​by Casey McMurray

Parent Institute for Quality Education (PIQE) first came to my attention at a professional conference I attended earlier this year in Sacramento. I heard great things about the work that happened as they partnered with the secondary school to increase the level of parent involvement. I looked up PIQE’s website and their mission statement is “to provide families with the knowledge and skills to partner with schools and communities to ensure their children achieve their full potential.” I called the local PIQE office in San Jose in early March and soon after that we signed an agreement to offer the nine-week signature workshop series to our Spanish and Vietnamese-speaking parents at Rancho.

PIQE was on-site for our Back-to-School night on Aug. 30, sharing information with our parents as we began to promote this opportunity. Thursday, Sept. 7 was our introductory session, during which I presented the PIQE staff to our combined group of Spanish and Vietnamese-speaking parents in the Rancho library. The initial turnout was promising. After my remarks, we divided the parents into two groups to receive the workshops in their own language. I was very excited as I saw them begin their path towards understanding and empowerment.

The PIQE facilitators began to establish relationships with their respective parent cohorts, texting and calling them weekly with any updates and reminders of the next meeting date. PIQE staff members were dynamic, and their presentations were “parent-centered” and engaging. I was impressed that the PIQE parents were given assignments that would encourage them to follow up and act on what they had discussed at the workshops. One particular “parent homework” was to make an appointment with our counselor to discuss their child’s grades, work completion, courses, and possibly other concerns.

In my experience of over 13 years working at the secondary level, I have never seen so many Spanish-speaking parents—nearly 20—come in to the office, make an appointment, and meet with the counselor as I interpreted and joined the discussion when appropriate. It was such a positive experience to see this “awakening” of sorts for this relatively small group of parents and to hear them express how thankful they were for this opportunity to obtain the “knowledge and skills to partner with [Rancho] to ensure their children achieve their full potential.”

At the conclusion of the workshop series, we had an insightful Principal’s Forum during which they asked a number of questions ranging from how EL students are reclassified, to how to access the Aeries Parent Portal to check work completion, to how to stay involved in the school once PIQE was completed. At the conclusion of our Q & A session we had a memorable parent “graduation” celebration. As I looked upon the parents who were in attendance, dressed for this special occasion and many with their children looking on, I saw what I had envisioned back in March when I made that first outreach to PIQE. This was the experience I had hoped to provide for these parents.

As an epilogue to the above, I met with the PIQE directors two weeks after the graduation celebration and we agreed to offer PIQE again next year in Spanish and English. I look forward to our continued collaboration with PIQE for the benefit of our parents and ultimately, our students.

​On November 7, students from Calaveras Hills High School and the Adult Education program were treated to a dynamic and engaging Map Your Future (MYF) career pathways conference, a service of Silicon Valley Career Pathways. Map Your Future is a collection of programs and services intended to provide students with the resources to explore, identify, and develop academic and career options. They offer services for students interested in earning a college degree or certificate, or in transferring to a four-year college. They also assist students with resume writing, preparing for interviews, and job search. Key partners from Silicon Valley Career Pathways and San Jose City College campus in Milpitas helped organize and provide this valuable opportunity. 

​Calaveras Hills High School and Milpitas Adult Education students received information and career guidance from five panel members, who shared their professional and personal journeys that led them to where they are today as innovators in their respective fields. A Q&A session was followed by a pizza lunch with a lot of mingling. After lunch, attendees split up into five breakout sessions focused on Medical Science, Engineering, Public Services, Advanced Manufacturing, and Information Communication Technology. This allowed students to drill deeper into the career fields that most attracted them.

The Milpitas Community Educational Endowment Cordially invites you to the Holiday Silent Auction.
Winning Bids will be notified by Dec. 18th.
Go to www.mceeholidayauction.weebly.com and start bidding now!

​SAN JOSE, Calif. – According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the percentage of adults in the Silicon Valley who do not hold a high school diploma is well into the double digits in some communities, prompting the South Bay Consortium for Adult Education (SBCAE) to launch Open Doors, a regional campaign that brings to the forefront the diverse adult education programs that put adults lacking language, literacy or technical skills on a solid path to work, school and/or career training. 

In the area served by SBCAE, a partnership of five adult schools and four community colleges in Santa Clara County, the percentage of adults without a high school diploma is as high as 17.7 percent in San Jose, the consortium’s largest city, followed by 14.2 percent in Milpitas, 13.5 percent in Santa Clara and 12.9 percent in Morgan Hill, according to census data. Statewide, 18 percent of the population aged 25 and older does not have a high school diploma or equivalency, according to census data. 
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“People often think of the Silicon Valley as a place of affluent tech workers, which is true, but it’s more diverse than that, with many low-income residents who cannot live on the wages they make and are looking for opportunities to livable wages and a better future,” said Kishan Vujjeni, co-chair of the SBCAE. “Our consortium members provide programs throughout the valley that can help this population attain the skills they need, no matter where they are in their educational journey, and transition into a career or postsecondary education.” 

SBCAE member organizations offer English-language classes, apprenticeship opportunities, career education courses, basic math and literacy classes and support services for adults with disabilities, with many of these programs being free. The consortium has nine transition specialists, representing each school and college, who help students identify their educational and career goals and develop a concrete path to achieving them. Adults age 18 and older are eligible to enroll in classes. 

Those interested can visit the campaign website to explore options and complete a short form so a transition specialist may contact them. The website includes a map that shows the location and contact information for each transition specialist. For more information, visit www.OpenDoorsSouthBay.org or call 408-918- 5100.

By Doug Hughes

​Just one day after Milpitas Unified School District made national headlines when U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos came calling, a group of students from Calaveras and Milpitas High Schools participated in an event that Milpitas Economic Development Director Edesa Bitbadal dubbed “The First Annual” Milpitas Manufacturing Day. 

It was like three field trips in one, as 50 eager students boarded a bus to visit three Milpitas corporations that practice advanced manufacturing techniques right here in our own city. 

Pictured below, the first stop on the tour was KLA-Tencor, the leading provider of process control and yield management solutions, where students gowned up from head to toe before entering the company’s clean room. 

From there, students headed to Flex Manufacturing, where they learned about wearable technology, reliability testing, and additive manufacturing before grabbing lunch.

The tour concluded at Cordis, a firm that is part of Cardinal Health Company. They are the worldwide leader in the development and manufacturing of interventional vascular technology, with a more than 50-year history of delivering pioneering products to treat millions of patients.
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​During the Q&A period at Cordis, students asked probing questions about the company’s products used in vascular surgery, such as:
• Do the stents rust? (No, because of the special metal that is used.)
• What do your customers tell you they want to see as future products? (They’d like to see us invent stents that are not metal, that dissolve in the body.)
• Does your robotic manufacturing line take away people’s jobs? (No, because we need people to program and run the robots—and there are many intricate moves that can be done much better by humans.)

​As the “icing on top” of a wonderful day, an ice cream truck showed up to deliver sundaes and hand-dipped cones to all the participants, courtesy of the City of Milpitas Office of Economic Development and their Director Edesa Bitbadal. Judging by the smiling faces—and the fact that Bitbadal was already referring to the event as “The First Annual” Milpitas Manufacturing Day—it was an event that we can look forward to again next year!

By Doug Hughes

​She has endured nearly ten months of intense rehab, but two weeks ago she was finally released. Known only as “Patient 16-5373,” she was lost and abandoned when Good Samaritans found her in a Milpitas landfill, where she lay immobile and severely burned—probably by a methane burner.  

“She” is a red-tailed hawk, and though her tail feathers were burned so badly she couldn’t fly, this “tale” has a happy ending.

​After being admitted to Wildlife Center of Silicon Valley on December 29, 2016, the hawk has been nurtured back to health, and on Tuesday, Oct. 17, in front of the students at William Burnett Elementary School, was released to fly once again. The school was chosen because WCSV tries to place rehabbed critters back into the wild within three miles of where they were rescued.

​How did this happen?
Landfills attract predatory birds that prey on rodents and other smaller animals, and red-tailed hawks hunt by scanning the ground from an elevated perching site (which is why you so often see them perching on lamp posts along the freeway). Unfortunately, the tops of methane-burning smokestacks are generally the highest and most desirable perching sites at landfills. When they flare unexpectedly, a bird perching on top can be severely injured or killed. Burning methane is also clear and odorless, so birds can get injured flying above the burner.

How do we know she’s a she?
We didn’t know at first, but now that she is older and reached her adult weight of 1242 grams, we know that she is a female because she is too big to be a male! Male red-tailed hawks in our area typically weigh in at around 900-1100 grams, while a healthy adult female in our region can weigh up to 1400 grams.

Why have we had her in care so long?
We had to wait for her to molt naturally, which, depending on where a bird is in their molt cycle, can take up to a year. Since she came in with juvenile plumage and has now grown in her adult feathers (including her namesake red tail feathers), we estimate that she was born in 2016, which would make her about one-and-a-half years old now. Even though she has her adult plumage in, she will not be sexually mature for another 1-2 years. 

Open Enrollment for Covered California starts today. Quality, affordable healthcare is just a phone call or mouse click away.
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​https://www.healthcare.gov/

Support Silicon Valley Career Technical Education (SVCTE) high school students who are hosting a 2nd Annual Haunted House on campus!
The haunted house is open 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. on October 27th, 30th, and 31th at 760 Hillsdale Ave, San Jose. Follow the self-guided, high-tech, haunted path through a spooky graveyard and indoor scenes. 

Tickets are sold at the door and are $5 per person.

Working in partnership with parents to provide open communication and ensure the safety of all students, I wanted to inform you of an event that occurred today, Thursday, October 26. We received a report at approximately 12:15 p.m. that a ninth grade student brought a gun to Milpitas High School today. Administrators took immediate action and called the Milpitas Police Department, which responded promptly to lock down the campuses at Milpitas High School as well as neighboring Pomeroy Elementary and Russell Middle School.

Police took the student suspect into custody at MHS, and Pomeroy and Russell were given an “all clear” by 12:30 p.m. Soon thereafter, police lifted the “shelter in place” order at all three schools. After taking the freshman into custody at MHS, they conducted a search of the campus to be sure there were no other weapons on campus, and that there were no other students involved. It is now confirmed the student was indeed acting alone, there was only one weapon, and the suspect is now with authorities at the police station. As of 1:00 p.m., students were proceeding to lunch and administrators sent separate messages to parents of the three schools.

At Russell Middle School, Principal Damon James explained in his memo to parents that being asked to “shelter in place” meant they were to shut their doors and have all students remain in the classrooms with the lights out. Very soon, staff and students were informed that everything was handled and that they were safe on campus. Students who were in need of anxiety support were sent to the Learning Center, where counselors were allowing them to talk out their feelings.

​As a precautionary measure, the Milpitas Police Department did order a secondary lockdown of the schools. After their investigation, they allowed us to release the lockdown. The situation was contained quickly because of cooperation within the community. It is important for students to inform adults when they see or hear of weapons on campus, and that’s exactly what transpired. We are grateful that police and administration were able to work together to quickly ensure the safety of all our students.

​As Superintendent, there is nothing more important than the safety of our students and team members. You have my assurances that we are a safe school environment, and that school is back to normal. If anyone has any questions or concerns, feel free to contact my office to schedule an appointment.

Cheryl Jordan
Superintendent of Milpitas Unified School District

Update: ​Click here for the Press Release from Milpitas Police Department

The Milpitas Unified School District is offering a free series of parent meetings open to all parents and caregivers.  Join Project Cornerstone’s engaging workshop - Take It Personally, starting Wednesday, November 1st from 6:00pm - 7:30pm at Russell Middle School. You do not need to be a parent from Russell, just an adult who cares about all kids.

We know that your strong family is the best predictor of your children's success. Parents and caregivers need fresh ideas that work to keep families close, as children grow. Come learn new tools for strengthening your relationships with children and youth in this 6-week workshop facilitated by Project Cornerstone. Each week we will share, discuss, and practice ways to show caring, give support, set boundaries, and build strong relationships that help youth succeed in school, friendships and life!
 
Learn tools you can use now- to strengthen your family connections and help young people thrive.
 
Class Title: Take It Personally
Dates:  Wednesdays: 11/1, 11/8, 11/15, 11/29, 12/6, 12/13
Time: 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM
Place/Host: Russell Middle School (Learning Center)
Workshop paid for by District
Free childcare and snacks will be provided.
Sign Up today:  http://www.signupgenius.com/go/60b0945aba72d6-take
Questions? Contact Ziem Neubert at [email protected]