person(s) involved in this crime we encourage you to make an anonymous tip to WeTip immediately at 800-782-7463. Someone knows who did this! Please help us catch the wrongdoer(s).