By Camille Chabot (Dublin High School Class of 2013)
Me (left) with my mom and sister
If someone had told me that in my senior year of high school I would be a National Cheerleading Champion and Varsity Competition Team captain, I would have thought they were out of their mind. Yet here I am, entering my fourth year of high school and third year cheering for Dublin High School and I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect way to settle in to the DHS community.
My mom suggested I try out for cheerleading in my freshman year when she learned that Kristine Cousins, the award-winning Fallon Middle School Cheerleading Coach, would be expanding the cheer program at Dublin High. Honestly, being a “pom-pom girl” had never been on my mind, but after experiencing my sister’s National win at Fallon Middle School I knew this sport had a lot more to it than just “2-4-6-8” cheers with pom-poms!
I’ve danced competitively with the McGrath School of Irish Dance since first grade, but was struggling with learning the cheer routines. “In Irish dance I only use my feet, I can’t figure out how to dance with my arms!” I remember telling my coach. Fortunately for me, the DHS cheer coaches work closely with girls during tryouts; they helped me learn the routine and I was chosen for the first ever DHS Cheer Competition squad. The risk I took led me to a sport, a discipline and a cheer family that have made my high school years better than I could have imagined.
During the time that Coach Kristine Cousins took over the inclusive Dublin High program, the cheer team has tripled in size. It is now divided into several teams. There are three divisions for the sideline program: Freshman, Junior Varsity, and Varsity. There is also a Varsity Competition team which is made up of 9-12 graders who compete at both regional and national levels. And for the upcoming school year, we will also have a Junior Varsity competition team!
Dublin 2012 Back to School Registration Information
In preparation for the first day of school, below is the latest available Dublin school registration information for the 2012-13 school year. Please note that this information is current as of 8-7-2012. All information provided is subject to change – visit your school website for the latest information. The Dublin Unified School District online calendar is available here.
Packets are available for download from school websites (links below).
Dublin Elementary School Packet Pickup and Registration
By Michelle McDonald (Dublin High School parent)
What to say about this process, the one that concludes with your precious child leaving home, headed off to their new life as a college student?
It’s stressful to be sure, seemingly never-ending at times, exciting at moments, frustrating at others.
But it always feels like a process, one with a conclusion finally in sight. Even with a mere 40-something days until my own daughter leaves for college at Santa Clara University, we aren’t done yet.
We are close. We are buying bedding and computer locks and personal fans, running into friends at Target and Bed, Bath and Beyond doing the same. And we are starting to say goodbye as my daughter’s friends as Dublin High’s Class of 2012 begins to depart for universities across the country, from Massachusetts to Indiana to New York and Arizona.
The students who are attending “semester” schools will be gone in the next few weeks. The “quarter” school students will leave about a month later in September.
And the circle of (school) life goes on. The next group of seniors and their parents step up for their turn as the new academic year starts. And as part of that circle, it’s time to share our experiences.
1. It’s going to go fast. (And so is your money).
Friends who have been through this before will warn you – senior year flies by.
The only thing that goes faster is your cash.
On Thursday, the Dublin Unified School District Board of Trustees convened for a specific purpose. As is normal with most school districts, leadership changes frequently occur during the summer – when school is not in session. Previous Kolb Elementary School Principal Lynn Medici recently accepted a position as of Director of Educational (Elementary) Services within DUSD. Dougherty Principal Catherine Mikes-Ward accepted a Middle School Principal position in Hillsborough.
These changes created vital openings at two of our newer elementary schools. At the board meeting, Assistant Superintendent Val Williams explained the search process. The vacancies were posted to the district website and applications were solicited from interested candidates. At the same time a committee consisting of district staff, administration and parents of the affected sites was assembled. After a first pass of interviews, the top-tier candidates were invited back for a second round. Subsequently, a sit down meeting was established with Superintendent Hanke and his executive staff. Thursday evening, two candidates were presented for appointment to the board of trustees. Both candidates were approved by unanimous vote.
Nicole Williams Browning is the new Principal at Kolb Elementary School. Nicole attained a B.A in Psychology from the University of California, Berkeley. Subsequently she attained both a Masters in English and a M.S. in Educational Leadership from California State University, East Bay. Ms. Browning has held numerous teaching and leadership positions, most recently as Principal at Lincoln Middle School in Alameda starting in 2009. Prior to entering administration, Mrs.
Williams Browning taught high school English in Alameda and Fremont School Districts. Mrs. Williams Browning will begin in her new position in August, 2012.
Brett Nelson is the new Principal at Dougherty Elementary School. Mr. Nelson attained a B.S. in Social Science from Sacramento State University. Subsequently, he earned a Masters in Educational Administration from National University. Like Nicole, he has served in several classroom and administrative positions. Mr. Nelson arrives at Dougherty after four years as Principal at Warm Springs Elementary School in Fremont. Mr. Nelson previously taught high school history in Fremont. Mr. Nelson will begin in his new position in August, 2012.
OneDublin.org would like to welcome both new Principals to our district and community.
Nicole Malone (second from left) with Family
Community\ n a group of people with a common characteristic or interest in living together within a larger society.
Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary defines the term accurately, albeit in a dry way. For residents of Dublin and the Tri-Valley, the word “community” is experienced in a very vibrant and human fashion. An illustration of this fact was demonstrated on Friday at the Dublin Swim Center – adjacent to the Dublin High School campus.
The travails of Nicole Malone and her family have been well-chronicled over the past five years. While as a student at Frederiksen Elementary School, Nicole was diagnosed with a rather rare form of Lymphoma – one that typically targets young people. Once she successfully endured a regimen of radiation and chemotherapy treatments, Nicole made a triumphant return to the classroom in the fall. Throughout this process, she was aided by a home schooling service provided by the Dublin Unified School District. By definition, one is pronounced “cancer-free” subsequent to five years of treatment. However, this condition changed in late March 2012. Discomfort in one of her legs cancelled her accompaniment of the Wells Middle School band trip to Disneyland and another battery of examinations were ordered up.
Immediately, Nicole’s parents Janet and Tim and brother, Timmy (Tim Jr.) immersed themselves into treatment modalities. These ranged from receiving treatment from the Oakland Children’s Hospital, Stanford University, UC Los Angeles, the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles and St. Jude Research Hospital. At the same time, the local community stepped forward to support the family. A Shutterfly site was established to help provide basic needs such as meals and gift cards and Dublin High School hosted a baseball double-header to raise funds for the family. However, the treatment/recovery process is a marathon and the expenses for treatment/travel are ongoing. An idea to help even more was hatched at the Dublin Swim Center on Village Parkway.
Kagan Wilkinson is a 2010 Dublin High School graduate. He has also been an active member of the Green Gators Swim Team for over 13 years. He has served as an Assistant Coach for three years and is currently a student at Diablo Valley College with hopes of transferring to BYU in the next year.
I have chosen to endorse Eric Swalwell for Congress because of how diligently he is working to meet with and understand the concerns of the 15th Congressional District voters. I’m supporting Eric because the status quo in Washington clearly isn’t working. Eric takes nothing for granted and, unlike his opponent in this race, does not believe he is entitled to anything.
As I’ve learned more about Eric, I’ve found that his work ethic stems from his upbringing and life experience. Eric wasn’t born with a silver spoon in his mouth and rather than complain about any disadvantage he faced, Eric worked harder to achieve his goals despite those disadvantages.
That’s what we need in our government, representatives who work hard for us, who earn our votes and who will collaborate with others to solve problems.
I believe Eric can be part of the solution and recently met with him to learn more about his upbringing, and to explore his views on the federal government’s role in education.
OneDublin.org: You were the first person in your family to attend college, and had to fund your way through school. How did you make your college dream a reality?
Annually the California Department of Education (CDE) publishes data, based on standardized test results, that helps identify areas of improvement and to compare schools. The CDE’s 2011-12 Accountability Progress Reporting (APR) for Dublin High School was recently updated to include a comparison of Dublin High with all schools in California, and schools deemed similar (based on socio-economic, ethnic and other factors – details at the bottom of this article). The comparison includes both publicly funded school districts and charter schools.
Based on Dublin High School’s most recent API of 878, Dublin High retained its 10 out of 10 rating vs. all schools in California, and improved it’s rating vs. similar schools to 10 out of 10 (from 9 out of 10 last year). Dublin High as a whole and all statistically significant sub-groups were at or above the statewide performance target. The API results for the 2011-12 school year will be released by the CDE later this summer. The full APR is available here.
Each year, the CDE selects 100 schools considered similar to Dublin High School for comparison purposes. This is the most recent list of similar schools:
The Dublin Green Gator Swim Team will be holding a “Laps of Love” swim-a-thon for Nicole Malone. Nicole is a 12-year-old resident of Dublin that has cancer and is currently undergoing cancer treatments for the second time in her young life. The date will be Friday, July 27th at the Dublin Swim Center from 5:00-7:00 p.m.
Please come out and support the Malone Family, even if you choose not to swim. The Malone’s have lived in Dublin for Nicole’s whole life and she has attended Frederiksen Elementary School and is currently in 7th grade at Wells Middle School, and her brother is a student at Dublin High School. They have been active and supportive of the Dublin Community all their lives – let’s give back to them in their time of need.
Any type of donation would be greatly appreciated. All proceeds will go directly to the Malone Family. Click here to download the Laps of Love Sponsor Sheet and for full details visit (and Like) the Facebook page setup for the event www.facebook.com/LapsOfLove4NicoleMalone.
OneDublin.org was recently treated to backstage access to rehearsals of the Pacific Coast Repertory Theatre’s production of Hairspray, which opens Friday July 13 and runs through Sunday July 29 for a limited engagement. The popular musical (and feature film) addresses racial integration in 1960’s America. The cast and crew features local Dublin talent including Fallon Middle School teacher Joy Sherratt, President of PCRT and Director / Choreographer for the production, Dublin High School Class of 2012 graduate Chris Harral (who will be attending Pace University for Theatre in New York this Fall), and Dublin High junior Patrick Wallace. Chris and Patrick are veterans of Dublin High School’s award-winning Drama program led by Bryant Hoex.
Enjoy a video sneak peek of the Hairspray production in rehearsal. Tickets are on sale now (available here) and performances run July 13-29 at the Castro Valley Center for the Arts.
Hairspray Rehearsal Video Preview
Rehearsal Photo Gallery
To celebrate both its “All-America City” honor and Dublin’s 30th Anniversary of incorporation, the City of Dublin will be putting on a special event – “Dublin: An All-American Anniversary” – at the Dublin Heritage Park and Museums on Saturday, July 21, 2012, from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Dublin families are invited for a quintessential American experience. In addition to providing a feast of all American foods, such as hot dogs, apple pie, and root beer (while supplies last), there will be activities such as sack races, a watermelon-eating contest, and water balloon tosses; kid-friendly activities like face painting, inflatables, and wagon and tractor rides; and a variety of American music, with performances by both folk musicians and a local blues band, featuring Zakiya Hooker, daughter of blues legend John Lee Hooker. Dignitaries from Dublin’s past will also be on hand to share fond recollections from their time in Dublin, and they’ll unveil a recently-discovered piece of Dublin’s history.
In June 2011, the City of Dublin was recognized as a 2011 “All-America City” by the National Civic League. This prestigious award is given to towns, cities, counties, neighborhoods, and metropolitan regions that demonstrate outstanding civic accomplishments. Dublin was chosen as one of just ten cities, and the only city in California to receive the award.
Dublin Mayor Tim Sbranti said that because this honor coincided with the 30-year anniversary of Dublin’s incorporation, City leaders decided to celebrate both occasions with one family-friendly event. “We wanted to give Dublin residents an opportunity to not only celebrate Dublin’s history, but to recognize where we’re going as a city. The All-America City award recognizes the positive path that we’re on as a city, while also honoring achievements from Dublin’s past,” said Sbranti.
City of Dublin Representatives at the All America City Awards
In addition to having a performance by Bay Area folk musicians Steve Ewert and Russ Gautier, the highlight of the celebration will be a 90-minute concert, featuring America’s musical heritage – blues, jazz, and R&B – anchored by Dublin resident and renowned blues-woman Zakiya Hooker, daughter of blues legend John Lee Hooker. Hosted by another Dublin resident, Kathy Blackburn, and featuring guitarist/vocalist Jim Caroompas, backed by the band Four and More, Zakiya and friends will take the audience on a musical and historical journey through a program of toe-tapping and soulful songs interspersed with entertaining and informative tidbits about the personalities and their music.
Hooker is excited about helping Dublin celebrate its honor and anniversary through the music of America, “The blues grew out of the South more than 100 years ago and spread throughout the country until it became jazz, R&B, and rock ‘n roll. In this concert, we’re going to bring back the great bluesmen and women like Robert Johnson, Etta James, and, of course, my dad, John Lee Hooker, along with some jazz and R&B,” said Hooker.
“I’ve performed blues all over the world and now, bringing this universally loved music to my hometown will be a real treat,” added Hooker. The concert will also be a reunion of sorts for Caroompas and Hooker. Caroompas started his career as a blues guitarist touring with John Lee Hooker. This will be the first public performance featuring Jim Caroompas and Zakiya Hooker.
For more information, please visit the City of Dublin website at www.dublin.ca.gov, under Special Events, or contact Shari Jackman at (925) 556-4555. For information about the blues concert, please contact Kathy Blackburn at (925) 828-1894.
OneDublin.org 