Volume LIII, Issue 3

Principal: Jacqueline McEvoy
PTSA President: Preeva Tramiel
Co-Editors:Stephanie Klein, Marcia Yeates and Elliott Sopkin

Inside this edition:

Page 1
From the PTSA
From the Principal

Page2
PTSA Appeal
Paly Site Council

Page 3
Parent Netwoks
Parent Education
Turkey Day Thanks

Page 4
PTSA Dec Board Mtg
PTSA Grants
Student Directory Errata

Page 5
Calendar
English Dept. News

Page 6
Glass Blowing

Page 7
College and
Career Center

Page 8
Guidance

Page 9
Student Resiliency

Page 10
ACS

Page 11
Commended Scholars

Page 12
School Board Update
CAC Presents

November Councilor

Printable PDF Version

From the PTSA President

Things to be thankful for, things to be hopeful for

I am thankful for the PTSA process which allows Palo Alto High to fund needs in a way that is nimble, responsive to parent input, and open to the scrutiny of our members.  The new Memorial Plaza is a great example. I am hopeful we can do more such projects in the future, which will improve our school for all students, and draw the surrounding community closer.  

I am thankful for the Viking and Fast Track grant process, which keeps our teachers on the lookout for the best ways to teach, because they know good ideas can get funded.  I am hopeful they keep finding ways to do what they do best.

I am thankful that the directories and membership cards were MAILED to our members this year.  I am hopeful that all our members can take advantage of the discounts available at online Barnes and Noble’s Southwest Vacations, and Liberty Mutual, and get their money back many times over.

I am thankful for our generous community and Paly staff that support events like the recent Turkey Trot lunch and food drive. I am hopeful that we will continue to find ways to build community and support worthy organizations like Ecumenical Hunger Program and Urban Ministries.

I am thankful for the large group of excellent volunteers that make things happen: Suzanne Attenborough, Executive VP and grants chair, Stacy Mason, VP of programs, Cheryl Sopkin, VP of fundraising, Arti Miglani, VP of hospitality, Anne Stewart and Danielle Mewes, Co-VPs of community service, Carol Scott, VP of communication, Dr. Kelly Look, VP of health and welfare, Xenia Hammer, recording secretary, Rebecca Stamm Fox, corresponding secretary, Bruce Rohde, treasurer, Carrie Maser auditor, Kimberly Lin, historian, Elaine Hahn, parliamentarian first semester, and our PTA Council Representatives, Grace Liu and Colleen Nielsen, our PIE reps, Anne Barry, Elaine Hahn, and Mary Haverstock and the committee chairs that work so hard to do things like put on the college fair, oversee landscaping, arrange the meals we share, and the meals we serve. I am hopeful that there will be more excellent volunteers to take their plac e when the Nominating Committee begins its work in February. 

Have a happy holiday and a successful New Year,

Preeva Tramiel, Paly PTSA President

From the Principal

The Paly Way

As we move into the winter holiday season and with Thanksgiving upon us, I thought I would take this opportunity to share with you my thoughts and reflections about my first few months at Paly and why I am thankful that I am here.  Since I arrived on July 1, I have had the opportunity to meet and have dozens of conversations with students, parents, teachers, staff members, alumni, and community members.  Over and over again, people kept referring to “The Paly Way,” and I kept trying to get my head around exactly what that meant.   As I continued my conversations and visits to classrooms and school events, the concept of this elusive “Paly Way” began to crystallize in my mind.  Was it about having over 100 years of tradition?  Was it about being passionate about what you believe in? Was it about being a caring community?  Was it about being a school of a cademic excellence?  Was it about respecting individual differences and supporting each other?  Was it about celebrating our successes and addressing our challenges with strength?   Over the last few months, I’ve come to learn that it is about all of these things . . . and more.  It is about our core purpose and our core values.  Although our purpose and values appear on many official documents, I want to share them with you here because I believe that they are the best descriptors of The Paly Way and speak to what makes Paly a phenomenal place to be.

Paly Core Purpose

The core purpose of our school is to affirm the potential of every Paly student in an environment of support and inspiration, where people work together and lift each other toward great personal growth.

Paly Core Values

At Paly, everyone values and benefits from our collective effort to grow and to promote human potential. Guiding this effort is our belief in the following:

• Promoting personal integrity & respect
• Providing a nurturing environment characterized by teamwork and collaboration
• Caring for and believing in every individual
• Encouragingcreativity and independent thinking
• Understanding that growth and learning are an essential part of life
• Acknowledging great effort and great fun in work and play

My goal this year is to work with the Paly community to recommit to our mission and clarify our vision for the future as we respond to the needs of our students and our community.  This work will take place through the accreditation self-study process which we will begin this spring.   In our work, we will also be responding to the recommendations of the High School Task Force and visualizing what our campus will look like physically, as we prepare for the arrival of 500 additional students over the next five to seven years.  It is all very exciting work that we will do together as a school community.

Along the way, I have thoroughly enjoyed taking part in the many activities and experiences that also represent the Paly Way: the concerts, the athletic events, the dances, Spirit Week, the Turkey Trot — the list goes on and on.   I would like to thank the parent community for your support of everything we do here at Paly. We could not do it without you.  I would like to thank the teachers, who are committed to providing the best curriculum and instruction possible and are willing to wrestle with the tough issues.  I would like to thank all of the support staff, who make everything work so well behind the scenes and in the classrooms.  But most importantly, I would like to thank the students for their passion and their pride.  We may not always agree, and I’m bound to make a few mistakes along the way, but you are why we are here. 
It is my wish that the New Year bring us all peace, joy, and hope.

Jacqueline McEvoy, Principal