Trailside Point’s Wake Up! Club members created holiday stockings for active-duty military personnel. The project was done in conjunction with Veterans Day.
Wake Up! is a program organized by the Phoenix Police Department that teaches middle school students social and personal responsibility, community pride, life management skills, and conflict resolution. They are led by the schools’ School Resource Officers.
On October 25, 2019, Laveen broke ground on their ninth school, Estrella Foothills Global Academy. The future school is located near 55th Avenue and Carver Road.
Development of the school was made possible through a number of partnerships. The land was acquired through a donation by developer Taylor Morrison and proceeds from another district-owned land sale; the Arizona School Facilities Board is funding $14.6 million in construction costs; and, in addition to the site’s three play fields, there will be a joint-use playground/city park of which the City of Phoenix and Taylor Morrison are funding the construction, amenities, and improvements.
Estrella Foothills will offer global studies as its signature program. Plans include becoming an International Baccalaureate World School and offering Mandarin Chinese as a foreign language component. Global designs will be incorporated into the building’s architecture. Estrella Foothills Global Academy will open to Grades K–6, adding a grade level each year until it serves Grades K-8.
The school was designed by EMC2 Architects and is being constructed by S.D. Crane Builders.
Contractor S.D. Crane sponsored the celebratory event.
View photos from the groundbreaking on our flickr page.
For more information about the school, visit www.laveenschools.org/estrella-foothills-global-academy
Samuel T. Smith from Fuel For Success visited with Trailside Point students during school assemblies.
Fuel For Success was created by NASCAR driver Joey Logano and is run by Smith, a California police officer. The message of the assemblies is that anyone can be a superhero when they step in to stop bullying. Fuel For Success partners with law enforcement to bring these programs to schools.
Smith hosted the assemblies at Laveen schools with Wake Up! clubs.
Arizona State House Representative Diego Rodriguez visited with several Trailside Point classes. He discussed his background as a prosecutor and encouraged the students to work hard and set personal goals. He also explained his work as a state legislator and reminded them of the importance of voting.
Arizona Supreme Court Justice Andrew Gould visited 7th grade Trailside Point students in conjunction with Law Day on May 1.
Justice Gould focused on the topic of freedom of speech. Trailside students enjoyed discussing the many ways Americans practice this freedom and appreciated hearing more about how free speech has evolved through history. Students examined a 1963 photo of Robert Kennedy speaking outside the U.S. Department of Justice and used it to discuss freedom of speech as a constitutional right in the United States and human right around the world.
Students asked the Justice many questions and enjoyed hearing about his upbringing and entering law school. He was an inspiration to many aspiring lawyers and judges in the room.
Law Day, held annually on May 1, is a national day set aside to celebrate the rule of law. Law Day provides an opportunity to understand how law and the legal process protect our liberty, strive to achieve justice, and contribute to the freedoms that all Americans share. It is promoted by the American Bar Association.
The Phoenix Symphony’s Brass Quintet brought their Dynamic Drama of Brass to Trailside Point March 1.
Musicians first explained their instruments to the small groups. Students then heard the various dynamics each instrument offers as the quintet performed pieces from Germany, Russia, France, and the United States. A few students even had the opportunity to conduct a piece.
Ten members of Trailside’s National Junior Honor Society spent a Saturday morning picking up trash in the adjacent Trailside Park. Thank you for your service to our community!
Trailside Point’s Wake Up! club members spent some time over Fall Break preparing food boxes at St. Mary’s Food Bank Alliance.
The Wake Up! club is sponsored by community block watch organizations and Phoenix Police to teacher social and personal responsibility, community pride, life management skills, and conflict resolution.
School Resource Officer Jason Groen leads Trailside’s Wake Up! club.
Trailside Point student Andrew Capono was invited to join Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps for the Michael Phelps Foundation’s 10 Years of Water Safety celebration. Andrew is in his fourth year of swimming with Special Olympics and his team was selected to attend the private event.
Trailside Point has once again been designated as a No Place for Hate by the Arizona Anti-Defamation League. They are one of only 36 schools across the state that were recognized for creating safe learning environments, bringing awareness to the issues of bullying and bias, and promoting unity and respect.
This initiative offers students, teachers, administrators and family members the opportunity to work together to enhance a culture of respect in the school community, encourages schools to complete various activities and projects to promote unity and reduce bullying, name-calling and other expressions of bias. The school’s official banner was presented by Carlos Galindo-Elvira, ADL Arizona Regional Director.