T H E
E A R L Y
C O L L E G E
O F
A R V A D A ' S
THE GRIFFIN W E
C A N .
A N D
W E
W I L L .
IMPORTANT DATES
JANUARY 6TH STUDENTS RETURN TO REMOTE LEARNING
JANUARY 18 MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. DAY NO SCHOOL
JANUARY 19 PROFESSIONAL DAY NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS
DOWNLOAD THE COVID EXPOSURE APP FOR IPHONE OR ANDROID TO HELP WITH CONTACT TRACING AND SLOW THE SPREAD
LIKE US ON FACEBOOK
@EARLYCOLLEGEARVADA FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM
J A N U A R Y
I S S U E
@EARLY_COLLEGEARVADA
January Events DEC 28
JAN 4
DEC 29
DEC 30
DEC 31
JAN 1
JAN 5
JAN 6
JAN 7
JAN 8
JAN 14
JAN 15
Winter Break Professional Day (No school for students)
JAN 11
JAN 18
Martin Luther King Day No School
JAN 25
JAN 12
JAN 19
Winter Break Ends, studens return to school
JAN 13
JAN 20
JAN 21
JAN 27
JAN 28
JAN 22
Professional Day (No school for students)
JAN 26
Board Meeting @6
JAN 29
RESOURCES FOR GRIFFIN FAMILIES The Shelter in place order issued by Governor Polis in the spring helped keep people safe during this global pandemic. However, one downfall from this was the economic fallout from the uptick in business closures. We are all doing our best to learn from the past and ECA wants to make sure our families are well equipped in the event of a second wave. We have compiled a list of resources for those who may need them. Don't hesitate to reach out to tcordrey@ecarvada.org for assistance. We are here to help.
Food Christian Action Center in Golden Food Pantries in Arvada This website is specific to Arvada and updated regularly Food Pantries in Lakewood
Free Adams County Drive Through Farmer's Market The next one is on Nov. 10th/4:30-6:30p. They only have 250 boxes and you have to sign up HERE
Shelter Arvada Shelter and Services
This website is specific to
Arvada Shelter List
Lakewood and is updated
Denver Shelters and Housing
regularly
services- Govt. affiliated
Food Pantries in Denver
Denver Shelter List
This website is specific to
Denver Shelters (womxn
Denver and is updated
specific)
regularly
Westminster shelters and
Food Pantries in Westminster
transitional housing
This website is specific to Westminster and is updated regularly Document including Pay as you can grocery stores
ECA WILL HAVE BAGGED LUNCHES FOR PICK UP M-F, 12-1 PM
IMPORTANT REMINDERS
ATTENDANCE Parents, if your child will miss school or be late, you must notify ECA directly. Please call our school’s front desk so we can mark it accordingly. If you only let one of your student’s teachers know it may not be recorded correctly in infinite campus and can negatively affect your student’s grade.
SECOND SEMESTER LEARNING PLAN Students are in remote learning until Adam’s county drops below a 5% positivity rate. As of Thursday, January 14th, Adam’s county positivity rate is above 10%. Students should attend their classes as listed on their schedules from home. Learning this semester is synchronous and is live taught by teachers virtually.
PAGE 6
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
ACADEMIC OPTIMISM TODD CORDREY 720-473-4403 TCORDREY@ECARVADA.ORG
Early College of Arvada is not like other schools. It is a small school with dedicated teachers that know their students. In these times of tremendous disruption in our society, it is easy to lose the connection with students and parents that set us apart. Therefore, we commit to reestablishing a strong relationship built on trust and open communication. The staff at ECA believes in Academic Optimism. “Academic optimism is the collective belief of the faculty that it can make a difference, that students can learn, and that high academic performance can be achieved.” It is through the components of Academic Optimism that allow schools to beat the odds and create learning success for students regardless of their socio-economic environment. The elements embedded in Academic Optimism are Academic emphasis, Collective efficacy, and Faculty trust in parents and students. “Academic emphasis is the extent to which a school faculty is driven by the quest for academic excellence and achievement. Collective efficacy is the perceived collective judgment of teachers as a whole that they can organize and execute the actions required to have positive effects on students. Faculty trust in parents and students is a collective school property that describes the extent to which the faculty is willing to make itself vulnerable to parents and students based on the confidence that these parties are benevolent, reliable, competent, honest, and open.”
PAGE 7
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
The elements embedded in Academic Optimism are Academic emphasis, Collective efficacy, and Faculty trust in parents and students. “Academic emphasis is the extent to which a school faculty is driven by the quest for academic excellence and achievement. Collective efficacy is the perceived collective judgment of teachers as a whole that they can organize and execute the actions required to have positive effects on students. Faculty trust in parents and students is a collective school property that describes the extent to which the faculty is willing to make itself vulnerable to parents and students based on the confidence that these parties are benevolent, reliable, competent, honest, and open.� It is clear that Academic Optimism is not for a lax school or causal teacher. It requires commitment and openness in order to be successful. The Early College of Arvada is such a school and our staff are these types of exceptional educators. As society rebounds from the pandemic; I am confident that our staff will be reengaging with your child and with you in a meaningful way. We hope to be in full in person sooner than later. We believe in your child and we believe in our ability to help them be successful in school and in life. Additionally, I thankful for your devotion, compassion, and dedication to the ECA community. Even though our path this year school year has been long and winding, our brand of Academic Optimism will create a beautiful future for your child. Ps. ECA is enrolling for next year; so please invite your family and friends to join our unique and powerful community by calling me at 720-473-4403 or emailing TCordrey@ECArvada.org.
PRINCIPAL
PAGE 8
WELCOME BACK JANICE ANDERSON JANDERSON@ECARVADA.ORG
Happy New Year and welcome back to the second semester of the 2020-2021 school year. Our students are off to a great start to the semester. I know that starting remote again is not ideal, but we are continuing to monitor the impact of the virus on our community in order to drive our instructional decisions. Our students are all aware of their schedules and we ask that you encourage them to arrive to classes on time and give all their courses their best efforts. Please be aware of our deadlines to make schedule corrections. Reach out to our Counselors if needed. Here at ECA we have an amazing Staff that have gone above and beyond to prepare rigorous standards based lessons. Please encourage all students to reach out to their teachers when they have any questions or need help as soon as they may arise. The sooner we can help the more we can ensure long term academic success. Infinite Campus is a powerful tool to keep everyone informed of each student's grades and assignments as well as communications from the school. Please make sure that you can sign in and see how your student is progressing throughout the semester. Please reach out to any of our staff for any help and support. We know that our country is currently facing challenges and students often have many questions or concerns. Know that as a school we are also here for your family should you need any community support for any of your day to day challenges. We know that these are trying times, so know that we are all here to help. We appreciate you all entrusting us with your students' education and we look forward to working with you throughout 2021.
Counselor Corner BRIDGETTE FOSTER BFOSTER@ECARVADA.ORG
It is not too late to apply to College! Over the next few weeks, take a look at the upcoming application deadlines for Colorado Schools. You can view them on this website: https://www.collegesimply.com/guides/applicationdeadlines/colorado/-"What should I be doing right now?" Create a list of schools you wish to apply to. This means 4-year colleges, 2year colleges, AND/OR community colleges. To discover colleges that are right for you, I recommend using Naviance (Naviance.com) and Niche (Niche.com). Create a "Common App" Account: https://www.commonapp.org/. The Common App allows you to apply to multiple schools at once, saving you a lot of time! Meet with your counselor (me!). Having a meeting will make the process less stressful. I can help create your college list, edit your personal essay, and start your Common App. Overall, applying to college seems like a daunting task. It is completely manageable if you set time aside and START NOW. I know you can do it ECA!
Page 9
Rick Heroff Middle School Dean of Students/C.E & Career Coordinator (720) 473-4400 EXT 320 Concurrent Enrollment Contract: If you are taking college classes in the spring, or are currently taking college classes and haven’t signed our Concurrent Enrollment contract, please click HERE and complete the form. Registration is back for the Spring semester. Below are details Front Range campus classes: All students taking traditional classes from the FRCC campus are being done remotely. This means that if you sign up for a class are mostly run by logging into a Livestream of your class via remote learning instead of going to the campus. Each department has slightly different guidelines click HERE to get details on course offerings, and details of how classes will be offered. AIMS classes: One of our new partners this year has a vast online and remote learning offering for the 20’-21’ school year. We are utilizing AIMS for its remote offerings since their closest campus is a good distance from our community. Students taking courses here will be supplemental to ECA’s offerings. Click HERE for other course offerings this spring semester. College prep checklist: Research schools, and apply (up to 6) Complete your FAFSA Apply to scholarships unique to colleges you’re accepted to, and seek out more!
Early College of Arvada | 10
MIDDLE SCHOOL DEAN OF STUDENTS/C.E & CAREER COORDINATOR
Scholarship resources: -https://www.salliemae.com/college-planning/tools/scholarship-search/ -https://www.scholarships.com/ - And Naviance! Middle School: Digital Assemblies are occurring once every two weeks. Students can win $5 gift cards for academics, attendance, and best comeback. These will begin starting in February! All students are expected to log on at assigned times, following teacher expectations for engagement to be marked present please connect with your student’s teachers or myself if you have any questions or concerns. rheroff@ecarvada.org
Early College of Arvada | 11
End of
Semester
Reminders Guadalupe Marquez
Highschool Dean of Students 720-473-4408
Happy New Year to all of you. I know that remote learning represents a challenge to many of us and it is not the best learning environment, but we are doing all we can to accommodate all of you to ensure you are successful. Please make sure your student checks their schedule and attends the classes on their schedules. If they do not have their class information, do not hesitate to contact the teacher and ask for help.As always, I am here to help and support you in any way I can. Please reach out to me if you have any questions.
Early College of Arvada | 12
GOAL SETTING AND RESOLUTIONS
Personal goals, specific goals, and a growth mindset are all crucial for effective student
Alejandro Reynoso
goal setting. You'll want
EARSS Advisor
specific ways to know if you've
Office: 720-473-4406
achieved your plan, and a
Cell: 720-980-1129
setting where you can be successful. Student goal setting
Welcome Back Griffins, I hope
is all about connecting your
everyone enjoyed their winter break and got the chance to get some rest. As we start a new
educational goals with the rest of your resolutions for the school year. It's never too late
year, it's always good to have
to start or change when it
goals and new resolutions for
comes to student goal setting,
the year. Goal setting and
whether you want to set short
resolutions are all about
or long-term goals. As you stay
measuring your forward progress, and for students that often include academic
positive, work on strategies to alter behavior and motivation, you'll see a great end result.
progress. But many students don't realize that their personal goals often go hand-in-hand with effective academic progress.
Page 13
Extra Curricular Highlights
T IMBE R GRIFFIN Kelly Graham Kgraham@ecarvada.org
Hello friends! Welcome to 2021, we are so excited for what's coming next! Prodigy is coming along great! So incredibly proud of our actors and it has been a wonderful experience to work with some incredible guest artists, including an alumni of ours! This film is truly a community project and we cannot wait to share it with you all this March! Erocne has been working quietly behind the scenes. We'd hoped to carol in Old Town but the shut downs and weather just didn't cooperate. We are looking at some virtual things this spring, hoping to do something special for Valentines and Graduation as we try to keep our Arts @ ECA traditions alive through this tough time. We are also planning to do a spring play, it'll be a completely virtual production of a radio play! We're still sifting through scripts, but are excited to work on voiceover skills and foley art with this unique form of theater that is only heard not seen. Our Musical film Prodigy deals with serious mental health concerns, as such, we want to make sure YOU are taking care of YOU. This month's Mental Health tip is a simple one. Celebrate the fact you made it here. Just surviving right now is enough. You are enough. Anything else you accomplished last year or will accomplish right now is just icing on the cake. Even if that something was just taking a shower every day. Take a breath, forgive yourself, be kind, and just keep taking things one day at a time.
Page 14
Extra Curricular Highlights
INT ER NATIONAL T RAVE L Dennis Olson dolson@ecarvada.org
We are thrilled to continue ECA’s tradition of travel by offering an opportunity for Griffin students to experience the wonders of Vietnam, Cambodia, & Thailand in the summer of 2022. We will be hosting an online informational meeting for families to learn more while a $300 per student scholarship and a risk-free enrollment period are available. We have been talking about this with the students at school and excitement is high!
Page 15
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL COLORADO UPDATE The COVID-19 Vaccine: What’s going on? When will the COVID-19 vaccine be ready? When will it be available for kids? How will we know it’s safe? Children’s Hospital Colorado pediatric infectious disease expert breaks down the latest on the effort to produce a safe and effective coronavirus vaccine.
LIVE PARENT EDUCATION EVENT (WEBINAR-STYLE) Topic: COVID-19 Vaccine
Date & Time: Wednesday, January 20, 2021 at 7:00 PM
Children’s Hospital Colorado infectious disease specialist Jessica Cataldi, MD, MSPH, will discuss the basics of how mRNA vaccines work, the efficacy and safety of the currently authorize COVID-19 vaccines, and review the recommendations about vaccine allocation and prioritization in Colorado. Following her presentation, Dr. Cataldi will be available to answer participant questions live.
Parents must register to attend this free event.
EARLY COLLEGE OF ARVADA
PTCO NEWS
MEETING SCHEDULE Meetings will be postponed until the
Lots of exciting activities here at ECA and we could use your help to make them a success! Hope to see you in the spring at the ECA PTO at 4PM! ptco@ecarvada.org
spring sememster
Muchas actividades emocionantes aquí en ECA Y podríamos usar su ayuda para hacerlos un ¡éxito!
Espero verte aquí la próxima primavera ptco@ecarvada.org
Early College of Arvada | 17
PAGE 18
Help out ECA by adding us to your Amazon Smile account!