The end of August is upon us, and with it comes the beginning of the new school year. Teachers and families can enjoy an extra week of vacation, which unfortunately comes due to furlough days that mean pay cuts for all school staff.
Roosevelt has sent home a letter with students' homeroom assignments, so if you are a current student, you should be getting that soon.
In the meantime, stock up on school supplies and start getting up earlier so you can be ready for the first day, September 13.
This year, the Design Teams are small schools, and we need to train ourselves to use the new names. For example DT1 is now the School of Law & Government.
As principal of the School of Communications, New Media and Technology, I have been working all summer to prepare for the new school year. We've got a lot of exciting plans, and it was great to have some teachers and students back at school today to get a taste of the energy that comes from a full campus.
See you all in a couple weeks!
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A thousand Splendid suns is about the people that live and survive their lives in third world countries during war time. They see many gruesome things that scars them and follows them until adulthood. In this book you realize about all the horrible suffering women go through in their daily lives. Over there it is so normal for women to be treated in such inhuman manners by their husbands and other men.
I really recommend this book because it opens your eyes to so may things that i never thought possible. It makes you really appreciate life as we know it and everything in this country that protects women’s rights.
The New Senior-For-Sure-Fail list is a sheet that, when submitted on Tuesday, June 1, will keep any senior from graduating on stage. LAUSD will mail the students’ parents notifying them of the fact that they will not graduate.
This Sure-Fail List, as it is called, does not reflect the final grades because those grades are due on June 16. Teachers were notified today on May 25 to warn their students of this, and to begin gathering possible failing students.
Students all over the school will be conferencing with their to teachers concerning their grades and their possibility of not graduating. Some students are outraged at the fact that their only chance to make amends to their grades has been robbed from them.
Students, please speak with your teachers and make sure you have a say on your future. LAUSD will be spending money so that when it is sent home your parents will have to sign a paper the mailman will have and receive the letter saying if your graduating on stage or not.
Hopefully you all do well, and have fun at Roosevelt‘s Senior prom.
i went to the library and couldn’t find the book that i wanted so i looked for a new one and i found Blessing’s Bead. It looks so interesting, especially after i read the summary of it.
Basically its about Nutaaq and her older sister, Aaluk and their journey. They are sailing from small island of the coast of Alaska to the annual trade fair on the mainland. I think it mostly intrigues me because of their unique names.
When i finish reading it i will let you know if i recommend it to you or not.
Studying can be different for everyone because there are so many ways to study, but many others think it is simply impossible to learn everything. But you don’t have to know everything just little hints that will remind you.
Most people that think they don’t know how to study are the ones who usually study the night befor the test and even though that might be a good method for some it isn’t for others. People should space there study time and only focus one one thing at a time.
Start out by studying the most important information, take notes and don’t forget to take short breaks. So next time you have a hard test relax and think about all the different methods and choices you have to the way you study.
Socrates long ago created what is called a Socratic seminar and this is a seminar where everyone argues together to get their point across to the other. Today in Ms. Dueñas’ class, my fifth period, we held one. It was crazy, because we were all representing different economists and their theories and this was a recipe for chaos.
The strongest were those who were the mot outspoken, naturally, and there was little need for the teacher’s intervention. This was really amusing and helpful. I hope we do another soon.
Though not the first time I have studied Civil Rights in Mr. Gibbs’ class, we are currently studying that unit once again. The first time I really learned about the different leaders of the movement and their different approaches to gaining civil rights, I was surprised how opposed they were.
Before high school, I didn’t know much about the civil rights movement, but I always pictured figures like Dr. King and Malcom X all working together. I envisioned all African-American activist leaders as the best of friends who were united in inspiring the people.
Now that I have learned how much people like Dr. King, Malcom X, and Thurgood Marshall clashed, it’s funny to think how I once thought they were the best of friends. All these activists wanted the same thing, to have equality and respect among all people, especially African-Americans who faced harsh acts of racism and discrimination.
However, they had different philosophies on how to approach the issue, and so they lead people and helped to cause in different ways. Sometimes I wonder how much more could have been done if all these activists would have worked closely together. Perhaps much more could have been accomplished faster if they had put their differences aside and joined forces for the whole movement.
Still these leaders had good intentions and all they wanted was for their people to get the civil rights they deserve. This can serve as an example to all of us about tolerance. Sometimes we need to put our differences aside and work together for something that is bigger than us. During class discussions I completely disagree with the philosophies of some of my classmates. But in the future when we all become crazy revolutionaries, I hope we will work together even though our ideas may clash.
At first I wouldn’t like the idea of having to do anything with “journalism“. When I would hear Mr. Gertner talking about getting people to join this class I would think, “What the hell? Why would people want to join this? Little did I know that my senior year I would become a part of the Journalism staff.
Journalism has been a different but great experience. When I joined the class, I was still doubting whether or not I made a good choice. Little by little I got more and more involved in the class. I remember I was able to cover a soccer game for the first time. I had to learn how to work the camera and everything. Then I also had to take notes so later I would be able to present a good article.
In journalism you learn little by little, but you learn something new everyday. I like being in this class where we can inform the students of the things happening in school and in their community. Interviewing people can sometimes be very fun, but I am a very shy person and most of the time i’m really nervous, so my interviews are very quick. But I still get all the 411.
Journalism doesn’t have to be a boring class that you have to attend to everyday. If you like reporting and finding out about the things going on with your school and the community then journalism is the best class you can join.
It’s not always gonna be fun and games because when the newspaper comes out there is a lot of work to be done and to be taken seriously. but when you are reporting on something you like then the class becomes really easy.
On Thursday, February 25, PLAS held a meeting for RHS students during lunch on campus. Marshall Tuck, the CEO of PLAS was present at the meeting, an attempt by the Partnership to answer questions which students may have about the new changes and provide them with as much information as possible.
Because there has been a lack of student input, the Partnership is interested in engaging in conversations. Upon being questioned by a student, Tuck responded that, “small schools will not only focus on reforming the structure, but classroom instruction… in hopes that we will create a better classroom environment.”
Other PLAS representatives present at the meeting also stressed that because only 44% of students graduate from RHS, they feel that regardless of nation-wide budget cuts, it’s vital that the change occurs now. While other alternatives were considered, small schools will produce higher graduation rates, which when put into a “per graduate cost” perspective is more budget friendly. By not having a student take a class more than once, money is ultimately saved.
And finally, PLAS noted that “competition can be healthy, but segregation can’t.” In other words, PLAS hopes that by establishing small schools, students will reach their full potential.
Last but not least, deadlines for the new seven school-site counsels will be enforced so that there is a sense of accountability. Budget training will also occur amongst the small school representatives, so that decisions will be handled well.
Overall, the Partnership is making attempts to include and inform students on campus, and for the most part the students at the meeting seemed to appreciate that.
Video removed* (see end for explanation)
A group of Roosevelt students have recently published a video on Facebook entitled “Roosevelt Rough Riders Against PLAS”. These students, including ASB President Jenesis Fonseca criticize the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools for excluding students and parents from decisions and for planning to divide the campus into seven small schools.
The video was posted by Miguel Torres, who is listed as RHS Class of 1991 and runs a company called Angel Flight Media.
Several of the students featured in the video have been present at recent Small Schools Transition Team meetings and are also members of the Leadership class. Without further inquiry, it is unclear whether this video has any relationship to that class.
I hope to see more of an explanation of the video by the students who made it, including their goals in publishing it. I also hope to see a response from PLAS.
To editorialize a bit, I think it is positive that students are feeling empowered and are putting their viewpoint out in public. Although I disagree with some of their points about small schools and feel that some of their speculation is a bit alarmist, including the idea that small schools will destroy Roosevelt’s tradition, I understand why they feel shut out of the reform process.
Hopefully the students will continue to learn about the potential benefits of the changes being planned for Roosevelt. Their perspectives are valuable, but I would like to see them have more positive ideas about what kinds of changes they would like to see, because we should all acknowledge that Roosevelt needs to change to get better results.
*Explanation of removal of video When I posted the video I felt it was newsworthy and would be of interest to the Roosevelt community. However, upon further investigation of the law surrounding defamation, I have decided that since I have serious doubts about the truth of a statement in the video that could be defamatory, it is best for the Rough Rider Blog not to publish the actual video. Defamation is defined as when someone communicates “false information that damages the reputation of another person or entity.” I have also removed the link after reading further that linking to defamatory content also constitutes libel.
