Greetings to the Bulldogs Community!

It has been a great start to the 2018-19 school year! We celebrate having passionate, student-centered instructional team who are excited at building strong relationships and establishing high expectations for each and every student every day.  Thank you for your partnership as we establish strong procedures, routines, and expectations to support our positive school culture.   Throughout the year, we will focus our time on ensuring the following:

·Teaching school-wide routines and procedures for entering the building in the morning, classroom expectations, a minute of mindful breathing at the start and end of class, and procedures for group events!

·Engage students in conversations regarding positive culture, empathy among students, conflict resolution, ability to connect grit, and positive mindset with success, and goal-setting.

·Review the expectations in the student handbook; the classroom discipline expectations, the MTSS progress monitoring system for academics, behavior, and attendance; and expectations for Bulldogs Meeting. This embodies our belief that:

“Consistent expectations keep students happier because it is easier to know what to do…You can set up a beautiful vision for student culture, but if you don’t practice, it will only last a week.” – Bambrick-Santoyo, Leverage Leadership

Below is information about our tracking and student monitoring as well as the importance of Bulldogs communication with families:

Grade Level Tracking:

To better prepare our students for high school and beyond, we are monitoring student progress more closely in the areas of academics, attendance, and behavior, and will keep in frequent communication with students and families about whether their students are “on track” or “off track” with metrics that combine those areas. Students are expected to have no behavior referrals, a 2.5 score average or higher with no scores of 1 in any class, and 95% attendance. Students who meet these guidelines consistently will have the opportunity to engage in a student field experience celebration at the end of each quarter; students who are off track will have opportunities throughout the quarter to recover missed assignments, make up missed time in class, or repair the harm caused during behavior incidents. Students who do not get back on track by the end of the quarter will not be eligible for the quarterly incentive.

Parent Communication:

Bulldog agendas are the primary tool used by teachers to communicate daily with all of our Bulldog families, and weekly newsletters home.   Starting in Quarter 2, there will be an opportunity to have coffee with Principal Fernandez at the end of each month. 

Please feel free to contact us at any time. Your feedback is welcome and appreciated.  I encourage you to ask questions and seek us out if something is unclear or there is a concern. I have an open door policy, but to guarantee face time, it is best that you schedule a time to meet with me.  If there is a specific concern or question with something directly connected to your child's classroom, I ask you to first talk with your child's teacher. If you find that no resolution was reached or concerns are still present, then I encourage you to contact myself or our Administrative Dean – Ms. Elizabeth Aldahondo.

Sincerely

Dr. Joy Gordon Fernandez 

BridgePrep Academy of Orange, Proud Principal