SACATON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL DISTRICT № 18
District Newsletter
• A Monthly Publication for Parents & Families of Students in the Sacaton School District •
October (Sepjig Mashath) 2016
GOVERNING BOARD
President, Mrs. Elaine Moyah + Clerk, Ms. Michelle Lyons + Member, Ms. Judy Antone + Member, Mrs. Laurie Thomas + Member, Ms. Jane Johnson
District Superintendent: Dr. Douglas E. Price
Website: www.sacatonschools.org
======================================================================================================================================
“Family Health & Wellness Day”
The 2nd Annual Family Health & Wellness Day will be held on Tuesday, October 25 on the Sacaton Elementary
School campus starting with wellness presentations for students at both schools at 8:30 am followed by a wellness
run for all students at 9:00. There will be a variety of health care booths set up in front of the Elementary School
Gymnasium for parents to visit that day and a special presentation on drug prevention and current trends in drug
use, as well. Please mark this on your calendar as we hope to see many parents in attendance at this family event!
“Superintendent’s Corner”
Dear Parents and Patrons,
It is already October and school is in full swing. Your students are working hard and their teachers are continuing
to challenge them with new learning experiences every day. I know that the 120 parents who attended the Family
Reading and Math Night in late September were delighted to see evidence of this learning that evening. Our
students showed their families what they have been learning in science, math, English language arts and reading.
Students presented their science experiment results, helped their parents with the reading and gaming programs,
and even joined in some choral singing that night. It was an engaging evening for students and parents alike. We
certainly appreciate parents’ participation and interest in their students’ learning.
At the end of September, we had Tribal Elders, Mr. Barnaby Lewis and Ms. Connie Jackson, bless the new preschool playground which is located on the Sacaton Elementary School campus. The bright colors of the shade
structure, the storage unit and the new equipment are certainly eye-catching. This new playground with its state-ofthe-art equipment will serve our youngsters well for many years to come. It’s great to see so many pre-kindergarten
students on our elementary campus this year. With the addition of the new classroom, we are able to serve an
additional 18 general education students.
I would like to note that we have joined in a new partnership with Chandler-Gilbert Community College. Eleven
students from the educational programs division will help tutor our K-8 students beginning in October. Each of the
students will be assigned a mentor teacher and will devote 20 volunteer hours helping our students in math,
reading, science and English language arts. We truly appreciate the college and these young adults who will
graciously give of their time to assist our students in these academic areas.
This is the second year of the Girl Scout program, and I would like to report that over 100 girls from Sacaton
Schools (grades 1-8) have signed on to participate in this year’s after-school Girl Scout program. This program helps
build strong social, personal and leadership skills utilizing plenty of hands-on project learning experiences. Mag
Boase, Member Engagement Executive for Girl Scouts in Phoenix along with Mr. Brad Pico and Mrs. Angela Weddle
of the District, have been instrumental in helping organize and promote this great program. My hat is off to them
and all the adults who give of their time and energies on behalf of our Sacaton students.
Do not forget that we have the Fall Break coming up on October 17-21. We hope that you and your family enjoy
the time with your students and that you and your children have a safe and peaceful break from school.
My best wishes to you all,
Dr. Douglas Price
Superintendent
☀ “A Moment in Time in O’odham History” ☀
“Famine and Starvation, 1880-1904 Continued”
In this edition of the District Newsletter and in subsequent publications, the intolerable and devastating time
period commonly known as “The Starvation Period” in O’odham history will be chronicled. This month we learn that
by the mid-1890s, conditions became so critical on the reservation that the local federal government agent again
requested permission to purchase an additional 225,000 pounds of wheat “to prevent starvation.” To make matters
worse, the Gila River stopped flowing on the reservation on April 10, 1895. The Pima people made a strong effort to
produce a crop and would have done so had the water supply not given out. Given a fair water supply, the Gila River
Reservation would have been a prosperous community as demonstrated by small parcels cultivated by the Pima that
resulted in some thirty to forty bushels of wheat per acre. However, by 1898, the Pima farmed fewer than four
thousand total acres of land.
The drought turned deadly in 1899 when the winter crops also failed combined with the river having already
ceased flowing across the reservation years earlier. Many Pima families faced very difficult and trying times during
the years of famine. Children and the elderly were especially vulnerable. While the summer rain arrived allowing the
Pima to raise some corn, beans and squash, that summer proved to be drier than any in the past decade. Some
O’odham, “driven by hunger”, crossed into Mexico on marauding expeditions. Facing starvation, the Pima were
overtaken by “an insidious blight” of poverty. With each successive crop failure, they planted less and less. In
addition, each planting yielded fewer crops. Expecting less, they “scaled down accordingly the standard of their
existence.” More farms were abandoned while others were only partially cultivated “yielding scant and uncertain
returns.”
As bad as conditions were, we will learn next month that they grew worse in 1900. Drought and starvation were
in full force across the reservation.
New Teachers for 2016-2017 School Year
There are eleven new teachers in the classrooms this year in the Sacaton Public School District. In the August
Newsletter, four teachers were featured with another four highlighted in last month’s news publication. This month
the biographies of the remaining three teachers are noted below. Again, the District extends a very warm welcome
to all eleven new teachers and wishes them the best during the 2016-2017 school year.
Teresita Valdez – Sacaton Elementary School welcomes Mrs. Teresita Valdez who is teaching fourth grade
this year. Mrs. Valdez is a veteran teacher with many years of experience and is thrilled to be teaching in the Sacaton
School District and on the Gila River Indian Community.
Valdez was born and raised in Caborca, Sonora, Mexico. Interestingly, the HuHuKam inhabited this area from
approximately 300 B.C. to 1400 A.D. Later the place was inhabited by the Tohono O’odham and by 1790 by the Upper
Pimas, or Akimel O’odham people. The name of the city comes from the O’odham word “Kawulk”, which means “hill
with rocks and boulders.” Mrs. Valdez became a U.S. citizen eighteen years ago and holds dual citizenship with
Mexico and the U.S.
Her career in education began when she taught Spanish at the high school level for seven years on the island of
Guam (a U.S. Territory in the Western Pacific). Mrs. Valdez is trilingual, speaking Spanish, English, and Chamorro, the
native language of Guam. In Arizona, Valdez was a Para-Professional in the Isaac School District in Phoenix for two
years before becoming a certified teacher where she would teach Kindergarten through fourth grade in the Isaac
District. In 2008, Mrs. Valdez was selected as a Rodel Exemplary Teacher. This high honor represents a teacher very
well established in their field and having a track record of high student achievement. Following her time in Phoenix,
Mrs. Valdez served as the Director of Community and Family Relations in the Eloy Elementary School District for
three years before accepting employment here in the Sacaton School District.
Mrs. Valdez holds a BA Degree in Elementary Education from Arizona State University (ASU) and an MA Degree
in English as a Second Language (ESL) from ASU. She stated that her dream job for many years was to teach the
O’odham children of the Gila River Indian Community. Valdez teaches her students that if they work hard, they, too
may achieve their dream as she has done.
In her brief time working in the District, Mrs. Valdez has enjoyed making many connections between the
O’odham language and culture with her own mixed Mexican and Indian (Seri) culture from northwestern Mexico.
Continued on Next Page →→→→
New Teachers for 2016-2017 School Year (Mrs. Valdez) Continued …
She noted she was particularly impressed with the week-long workshops and training the District offered for all new
teachers this past July, especially pertaining to culture. Valdez greatly appreciated the information and cultural
knowledge that Mrs. Connie Jackson, a Community Elder, imparted to the new teachers.
Mrs. Valdez is married to Mr. Jessie Valdez, a Reading Interventionist at Sacaton Middle School. Mr. and Mrs.
Valdez have three daughters – ages 26, 20, and 17. In their spare time, the Valdez family enjoy the scenic views and
tranquility of the Sea of Cortez in Mexico where they have a vacation/retirement beach home. During the school
year, Mr. and Mrs. Valdez call Casa Grande home. Welcome, Mrs. Valdez!
Jessie Valdez – Sacaton Middle School welcomes Mr. Jessie Valdez as a new Reading Interventionist at the
school. Mr. Valdez grew up in Portales, New Mexico and has spent the past twenty-three years as an elementary
school teacher.
Valdez spent eighteen years teaching in the Isaac School District in Phoenix and most recently taught in the Eloy
Elementary School District for five years. He received a BA Degree in Elementary Education from Eastern New
Mexico University in Portales and an MA Degree in Multi-Cultural Education from Northern Arizona University.
Mr. Valdez was the first person in his family to obtain a college degree – something that he is very proud of in
his life. He likes to use humor in the classroom as part of his teaching and is a firm believer in adapting to the needs
and situations of his students in being an effective teacher. He learned and embraced these concepts of using humor
and being adaptable in the classroom after meeting noted comedian George Lopez – strategies Lopez learned early
to survive and succeed growing up in the rough neighborhoods of east Los Angeles.
In his spare time, Mr. Valdez enjoys training horses and horseback riding with his family. He and his family have
traveled to many Southwestern states including Utah, New Mexico, Texas, Colorado, Oklahoma and California along
with many areas of northern Mexico.
Though years away from retirement, Valdez, along with his wife Teresita (see above), plan to retire to their
vacation/retirement beach house located on the Sea of Cortez just south of Puerto Peñasco (Rocky Point) in
Sonora, Mexico. Welcome, Mr. Valdez!
Samantha Lang – Sacaton Middle School welcomes Mrs. Samantha Lang as a new sixth grade teacher.
Lang is beginning her seventh year of teaching having previously taught six years at EDUPRIZE Charter School in
Queen Creek. At EDUPRIZE she taught third grade for three years, fifth grade for two years, and eighth grade social
studies for one year.
Mrs. Lang has an AA Degree in Accounting and completed a Post-Baccalaureate program through Northern
Arizona University earning a BS Degree in Elementary Education to become a certified elementary school teacher. As
part of her post-baccalaureate work, Lang requested and was granted the opportunity to work one semester at
Sacaton Elementary School where she was mentored by former first grade teacher, Mrs. Christine Sanchez. She is
Highly Qualified to teach both junior high school language arts and social studies.
Mrs. Lang was born and raised for her first five years of life in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, living with her
grandparents in a cemetery where her grandfather was the caretaker – an interesting and different place to grow up
as she acknowledged. The remainder of her formative years were spent in a suburb of Philadelphia.
Her initial career goal was to be a commercial airline pilot, however, this goal had to be scuttled in view of the
very high cost of training. She moved to Chandler in 2003 with her husband and three children where they continue
to live. Her children, two girls and a son, are ages 20, 18, and 17. In addition, two Golden Retrievers keep the Lang
household a busy place.
In her spare time, Mrs. Lang enjoys reading, watching educational television programs on World War II,
spending time with her granddaughter, baking and cooking.
One thing Lang misses living in southcentral Arizona is seeing the beautiful colors of fall leaves and not having
the distinct seasonal changes she experienced growing up on the East Coast. Other than the lack of these seasonal
variances, Lang enjoys life here in the desert. Welcome, Mrs. Lang!
Quote of the Month
“Children learn from what they see. We need to set an example of truth and action!”
Howard Rainer (Taos Pueblo-Creek)
Dads…. Are You Ready to Make a Difference?
When fathers and men are engaged with their children’s schooling, students show improved learning outcomes
and demonstrate better behavior. Teachers can partner with parents to produce even better results in their
classrooms. Students, schools, and communities benefit immeasurably when children feel protected, supported and
loved by fathers and father figures.
Research shows that children whose fathers take an active role in their educational lives do better in school
(earn better grades, score higher on tests, enjoy school more and are more likely to graduate from high school and
attend college). Additionally, children whose fathers listen to and talk with them regularly, and are active in their
lives, have fewer behavior problems. So, Dads – are you ready to make a difference in the educational lives of your
children?
Way to Go, Mrs. Valdez!
Next time you see fourth grade teacher, Mrs. Teresita Valdez, be sure and give her a “high five.” Mrs. Valdez
recently earned funding through DonorsChoose.org for a classroom project called “Interventions and Extensions.”
In support of this project, Mrs. Valdez received:






A “Reading for Dollars!” challenge game
Understanding Idioms teaching cards
Small-Group Nonficition Comprehension cards
Nonfiction Comprehension Quickie cards
Cause and Effect High-Interest Interventions
Ready-To-Play Reading Games Library
DonorsChoose.org is a free nonprofit website where teachers can receive funding for student resources. Way to
go, Mrs. Valdez for taking time and putting forth the effort to obtain these wonderful resources for your students!
Parents – Don’t Underestimate the Harm of School Absences!
A recent study found that an overwhelming majority (86%) of parents understand their child’s school
attendance plays a big role in helping them graduate from high school. However, nearly half (49%) of parents
believe that it is okay for their children to miss three or more days of school per month – and that they won’t fall
behind academically if they do. Many parents don’t realize that even when absences are sporadic, excused or
understandable, absences add up and can greatly impact a child’s education.
As early as elementary school, students who miss just two days each month are more likely to fall behind in
reading, writing and math. Those 18 days each year makes students less likely to graduate from high school. So,
parents, please make sure your children are in school every day. It truly makes a big difference in their education
and future success in high school, college and beyond!
Summer Renovation Projects
The summer months are typically when most school districts take on necessary renovation and construction
projects while students and staff are not on campus. This was the case for the Sacaton School District this summer
as numerous projects, both large and small, were completed. Here is a synopsis of what was completed on both the
elementary and middle school campuses during June and July, 2016.
Elementary School: • New carpet was laid in several classrooms
• New ceiling tile and LED lighting fictures were installed in many classrooms
• Several classrooms received a fresh coat of paint
• A stove was installed in a Special Needs classroom to facilitate the teaching of Life Skills
• A stove was installed in the kitchen of the 21st Century Building to be used in
conjunction with Pima Culture and Gifted & Talented Program classes
• The Pre-School playground was renovated with the installation of a rubberized
play/activity surface and the removal of sand, the installation of a shade structure, and the
installation of a 4’ high fence around the playground area
Continued on Next Page →→→→
Summer Renovation Projects Continued ….
Middle School: • The exterior of the gymnasium received a fresh coat of paint
• New carpet was laid in several classrooms
• Room C3 and C6 (very large room with two entrances) was divided into two classrooms
• An 11-space parking lot was built on the south side of the former wood shop building
• The administrative area and library were reroofed
CTC Lab: The restrooms were renovated
The District would like to thank Mr. Kevin Allen, Facilities Director and his hard-working staff for successfully
completing all these projects during the summer months.
Kudos to “Student Presenters” at Family Night
The school district would like to recognize and thank all of the following “Student Presenters” at the Family
Reading & Math Night held on September 22, 2016 in the Sacaton Middle School Gymnasium. Students
demonstrated what they were learning in several key subject areas including reading, English language arts, math,
and science. Thank you, students for a job well done!
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
KP Tiles
Alfonso Gomez
Tristian Jones
Jason Townsend
Xavier Gomez
Alex Miguel
3rd & 4th WUAS
Kinder WUAS
Science (4th)
Armani Ruvalcaba
Bannon Blackwater
Azaezal Rhodes
Emmettrio Enos
Elayna Juan
Diamon Morago
Andras Smith
Shadya Baptisto
Alice Moreno & Daphne Villareal
Gifted & Talented
Taliyana Jackson Taliyana Jackson
Anthony Paul
Sonja Banuelos
Kalvin Bennett
Danai Ameelyenah
MIDDLE SCHOOL
Gifted & Talented Prog.
Wihom Zeek
Alayna Mark
Maya Randall
Lightfoot Howard
Cordell Jackson
Jaylynn Mark
Plicker & 7th & 8th WUAS
Nikki Randall
Mariah Randall
Permelia Kelley
Fastt Math (5th)
Jerry Pedro
Anthony Jackson
Elizabeth Enos
Science (5th & 6th)
Mateo Antone
Ricky Lewis
Trinity Hoover
Dorian Jackson
Robotics
Quincy Randall
Josiah Ochoa
Heather Antone Weston Pina
Jacob Ochoa
Siana Rivers
Math Club
Gracie Mark
Alayna Mark
Maya Randall
Sapphire Lyons
i-Ready
Nizhoni Williams
Trinity Manuel
Program Abbreviations:
KP Tiles (Manufacturer of math manipulatives)
WUAS (Writing Up a Storm – writing program)
i-Ready (Computerized practice math program)
Plicker (iPad app used for student engagement)
State Climatologist Works With Gifted Program Students
Fourth grade students in the Gifted and Talented Program received some unexpected expert help in late September
when State Climatologist and Arizona State University professor Dr. Nancy Selover visited their classroom to help them
with an assigned project they will be starting soon. Dr. Selover spoke to students on “The Terrain and Climate of
Arizona” which aligns with their hands-on individual project of designing and building a “Dream Backyard” in a specified
location of their choice in Arizona. As part of the presentation, Dr. Selover pointed out to students that the materials,
features and amenities in their backyard should be compatible and relevant with the terrain and climate of the area in
which they have selected to build. She pointed out the difference in temperature and amounts of precipitation various
communities receive around the state as a result of elevation. For example, the Heber-Overgaard area on the Mogollon
Rim is much cooler and receives much more precipitation than cities in the metro Phoenix area due to a significantly
higher elevation.
After the presentation, the class went outside where each student was given a handheld infrared digital thermometer
to compare and contrast the temperature of various living and non-living objects to see the difference in each. Learning
how some objects are much cooler than others due to their composition will help students determine what landscaping
materials and backyard amenities would best be suited to use in the design and building of their “Dream Backyard.”
The District would like to thank Dr. Selover and the university for their support in working with our students. This is
another good example of the on-going partnership the District has with Arizona State University.