CUSD at a Glance

Moving in the Right Direction

2014 has been an interesting year for the Compton Unified School District.  A lot of things have occurred that set our district apart from others. People I come across often ask what’s going on in Compton.  My reply is a lot, there’s always something going on in Compton.   So what are some of the things that set our District apart from other school districts?  Consider the following:

1.       2 National Blue Ribbon Schools Jefferson Elementary School and Tibby Elementary School

2.       Terrell H. Bell Award awarded to principal Mario Marcos, Jefferson Elementary School

3.       2 additional California Distinguished Schools, Jefferson and Tibby Elementary Schools

4.       3 additional schools that have received 3 California Title 1 Achieving School Awards

a.       Anderson Elementary School

b.      Jefferson Elementary School

c.       Tibby Elementary School

5.       1  school site that has received National Title 1 Achieving School Award

a.       Laurel Elementary School

6.       Fourth straight year of graduation rate increases district-wide

7.       500% increase in UC admissions to the University of California Irvine, Dominguez HS

8.       Five schools awarded the Apple ConnectEd grant

a.       Bursch Elementary School

b.      Carver Elementary School

c.       Jefferson Elementary School

d.      Kelly Elementary School

e.      Walton Middle School

9.       Turnaround Arts Grant Awarded to King Elementary School

10.    Collaboration with the William Morris Foundation to deliver arts programming to sites

11.   Project Lead the Way Implementation at our secondary school sites

12.   Early College Implementation at the high school level scheduled for 2015-2016

13.   Curb appeal focus and implementation of several facilities projects district-wide

14.   Development of Academies underway at the secondary level

15.   Budget and spending aligned with District priority to remain fiscally solvent

Vision to Learn Partnership Launched in Compton

Fifty-nine Students Receive Glasses

Several of our students received a new set of eye glasses through the Vision to Learn Partnership with the Compton Unified School District. Today each student that received a new set of eye glasses is one step closer to fulfilling our district mission related to student achievement.  On Friday, November 14, Vision to Learn (VTL) provided new eyeglasses for students at Clinton Elementary and Dominguez High School.  The event was held at the St. John’s Wellness Clinic housed on the campus of Dominguez High School. 

First Annual STEM Day Event

The Flying Classroom

Thanks to all (Administrators, Teachers, Classified Staff, Students and Volunteers) who were involved in pulling together CUSD Inaugural STEM DAY event. It took a huge effort to make this event great and I would like to think that it affirmed to the community (near and far) CUSD’s commitment to academics at the secondary level and STEM education in general.  The day highlighted the importance of science, technology, engineering and mathematics skills and showcased student’s work on Project Lead The Way (PLTW) projects which encourage problem solving, collaboration and communication…be very proud of them—their collective growth and knowledge.

A special thank you goes out to Davis Middle School Staff.  The work and effort to ensure the day occurred was vivid—you are all appreciated.

A VERY special thanks of gratitude goes out to Capitan Barrington Irving for including Compton Unified in his “The FLYING CLASSROOM” curriculum excursion and sharing his life perspective on STEM and education with our students.

Project Reach and the K-2 Initiative

A Partnership between CUSD and Dominguez Hills

CUSD and CSU Dominguez Hills are currently in talks to develop a partnership to impact student achievement in the primary grades and secondary configurations of middle school and high school.  The goal of the partnership is two-fold; to provide a firm foundation for student learning in the primary grades and establish a strong foundation for students at the secondary level to capitalize on college and career readiness opportunities. 

The K-2 Initiative will focus on building the essential skills for students to successfully grasp skills that tend to be missing in students that do not attend quality preschool programs. 

Our Project Reach Program will place special emphasis on reading complex text and explanatory and argumentative writing.  A special emphasis will be placed on the citing evidence in both reading and writing along with understanding technical vocabulary. 

Both programs will focus on early intervention for students that are necessary to provide needed support in the area of reading, math and writing.

Terrel H. Bell Recipient for Excellent Leadership

Terrel H. Bell Award for Outstanding School Leadership Will be Awarded to Mario Marcos

Mr. Mario Marcos principal of Jefferson Elementary School will be presented with the Terrel H. Bell Award for Outstanding School Leadership.  The presentation of this award will occur at the 2014 National Blue Ribbon Schools Awards Ceremony.  There are a total of eight individuals in the nation that will receive this award.  This prestigious award will be presented to him by the U.S. Department of Education, together with the National Association of Elementary School Principals, the Association of Middle-Level Education, and the National Association of Secondary School Principals.  The award is being presented in memory of former Secretary of Education Terrel H. Bell and recognizes outstanding school leadership and its impact on students.  Mr. Marcos has been nominated for this award for fostering successful teaching and learning at his school.  The motto of the school is “Excuses Perpetuate Failure.”  
 

Under his leadership Jefferson students API scores rose from 758 to 865, moving from 15th to 3rd in the district and earning several significant distinctions pertaining to student learning such as California Distinguished School recognition, Title I Academic Achievement Award, Apple Connect ED Grant, and National Blue Ribbon distinction.  

 

Mr. Marcos is receiving this award for transforming his site into a center for excellence.  His vision and leadership has produced outstanding results for students closing the achievement gap, regardless of race, language proficiency, or socioeconomic status.  He has shown that with effective leadership and teaching and a firm conviction, all students can learn.  Job well done Mr. Marcos. Congratulations!

 

 

Achieve UC Day A Huge Success

Dominguez High School celebrated their 500% increase in UC admissions by hosting Achieve UC Day on Thursday, October 30.  The event was a huge success.  For more details click on the following link:

http://news.uci.edu/features/encouraging-words/

Compton Schools Fare Well in the ConnectED Grant Process

APPLE Connect ED Grant Awarded to Five Schools in CUSD

 Great things continue to happen within our school district.  Today we were notified that five of our schools received the Apple ConnectED grant.  We are thrilled that five of only one-hundred and fourteen schools selected are here in Compton.  This is a significant accomplishment.  We are excited about this partnership with Apple and the technology experience that will be afforded to students and teachers within the following five schools:

1.      Walton Middle School

2.      Bursch Elementary

3.      Kelly Elementary

4.      Jefferson Elementary

5.      Washington-Carver Elementary

 

Compton Students Attend UC Day

UC Day A Huge Success

More than 300 students attended our First Annual UC Day held at the Carson Community Center on Saturday September 27, 2014.  The event provided students and their parents with an opportunity to interact with recruiters from various University of California Campuses such as UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UC Merced, UCLA, UC Riverside, UC Santa Barbara and UC Santa Cruz.  Students were provided with an overview of the A-G requirements, the UC application process, and information on activities that will enable them to make their application process competitive. Information was also provided to students on each universities’ applicant pool, and admissions requirements for incoming freshmen.  Overall, students learned how to submit a competitive application, and were provided with a host of resources and financial options for college. 

UC Admissions on the Rise

Dominguez High School accomplishes significant gains in UC admissions. 

We received news that Dominguez High School increased their admission rate to the University of California Irvine by 500%.  This is just one of many reasons to be proud of our students, teachers, and employees that contributed to this accomplishment.  We will celebrate their accomplishment on October 30, 2014 at Dominguez High School. 

Congratulations once again to Dominguez High School students, teachers and staff for this significant achievement.

Compton has a reason to be very, very proud.

Two of our elementary schools, Jefferson and Tibby, were named as Blue Ribbon Schools today
(September 30) by the U.S. Department of Education.

Think about that--only 24 were named in the entire state of California and Compton has two of them!

Congratulations to our teachers, staff, administrators and especially our students for achieving this.

A city like Compton where nearly one-third of our children live in poverty has two schools that have earned a prestigious national achievement.

You need to let that fact soak in and really enjoy it.

The fact that Compton has two National Blue Ribbon winners today represents the swift positive change underway in our school district. Our students must be prepared for college or career tech and
21st century jobs."

We want to make sure that everyone understands Jefferson and Tibby are among the many Compton
schools leading the charge as we close the achievement gap in Compton.
The improved student success we are seeing in Compton schools will only continue.

District-wide, our test scores and high school graduation rates are both increasing, and we are setting the table for even more success in the classroom this week, this year, next year and the year to come.

Congratulations to everyone in the Compton schools who work every day to make sure our students
succeed, are safe and being prepared for life in the 21st Century.

Be proud Compton. Be very proud.