February 24, 2023
Dear Monrovia Unified School District Parents and Families:
The first two months of 2023 have gone by very quickly! As we work our way toward spring, there are so many wonderful things happening in our schools and around the district. Below are several highlights that you might enjoy learning about.
I would like to thank our students, parents, families, teachers, and staff for making this school year a tremendous success so far.
Sincerely,
Ryan D. Smith, Ed.D.
Superintendent
21st Century Classroom Furniture
The Board of Education recently approved a plan that will provide new furniture in classrooms at every school in the district, replacing desks, tables, and chairs that are mostly 20 years old at least. In addition to looking great and bringing a super new aesthetic to our classrooms, this action will play a critical role in ensuring our students are well prepared for college, career, and life. The new furniture is flexible in nature and can easily be reconfigured to allow for groupings and configurations of any size and shape. This flexibility will allow for greater and more frequent collaboration among students and teachers as they engage in academic and social-emotional learning activities.
Getting to this point is the result of six months of preparation as district leadership spent upwards of 200 hours gathering feedback and input from teachers and staff, administrators, parents, and students. We are taking advantage of an opportunity to leverage existing funds currently available to us for this type of purpose; such funds will likely not be available to us in the future. This keeps to the Board of Education’s promise to leverage existing dollars to the fullest in concert with Measure MM funds.
The new furniture will begin being phased into nearly all of our classrooms in the next few months. Plans for the remaining classrooms are being finalized and will be shared with the Board of Education later this spring.
First FACTOR Parent Graduates
A group of parents from Monroe are the first to graduate from our new FACTOR parent education program. FACTOR (Families Acting Toward Results) offers parents information, tools, and strategies for supporting their student’s well-being and academic success. It helps parents better understand how a school system works and how to help prepare them for college, career, and life. There are five total classes, all conducted on Zoom, as well as a graduation ceremony. I am so proud to share that of the 67 participants, 51 graduated, meaning they attended almost all classes. FACTOR classes are being offered at each of our schools over the next few months. Please check with your student’s principal if you are interested in learning more.
Femineers in Action
Our first group of students is making their way through our new Femineers program at each elementary school and at Santa Fe. The program encourages female students to become interested and passionate about careers that involve Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Math (STEAM) at an early age. Teachers facilitate weekly projects incorporating coding, engineering, circuitry, and design into weekly challenges. We plan to have a Femineers showcase event to highlight all the excellent projects these students are putting together.
Family Paint Nights
Our Family Paint Nights have been a fantastic new approach to parent engagement at our elementary schools. Led by our district’s art teachers and other staff, these evenings are an opportunity for our students and their parents to spend quality time together creating a piece of art they get to take at the end of the night. These evenings also include a wonderful dinner, a chance to participate in an “art walk,” and information about how Monrovia integrates the arts into its elementary classrooms. I’d like to thank our Director of Expanded Learning, Enrichment, and the Arts, Patrick Garcia, art teachers Morgan Hogan and Ann Martinez, and our Technology Enhanced Arts Learning (TEAL) coaches at each school site for making this possible.
Clifton is a School to Watch
The California League of Educators (CLE) has redesignated Clifton Middle School as a School to Watch for 2023! CLE established the Schools to Watch Program to recognize middle schools that are academically excellent, socially equitable, and highly collaborative. The CLE recognized Clifton for its successful collaborative teaching model, school-wide PBIS program, Spanish dual immersion, family engagement, and more. Please click here to read California State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond’s press release. Congrats to our Clifton Cubs!
Black History Month Resolution
The Board of Education adopted a resolution recognizing the month of February as Black History Month. I am grateful to serve in a district and community that celebrates its diversity and recognizes the tremendous contributions of African Americans to our society. It also means a lot to me as Superintendent that the Monrovia Duarte Black Alumni Association enriches our schools and the community by organizing so many wonderful events celebrating Black History Month involving our students.
Celebrating Exemplary Monrovia Educators
Canyon Oaks High School (COHS) Teacher Daniel Chacon has been nominated as an Educator of the Year for 2023 by the California League of Educators. This award recognizes educators who strive to provide their students with equitable pathways to success, actively empowering those they serve to analyze, construct, and maintain modalities that promote critical thinking and constant self-analysis. Mr. Chacon is well known for being a highly artistic, humble, and relatable educator. “He is an amazing person and educator,” Canyon Oaks Principal Flint Fertig said about him. “Mr. Chacon has always been a magnet for kids, and his energy and real-life experience have drawn kids to his programs for years.”
We are also pleased to share that Deputy Superintendent and Mayflower parent Dr. Greg Francois received the “Outstanding Leadership in Education Award” from the California Association of African American Superintendents and Administrators (CAAASA) and The Association of California School Administrators (ACSA). Dr. Francois is a collaborative leader who always looks for new and innovative ways to improve learning and the positive culture within Monrovia schools.
Finally, you may have heard that the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) recently approved Girls Flag Football as a certified sport for 2023-24. Director of Secondary Education and CIF Southern Section President-Elect Dr. Paula Hart Rodas was instrumental in pushing this across the goal line for girls in California. I want to thank Dr. Hart Rodas for her tremendous efforts on behalf of girls in Monrovia, Los Angeles County, and the State of California. I am also grateful to her for her excellent work supporting our secondary schools.
New for 2023-24: Entrepreneurship Course and Pathway at MHS
The Board of Education approved “Entrepreneurship 1” as a new course offering for high school students. This foundational course focuses on activating the entrepreneurial mindset as students learn how to create an original lean business model plan and pitch their business. Students will put together customer and competitor profiles, develop marketing campaigns, and conduct financial analyses to support their claims about their business idea. Students will also be eligible to enter the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship’s (NFTE) Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge, where NFTE students compete for seed capital to launch their business or pursue educational goals. This course will serve as the initial course of a new Career Technical Education (CTE) pathway that will serve students in grades 9-11; eventually, we would love to see this work extend to our middle schools as well.
MUSD School Showcase
Seeing so many members of our school community and beyond visit our inaugural School Showcase on Thursday, February 16, at Monrovia High School was amazing. This event was an excellent opportunity to highlight all the wonderful things our schools offer students, parents and families, and our community. It was also an honor to showcase our community partnerships that bring so much value to our schools. Thanks to Monrovia Reads, Boys & Girls Club of the Foothills, Monrovia Duarte Black Alumni Association, Food Ed, Amigos de Los Rios, and the Foothill Unity Center for being a part of this evening. Thanks also to all of our teachers and staff for contributing to the success of our School Showcase, a wonderful new tradition!
