Dublin High School juniors Annie McDonald, Charlette Tanner and Dawn Priest, are active members of Dublin Girl Scout Troop 32869. Ten of the eleven troop members are part of Dublin High School’s Class of 2012, and nearly all are working towards their Girl Scout Gold Award, which is the service equivalent of the Boy Scouts Eagle Award.
McDonald, Tanner and Priest spent 17 days at Camp Butano Creek near Pescadero this summer, first as Voyagers in a CIT (Counselor in Training) unit and returned three weeks later to serve as counselors to a large group of young Girl Scouts, participating in activities such as horseback riding, archery, kayaking and surfing.
All three Dublin High juniors worked with different units during the 7-day camp, which also included three days of pre-camp preparation. They worked in concert with adult leaders in each unit.
Annie McDonald shares her experiences from Camp Butano:
Andrew Song with Mammoth Femur
Dublin High School junior Andrew Song’s story of summer enrichment is an inspiration for aspiring science, technology, engineering and mathematics students. Andrew’s father, David Song, recommended Andrew participate in NASA‘s online learning community for high school students – INSPIRE (short for Interdisciplinary National Science Project Incorporating Research and Education Experience). Active participation in NASA INSPIRE’s online learning community, plus excellent grades at Dublin High School and teacher recommendations, led to Andrew’s acceptance into the NASA INSPIRE Collegiate Experience program this summer. Andrew credits Dublin High science teacher Kim Baumann (his AP Chemistry teacher) in particular for furthering his interest in science. The goal of the NASA INSPIRE Collegiate Experience program is to motivate students to pursue higher education and/or careers in STEM fields.
Students from across the country compete for acceptance into the NASA INSPIRE Collegiate Experience program, which is fully funded by NASA and the sponsoring University (airframe, lodging, meals, supervision and all educational activities). Andrew joined 19 other students at South Dakota School of Mines & Technology (one of only four students from California) for the two-week program which included attending lectures led by university professors, participating in projects with university students and going on several field trips (including a visit to a mammoth boneyard in South Dakota). At the end of the program students are required to present to university students and faculty.
Andrew’s family moved to Dublin from Pleasanton when Andrew was entering 5th Grade. Andrew started his education in Pleasanton at Mohr Elementary School and then attended Dougherty Elementary School and Fallon Middle School before becoming a Dublin Gael at Dublin High School. In his junior year at Dublin High Andrew is taking five Advanced Placement (AP) courses, and hopes to pursue his interest in science and technology at Stanford or MIT. Outside of school, Andrew is an accomplished cello player and founded the Tri-Valley Cantabile with high school students from Dublin and Pleasanton. Tri-Valley Cantabile performs concerts locally and donates all proceeds to local charities. Andrew is also the webmaster of the group’s website.
Something miraculous happened midway through the first Dublin High Drama Club road trip since 1987 to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, Oregon. 21 Dublin High Drama Club students (from incoming freshmen to seniors) and 5 chaperones shared an unforgettable “the show must go on” experience during the second act of the popular musical “She Loves Me”. A power outage impacting most of Ashland brought the show to a halt just as actress Lisa McCormick (as Amalia Balash) finished a solo number. Instead of being whisked offstage with a set change in darkness, emergency lighting kicked in leaving Ms. McCormick stuck on-stage (and poorly lit). Without missing a beat and with a tremendous sense of humor she looked out into the audience and said with a wink “I think I’m stuck!” Standing ovations are normally left in the wings for the end of the production – in this case the audience, realizing what had happened, burst into spontaneous applause, cheers and laughter.
After a short delay the show did go on – with stage hands manually moving sets that are normally powered and remote operated. As power was restored across the city (and in fits and starts in the theater) the remarkable professionals that make the Oregon Shakespeare Festival so special finished the production. Dublin High Drama Club students learned more about live theater courtesy of a power outage than they could by watching a flawless production.
Back to School Education Resources
With the start of the 2010-11 school year just around the corner, and summer vacation drawing to a close, below is a summary of free education resources for parents created by OneDublin.org, including several new recently published items. OneDublin.org plans to continue adding additional free education resources for parents in the coming months.
- A summary of all school site registration information is available here.
- Education Resources Series:
- NEW! Adding Different Units: a OneDublin.org Math Tutorial Video that seeks to reduce the confusion of adding different units faced by many young math students.
- NEW! Education Enrichment Center: After school and summer enrichment programs for local students. Owned and operated by Dublin resident Moon Hee Park and located in Pleasanton.
- 4 Steps to Higher Scores on Standardized Tests: a OneDublin.org Math Tutorial Video with practical strategies for doing better on multiple choice standardized tests.
- Strong Readers Start at Home – Reading Strategies for Parents: OneDublin.org on how parents can play an important role in teaching young children how to read.
- So Your Child Wants to Create Computer Games (and you’re not sure where to start): OneDublin.org provides an overview of free applications that help children – from elementary school to high school – learn how to program a computer (the first step to creating a computer game).
- College Primer for Parents Series:
- College Primer for Parents – an overview of college admission requirements and expectations including Bay Area and select California and out-of-state options.
- College Board Advanced Placement (AP) Program Overview – a detailed overview of the College Board’s Advanced Placement (AP) Program. Advanced Placement (AP) courses are an important component of a college application.
- NEW! SAT or ACT? Test Preparation Advice – an overview of the SAT and ACT college admission tests.
- College Scholarships and Other Options for an Affordable Degree – an overview of scholarship and grants, including local options for Dublin parents.
- Building Volunteer Hours for College Applications – an overview of options for students looking to give back to the community while building volunteer hours for the Dublin High Advanced Scholar Diploma and college applications.
- Admission to St. Mary’s College of California – an interview with Gina Meneni, Senior Associate Director – Admissions at St. Mary’s College of California. Ms. Meneni’s advice is valuable regardless of where your child is intending to enrol for college.
- Guiding your Children to College – an interview with Class of 2010 Valedictorian Ravali Reddy’s father, Ananth Reddy. Ravali Reddy is attending Stanford University this Fall.
- College Preparatory Summer Enrichment Study Plans (SESP) – while the summer is now drawing to a close, this approach for summer enrichment can be applied during the school year or over school holidays.
- Community College Transfer Programs to the UC System (and beyond): OneDublin.org provides an overview of a frequently used path to a 4-year degree from UC campuses and private colleges – starting at a community college.
To SAT or ACT: that is the question for many college-bound high school students: whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of College Board multiple choice questions or to take arms against a sea of American College Testing assessments and by opposing pass them?
Ok, perhaps that isn’t quite what Shakespeare had in mind, but the SAT / ACT standardized tests play an influential role in college admissions success. Parents and students alike lose sleep over these evaluation tools used by colleges and universities across the country. The goal of this article is to provide practical advice for parents and students and covers the following topics:
Fallon Middle School Students at the Middle School Leadership Camp Opening Festival
Leadership is a valuable skill in any career and leadership opportunities start in school. At the June 21 DUSD School Board Meeting, 6 Fallon Middle School students were approved to attend the CADA / CASL Middle School Leadership Camp in Santa Barbara. The California Association of Student Leaders (CASL), part of the California Association of Directors of Activities (CADA), runs leadership summer camps for student leaders from across California. Through a variety of group activities, workshops and guest speakers, Middle School Leadership Camps seek to provide students with valuable skills and experiences in leadership.
Fallon Middle School incoming Student Body Vice President Juliette Chabot shares her experiences at this summer’s Middle School Leadership Camp which ran July 22-24, 2010:
“I attended the 2010 CADA / CASL Middle School Leadership Camp, in Santa Barbara, representing Fallon Middle School. The first day, after checking in and getting our room and assignments, we met in our councils and got to know the people in them a little better by playing a few ice breakers. After our first council, we listened to a speaker named Mike Smith. He was very entertaining and it was a really interesting experience. Next we attended our first rotations. The two rotations we did the first day were “The Art of Listening” and “Fear Factor”. “The Art of Listening” taught us about how to focus when you’re listening to someone. “Fear Factor” showed us different activities we could use at rallies back at school. The games were for different types of students that were interested in different things.
Below is a comprehensive set of Dublin High School API, Advanced Placement (AP), SAT, ACT data, analysis and comparative rankings using the most recent data available. All Dublin High School API, AP, SAT and ACT data and similar schools rankings were calculated using data from the California Department of Education (CDE) website. Dublin High School’s college admission results are also summarized based on exit surveys compiled by Dublin High Counseling. Finally, additional Newsweek and US News and World Report ranking information is provided.
Similar Schools Definition Used in Rankings
The California Department of Education employs a “similar schools” methodology where schools “are ranked compared to 100 other schools with similar demographic characteristics”. The demographic characteristics defined in the Public Schools Accountability Act (PSAA) are noted at the bottom of this article. This list of similar schools is used by the CDE to rank Dublin High School. OneDublin.org has further used the similar schools list to rank Dublin High School SAT, AP and ACT results as compared to similar schools. The full list of 100 schools considered “similar” to Dublin High is available here. OneDublin.org also compared Dublin High School’s API, SAT, AP and ACT results to all charter high schools in California.
Dublin Public Schools Fall 2010 Registration Information
To help Dublin parents get organized for the 2010-11 school year, OneDublin.org requested and has summarized key 2010-11 school registration dates for Dublin public schools. This information is current as of 7/15/2010 (and is subject to change). An easy to print version of this information is available here.
| School Site | 2010-11 Registration Dates | Phone # |
| Dougherty Elementary School | Packet pick-up: 8/13-8/18 (8am – 4pm) | 925.803.4444 |
| Check-in: 8/19 10am – 7pm | ||
| Dublin Elementary School | Packet pick-up: 8/16 (8am – 4pm) | 925.828.1037 |
| Check-in: 8/19 (10am – 7pm) | ||
| Fallon School (K-8) UPDATED! | Packet pick-up: 8/11 (9am – 3pm) | 925.875.9376 |
| Check-in: 8/17 (11am – 3pm) and 8/18 (10am – 2pm, 4pm – 7pm) | ||
| Frederiksen Elementary School | Packet pick-up: 8/13 (8am – 4pm) | 925.828.1037 |
| Check-in: 8/19 (3pm – 7pm) | ||
| Green Elementary School | Packet pick-up: 8/12-8/13 (9am – 12pm, 1pm – 4pm) | 925.833.4200 |
| Check-in: 8/17 (9am – 3pm) and 8/19 (1pm – 7pm) | ||
| Murray Elementary School | Packet pick-up: 8/16 (8am – 4pm) | 925.828.2568 |
| Check-in: 8/18 (3pm – 7pm) | ||
| Wells Middle School | Packet pick-up: 8/12 (8am – 4pm) | 925.828.6227 |
| Check-in: 8/17 (1pm – 6pm) and 8/18 (9am – 2pm) | ||
| Dublin High School UPDATED! | Packet pick-up: 8/11-8/13 (8am – 12pm, 1pm – 3:30pm) – Attendance office | 925.833.3300 |
| Check-in: 8/18 (9am – 4pm) and 8/19 (11am – 6pm) – Start in the Little Theatre 8/24 (7am) – Cafeteria 8/19 – Freshmen Orientation 10 a.m. – noon – Gym (followed by a welcome BBQ 12pm-1pm) 8/19 – Grades 10-12 New Student Orientation 1-2 pm – Gym |
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| Valley High School | Packet pick-up: 8/17-8/18 (8:30am – 4pm) | 925.829.4322 |
| New student orientation 8/18 (11:30am – 1PM, 6:30pm – 8pm) |
NOTE: Information provided is current as of 7/15 and was provided by the Dublin Unified School District. Dates and times are subject to change. Contact school sites directly for additional details.
Christopher Michel – President Bush Memoirs Collaborator and Speechwriter, Dublin High School and Yale Alumni
- Christopher and Emily Michel – 2005 Inauguration
How many people can put the following on their resume by the age of 26: Deputy Director of Speechwriting to the President of the United States and memoirs collaborator, Air Force One frequent flier, Yale University (Class of 2003) summa cum laude graduate and Dublin High School (Class of 1999) alumni?
OneDublin.org had the privilege to talk with Dublin native Christopher Michel who in addition to collaborating on President George W. Bush’s memoirs (“Decision Points” – available Nov. 9), was editor-in-chief of The Yale Daily News during his undergraduate years at Yale University (where he is continuing his studies at the Yale Law School).
From Dublin High School to Yale University
[OneDublin.org] Tell me about your time in Dublin, the schools you attended and your family.
[Christopher Michel] I was born and grew up in Dublin. I started out going to Nielson Elementary, then Wells for middle school and Dublin High. My parents are still in Dublin and have lived there for almost 30 years. My younger sister also went to Dublin schools. We have close ties to the city, and it was a great, great place to grow up.
Jonathan Azevedo - Jump for Fitness Instructor
Jump for Fitness is a summer program to promote health and activity for children age 8-12 and is held at Pump It Up Pleasanton. With seven weeks of summer remaining before the first day of school, Jump for Fitness provides children with a healthy alternative to video games. The Jump for Fitness program includes fitness games, contests, and activities designed to increase activity, boost self-esteem, and instill a sense of community. The program is specifically designed to benefit children who are not natural athletes.
Jump for Fitness run 8:30AM – 12:00PM, 5 days per week, with sessions starting July 26, August 2 and August 9. Examples of healthy lifestyle activities include coaching sessions from Carondelet High Cheer Captain Lauren Leahy, workshops facilitated by Luke Greenaway from the Tri-Valley Teen Esteem program, and ongoing support and instruction by Elite Personal Trainer Jonathan Azevedo. For more information call 925-600-9663 (or refer to the flyer in this article).
OneDublin.org recently interviewed Jonathan Azevedo about the Jump for Fitness Summer Camp program:
OneDublin.org 