The first day of the 2016-17 school year for many Morgan Hill Unified School District schools came with transition—most notably for sixth graders making the leap to middle school for the first time.
At the district’s two sixth through eighth grade middle schools, principals Chris Moore of Britton and Heather Nursement of Martin Murphy ushered in the new configuration of students.
“The day’s been really good. We welcomed over 900 kids this morning. Things went very smoothly,” said Moore, entering his second year as Britton’s principal. “All of our hard work has really paid off…We’ve been getting ready for this for a year, so to finally see kids on campus today for the first time was fantastic.”
The sixth graders have two teachers between four core subjects; one for English/History and a second for Math/Science, Moore explained. Like their seventh and eighth grade schoolmates, they also have physical education and an elective to complete their daily schedule.
“Everybody is in great spirits,” Moore added. “They are excited as kids can be for a first day of school.”
While serving about 8,700 students, MHUSD has an $82.4 million operating budget for the 2016-17 school year. As a district, Morgan Hill welcomed more than 50 new teachers spread throughout its 14-school portfolio.
Superintendent Steve Betando, who expected the enrollment to increase through the first week of school with more late-arriving students, visited four schools for the first day: both middle schools and El Toro and Los Paseos elementary schools.
“It’s my favorite day of the year,” Betando said. “The excitement of the kids and setting high expectations from being able to sit criss-cross applesauce as a 4-year-old to setting a challenge to apply to eight universities by the end of senior year. It’s all very exciting.”
Paradise Valley Engineering Academy opened as the district’s newest focus academy with the addition of two new labs for students to get creative. The design lab, which is for students to work on robotics and other tests, is equipped with giant interactive flat-touch screen tables. That is set to kick off at PV’s Sept. 8 Back to School Night.
The other lab is called the exploration science center, a state-of-the-art science lab where students can practice the Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards in a project-based, hands-on environment.
“It is special to lead a whole entire team of enthusiastic teachers and staff members,” said Dagar, now in her fourth year at PV. “We are excited to be an engineering academy. It is just a newfound excitement in our work. We are revolutionizing the way we educate kids.”
To go along with the engineering focus, PV has a new mission statement and school logo, shared Dagar. Over at El Toro Elementary School, parents were welcomed by new principal Darren McDonald, who will lead the ongoing effort to form a health and science academy on that campus. The students participated in the ceremonial ringing of the bell in the morning, where McDonald gave an Olympic-themed motivational speech about doing your best every day to achieve great things.
“You plan and you put strategies in place, but once you start seeing their little faces coming in the door you see the reality and responsibility to fulfill those strategies,” said McDonald, a 14-year educator who spent the last two years as a lead teacher at nearby PA Walsh Elementary.
McDonald called it an “honor” to help shape a school community for the first time.
“It’s been a calling in my life to be able to lead a community to do their best,” added McDonald, rattling off a list of initiatives that included establishing a spring health festival to go along with the health focus, revitalizing the school garden and revamping the brunch menu to supply healthier options.
The new year also comes with the expansion of the campus at San Martin/Gwinn Environmental Science Academy, which is now a kindergarten through eighth grade school site. The upper grades enjoyed the newest in modular classrooms installed over the summer.
“Parents were highly impressed with the efficiency of our director of construction, facilities and contractors getting the buildings ready for the beginning of the school year,” said SM/G Principal Claudia Olaciregui. “They loved the new modern look of our offices.”
Parents used a brand new dropoff/pickup zone coming off Llagas Avenue, and the district’s southernmost school welcomed more students than ever before to the newly renovated campus. Along with outdoor science labs fully functional for the start of the year and a new administration building, SM/G is also home to the expanding dual immersion program that has moved up to fourth grade.
“Our teachers are eager and excited to start our new education journey at our Environmental Science Academy,” Olaciregui added. “And, as for myself, I am loving being back to work, seeing our students happy and engaged on the first day, and serving our wonderful community.”
For all MHUSD schools, the 2016-17 school year runs from Aug. 16 through the last day June 8.
