Principal’s RAMpage v3.5

Sep 6, 2022

Dear Dixon High School Families,
Wow!  It is crazy hot this week!  I hope you are all doing well through this heat wave and I wanted to take a moment to assure you that we have your students’ health at the front of our minds.  We will all need to work together to stay engaged in learning as this continues.  

  • We will keep your student comfortable and safe.  We will be canceling and/or limiting outside time for kids.  We have plenty of indoor spaces at lunch and students will not be participating in outdoor PE until the temperatures drop.
  • We will continue to address HVAC issues as they arise throughout the heat wave and power outages.  When we do have a classroom with cooling issues, we will move that class to a classroom with air until the issue is resolved.  Our HVAC repair service is working hard to keep things running smoothly.
  • We need you and your student to do your part too.  Please make sure your student has plenty of water in their day and that they let you (or us) know if they are feeling bad due to heat.

Gratitude and Celebrations
Back to School Night
It was so nice to see all of our families that attended Back to School Night.  Thank you for making time! And, it was really nice to see our awesome teachers getting a chance to meet you in person and share their expertise.

Our Colleagues
Our entire staff is working hard to support your students with equitable, common practices including binders and planners, they are building relationships with students, and they are teaching up a storm!  Our office staff and support staff are also on top of things and helping families, students, and all of us, with the work of running a school.  We have been able to get some older Chromebooks repaired and we are looking forward to getting some new ones in the hands of your kids.

Our Students
Wow!  Our students are enthusiastic, engaged, and so fun to be around.  They are also working really hard.  Please make sure to check in with them daily (planner, binder, backpack) and also check Homelink for grades and missing assignments.  As I’ve mentioned before, google classroom and Aeries do not have the most reliable communication so Homelink is always more accurate than google classroom.  If, at any time, you are unclear about your student’s progress, please reach out to their teacher directly.  They love to hear from you and now that we’ve settled into the school year, they really know your student’s strengths and areas of growth.  

Our Families
It has been an absolute pleasure to meet you all.  Thank you for partnering with us as we raise our community’s teenagers together.  Please keep supporting your students’ planner and binder use, make sure they bring their charged Chromebook every day, and keep communicating with us.  We love hearing from you. Also, if you are interested in being part of what we do here, join our PTO (they have a Facebook page).

Our Activities and Events
Our Leadership class, under the direction of Chelsea Haines, is rocking and rolling with planning for student events including Homecoming, the week of September 19.  We will be sharing more dates and details soon! 
Our athletic teams are also in full swing with a big football win against Winters and Armijo (and a growing JV program), a volleyball team is doing great as is cross country.  Our water polo team has celebrated some big wins as well.
We are hosting clubs, such as Math Steeplechase and Academic Decathlon Teams.  Make sure your student is listening to the announcements every day so they are aware of meetings and opportunities.

Our Mindset
As a site leader, I am proud of our community’s mindset as we discover the power in a forward-thinking, positive culture where we all engage fully every day, allow ourselves to be present in what we are doing, and courageously seek support when we need it.  You can see and feel this at DHS.  Rock on, RAMS!!!

DHS PTO Update!
At the first PTO meeting they elected a PTO President (Lisa Altmiller) and Vice President (Heather Morales).  This parent group will be working closely with student/staff activities, programs on campus and in the community so stay tuned.  

We Have Answers
Do you have questions about school policies and procedures such as dress code, attendance, etc?  Please take time to read through the DHS Student & Parent Handbook!  Many answers can be found here

We Need Your Help!
As noted in the superintendent’s weekly update, DUSD is obligated to have all families complete the Income Verification Survey.  I think it is very important to remember that this is necessary to keep all of the programs and services we have built for your students.  Please complete the survey at your earliest convenience.  
English Alternative Income Survey
Spanish Alternative Income Survey

There is an issue that we ALL need to address.  As students get more comfortable with school, they are also starting to arrive late in the morning.  Please make sure they are leaving on time (which is much earlier than you think) especially tomorrow.  Double Wednesdays are a huge issue since EVERYBODY starts the school day at the same time!  Please make sure to give yourself at least 30 minutes to get to school.  Remember, it’s okay to be early!!  🙂

Upcoming Calendar Events – Get out those calendars!  🙂
September 19 – September 23 Senior Picture Appointments
September 23 – Homecoming Football v. Fairfield
September 24 – Homecoming Dance
October 4 – CSU Parent and Student Presentation (5:30-6:30)
October 5 – UC Parent and Student Presentation (5:30-6:30)
October 11 – Make up Pictures 
October 12 – PSAT Test Day (7:15am start time)
November 2 – UC Application Workshop (5:30-6:30)
November 3 – CSU Application Workshop (5:30-6:30)

Site Information
Here are links to important documents you need:

As always, please let us know how we can help.  

Warmly,
Stephanie Marquez
Proud Principal of Dixon High School
smarquez@dixonusd.org, (707) 693-6330 ext.7113