ecARTS General Meeting Change

El Camino is excited that our women’s volleyball team is now in the playoffs and picked to win the State Championship. The team is scheduled to play at EC on Tuesday, November 11th and Thursday, November 13th.

The participation of the El Camino Pep Band at these games is a priority!

For this reason, the ecARTS General meeting has been rescheduled to Wednesday, November 12th, 7:00pm, in the El Camino Band room.

Thank you for understanding.  Hope to see you at the meeting (and the volleyball games).

Performing Arts Center needs $5 million more. Vote carefully for new SJUSD board members.

On Monday, October 13 the El Camino community (including feeder schools) hosted several San Juan Unified School District representatives, two incumbent board members, and a few board candidates to discuss possible Measure N signature projects.

The meeting opened with over 150 students from EC, Deterding, and Arcade playing the Hey song. Students revised the customary chant lyrics, and El Camino’s Screaming Eagle together with the students and the audience sent District personnel an unequivocal message:

We want a theatre!

A mighty, mighty theatre.

Everywhere we go.

We put on a show.

But they’re in our gyms!

That’s why we tell you.

We want a theatre.

A mighty, mighty theatre.

For those of you who missed the meeting, community members, current, former and prospective parents, alumni, and current students expressed confusion and frustration at the District’s handling of El Camino’s signature project and its lack of progress two years after Measure N was approved. Thank you to those of you who were able to attend and support our vision. Thanks, too, to our supporters who courageously approached the microphone to accurately and passionately state our case.

We learned FOUR valuable pieces of information:

1. Although the Board of Education has not yet voted on specifics, each high school in the district will likely receive $10 million to fund a signature project.
2. In a significant departure from past information, the new District football field and track at EC will not be charged against EC’s signature project amount.
3. After all of the community forums wrap up on November 5, district representatives will establish a budget for each high school’s project and state the priority for construction. The budgets and timelines will be presented to the Board in March 2015.
4. Although ecARTS and the El Camino Community envision a new performing arts center as a facility that will be available to all our feeder schools and community, we have been directed by the school district to refer to this project as the El Camino High School Signature Project.

The cost of our performing arts center is hard to predict without having current plans in hand.

How you can help:

1. Today is the start of our $5 million fund raising campaign. We need you to share with us the names and contact information of potential large donors ($10,000 - $1,000,000). It would be helpful if you or someone you know has a personal contact with each donor you suggest.  
2. Attend the next ecARTS meeting on Thursday, November 13 @ 7:00 p.m. in the El Camino Band room. 
3. Before you cast your vote for SJUSD board candidates on November 4, write each one an email to find out how they would vote on EC’s signature project. Two new trustees will decide the fate of our performing arts center. Candidates are:

• Incumbent Greg Paolo (greg.paulo@sanjuan.edu);   
• Michael Miller (http://www.millerschoolboard.com/contact);
• Michael Alcalay (http://www.michaelalcalay.com/contact); 
• Mike McKibbin (http://www.mikemckibbin.org/test-contact-form/);
• Paula Villescaz (http://www.paulaforschoolboard.com/contact_us).

We need your voice on Oct. 13

Since 2010, ecARTS, a non-profit 501(c)3 organization, has been committed to building a performing arts center on the campus of El Camino High School. Our goal is to have a facility that meets the visual and performing arts needs of all elementary, middle and high schools in our district. Our architectural design includes an art gallery, multi-use performance space, and seating for 600. The journey towards this dream has had many ups and downs. The bottom line is there is a need, the El Camino faculty and staff are 100% in support of this, and through Bond Measure N, there is money currently available.

The San Juan Unified School District has now scheduled a community forum on Monday, October 13 at 6:30 p.m. in the El Camino cafeteria.  The purpose of this forum is to seek input from our school and local community about this theater project. This forum is different than the forums held last spring.

I am making a plea to our El Camino community to attend this forum in full force and show the district that a performing arts center is truly needed in this district and a worthy expenditure.  I hope to see a packed cafeteria with past, present and future students and families to support this project.

Please share this post with everyone you think would be interested.

For the sake of the arts and the good of our student artists, please try to attend the forum at El Camino on October 13.

Kevin Glaser
Band Director, El Camino High School
President, ecARTS, Inc.

SJUSD Continues To Develop Master Plan

The San Juan Unified School District is still in the process of developing a facilities master plan for spending the Measure N Bond funds. On April 22nd, the DLR Group presented a preliminary document to the district that will eventually include site summaries for each school campus, field assessment data and photos, and an appendix of community input, staff surveys and supporting documents.

A grading scale of “A” through “D” for every school in the district is currently online. El Camino High School received the lowest grade of any school in the district. A sad state of affairs, but may work in our favor for actually seeing facility improvement.

The idea of “Signature Projects” at every high school is still on the table and appears to be a priority with a majority of school board members. El Camino High School’s wish and priority for a signature project remains the performing arts center.

At this time the school board and administrators are working with the DLR Group to finalize a facilities master plan and time line for implementation. The school board will essentially have the final say on how the Measure N Bond funds are spent and when.

ecARTS, Inc. continues to be an advocate for a performing arts center that will serve the needs of the entire district and the local community. Our mission continues to be to convince the school board and district administrators that this facility will open the doors for 21st century learning in the creative and business side of the performing and visual arts and will be an investment that will truly support the arts in our schools and community and will enhance public support for the school district.

We appreciate your continued support.

Remembering Jeff Rogers

On January 29^th, El Camino Band parent Jeff "Mitch" Rogers passed away after a long and courageous battle with brain cancer. Jeff was diagnosed three years ago, and fought the devastating odds through spirit, determination, and strength. He was a wonderful parent, husband and human being. A remembrance for Jeff appeared in the Sacramento Bee, and says in part: "Jeff believed in giving back to his community and did so in numerous ways...He was also passionate about the El Camino High School band program, of which his [twin] daughters are members. Watching the Pep Band in action at Friday night football games gave him great joy."  

In accordance with his wishes, the family requests that donations made in Jeff's memory be sent either to El Camino High School Performing Arts (ecARTS, Inc., Kevin Glaser, President, 4300 El Camino Avenue, Sacramento, CA, 95821 or the Fremont Presbyterian Church, 5770 Carlson Drive, Sacramento, CA 95819.

We thank Jeff and his family for their generosity in remembering El Camino and the performing arts center at this sad time. 

Please join us as we keep Jeff’s wife and daughters in our thoughts.

SJUSD Parents, Students, Employees, and Community Members Raise Their Voices at Community Forum

The January 13 performing arts center community forum hosted at El Camino High School was both informative and positive.  The current status of the “Facilities Master Plan” for Measure N was presented by the newly hired Bond Manager, Brett Mitchell.  Mr. Mitchell addressed the process and challenges of creating a facilities master plan for the school district, modernizing schools, and establishing 21st century “learning communities” and design standards for all schools in the district.

The bulk of the meeting (over one hour) was devoted to questions from the 140-member audience.  Audience members made very clear to Interim Superintendent Kent Kern, SJUSD Board Member Greg Paolo (also in attendance), and Mr. Mitchell their want, desire, need and passion for a performing arts facility that would serve all schools in the district and the surrounding community.  Neither of the district representatives could make a promise or commitment regarding a performing arts center, but Mr. Kern and Mr. Paulo both acknowledged they understand and agree with the need. 

Although audience members did not get the commitment they were looking for, the forum was positive in that our district administrators and school board member heard from an extremely passionate and loyal group of parents, students, employees and community members.  It was made perfectly clear that a performing arts center in this school district is the right thing to do and an investment in the future of our schools, the students it serves, and the community in which it resides.

Tonight's the night!

Ninety minutes of your time will go a long way toward showing Interim Superintendent Kent Kern how important a performing arts center is to our students and community.

Monday, January 13, 2014

6:30 pm – 8:00 pm

El Camino cafeteria

Hope to see you there!

Haven't been following this thread? Read more:
Save Jan. 13 at 6:30 for community forum with superindendent
Save our performing arts center

Reminder: Jan. 13 community forum

Now that the holidays are behind us, help us start the New Year off on a positive note. Attend an open forum with Interim Superintendent Kent Kern and district leadership to show your support for our community-wide performing arts center. 

Monday, January 13, 2014

6:30 pm – 8:00 pm

El Camino cafeteria

Need a refresher on why it's critical that you attend? Read our Dec. 16 blog post. 

Planning to attend? Please send us an email at performatec@yahoo.com. Come with questions.