TROJAN UPDATE

In This IssueWhat’s theECAP?TROJAN UPDATEDecember, 2011 Volume II No. 2Trojan Flash MobPita KafleyDesigns NewFoundation LogoAFJROTCNamed Best atParadeMr. Brown’sClasses WinFeather ContestCatalina FoundationGrants forTeachersKeesal SelectedAlumnus of theYearYoung Writers’WorkshopA Happy Holiday from the Staff at Catalina!Euphonium players Jordan Weiland and Dustin Desilets preparefor the Dec. 13th Holiday Concert, which also featured the CatalinaMixed Choir and a guitar duet. Ms. Stewart led the band; Ms. Dluehoshdirected our chorus.Catalina Magnet High School 3645 E. Pima Tucson, AZ 232-8400 Fax 232-8401

Dear Catalina Students and Parents –As we get set to close the books on the first semester of this school year, I’d like to share with you someitems of interest and note that were part of our school’s growth and development over the last few months:· Catalina was fully accredited by the national rating organization responsible for assuring that schoolsare doing all that is required of them. An accreditation review team visited our school for two dayslast month, reviewing significant documents, visiting classrooms and interviewing students, staffand parents. The team looks at seven standard areas at each school it visits and, quoting from theirwebsite, “considers all aspects of how institutions deliver quality education, which include teachingand learning, vision and strategies, governance, data use, resources, and self- improvement.” Tolearn more about the accreditation process, paste this link into your web browser: http://www.advanced.org/what-accreditation· Our teachers continue to work in their classrooms and with each other to fully implement theEssential Elements of Instruction decision-making model. All teachers in TUSD have been trainedin this model as of the end of this semester and are now focused on using what they learned withtheir students. Each of our teachers has selected two faculty “study buddies” to work with them oneffective use of this model. They visit each other’s classrooms to conduct formative observations.Administrators are also working with teachers on better use of the model, which emphasizesfrequent checks of student understanding during any given lesson.· Assistant Principal Dave Berry has come up with an innovative and helpfulAIMS tutoring program for sophomores that we believe will help themto pass the AIMS tests when they take them in February and April. Byanalyzing student performance on other tests they took as freshmen andin 8 th grade, Mr. Berry came up with a list of students who will most benefitfrom this tutoring program. Students will be excused from one of theirelective classes to engage in the program right before the AIMS tests areadministered.· Incidents of student behavior requiring out of school suspension havedeclined drastically at Catalina over the last three years. During the 2009- Principal Rex Scott10 school year, there were 120 suspensions during the first four months ofschool. The following school year, that number was reduced during the same period of time to 80.This school year, there were only 36 suspensions during that same span of time. These significantreductions speak to the hard work our staff is doing with our students, but is also a credit to the factthat our students are more focused on the work that they must undertake to be successful in school.· The renovations in our Fine Arts wing are partially completed and will be completely finished by theend of this school year. Work in the Auditorium and Little Theater is already done and both facilitieslook terrific! We will be working with one of our feeder middle schools to share staffing resourcesso that we are able to offer more classes in choir, drama and orchestra next year, as well as continueour commitments to band, guitar and mariachi. Kudos goes to Assistant Principal Pablo Madrid andProject Manager Ed Lees for their oversight of this important project.· During two Saturdays in November, over 100 students, staff and neighborhood volunteers workedtogether to plant trees, clear brush and weeds and beautify the campus and its perimeter. I want toespecially thank Catalina teacher Julie Kasper and her students for securing grant funds for some ofthe campus beautification efforts and our friends in the Palo Verde Neighborhood Association fortheir leadership and support of both these projects.- Continued next pageTROJAN UPDATE December, 2011 Page 2

· Our 2011 state champion baseball and boys’ volleyball teams were honored during halftime atthe December 13 th basketball game and presented with their championship rings. I would like tothank Athletic Director Ken Harcus for his leadership and caring in securing the funding for theserings and would also like to express our gratitude to Superintendent John Pedicone for his efforts inhelping us to make sure that these athletes received the rings they earned through their hard workand commitment.We still have a great deal of work to do to ensure that Catalina is the school all of us want it to be. Pleasevisit the page on our school website that outlines the “shared vision” we have developed for our school:http://edweb.tusd1.org/Catalina/sharedvision.htm. I am always eager and willing to hear your ideas, suggestions andconcerns. You can reach me at 232-8406, or e-mail me at rex.scott@tusd1.org.As always, thank you for the distinct honor of working with your children and this community. I am soproud, each and every day, to be your principal!Sincerely,Rex ScottPrincipalFINE ARTSIn October, the Catalina High School Foundation requested the helpof our student artists by offering them the opportunity to design theorganization’s first logo. The Foundation’s selection committee hada difficult task choosing the best design as many wonderful designshad been submitted for the contest. Pita Kafley’s design was chosento represent the Foundation and he received a $50.00 prize for hiswinning entry. Ahreum Choe and Fabian Roman tied for second place.Brenda Sanchez and Marqueisha Reed received Honorable Mentionwith a nod for creativity to Marqueisha. Thank-you to all Catalina’sartists who submitted work to the contest!CLASS NEWS -Second Quarter has been a busy, constructive time for the Fine Arts Department as documented bythe following department teachers.Ms. Stewart-For the 3 rd consecutive year, members of the Trojan Pride Band are forming a small ensemble to performfor community holiday events. The ensemble is scheduled to perform 12/11 for the Garden FlowerNeighborhood Association Holiday Party at the Tucson Botanical Gardens. The group will also perform atthe Community of Hope church seniors group on 12/15. We will wrap up the holiday season by performingtraditional Christmas carols in the halls of Catalina High Magnet School on Thursday, 12/15.Ms. Bastin-All the Beginning Art and Clay classes have had a productive semester. The Beginning Art classes areworking on Georgia O’Keeffe style oil pastel drawings. Clay classes are finishing decorative handle mugs,candleboxes and final projects, using handbuilding techniques learned as the semester comes to an end.TROJAN UPDATE December, 2011 Page 3

- From previous pageMr. Faroulo -We are currently working on single point perspective pen and ink pictures. Our subject is a winterscene with log cabin and snow covered trees. Our final is a portrait of a Jaguar; we learned about the animaland discussed the most recent sightings of this beautiful big cat in southern Arizona. When we return inJanuary we will be learning to draw the human head, starting with a portrait of Abraham Lincoln, and thenwe will progress to portraits of other civil rights leaders.Mrs. Ketchum-Advanced Art demonstrated their abilities as graphic design artists by making their own jewel caseCDs followed by designing and silk-screening t-shirts.Crafts students designed, created and decorated clay masquerade masks verifying form does indeedfollow function.Students in Digital Photography/Printmaking classes researched a famous photographer, wrote anessay about the photographer and then took a photograph emulating the photographer’s work. The photographswere very successful and often it was a challenge to distinguish the professional photographer’swork from student work.SAVE THE DATE-On January 29, 2012 the Fine Arts Department will present an afternoon event showcasing Catalinastudents’ musical, vocal, dramatic and visual talents in celebration of our newly remodeled Auditorium andLittle Theater. More “Curtains Up!” information to follow!- Mary-Claire Ketchum, Fine Arts Dept. ChairMr. Harcus’s Athletics UpdateOur Winter Teams are off and running and have been very successfulso far. The Winter Break will offer students at Catalinaa chance to rest and re-energize for the beginning of the 3 rdquarter on Jan. 3 rd . Catalina’s Boys and Girls Basketball Teams,Boys and Girls Soccer Teams, and the Wrestling Team will bebusy fulfilling family responsibilities, attending practices, orinvolved in a Winter Tournament.Catalina is fortunate to have all of you that are involved as“Athletic Parents.” Parents offer support that involves time,money, and the ability to help raise money to help programsKen Harcus,Athletic Directorat Catalina provide the best for students. As you know, the easiest and best way to help raise money isto make a personal Tax Credit donation, and/or to encourage family members, friends, or co-workers todonate. Everyone gets the entire amount back in a tax credit.At Catalina, we are striving to build an interscholastic program of which the school community is proud,and one that neighboring schools and/or districts seek to emulate. Your students are helping to make thishappen. Thanks!TROJAN UPDATE December, 2011 Page 4

What’s the ECAP?On February 25, 2008 the Arizona State Board of Educationapproved Education and Career Action Plans for all Arizonastudents grades 9-12. We as educators believe that integrating anEducation and Career Action Plan (ECAP) process into all facetsof the school experience enables students to be lifelong learnersand problem-solvers, developing and applying 21st century skillsto their life experiences, as students, as workers, as consumers,and as responsible citizens. With the ability to identify skills andinterests and to apply that knowledge to create their own ECAP,our students will have developed needed skills to advance in amore fluid, seamless transition, meeting 21 st Century technologiesand work place postsecondary requirements. An ECAP reflectsa student’s current plan of coursework, career aspirations, andextended learning opportunities in order to develop the student’sRogelio Hernandez, Career/Post-Secondary Counselorindividual academic and career goals. One of the ways that Catalina Magnet High School will implementthe Education and Career Action Plans will be by having each student create an AzCIS (Arizona CareerInformation System) account.AzCIS provides comprehensive career information for students developing and updatingeducational plans. Using AzCIS in high school supports lifelong career planning and promotes careerself-reliance. AzCIS includes tools that encourage self-assessment, exploration, research, goal setting, anddecision-making.Many of our students have already created an account and they can log in at any time by going tohttp://azcis.intocareers.org/ and clicking in the High School link. If you have any questions or concerns,you can contact me at (520) 232-8419 or send me an email at Rogelio.Hernandez@tusd1.orgTop Ten Tips to Help You Master a Language10. List your reasons and motivations for learning the language – post your list on the wall to help youstay focused and inspired9. Listen to the radio or to podcasts online & sing along with music in the target language – this will improveyour vocabulary, pronunciation, and confidence8. Read, read, read in the language you want to learn – books, magazines, websites, newspapers…7. Watch movies with the target language (such as English or French) captions (subtitles) on to developyour reading, spelling, and listening skills6. Study online (see websites listed below for some options)5. Create and use a personal dictionary – use it daily…add words, study words, translate words, use thosewords4. Keep a daily journal in the target language (write a little something on your own everyday in English,Spanish, French, Chinese…whatever language you are trying to learn)3. Study with your friends and family: practice together, encourage each other, have fun together with thenew language2. Take risks and be ok with making mistakes, they are the key to learning1. Practice, practice, practice!- Continued next pageTROJAN UPDATE December, 2011 Page 6

2011-2012 Future Business Leaders of America(FBLA) and Link CrewFBLA and Link Crew have been very busy this semester. We havebeen fundraising to replenish our funds that we used for our newt-shirts, which are pretty awesome. One of our members, OscarGuerrero, designed our Link Crew t-shirts and they are really a hit.In the month of November, we put together and collected food forStuff-A-Sack for Catalina’s families in need. This is an annual eventthat Catalina FBLA members complete. Because of the generosityof our Catalina Family, we were able to fill 25 bags with food tohelp those who are less fortunate. In December we are workingon our Send-a-Smile project where we collect toys and supplies foryoung school-age children. We then put the items in shoe boxes,wrap them up, and deliver them to Casa De Los Niño’s. Duringfinals, we held a fundraiser called “Food for Finals” where we solddonuts and hot chocolate to get students prepared physically fortesting.Connie LawsonFBLA AdvisorLink Crew TeacherLink Crew has continued delivering lessons in the freshmen classes and are improving theircommunication skills each month. They have delivered lessons on decision making, teamwork, andhonor. We have another delivery this month with a focus on bullying. One of the highlights of the LinkCrew going into the freshmen classes is the connection they get to make with the students at the end ofthe lessons. The Freshmen Success teachers have told me that is what their students look forward to eachmonth.FBLA and Link Crew have many other activities planned throughout the year and will continue to remainbusy.From the Health OfficeRemember to update your contact information in the Health Office if you move or change your phonenumber, have new allergies, or new health information. Immunization due notices will be sent out beforethe winter break. If you receive a notice that you have immunizations due, please respond as quickly aspossible. Students who have deficiencies can be excluded from school until the needed immunizationsare received. We find that sometimes, students have actually received immunizations, but copies werenever brought to us.If you have receive a referral to a health care provider outside of school, please return the referral to theHealth Office at school after the visit is made.Thank you and enjoy winter break!- Cynthia Wood, Registered NurseTROJAN UPDATE December, 2011 Page 8

Feathers for AllThis November the CatalinaStudent Council hosted their annualfeather drive. In this event, studentsfrom their home room classes donatea quarter for each feather. All of themoney collected goes to Pima CountyBar Associations Young LawyersDivision (YLD) Holiday Party for thechildren of St. Nicholas of Myra.St. Nicholas of Myra is a charitythat works with children in grouphomes and foster care here in Tucson.The holiday party is an event held atMath teacher Jonathan Brown, student contributors -- and morethan $300 of turkey feathers at 25 cents each!Pump It Up in which the children of St. Nicholas of Myra get a chance to come and have fun and for someof them get the only presents they will receive all holiday season. It is organized by members of the PimaCounty Bar Association’s YLD. This is a group of young attorneys throughout Pima County that donatetheir time and money to run this event.This year the Catalina Student Council set a goal of $2000, a lofty goal compared to last year inwhich they raised $1500. Although it was a lofty goal Student Council knew that the school was up to thechallenge and the students and faculty did not disappoint. After three weeks of selling feathers Catalinaraised over $2200 for the charity. The 3 rd period class that raised the most money was awarded a lunchpizza party provided by the Student Council. For the third straight year Jonathon Brown’s class toppedthe charts. His class alone donated in excess of $300. However, this year was not as easy as it had beenin the past, as challenges from Ms. Colon, Mr. Diffin, and Mr. Abate’s classes made Mr. Brown’s class sweat.But in the end Mr. Brown’s class slowly pulled away to take the victory.Student Council wants to thank everyone who helped raise money for this worthy cause. Next yearwe want to raise over $3000!- Sam Rolfe, Student Council AdvisorFOUNDATION INTERACTS WITH STUDENTS ANDALUMNIPita Kafley Designs New Foundation Logo: The Foundation has used Catalina’s logo on its newsletter andother items for the past five years, and the Foundation decided to have a student art contest to design anew logo for its use. From the 25 entries, Pita Kafley’s design was selected, and he was awarded the $50prize. Thanks to all the participants.Alumni Honored: Three Catalina graduates were honored for their volunteerism on October 20. HeatherMoore-Martin, Class of 1987 and head coach of the boys and girls volleyball teams, received a Certificate- Continued next pageTROJAN UPDATE December, 2011 Page 9

CHS Foundation Grants Fall 2011-Spring 2012Did you know that in addition to carrying the torch for our proud Trojan traditions, the CatalinaFoundation also funds classroom projects? Here are some of the recent grants:Elliot Price (math teacher and NHS sponsor)$363.55 to purchase 35 quality compasses to be used in geometry classMary Cassidy (Level 1 ELD teacher)$100 for a set of 25 headphones for English language classDhan Galley$500 to help support the Cultural Fair at the Boys and Girls Club on November 5, 2011 for refugeestudents and their familiesMark Hanna$110 (109.95) to take CHS girls to U of A Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) Expanding YourHorizons Conference(registration and van rental)Jama Dluehosh$500 for Catalina Choir and Glee ClubStart-up funding to re-establish a Mixed Chorus and a Show Choir. Specifically,**A stipend for an accompanist 1 day per week as a supplement to the District Accompanist who can onlycome on Fridays. ($12.00 per visit, not to exceed $240).**Purchase a portable CD player to be used for rehearsal and can be connected to the Auditoriium soundsystem ($100.00)**Open a purchase order with Instrumental Music and Musicland to purchase sheet music (seed money—they will do fundraising)**Seed money to purchase fundraising items which will in turn fund travel and field trip expenses.William Abate$475.50 to purchase dissection tools that are NOT rusted for the anatomy and physiology classesNatasha Escalada-Westland/Alicia Lara/Joseph CyrAuthentic Language Use Video & Audio Conversation Exchange for Spanish, French and Deaf individuals.$300 to purchase 7 USB pc Camera Webcam with microphone ($140+tax) and 7 USB pc Microphoneswith headsets ($140 + tax) To enable students to record themselves on video or audio or have liveconversations in the language they are learning and receive replies from native speakers. Will engagecommunity native speakers and volunteers from school for the deaf, nursing homes and relatives who arenative speakersStephen Murray$250 to purchase Mac OS X 10.3 and 6 optical mice to upgrade and modernize the web browsers forbiology classes to allow the use of 24 iMacs which otherwise are unusable.TROJAN UPDATE December, 2011 Page 11

RODEO ROPER SELECTED 2011 ALUMNUS OFTHE YEARSamuel “Skip” Keesal was born in Chicago, and was raised on a ranch in Tucsonwhere he enjoyed roping. While a Catalina senior, Skip was active as a representative for the Red Cross andhis homeroom, president of both 4-H Club and Hi-Y, and a member of the baseball team, the debate team,and the Senior Prom decoration committee. He graduated from Catalina High School in 1957, the firstgraduation class.After graduation from Catalina, Skip served in the United States Army, and then he attended The Universityof Arizona and California State University at Long Beach (CSULB). Skip graduated from CSULB in 1962 witha B.S. degree in Business. In 1965, he earned an LL.B. from the University of Southern California Law School.Having worked for several law firms, Skip founded the law offices of Keesal, Young & Logan in 1970. Thefirm has grown to 65 attorneys with offices in Long Beach, San Francisco, Seattle, Anchorage, and HongKong. He has been named to the “Best Lawyers in America,” both in civil litigation and maritime law.Skip has dedicated himself and his firm to the local community by supporting numerous charitable andcivic projects. He serves on the Board of Directors for Long Beach Area Council of Boy Scouts of America andthe YMCA of Greater Long Beach. Skip has recently joined the Board of Trustees at Long Beach MemorialHospital. Skip is a strong supporter of education and supports many programs sponsored by local schools.In 1997, Keesal, Young & Logan was named as the “Outstanding Corporation.” The Children’s Health Fundawarded Skip the “Big Apple” award for his outstanding contributions to children’s health care. Skip is anavid supporter of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Long Beach.In addition to skiing, Skip Keesal still participates in an occasional roping competition at local rodeos, apastime he has enjoyed since childhood. Skip currently resides in Rolling Hills, CA, with his wife, Beth.- Margaret-Ann Fangmeier, Class of 1958CHSF Board MemberTROJAN UPDATE December, 2011 Page 12

GRAD NIGHT 2012Hear ye! Hear ye! Step right up and see the GreatestShow on Earth. Come right into our big top tentand have the time of your lives. If you can’t tell bynow, our theme for this year’s grad night is “Circus,Under the Big Top”. We have some absolutelyamazing things planned for our seniors. This is ourthird annual grad night and each year it gets biggerand better. The students will not be disappointed.You would not believe how we transform the gym.The food and snacks are going to be delicious. Thegames are tons of fun. And the show that will beput on (which we can’t say because we want it to be a surprise) will be incredible!!! This is an event yourstudent will not want to miss. The price is $50. No student will be turned away for lack of funds. We do tryand provide as many scholarships as possible. Have your student stop by the Finance Office and pick upthe paperwork.If you would like to help, we can always use it, please contact Cindy Dunn at 869-6401.From the Math DepartmentWe would like to remind you of the importance of homework and good study habits.Homework is a very important part of mastering math skills. Math is a very complex subject, and it isimportant that the skills learned in class are reinforced as soon as possible. It is usually helpful to doyour homework in a quiet, well lit place with minimal distraction. It is also helpful to set up a routine ofdoing your homework at a certain time each day. If you keep up with your math homework, the class willbe easier and your grade will benefit.We have tutoring available:Tutoring is available before and after school on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursday from 2.45- 3.30.You can also make arrangements with your regular math teacher for help before or after school. Help isalways just a question away. Don’t be shy.If you are planning to go to the U of A or Pima College, you will need to take a placement test for yourmath classes. This is a comprehensive test so it is important that you study before the exam. There willbe material on the test that you may not have worked with for quite awhile. See a math teacher if youneed help. All you have to do is ask.- Michael McGlynn, Math Department ChairTROJAN UPDATE December, 2011 Page 13

Fetal Pig Dissection in ScienceThe Science Department and Mr. Abate would like to thank theCatalina High School Foundation (CHSF) for awarding Anatomy andPhysiology a grant to purchase new Dissection Tools for use in nextsemesters’ Fetal Pig Dissection Labs. This is the second year thatCHSF has awarded a grant for Anatomy and Physiology. Last Yearthe Foundation purchased Fetal Pigs and this year students willbenefit in this important exercise by having safer and higher qualitydissection tools available.The dissections are an important component, especially in Anatomyand Physiology, in that students are able to gain a greaterappreciation for the complexities of life and see for themselves thesimilarities that many mammals share. This alone reinforces manystate and national standards for Science and is typically a hallmarkevent for many high school students.Reading about, having illustrations, and even watching “You-Tube”videos about dissections can never replace the significance ofactually performing one first hand. And for this the entire Sciencedepartment says, “Thank you.”- William Abate, Science TeacherWelcome, Mr. Nitka! Farewell, Mr. Berrellez!The Social Studies Department has been undergoing a change this year. Mr. John Nitka has joined theDepartment as our Economics teacher for the seniors. Economics was added this year as a requirementfor graduation by the State. Years ago it went by the name Free Enterprise before the State questioned itsneed and now the have figured out that students could benefit from the exposure to the economic structuresof the U. S. and the world. It is a semester course that splits the year with American Governmenttaking the opposite semester. Mr. Nitka came to us from Palo Verde and took the place of Mr. Eric Moorewho retired at the end of last year.Also at the end of this first semester Mr. Raul Berrellez will be retiring to spend time with his wife andfamily. Raul has been here 17 years at Catalina and has taught a variety of our classes in social studiesincluding Ethnic Studies, American History, and Government along with helping create our Mariachi program.He will be missed especially because he was also our FRIEND!!!!- Mark S. Shaffer, Social Studies Dept. ChairTROJAN UPDATE December, 2011 Page 14

Dropout Center Helps the Less FortunateThis is what the firefighters do with the money they raiseat the Chile Cook off! It involves the whole city and benefitslots of schools. My job was checking in the TUSD schoolsand I know there was a bunch from Sunnyside also. We letthem know how many boxes we can handle and at the endof the event we all line up in our cars and they load us up.It is very well organized and a fun project to be involved infor community service. We will repeat the whole process onthe weekend of the 17th and I will bring another load hereto the school. The boxes have a huge whole chicken, carrots,potatoes and the makings for a holiday meal including afrozen Marie Callender pumpkin pie!From the WorldLanguage Department- Susan Curtis, Dropout CoordinatorIn the spring of 2011, the World LanguageDepartment was awarded an EEF grant to helppurchase materials for an Authentic LanguageUse Library. With these funds we purchasedcomputers and equipment that would assist usin creating audio visual recordings of authenticlanguage spoken or signed by native speakers.In the ASL classroom, Ms. Escalada-Westland hada guest speaker from Gallaudet University comeand talk to her classes. Gallaudet University isthe only university for the deaf in the world. It islocated in Washington, D.C. and is now accepting 5% of their incoming undergraduates from the hearingcommunity. She is also in the process of making connections with the Arizona School for the Deaf andBlind so that students can work firsthand with deaf students in Tucson.In the Spanish classes, students in the advanced classes made storybooks of traditional Mexican legendsand will be visiting elementary schools in the spring to read to Kindergarten and 1st grade classes. Thenative speakers will be videotaped and these videos will be used by the lower level classes as a source ofauthentic learning.In French, students are continuing to learn that French is used worldwide as an everyday language;outside of Europe, French is spoken by over 100 million people on four other continents. The advanced(third-year) students are currently preparing to recite a 17 th century fable by Jean De La Fontaine.We also recently received a grant from the Catalina Foundation to help us purchase more equipment toassist us with the Authentic Language Use Library which will include web cameras and headphones sothat students can communicate with others in the community via the internet.- Alicia Lara, World Language Dept. ChairTROJAN UPDATE December, 2011 Page 15

Young Writers’ WorkshopA Young Writers’ Workshop was held at Catalina High School on Thursday, Dec. 1. Approximately 100TUSD students attended the event, which was funded with a grant from the Educational EnrichmentFoundation, and had an opportunity to interact with four published authors talk about the writingprocess and the publishing process. The four authors were Stan Strom, author of Blue Ribbon Dessertsand Catalina graduate (1977); Robin Brande, local author of several Young Adult fiction books; BobHunton, local author and former middle school teacher; and poet and slam artist, Logan Phillips. Writingevents and activities during 3 rd quarter:Book mark contest – due Feb. 14. Templates will be sent to interested schools in January. Ask your librarian for acopy.Writings for TUSD student anthology to be “published” on EBM at U of A and available for sale at the Festival ofBooks – due Feb. 3 in final form. Please submit them electronically to Cheryl.beran@tusd1.org. Students whosubmit work that is included in the anthology will be invited to present their work at the TUSD booth at the Festivalof Books, March 10 and 11.Students can post their writings on the Festival of Books’ teen blog, www.tucsonsteensread.blogspot.com and getfeedback from other teens and authors.Watch for the opportunity to conduct student interviews of authors, and create either a digital video that will beplayed at TUSD’s booth at the Festival of Books, or via podcast. We will be looking for students to participate inthis! Contact Patricia McKelvy for more info: patricia.mckelvy@hotmail.com. Start practicing for the poetry slamsthat are coming up in March and April. Cash prizes are awarded at some of the slams held at Bentley’s House ofCoffee and Tea on Speedway. Check out http://tucsonyouthslam.blogspot.com/ for more information.For more information, please contact cheryl.beran@tusd1.org.Freshman House UpdateAs first semester comes to an end, we continue tosee amazing progress toward a truly amazing schoolclimate and fantastic efforts to implement structuresand supports, which ensure the success of all studentsat Catalina. Through the work of our FreshmanHouses, Response to Intervention courses and collaborativeefforts of our staff, our school communitydemonstrates is commitment to Catalina’s goals andvision.On December 8 th , Griffin, Pegasus and Phoenix Houses came together to celebrate student achievements.House officers planned games, house presidents presented speeches and house teachers granted studentawards. Assistant Superintendent, Dr. Maria Menconi, attended the celebration. It was a wonderful exampleof student spirit and dedication to everything that makes Catalina staff and students exemplary.- Continued next pageTROJAN UPDATE December, 2011 Page 16

Our Response to Intervention courses have, also, made great strides to reach our most deserving studentsof additional support to aid in their efforts toward graduation. Starting next semester, students will berecommended for services based on a formula using standardized tests scores, in addition to their demonstrationof standard mastery through the first three formal reporting periods in first semester.As always, students and families in need of assistance for grade, attendance or other concerns are encouragedto contact me, Catalina’s Learning Support Coordinator. I am always happy to assist in discussingopportunities, resources and/or setting up conferences to remove barriers to student success.- Mary Morse, Learning Support CoordinatorCollege and Career Readiness“Catalina Goes to College” is our motto and that has been manifestingitself in many ways around here lately! We have hadvisits from the UA, NAU, Pima, Cottey College, Cochise College,the Naval Academy, Northwestern University, and other collegeadmission representatives. In October I accompanied 6 freshmenand sophomore students in attending the Pima MathematicsCompetition at the Downtown Campus. The students got to hearthe lead scientist on the UA Mars Phoenix Rover project, tour thecampus, as well as participate in the competition. In early NovemberI took seven budding young scientists to the ExpandingYour Horizons conference sponsored by the University of ArizonaWomen in Science and Engineering organization. Last week agroup of eight seniors and I got a tour of Grand Canyon Universityin Phoenix.Mark Hanna,College and Career ReadinessCoordinatorThis past Thursday evening we held our 5 th Annual Catalina College Financial Aid Night. Over 100 folksgot important information on what college costs and how you find the money to pay for it! But here is themost important news I can give you – as of today we have 11 seniors admitted to the UA, 11 admitted toNAU, 4 admitted to ASU, and 2 admitted to Embry Riddle among others! It is certainly true that “CatalinaGoes To College”!Reminder, when that ball drops in Times Square at midnight on December 31 st it means that it is FAFSA(Free Application for Federal Student Aid) time for all seniors who are US citizens or permanent residents.You may go to www.fafsa.ed.gov (not fafsa.com!) to complete with your estimated 2011 earningsor have your student come see me for a worksheet that they may return to me so that I can assist themin completing the on-line application. Either way, for many of you, it’s free money for college from yourUncle Sam!As always, feel free to contact me for anything college related! Also make sure that you are on my Collegeand Scholarship Newsletter email list by emailing me at mark.hanna@tusd1.org or calling (520) 232-8418. Have a wonderful holiday, a safe and happy new year and remember – “Catalina Goes to College!”TROJAN UPDATE December, 2011 Page 17

Catalina Flash Mob!On Saturday, October 15 th , approximately 90 of our Catalinastudents participated in a very special event at Tucson’s MeetYourself Festival. In coordination with The Let’s Move Campaign,over 5000 Tucson youth participated in a flash mobworkout.For those that don’t know what a flash mob is, Wikipedia definesit as “a group of people who assemble suddenly in a publicplace, perform an unusual and sometimes seemingly pointlessact for a brief time, then disperse, often for the purposes ofentertainment, satire, artistic expression.”This performance was far from pointless. To assemble this many participants is no small feat. AND to beable to synchronize 5000 kids to dance a 5 minute aerobic/dance routine is very difficult to do! Using Beyonce’ssong “Move Your Body”, a song she created just for the Let’s Move Campaign, was motivating, andour students thought it to be entertaining and fun. Mixing current hip hop dance moves with a little flavorof Latin salsa added for good measure helped kids burn a few calories! I can also guarantee you that thisgreat workout raised their heart rates; and dancing in 90 degree weather also worked up a sweat!Students had so much fun learning this dance that about 75 of them volunteered to perform it for theentire student body at our Winter Assembly, on October 18th. And once again, they carried on the traditionof mustering up enough courage to perform in front of their peers, and to show off their dance skills.Great job and thank you dance students!I also wanted to thank the parents of these students for allowing them to participate in these great events,and also, thank you for providing their transportation to and from the Tucson Community Center.From the Physical Education Department, Happy Holidays to you and your loved ones.Exceptional Education- Rosa Lara, Physical Education Dept. Chair and Dance TeacherThe Exceptional Education department has been very busy. Our seniors are planning for “life after highschool” by applying to various post-secondary programs and completing the Compass and other collegeassessments. Renee Donovan, our job developer, has been working with many of our seniors on theseactivities.Resource teacher Carol Ann Sharrock has begun co-teaching an Earth Science class with Mr. Zwick. Thereis a lot of planning to set this up, and both teachers are working hard to refine their respective roles inthis teaming situation and determine the best ways to deliver academic area content to our students.The purpose of co-teaching is to allow a general education teacher and an exceptional education teacherto work together within the content area curriculum to increase the success of students with IEPs in aspecific class. The special educator brings expertise in modifying classroom content, as well as, clarifyingeach student’s accommodations for the general education teacher.- Continued next pageTROJAN UPDATE December, 2011 Page 18

Catalina’s YOTO Students Win PVNA HolidayFood ChallengeThe Palo Verde Neighborhood Associationrecently held it holiday food drive andthe winners, collecting the most poundsof food for those in need, were Catalina'sYOUTH ON THEIR OWN students. Hereare the number of pounds collected byneighborhood quadrant, plus what waspurchased at Costco with the $475 collectedfrom neighbors:SE - 312NE - 106NW - 585SW - 253Costco - 275Total 1531 poundsINDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE CHANGED OUR WORLD: Everyone who donated non-perishable food in yourquadrants, and collectively the neighbors who donated $475. Canned chicken, salmon, tuna and beef werepurchased, along with fresh chicken thighs, pork sirloin roasts, bacon, cheese and bread. Our AGI Walgreen'sat Grant & Alvernon donated $150 in canned protein (chicken/ham/tuna/chili-beef/meat soups).- Ronni Kotwica, PVNA PresidentImproved Trojan Website Gets Blurb in Daily Star“View Catalina Magnet Site in 10 Languages“Catalina Magnet High School's website is now available in 10 different languages.“The translator, powered by Google, offers visitors the option of viewing the site in Arabic, Chinese - simplifiedand traditional, French, Hindi, Indonesian, Korean, Persian, Russian and Spanish.”- December 12th Arizona Daily StarTROJAN UPDATE Vol. II, No. 2 December, 2011The Trojan Update is a quarterly publication of Catalina Magnet High School. Allrights reserved. View this quarter’s newsletter in living color at our website, http://edweb.tusd1.org/Catalina.TROJAN UPDATE December, 2011 Page 20