We are pleased to inform you that the Rogers Ranch principal for next year will be Mr. Tim Thomas. We invite you to join us in welcoming Mr. Thomas during Meet the New Principal Night on Tuesday, May 14 from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. Meet Principal Thomas at the Rogers Ranch gym for conversation and cookies. Principal Thomas comes to us as a highly successful principal from the Alhambra Elementary School District. We look forward to many great things with him at the helm of the Rogers Ranch team!

For more information, please read the parent letter from our superintendent, Dr. Bill Johnson. Also, as a convenient reminder, feel free to print a copy of our invitation to hang on your fridge. We look forward to seeing you there!

Kindergarten teachers from Vista del Sur Traditional School recently scooped ice cream at Scooptacular for a grade level fundraiser. Kids of all ages came to support the kindergarten classes and kept the teachers busy scooping their favorite treats. The kids boogied down with a dancing cow and earned free ice cream. Everyone had an awesome time!

Did you know that ASU Gammage “hired” 30 gifted eighth grade students from Laveen Elementary School District? These students attended a field trip at ASU that was a simulated exercise for the students to experience various departments such as box office, marketing, and business services as part of a School to Work Workshop offered by ASU Grady Gammage.

During the workshop, students had the opportunity to experience a behind-the-scenes look at ASU Gammage as they highlighted potential career choices in arts administration. Students interacted with employees and learned what it takes to run a theater. They learned about real-world working scenarios which included accounting, communications, staffing, and technical production. A special thanks goes to US Airways, to those who have donated Gifted Tax Credit money, and ASU Grady Gammage for making this field trip possible.

Laveen Elementary School District will be offering free breakfast and free lunch this summer through the federally supported Summer Food Service Program to anyone 18 years old and younger. The locations serving meals will include Desert Meadows School (starting May 23); and Trailside Point School and M.C. Cash Elementary (starting May 28). We will serve breakfast from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. and lunch will be from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. To participate, all you have to do is show up! You don’t need to register, and no one will ask for proof of income or age.

Good nutrition is essential for effective learning every day, all year long. Just as learning does not end when school lets out, neither does the need for good nutrition.
 

Three students from Cheatham Elementary School representing their Student Council and National Junior Honor Society groups presented the Classroom Spotlight portion of the Laveen School District Governing Board meeting on April 11. They highlighted all of the great after school club opportunities that are available at Cheatham Elementary.
 

M.C. Cash participated in a McDonald's McTeacher’s Night recently to raise funds for their Roadrunner's Booster Club. Students, their families, and community members kept the M.C. Cash staff busy as they took orders and served food. This event was fun for all involved as well as a successful fundraiser!

Fire Chief Bob Kahn, of the Phoenix Fire Department, presented Rick Stephen, principal at Cheatham Elementary School, with the Volunteer Excellence Award at their annual awards banquet. Mr. Stephen has volunteered hundreds of hours to the fire department's Crisis Response Program as a Behavioral Health Specialist and as a trainer for the program last year. Congratulations, Mr. Stephen!

Trailside Point was one of 100 schools in the state to participate in the 2013 New Year Resolution Electronics Collection Contest. They came in second place by collecting a total weight of 3,884.82 pounds of electronics, earning $1,082.93! Together the contest collected over 19 tons of electronic waste. This is a very substantial contribution to landfill diversion and environmental preservation. According to the EPA, electronics make up 2% of the municipal waste stream in the USA, which is enough to occupy more than 60 US landfills. Thank you for your support of this contest.

Vista del Sur hosted its annual Vista's Got Talent Show on April 4. Students in grades K-8 showcased their amazing talents, from dancing to playing the piano. It was a great event sponsored by PTO and Vista's choir group.

Laveen’s Jersey Mike’s restaurant is giving our schools a great opportunity for fundraising. Schools invite their families to a “Jersey Mike’s Night” with a percentage of the proceeds and all of the tips collected that evening going to the school. We appreciate our wonderful partnership with Jersey Mike’s!

National Junior Honor Society students from both Cheatham and Vista del Sur received an invitation from Representative Catherine Miranda to visit the State Capitol on April 3. Representative Miranda provided lunch, chatted with the students, gave them a nice certificate, and recognized the students during the legislative session. These students did a wonderful job of representing their schools and the district.

Congratulations to Emilio Gonzalez, band teacher at M.C. Cash, for receiving a donation of six band instruments from EarCandy. EarCandy is a non-profit music organization that finds people to donate instruments to music programs that are in need. Band teachers post an instrument request on the organization’s website. Potential donors see the posts and decide who they want to donate to. When EarCandy receives the instruments, they have them checked at a repair shop to make sure they are in good shape before getting them to the school. The instruments will be put to good use!

The Laveen Elementary staff recently participated in an exciting, action packed, very competitive game of dodge ball against their eighth grade students. The students stole the show by winning all three games! It looks like there will be a re-match so the staff can be redeemed!

The Arizona Department of Education (ADE) has ranked Vista del Sur Traditional School in the Laveen Elementary School District the number one elementary school in the State of Arizona. Vista del Sur earned a score of 175 out of a possible 200 points when ADE released the 2011-2012 A-F Letter Grades on August 2, 2012.

Vista del Sur Traditional School also has an “A” letter grade based on the Arizona Department of Education’s A-F Letter Grade Accountability System for 2012. “A” schools demonstrate an excellent level of performance. They have a greater percentage of students passing AIMS and achieve greater academic growth with their population of students than most schools.

The National Center for Educational Achievement (NCEA) has also named the school an Arizona Higher Performing School.

Vista del Sur Traditional School is a K-8 school and one of seven schools in the Laveen Elementary School District.

You can lower your Arizona State income tax bill when you donate to your local school district. Read more>>>