Congratulations, Brian Bernardino! You are the December Student of the Month!

Brian is a Junior Academy 8 student whose favorite class is computer science.  His favorite teacher is Mr. Groat.  Brian is also very proud that he tripled his Accelerated Reader (AR) goal.

Here is what his teacher’s said:

Mrs. Nash: “He is such a hard worker, giving full effort in all that he does.  Brian is always listening and on task, regardless of distractions around him.  He works well in any capacity and is helpful to others.  Family is very important to Brian, and he is often taking care of his siblings or writing about them in journals/essays. He is diligent with AR and frequently suggests books to other students, including his siblings.  I see Brian carrying multiple lunch boxes from the office daily and delivering them to others.  He has spent many days after school organizing library books and the library card box, all of his own volition. 

Mrs. Gough: “Brian is consistent with his effort and always willing to help his classmates.  He volunteers in class and is diligent with his assignments and projects.  In science, e is innovative, creative and persistent.  He tries exceptionally hard and is all around a great person. 

Mr. Groat:  As a brand-new teacher, he was quite helpful to me. I have witnessed his kindness and willingness to assist other students.   He’s a wonderful asset to the entire classroom.

Mr. Sotirokos: “I’ve never had any kind of issue with him and he is always participating.” 

Miss Poppleton: Brian is very sweet and kind and has gained a lot of confidence in math and himself. 

Great Job!

Luc Gelito, JA-7

Congratulations, Luc! you are the Student of the Month for January!

Luc Gelito is a JA-7 student whose favorite classes are computer science, math, and P.E.  His favorite teacher is Mr. Watkins.  Luc is proud to have attended the ASU Math Competition for 4th, 5th, and 6th grade and for maintaining straight A’s.  He enjoys playing video games, baking, watching anime, and watching Youtube. 

Luc’s teachers said the following:

Mr. Brown: “Luc Gelito would be a wonderful addition to the SOM (Student of the Month) club.  He tested very well during finals and is a great example for other students to follow.”

Ms. Poppleton: “He works extremely hard and strives to do well. Luc will come in before or after school for clarification on new material and pushes himself to understand concepts forwards and backwards.  Luc is quick to help classmates understand new material and gets along well with others.  he is also going to be taking part in the Mathlympics through ASU this year!”

Mrs. Capps: “Luc is a top-notch student!  He is excelling on computer science.  Luc is the first student to code an app and create a game.”

Mr. Sotirokos: “Luc gives full effort in every P.E. class, throughout the entire class. He will also coach a student if they are not sure on rules of the game. He is very deserving of the nomination (for Student of the Month).”

Ms. Nash:  “Luc Gelito is an amazing student and has earned Student of the Month. Academically, he puts in full effort, frequently going above and beyond. His words and actions show exemplary character as well as a fun sense of humor.  His writing is fun and creative, and he does not hesitate to share.  Luc works well with others in groups, and he is helpful to those around him. “

Ms. Martin: “Amazing young man and student who is always on task with a smile!”

Mr. Watkins: “He is a very bright and thoughtful student when in class. He is attentive to getting his work done, and more than willing to help other students in class who request peer tutoring.  I am always impressed by Luc’s ability to push past his comfort zone to a complete  a science lab experiment or dissection.” 

Congratulations, Collin Anocibar! You are February’s Student of the Month!

Collin is a JA-6 student whose favorite classes are history, computer science, and P.E.  His favorite teacher is Mr. Brown.  Collin is proud to have made A/B honor roll for first semester and he enjoys playing basketball.

His teachers commented the following:

Mrs. Nash: “Collin comes to class prepared, works hard, and stays on task in the classroom.  he excels academically and works well with others.  Collin is a polite and friendly young man with a fun sense of humor.  He is a delight to have in the classroom.

Mr. Brown: “Collin has been wonderful in my class!”

Keep up the great work, Collin!

Telesis Parents,

As you have heard, students felt strongly of the difficult decision I had to make to remove a teacher from our team at Telesis. I can assure you it was a decision I did not make lightly or without great consideration, first, for what is the right thing to do for the students and for Telesis. So, I did the right thing.

On Monday morning, the students wanted to express their opinions about it. We support our students’ right to free speech and staff members expressed that to them. However, a problem became apparent when we noticed the protest was taking place in one of the main walkways in the JA/Academy campus area.  Even though some were sitting quietly, there was still quite a bit of disturbance to the nearby classrooms.

As the number of students grew, the walkway became blocked.  The other issue was that we couldn’t account for all the students who were not in their classroom seats; we didn’t know who was at the protest or who could have walked off campus.   As safety concerns grew, we asked students to go back to class, so that they could be accounted for and, most importantly, they needed to be safe in their seats, ready to learn.   

Staff members attempted to calmly explain that we understood that they were upset and reiterated that we support their right to free speech, but we also cannot allow students to block the walkway, interrupt instruction time for other students, and not be accounted for.  Ultimately, the main concern was about safety.

There was defiance from students, and they would not go back to class. Some students demanded to talk to me to express their concerns.  I could not hold a conference with students in the walkway that they were blocking–and even if we could convince the students to move to another area, I could not lawfully discuss a personnel issue with them. 

When our efforts to move students back to class were not successful, the decision was made to call parents of the students (who were missing from their classrooms) to advise that suspensions were being given, and the students needed to be picked up from school.  It was a situation we needed to get under control before it got out of control.  

The good news is that we protected their freedom of speech and their right to assemble, and at the same time, kept them safe on campus. No student left campus unaccompanied by an adult, nor was anyone hurt. 

However, I know students were caught up in the passion of the moment, and it may have even been confusing for some students who were caught up in the peer pressure of the moment.  Taking all things into consideration, suspensions given for the Monday incident will be erased. I want to reset the clock and give everyone an equal opportunity to start fresh.

The other good news is that we have an experienced teacher who will be joining our team.

We are happy to welcome Mrs. Nickie Kelley to Telesis.  She will be teaching math, psychology, and computer science. Mrs. Kelley comes to us from Phoenix where she was a teacher. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology. She also has certification in Elementary Education I: English Language Arts, Social Studies; Elementary Education II: Mathematics, Science, Unified Arts; as well as Subject Matter Expert Standard Teaching in grades 6-12. 

Mrs. Kelley is excited to be a part of the Telesis team and is very qualified to do so. In addition to the amazing qualities and capabilities she brings to our students as listed above, she is excited to take part in the MCC Math Olympics coming up next month in Bullhead City. She will begin preparing those students who are planning to go to the annual competition and travel with them to Bullhead City for the math competition. 

Thank you for your support and understanding regarding Monday’s matter.  We are looking forward to a great remainder of the school year.

Sincerely,

Dr. Sandy Breece

Telesis Parents and Students,

This is a reminder to check your email for information from teachers related to home assignments during the school campus closure. Please remember to check your SPAM and junk mail folders just in case. Please also add notice@telesis-academy.org to your safe sender list.

All the best and thank you for your help in working through this unconventional time.

Parents, Guardians, and Students,

Please see the At Home Assignment Hub (link below) for updates on class assignments while our school campus is closed. The information will be updated as it is received from teachers.

Please continue to monitor your email, ParentVue, and StudentVue as those will be the first forms of communication from teachers.

The At Home Assignment Hub was created to hopefully be a more convenient way to see assignments and updates in on place — especially for those who don’t have 24/7 access to email.

http://www.telesis-academy.org/at-home-assignments/

Thank you and stay healthy!

Telesis Team

Telesis office hours have changed:
March 30–April 10
Monday–Thursday
8am – 12 pm

Pick-up assignments/learning materials will be available at these times. Your child’s teacher will let you know if there will be assignments/learning materials available for pick up on campus. Most assignments and/or assignment instructions will be online.

If school closures are extended, the new office hours will remain.

Please note that office staff may not be on campus (working from home) before/after office hours.

https://azgovernor.gov/governor/news/2020/03/governor-ducey-superintendent-hoffman-announce-extension-school-closures

Governor Ducey, Superintendent Hoffman Announce Extension Of School Closures Through End Of School Year

News Release

Date: April 5, 2020

To: Telesis Parents and Guardians

From: Dr. Sandy Breece, Superintendent/Principal & Founder

Re: Update on school processes during school closure

Dear Parents and Guardians of Telesis Students,

Thank you for being the caregiver and supervisor of your children’s learning during a pandemic none of us predicted would come to this: school closure!

We know that:

• Most of you are not educators, so don’t be hard on yourself.
• None of us know what it will take to catch up after this interruption to school.
• None of you chose “homeschooling;” you didn’t quit your job to do it and haven’t been prepared for this.
• Your child isn’t in an online school and their teachers are trying to expose students to content and experiences that will be meaningful using readily available technology platforms.
• Whatever you and your child get accomplished today is good enough.
• Communicate regularly with teachers and administrators, especially if your child is struggling emotionally, unable to focus or engage in “learning activities” and complete their work.
• Focus on their positive mental health before worrying about their academics.
• Don’t let being their “instructional aide” be more important than being their parent.
• Don’t let this damage or ruin your relationship with your child!

(Some of the above borrowed from a public post from Dr. Ildi Laczko-Kerr.)

We at Telesis support you and your efforts to complete the school year with your children in the best way possible during this difficult time. Our school facilities may be closed, but we are IN school Monday through Friday; we just are not AT school. Initially, upon school closure even before we returned from spring break and learned of school closures across our state, Telesis teachers hit the ground running to develop ways to work best to keep the education moving forward for their students. We are all grateful for their positive and immediate ventures to get the job done and many of our classes started right on point the very first day back from spring break.

Now after considering what could help YOU, the parents/guardians, some who have requested unification on one platform, we wish to unify on one online platform called Moby Max purchased for students in grades K-8 only. Grades 9-12 have different platform needs that will work for each subject, so those classes will remain on the platform that is working best for the teacher and his/her students.

The State Board of Education is requiring schools to provide learning opportunities to students to help with instruction as needed, so they can continue to progress.

This is great news for all students:

• Students who were doing well academically can raise their grades even higher.
• Students who were making average grades have a golden opportunity to elevate their grades to honor roll status and beyond.
• Students who were struggling with concepts can strive to develop skills they lacked and raise their grades to a valuable level.

As a school, our focus will be to look for engagement from students; we are not looking for perfection.  As long as there is an honest effort made toward learning, their grades will not be penalized. 

AR is encouraged to be continued. Students who are reading and taking quizzes can now do so at home under parent/guardian supervision. The State assessments have been cancelled by the state, including the mandatory Civics test for seniors, so at this time the focus is only on providing educational opportunities.

For 9-12 students:

• Per State Board of Education – Local education agencies shall not withhold academic credit or a high school diploma from a student solely because the student missed instructional time due to a school closure issued by the Governor.
• When deciding how to award academic credit and high school diplomas, Telesis will base the decisions on the entire school year but not solely because the student missed instructional time due to a school closure.

For all students:

• Please return any school-related materials (curriculum, AR books, library books, etc.) at the end of the school year to the green drop box in front of the office on campus.

These are stressful times for everybody across the nation as families are going through tough situations. We are providing educational opportunities for all students. Provisions are even being made to assist those who have lack of technology resources. If that is your situation, please reach out to us by calling Telesis (928-855-8661) and leave a message of your need for assistance. Be sure to clearly leave your name and the name(s) of your children and your current phone number.

Last but not least, be safe and stay home following the COVID-19 guidelines as directed. I know I speak for all the teachers and support staff at Telesis when I say

WE MISS OUR STUDENTS!

Sincerely,

Sandra K. Breece, Ed.D.

Superintendent/Principal & Founder

Parents and Students,

Please note that our offices will be closed starting April 13, 2020.  Office staff will still be checking messages and returning calls to assist parents and students.

Office phone number: 928-855-8661

Click Here:

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Reopening Plan for Telesis Center for Learning, Inc.

Telesis Preparatory (Grades PK-5)

Telesis students in Paw Prints Preschool started August 17th very successfully. Students in grades Kindergarten through 5th grade will return to onsite in-person instruction on Monday, August 31st. Younger children have a much harder time with online instruction than older children. With grades K-2, it is very difficult even when parents try to help at home.

All details as described in the Roadmap for Reopening and Mitigation Plans will be followed as described in those documents posted on our website when students return to campus.

The Telesis philosophy includes small class size, but in cases where classes need to be smaller in order to implement social distancing efforts as best as possible, we intend to utilize other areas and classrooms for dividing class sizes as necessary. Each classroom is equipped with a sanitation kit to disinfect classrooms between student usage, in addition to regular disinfectant fogging of classrooms. Traditional drinking fountains have been replaced by water dispensing fountains. Students need to come with a labeled wide-mouthed drinking bottle and lunch from home or Grab & Go lunch for purchase at school. The Enrichment and Tutoring Program after school will begin at a later time.

Online distance learning will still be available for students whose parents/guardians prefer them not to be on campus in-person at this time. However, students can change to in-person instruction on October 12th, 2020 or January 4th, 2021.

We know that for young children, the availability of in-person instruction will enhance their education significantly and we intend to do it as safely as possible staying in their assigned groups in order to reduce transmission adhering to:

• Mandatory mask wearing by students and staff.
• Social distancing as best as possible in classrooms, cafeteria, gymnasium, courtyards, etc.
• Temperatures will be taken before entering classrooms daily with protocol in place when symptoms of illness are detected.

Telesis Preparatory Academy (Grades 6-12)

Telesis students in grades 6th through 12th will return to in-person instruction at a date to be determined after fall break, with a tentative date of October 12th. Our teaching staff at the Junior Academy and Academy levels have worked extra hard to make our online program productive and students really love it.

The Telesis philosophy includes small class size, but in cases where classes need to be smaller in order to implement social distancing efforts as best as possible, we intend to utilize other areas and classrooms as necessary.

Online distance learning will still be available for students whose parents/guardians prefer them not to be on campus in-person. However, students can change to in-person instruction on January 4th, 2021.