May Newsletter

ASU Prep Digital’s mission is to design new models for educational success to raise academic achievement for all learners.

Note from Your Director

Dear ASU Prep Digital Students and Families,

Hello Sun Devils!

What a year it has been, the time has flown by! As we reflect on our current year, we cannot thank you enough for what has been a very successful school year. It is our sincere hope that we provided a sense of stability and happiness during a time of uncertainty for many, and that we have exceeded your expectations as a school partner. As the semester comes to a close, it is ever important to stay focused on our end goals. We are still working everyday to help you “Finish Strong” and will be there to celebrate with you when you cross that finish line.

Graduation is fast approaching and we are overjoyed to celebrate the Class of 2022 in person at ASU’s Desert Financial Arena! Click HERE to view our graduation website for all of the most up to date information. Congratulations to the Class of 2022, and we look forward to honoring all of you!

Enrollment is now open for the 2021-2022 school year! Students that are continuing their education with ASU Prep Digital don’t need to do anything, as your LSC will be reaching out to review a schedule of your courses for the upcoming school year. The 2022-2023 School Year Calendar is now available on our website under the resource section! For students looking to take advantage of summer school options, please note the deadline for registration is rapidly approaching. You can access Summer Information for K-5 by clicking HERE and for 6-12 by clicking HERE. Go Devils!

Sincerely,

Dr. Laura Maloney Director of Academics

Mr. Michael Kasper, M.Ed, Director of Academics

Staff Spotlight

Jenny Spencer, 4th Grade Lead Teacher

Mrs. Spencer is our Lead 4th Grade teacher. Her teaching philosophy is, “I believe that all children should have the equal right to learn in a safe and caring environment that challenges them. I feel that it’s so important to put students at the center of every decision we make. My goal is to create a classroom full of learners who feel safe enough to take creative risks, and confident enough to know that we grow from our mistakes.”

Meaghan Goliday, 6th Grade Language Arts

Mrs. Goliday joined ASU Prep Digital in the fall of 2020 and currently serves as a 6th grade language arts teacher. She has nearly a decade of experience in education and has taught in Louisiana and Washington state before joining our team. She is a lifelong learner and a passionate student advocate. In her free time, she is teaching herself graphic design, enjoys family time, and leads community outreach. Her favorite part of working with ASU Prep Digital is the ability to work with her students and families on an individual basis. “Each day is a little different,” she says, “and the opportunities we have each day allow me to really get to know my students and their needs.”

This month we are highlighting two of our Economics teachers from our Social Studies team! Ms. White and Mr. Mueller have been hosting collaborative Live Lessons and providing the students with multiple perspectives each week. Their team teaching effort has been incredibly engaging for the students (and for our team).

Elizabeth White

Growing up, Ms. White was always fascinated by anthropology and cultural history. She spent her free time reading history books, watching historical documentaries, and visiting museums. Since she has always enjoyed history, her goal is to find creative and engaging lessons that will make history come alive for her students.

Ms. White says that teaching for ASU Prep Digital has been the most enjoyable and supportive experience she has had as a teacher. ASU Prep Digital truly focuses on student-centered learning and helping students succeed. The thing she likes most about teaching at ASU Prep Digital is building a connection with her students and watching them achieve their academic goals. Her hope is that her students develop a lifelong love and appreciation for history.

Robert Mueller

Mr. Mueller has taught Global Studies, Government and Economics in Northern California for the past 12 years. He has spent much of that time coaching high school and college baseball players. As his family started to grow, he began looking for new ventures in life and found himself stepping away from baseball to spend more time with his kids just having fun.

As many people experienced, the pandemic changed his life and rearranged his priorities in many ways. As a result, he decided to challenge himself in new areas and joined our amazing ASU Prep Digital community as a teacher this past fall. One aspect he loves about ASU Prep Digital is that we are a community that is actively engaging with teachers and students to better ourselves as learners and as people. Mr. Mueller believes that when we do better ourselves, we are able to celebrate those achievements as a community.

Meet The Teachers

Amie Brannan, 3rd Grade Teacher

Amie Brannan has been teaching for 14 years. Her favorite thing about being in education is being able to be creative and teach students in a way that makes sense to them. She strives to create a student-centered classroom environment where students can be creative, solve problems, complete group activities, and enjoy school!

Jessica Berger, Middle School Science

Mrs. Berger teaches middle school science for ASU Prep Digital and has been an educator in the healthcare and scientific communities for about twenty years. Her first career as a veterinary technician initially sent her on another career pathway as an educator since a majority of my job included educating clients about veterinary care.

Her teaching career began when she taught high school biology and Earth science at a local high school in Arizona. Mrs. Berger truly enjoyed making connections with students through our fascination with the world around us. This passion lead her back to her love for animals and she was able to create a veterinary assistant Career and Technical Education program for another local school. In this program, they placed many students with internships and, eventually, found them jobs within the veterinary field.

Mrs. Yuyu Bogdan, High School Math Teacher

“I love joining the ESE meetings to get to know my students better at a more personal level and support them in the areas they need. ASU Prep Digital gives students and teachers more opportunities to meet on Zoom and spend some 1:1 time together. I love my student chats, when they ask questions and being able to share my expertise in live lessons. I have been a teacher for 15 years. Prior to working here at ASUPD, I was teaching math and Chinese at an all boys private school in Buffalo, NY. I love antiquing and cooking for fun. I never follow cook book exactly. I buy whatever food on sale in the supermarket. Being creative with the food in the fridge is fun for me. I will be teaching in this summer but I hope I can visit some hiking sites around Buffalo.”

School Updates

Elementary School

AASA Testing Week Scavenger Hunt: The 4th grade team put together an AASA testing week Scavenger Hunt for students. Check it out HERE!

LSC Events: LSCs hosted their third career spotlight for students. The guest was an ASU Prep Digital who is a competitive skier with big dreams. He shared his experiences with students, and students asked wonderful questions! LSCs also hosted a Taste of Arizona session where students learned about local Arizona restaurants and discussed food and culture. Students even visited a Ukrainian restaurant! LSCs, Natalie Arbuckle and Ana Berry are hosting an Elementary Cultural Heritage Celebration on Wednesday, May 11. We encourage everyone to attend and look forward to learning about Cultural heritages!

Career Day Panel: 1st graders were treated to a career day panel where guests included a music producer, helicopter pilot and our very own principal, Mrs. Voltaire!

End of Year ABC Countdown: Kindergarten recently launched their End of Year ABC Countdown. Check out their countdown daily activities here.

Congratulations to 5th grader Yancy Murphy. She was one of the two ASU Prep Digital School Wide Spelling Bee Final Champions. If you see her congratulate her on this amazing accomplishment. The Final Bee went 20 rounds and took over two hours before finally crowning two winners. Way to go Sun Devil Superstar!!!!

Cultural Diversity Event: Elementary hosted a Cultural Diversity Event on Cultural Diversity on May 11th. Students prepared presentations and shared their unique backgrounds with their peers!

Learn more about our Elementary School here: https://www.asuprepdigital.org/elementary-school-program/

Middle School

Please enjoy the interview with our Global Leadership Exchange Program. Our school partnered with a South African school to solve problems, use teamwork, and create lasting relationships! Shawn and Ava did a masterful job representing ASUP! Our GLE program is a huge success thanks to our wonderful teacher and students. Interview Recording

Congratulations to 6th grader Akshaya Madhankumar. She was one of the two ASU Prep Digital School Wide Spelling Bee Final Champions. If you see her congratulate her on this amazing accomplishment. The Final Bee went 20 rounds and took over two hours before finally crowning two winners. Way to go Sun Devil Superstar!!!!

Middle School Spirit Song: A huge thank you to our drama club for creating our first ASU Prep Digital Middle School Spirit song! Click HERE to listen.

Our 8th grade promotion night will be Thursday May 19. Please stay tuned for more information as we get closer! A reminder for students to schedule their DBAs as soon as possible as we approach the end of the semester!

Don’t forget Forks Up Friday every Friday at 1:00pm AZ!

April 29th We will be making Salsa for Cinco de Mayo
May 6th is a Star Wars Activity
May 13th is a STEM Challenge/Experiment,
Our FINAL Forks Up Friday on May 20th we will have a BACK TO THE 80’s End of the Year Jam!

Learn more about our Middle School program here: https://www.asuprepdigital.org/middle-school-program/

High School

May is an exciting time of the year for our high school students. For our seniors, they are right on the edge of their first step into the adulting world. Our juniors are excited to become the next leaders of our school. Our sophomores are about the cross the midway point of their high school careers. And our freshman are happy to have this first year under their belt and are ready not to be the new kids on the block! We are all incredibly proud of what the students have accomplished this year, both academically and socially.

Mental Health Awareness Month

Psychology Clubs school wide challenge to spark conversations about mental health. Check out our website HERE!

Announcing: High School Prom!

We are thrilled to announce our first annual ASU Prep Digital Prom on Friday, May 13, 2022! Join us for an evening of dancing, celebration, and fun at Warehouse 215 in Phoenix, AZ.

Prom is open to all high school students. Ticket prices start at $50 (a $5 surcharge is added to each single ticket). Ticket sales have begun and will be open through April 30, 2022.

Tickets are available on a first come, first serve basis. A special eventbrite link will be sent to students through their asuprep.org email. If you have questions, please check out the links below. Guests between the ages of 13-19 are welcome (ticket purchase required for each guest).

Considering Summer School?

We have nearly our full course catalog available to our students for these accelerated sessions. Keep in mind that the Summer School courses offer the same content as during the school year over a four week period. For that reason, interested students should plan to take only one class per summer session. Contact your LSC with any questions.

ASU PhD Candidate, Devin Bowes, Research Presentation

Topic: Assessing the potential of wastewater-based epidemiology to understand population-level dynamics of dietary behavior. Click HERE for Flier & Sign-up Information.

Global Leadership Exchange

A virtual exchange program with students in other countries. Engage in addressing real-world problems, designing potential solutions with your teammates abroad, and learning to work cross-culturally in the process. You will emerge from this half-credit elective with a greater understanding of how to work with people in a global, digital setting. Currently, we offer an exchange program for high school students in partnership with a high school in Morocco. For more information please see our GLE Flier HERE.

Raja Habbal is one of our H.S. Teachers who serves our Global Leadership Exchange, currently partnering with Morocco and she recently shared this video clip from their alumni meeting. GLE alumni meetings with secretary of state Antony Blinken in Morocco. In attendance is Aya Ben-Saghroune, she is an example of powerful women in STEM and a wonderful student.

MS/HS Student Club Opinion Form

Clubs have been a huge success here at ASU Prep Digital and now we want to hear from you about the types of clubs you’d like to see become available next year! Please fill out the short survey HERE to give us your opinion!

Calling all Juniors and Seniors: Register NOW for the SAT and ACT

Calling all upperclassmen! It’s time to register for the SAT and ACT. We recommend you taking the exam in the spring of your junior year and again by fall of your senior year. Please visit the links below to register. Bear in mind that there are strict registration deadlines (typically a month before the test), so please register early!

Note: Students who qualify for free and reduced lunch should contact their LSC to receive a fee waiver for their exams.

ASU Prep Digital’s CEEB Code is 030175.

SAT Registration: https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/sat/register

ACT Registration: http://www.act.org/content/act/en/products-and-services/the-act/registration.html

Meet Benji, Your Digital FAFSA Assistant

As part of our college prep culture, we ask that all graduating Seniors complete the FAFSA, which stands for “Free Application for Federal Student Aid.” Would your family be willing to help us with this important college-going point of pride for us? Our goal is to have 100% participation no matter what the student’s choice is after graduation.

Need help with your FAFSA? We’ve got you covered! Ask Benji your questions by texting 602-786-8171. @benjifafsa is your digital FAFSA assistant and will quickly respond with answers. Submitting FAFSA is the first and most important step to making college more affordable. Many universities and colleges require a completed FAFSA on file to be considered for merit based scholarships.

AZ On Track Summer Camps

ASU Preparatory Academy is hosting tuition-free AZ OnTrack Summer Camps with learning enrichment for Arizona students who live near our campuses. Camp is available to any 1st through 12th grade student in Arizona with prioritized enrollment for vulnerable students, including those with demonstrated academic needs.

ASU Summer Programs

ASU Summer Programs are available for students in grades 8th – 12th in a variety of topics including engineering, leadership, math and the arts. Programs are offered on all four ASU campuses and online, and formats range from day camps to residential programs, where students have the opportunity to live on campus. https://eoss.asu.edu/access/programs/summer

Academic Support

Academic Enrichment Programs

When student curiosity is ignited, their learning knows no bounds. Our selection of academic enrichment programs let students join small groups that dive deep into learning areas of their choice, advancing their subject knowledge, building their confidence, and increasing their critical-thinking and problem-solving skills.

K-5:

Summer school is free for currently enrolled students, and we encourage all students to take advantage of elementary Math Refresh and Reading Refresh courses.
Skill groups were offered by 5th grade teachers who combined forces and invited students to any one of the 15 groups available. The schedules/opportunities changed weekly to meet student needs and included test prep, speech support, open Zoom and ALEKS. When groups wrapped up, teachers offered game type rooms that focused on spiral standards to keep them fresh before moving into middle school.
Lunch bunch continues to be held at a variety of grade levels!

6-8:

Summer school is free for currently enrolled students, and we encourage all students to take advantage of Math Refresh and Reading Refresh courses as well as many of the courses offered in our course catalog.
There are 15 days left in the semester, please reach out to your LSC if you need tips or help finishing your courses.

9-12:

As we move closer to the end of the semester, all teachers are offering one to one or small group help sessions to support students who are struggling or off pace with assignments.
For students interested in math support, math teachers are offering additional Live Lesson sessions.
Math tutors are available for all Calculus and Pre-Calculus students.
If you are looking to get a jump start on the Fall semester, we are taking enrollments for the Summer Sessions; please refer to the course catalog offerings.

Socialize and Accelerate Learning

We’re building a supportive academic culture that lets students connect with others who share their passions and academic interests. Not only does this make learning more fun, but it allows students to encourage each other on their learning journeys.

Learn more about our Academic Support Program offerings here.

Microschools

To help fulfill our mission of designing new models of educational success, the ASU Prep team is working with passionate parents to create flexible school program alternatives. These programs are designed to serve families looking for just the right mix of in-person and digital learning to meet student needs, while accessing ASU faculty through an on-campus experience.

1 day per week on-campus, semester-based
Honors Elective high school credit earned
Faculty-supported workshops that focus on real-world, project-based learning
Application-based; available to all ASU Digital 9th-11th grade students
Available at ASU Polytechnic campus in Fall ‘22 and ASU Tempe in Spring ‘23

2 days per week on-campus, year long program on the ASU West campus or the ASU @ Mesa City Center campus
Available to all ASU Digital 9th-11th grade students, 12th grade students upon review
Faculty-supported workshops that focus on real-world, project-based learning
Students will be enrolled in concurrent ASU courses
Core content support on-site with a Personalized Learning Advisor

To find out more and apply to any of these programs, please visit our website and complete the online registration form.