School District Previews New Year, Reminds Parents to Get Kids Vaccinated

students begin the 2011-12 school year this coming Tuesday, Sept. 6.

In a news release, the principals of all four LBUSD schools provided statements on what their goals are for the upcoming year.

Principal Chris Duddy: “The first day of school is always an exciting time. It signifies a new beginning for students and teachers and brings with it the promise of the joys of learning. Students will build new relationships and learn things that will last a lifetime. We are excited as a staff to facilitate this learning and build upon our students' knowledge and achievements.”

Principal Jenny Salberg: "Welcome back! We are so excited to begin the 2011-2012 school year! We hit the ground running, with Back To School Night on Thursday, September 15th and with the 6th-graders heading to science camp on Tuesday, September 20th. This school year we look forward to continuing our growth in the academic areas as well as supporting our students with our Positive Behavior Support program—SMART! Our goal is to encourage all of our middle school students to be there and ready each and every day! I am certain that this will be another great year, and we look forward to working with your child."

Principal Ron La Motte: “TOW is looking forward to another year of outstanding academic progress, development of caring and compassion in our students, and service to our community and the world around us. We will be continuing our focus on meeting the academic needs of each individual student while at the same time continue to expand our Rachael’s Challenge character education program. An exciting new emphasis in our work of caring for ourselves and others will be a focus on healthy nutritional habits, both at school and in our community.”

Principal Joanne Culverhouse: “I am excited to open the school year as the new principal of Laguna Beach High School. I look forward to extending the long tradition of academic, artistic, and athletic accomplishments Laguna Beach High is known for. The staff and I have spent the summer preparing for the new school year and we are ready and eager to have the students come back to school!”

Additionally, here's the schedule for the district's Back to School nights:

• El Morro Elementary: Sept. 14
• Thurston Middle: Sept. 15
• Laguna Beach High: Sept. 21
• Top of the World: Sept. 22

Up-to-date information for students and parents, including Back to School Night, online first day packets, school calendars, LunchBox, PTA, bus and bell schedules plus much, much more is available on the District’s newly designed website.

Also, the District is making it a point to remind parents of the new state law requiring all students entering grades 7-12 to provide proof of proper immunization (Tdap) against pertussis, also known as whooping cough, before starting school this fall. Pertussis is a serious, highly contagious upper respiratory disease.

This legislation was enacted in light of California’s recent whooping cough epidemic and the new school requirement applies to all public and private schools.

LBUSD Director of Special Education-Student Services Irene White states, “At this time, the District has received approximately 50 percent of the required verification forms. Our parents are always very responsive, so we trust that in the next few days our families will be submitting the required documentation.”

The Vaccines for Children Program provides free or low-cost vaccines if a child does not have health insurance, or is only partially insured. More information about this program is available through a physician or the local health department.

For more information, visit www.ShotsforSchool.org or www.ochealthinfo.com. Information on how to submit student vaccination verification is available at LBUSD’s website.