ACEL Students Meet With Legislators
Two ACEL students are part of the Youth Council for Sustainable Communities
Two ACEL-Fresno students recently returned from Sacramento where they were participants in the Youth Council for Sustainable Communities. As part of their service, the two students met with legislators and testified before lawmakers regarding issues that relate to sustainability and child welfare.
“These types of real-world leadership experiences are priceless for young people,” said ACEL-Fresno Executive Director/Principal Dave Childers. “This isn’t talking about leadership inside of a classroom, this is practicing leadership alongside the people who run our state. I am extremely proud of the work that these two young ladies are doing.”
As part of the council, the two students will also have internships at Fresno City Hall this summer. One will intern with Councilmember Clint Olivier, and the other will intern in the Community Revitalization Department.
“Not only did these young ladies get to see state government in action, but now they will get to spend the summer seeing how their local government operates,” said Childers. “Again, this is a very unique opportunity for any young person to get to experience.”
The Youth Council for Sustainable Communities is a partnership between The California Center for Civic Participation, the Center for Multicultural Cooperation, and the Wangari Maathai Center. Students from Sacramento, Fresno, and the Bay Area participate. Locally there are eight students participating.
ACEL welcomes Dr. Christine Montanez!
May 24, 2011
ACEL-Fresno Charter High School is proud to announce that accomplished music instructor Dr. Christine Montanez will be joining the school’s faculty starting in the 2011-2012 school year.
“We are thrilled to be adding a music program next year, and even more thrilled that we will have one of the most respected and accomplished music teachers in our area at the helm,” said Executive Director/Principal Dave Childers. “Christine is the perfect fit for ACEL and will develop a program that is a fantastic mix of classical and contemporary musicianship. She is a remarkable hire for us at this stage in our development.”
Ms. Christine Montanez completed her college coursework at Fresno State, where she earned her B.A. and M. A. in Music Performance and Ed.D in Educational Leadership. Christine has served as the Music Director at KIPP Academy Fresno and Big Picture Middle/High School Fresno teaching music theory and history, as well as instrumental music to grades 5-12. Christine has also served as undergraduate clarinet instructor at CSU Fresno and as Vice Principal at Big Picture Middle/High School Fresno. Christine is also the Assistant Director of the West Coast Clarinet Congress at Fresno State.
Ms. Montanez will teach instrumental music at ACEL and will also assume other duties as assigned.
“Christine is not just a teacher, but an accomplished leader as well. She is going to be heavily involved in all aspects of the educational program at ACEL, and hopefully for many, many years to come,” said Childers.
Dr. Christine Montanez will join the faculty at ACEL-Fresno this Fall.
Principal Dave Childers on KMJ 580 With Ray Appleton
On Cinco De Mayo our Super Amazing Principal joined Ray Appleton to discuss the state of education and Charter Schools.
If you missed it and would like to listen, click the link below and check out the Podcast for 5-5-11
National Recognition for our History & Technology Teacher Chris Durham!
Our very own Chris Durham has been named “One of the Most Influential Teachers on Twitter”
Check out the article here
Follow him on Twitter @ChrisLeeDurham
ACEL, the Mayor, and Downtown
On Tuesday morning, 9 of ACEL’s finest students reported to school bright and early at 6:15 a.m. to prepare to volunteer at The State of Downtown Breakfast, featuring Fresno mayor Ashley Swearengin. The students assisted the PBID Partners of Downtown Fresno (formerly the Downtown Association) with the second-annual event, serving as ushers and traffic control for the sold-out crowd. The students were also allowed to stay to hear the keynote address from Mayor Swearengin, and received a very nice public thank you from the Chair of the PBID Partners Board, Mr. Dan Doyle.
Nine ACEL freshmen and sophomores served as volunteers for the State of Downtown Breakfast on Tuesday morning.
Did You Hear the Latest?
Test prep is overrated! Look at how ACEL performed compared to Fresno Unified as a whole, and some of our closest neighbors. Not bad for a school that refuses to take away electives, has a higher percentage of both English Learners and Special Education students, doesn’t use textbooks, doesn’t assign homework, doesn’t bench mark test, and doesn’t spend class time on memorizing bits of data to regurgitate on a test!
http://www.acelfresno.org/about/year-one-results/
Welcome Back the ACEL-Insider!!
(click to download the PDF!)
Shark Week!
Today is the start of Shark Week! Lot’s of great outfits for today’s Sports theme. Be sure and dress to impress the rest of the week! Here’s the breakdown:
Monday Sep 2o – Sport’s Day : Rep your team
Tuesday Sep21 – Twin Day : Dress just like your buddy
Wednesday Sep 22 - Super Hero Day : “I am Batman”
Thursday Sep 23 – 80′s Day : Best. Decade. Ever.
Friday Sep 24 – Pajama/Crazy Hair Day : Get up. Come to School.
First Week – Mission Accomplished!
It was a whirlwind of activity this first week as everyone got familiar with the new building and tried to figure out how in the world period 7 works. (It’s not that hard) The back patio has proved to be a popular stomping ground for lunch as even staff can be seen lounging out back and taking in the fresh air with the students. New ideas are bursting out of Mr. Durham’s student store and the students are eager to design new ACEL swag. (Online orders available soon) The pieces are falling into place and the pace is being set for what should be a fantastic 2nd year for ACEL Fresno!
First Day of School – August 30th
Time to get off that couch and back into school, so slap on those smiles while you hop, skip and jump your way on over to ACEL’s new home, Monday August 30th! Can’t wait to see you all at 8:15 a.m. and start off the new year at our new location!