St. Hope Band 3
Student Spotlight: Rayonna Thompson, ASB President
Meet “Ray” this year’s Sac High ASB President and Student Representative to the SHPS Board of Directors.
How long have you been at St. HOPE?
This is my fourth year. My sister went to PS7 and that’s when Sac High really caught my attention. The schools are not for everyone, but the focus on A-G requirements at Sac High really excited me and got me thinking about life after high school.
Why did you want to be the ASB President?
New Garden Mural Created by Dragon Alumni Aizik Brown
Edible Sac High sat down to get to know more about muralist, Aizik Brown, a 2012 Sac High graduate who also studied Studio Art at Humboldt State University. Aizik was inspired at a young age by his father, who was a graffiti artist. He remembered his father showing him how to draw and was totally stunned by it. “I couldn’t believe what I was seeing,” said Aizik. “Once I found graffiti I did not want to stop doing it. I have to say that my father was the main influence and inspiration in me becoming an artist.”
St. HOPE Scholars Excel at College Track
HOPEsters participating in College Track ended the 16-17 school
year with a bang and are off to a great start as they head back
to school this August. Joining the Oak Park neighborhood in 2014,
College Track’s mission is to remove the barriers that prevent
students from earning their college degree by providing them with
comprehensive academic support, leadership training, financial
and college advising, and scholarships. Like us, they teach our
scholars the skills necessary to succeed in college and
beyond.
New clothing and accessories shop opens in Oak Park
Marcy 31, 2017
It’s not a men’s clothing store. It’s not a women’s boutique. Strapping is introducing Sacramento to androgynous apparel and accessories at its new shop, which soft opened Wednesday in Oak Park’s Broadway Triangle District.
“It’s a new concept,” says shop owner Susan Stewart, a retail veteran who lives in Tahoe Park and began her online company Strapping Fit in January 2016 with clothing and accessories she designed to fit her own body type and lifestyle.
Six great new restaurant patios to check out this summer
June 28, 2017
A hot summer night. A cool Delta breeze. Flowing conversation and wine (or beer). From a tropical oasis in midtown to a pastoral terrace in Sloughhouse, these six new restaurant patios have it all.
Burgers & Brew
Now coming to Oak Park – startups in shipping containers
July 13, 2017
A funky new concept is coming to ever-changing Oak Park.
Architect Ron Vrilakas has a plan to construct a mini startup campus on an empty lot at 34th Street and Broadway, across from the Broadway Triangle retail and housing development he built.
But this new venture comes with a twist: Up to 30 work and retail spaces in the building would be made out of shipping containers.
Scholars Intern in Oak Park
While most students are sleeping in and hanging out with friends, a group of 12 scholars entering their senior year at Sac High participated in the new St. HOPE Oak Park Internship Program. The pilot program connects students with various nonprofit organizations all located in the Oak Park neighborhood for a 4-week volunteer internship of 12-15 hours per week.
Oak Park Prep Scholar Grows Over Five Grade Levels in Reading
Our Oak Park Prep scholars spend two years with us, and during each and every one of those days, all of them know our mission, which can be summed up in one word: growth.
We have always placed a special emphasis on literacy. Our scholars receive two specially designed ELA classes daily. One class focuses on rigorous, grade level content while the other meets them where they are, at their individual reading level. We believe this method enhances growth and promotes a culture of learning.
DeMarcus Cousins & VSP Global Host Basketball Camp at Sac High
New Orleans Pelican, NBA All Star, and 2016 Olympic gold medalist DeMarcus Cousins (DMC) has seen his share of successes. As a former Sacramento King, his impact was always a topic of debate. His on-court persona has been at odds with his off the court demeanor. Regardless of your opinion, one truth is evident; DeMarcus Cousins has kept his promise to the Sacramento youth who saw him develop as a professional into the superstar he has become.
Students excel at Sacramento High School
There’s been a dramatic turnaround at Sacramento High School.
Fourteen years ago, it was in danger of closing. Now, it’s a charter school with 800 students operating under St. Hope Public Schools. About 95 percent of all graduating seniors have been accepted into four-year colleges or universities for the second consecutive year.
One-third of all the students at Sacramento High School are from the surrounding neighborhood of Oak Park. But because it’s a charter school, Sacramento High must accept everyone who applies.
Congratulations to charter school graduates across the state
CA Charter Schools Association
CCSA Advocates congratulates all of the graduates from charter schools across the state, many of whom are heading off to college next year. Graduations are joyous events, particularly to the students who are the first in their families to graduate from high school. All the best to the Class of 2017!
What is Cousins’ legacy? With Kings, it’s debatable. In Oak Park, it’s ‘everlasting.’
DeMarcus Cousins’ love for Sacramento did not end the day he was traded to the New Orleans Pelicans.
He’s still connected to the many friends he made in nearly seven years, and he’s still loyal to the children and families cared for as if they were his own. That’s why Cousins was at Sacramento High School on Wednesday, working up a sweat and having fun with over 200 children for the DeMarcus Cousins Elite Skills Camp, which was free to all youth who registered and included an eye exam from VSP and glasses for those who need them.
Senior Signing Day
Sac High seniors from the Class of 2017, joined by their families and other supporters, came together for the fifth annual Senior Signing Day Event on May 26th. This is one of Sac High’s showcase events and allows graduating scholars a platform to proclaim to the rest of the student body, as well as PS7 and Oak Park Prep students, where they will be attending college following graduation.
The Sacramento Black Book Fair
On June 2-3, 2017 Underground Books partnered with Blue Nile Press to present the 4th Annual Sacramento Black Book Fair!
Learning Beyond the Classroom
One of the many things that makes St. HOPE Public Schools special is having the nearby 40 Acres cultural center as an extension to school campuses. Following on the heels of a successful Best of Sac High student art exhibit, several Freshman Honors English classes visited 40 Acres as a field lesson to explore the artwork of their peers as well as tour the various St. HOPE Development Company projects.
Sac High Students Meet with NASA
On May 22nd, a few of our very own Sac High 9th graders had the amazing opportunity to Skype with astrobiologist, Shawn Domagal-Goldman, from NASA. Scholars filled Sac High’s Mel Lawson Theater, anxiously waiting to meet the scientist and converse with him about sustaining life on Mars. Students came prepared with a variety of questions pondered in the previous weeks of class.
Sacramento’s Open Invitation to Gather: Oak Park
Sacramento Press
Sunsets in Oak Park continue to serve a lasting impression within the community-based event, Gather: Oak Park, taking a hold of the local culinary and arts scene every second Thursday of the month. On the corner of 3rd and Broadway, Unseen Heroes and the Oak Park Business Association provide the perfect setting for like-minded individuals eager to jump-start the weekend full of Sacramento spirit.
Beating the Odds
Sacramento Charter High School Class of 2017
CCSA congratulates the graduating Class of 2017 at Sacramento Charter High School in Sacramento, 95% of whom were accepted to four-year universities. This is the second year in a row for the charter school to achieve a high percentage of students accepted into a four-year university. In fact, 37 Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU’s) and all 23 California State University campuses accepted Sacramento Charter High School students to their school, as well as UC Irvine, USC, Stanford University, and UNLV, among others.
Domina Stamas, educator working with NASA
This article was published on 05.18.17.
Domina Stamas has a question for her ninth-grade science students at Sac High: How would you make Mars a sustainable living space for humans? It’s a tall order, but with a wild payoff. When the school year ends, her kids will be presenting their best models to the NASA scientists working to get an American on the red planet by the 2030s. It’s not your everyday biology unit. But, then, Stamas isn’t your everyday teacher.
Staff Appreciation Week
St. HOPE Public Schools went all out in its celebration of teachers and staff during this year’s annual staff appreciation week May 1st through May 5th. The party began early as staff gathered for a day of what they thought was going to be serious work time, but were later surprised with activities like bowling and brunch, tours of the Crocker Art Museum and excitement at K1 Speed Zone. Overall, staff members were pleasantly surprised and enjoyed a fun day to kick off a week of appreciation.