Homecoming, Staying Safe & Our Staff

By Dr. Alison Hanks-Sloan, aka Dr. AHS, Aptos High Principal

I wanted to write just about celebrations and the fun of fall sports. Then, there was a school shooting in Georgia just after Labor Day.

Last Friday, there were shots fired between teenagers after a football game in a neighboring community. These violent moments impact all of us. We also had two students post threats on social media, not realizing that threats are illegal, monitored by law enforcement and followed by criminal charges and school disciplinary consequences.

At Aptos High School, we have multiple procedures and resources in place to keep our campus safe and to support any Mariner who may need it in the wake of national and local tragedies.

We conduct weekly wellness referrals and checks, and we have set up a wellness center with Social-Emotional Learning trained counselors. We also partnered with the Santa Cruz County Office of Education to secure funding from U.S. Rep. Jimmy Panetta to leverage our wellness center.

We provide active supervision including our administration, campus security, teachers, and staff who actively monitor our campus and students. Thanks for your understanding when we inquire about your visit when you are on campus.

We continue to monitor our StopIt app, which is an anonymous reporting tool found on our website. We also ask our community to continue using StopIt or email us directly. It takes all of us working together to create and maintain a safe community. We collaborate with our school resource officer from the Santa Cruz County Sheriff Department and/or visiting sheriffs on a daily basis. We also value and depend on your communication and feedback.

AHS Homecoming is Sept 30-Oct 5. “Game On” is the Aptos High School Homecoming theme this year. The dance will be a “Just Dance Disco.”

Our ASB, which is our associated student body, is our student leadership team developing and creating ways for all students to connect to our school. High school is a unique four years of our lives, and we encourage all of our Mariners to participate in the fun.

Each class voted on a theme related to a game ranging from classic board games to electronic platforms. Our Grade 9 skated into Subway Surfers, Grade 10 stuck with Candyland, Grade 11 raced into Mario Kart, and Grade 12 took Jumanji to the end. The staff will be searching for Mac, our Mariner mascot, as they engage in Clue.

From Sept. 30 to Oct. 4, our campus will celebrate these game themes by dressing the parts and engaging in a variety of game activities. On Thursday, Oct. 3, the HOCO parade will make its way on Mariner Way around the stadium. Each grade level will design and decorate their own float. These floats along with HOCO royalty will circle the outside of the stadium before the flag football game. We will temporarily close our school road to celebrate the parade that evening.

The festivities will continue on Friday, Oct. 4, with a home football game against Monterey. The JV game begins at 5; the varsity game will begin at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $5 for students and $8 for adults. Our snack shack, run by Shannon Candelario, has some of the best tri-tip in the Monterey Bay area. There are also potatoes, burgers, hot dogs, nachos, hot chocolate, and more! All the funds go back to the school and support our athletes.

We ask that junior high school students be accompanied by their parents. We also encourage people to bring clear bags or no bags. Our band consists of students from both schools, AJHS and AHS. A big shout out to Finley Asmuth, our band director at both schools.

How can you support our schools? Your ticket and food purchases go a long way. We also encourage you to participate in Drive for Schools. Many of our students will be selling tickets through our Booster Club.

Drive for Schools is a county sponsored project, and the funding goes directly to the clubs or sports that you specify. We also welcome direct donations. Our fiscal clerk will deposit checks or cash identified for specific or general purposes, such a sport, club, class, or field trip. We are also looking for vehicle donations to support field trips or another golf cart to help our safety team move quickly throughout campus.

Did you know that when you donate to the Aptos Sports Foundation that all of that funding will go to our sports programs and facilities? Local places, such as Aptos Street BBQ, Deluxe Foods of Aptos, and Bittersweet Bistro directly donate back to the school through ASF.

Celebrating Our Aptos Staff

Each month, I will highlight our staff, starting with two of our second- year teachers, who bring years of teaching experience with them.

Thad Moren, who teaches math by day and coaches football and track during all other hours of the day, balances calm and enthusiasm in all he does. He said he teaches and coaches to prevent the professions from extinction.

He loves the challenge of “stuffing more names” into his head, designing swag for sports, and learning new technology. This summer he traveled with a group of AHS athletes to a summer track meet.

Jessalynn Levine teaches vocal music at AHS and AJHS. She said she teaches, “because I love music and I love sharing that love with my students. I love watching them grow, find their voices, and come together to create something beautiful that they can’t create alone.”

She added, “Choir isn’t just about singing — it’s about connecting with each other, working as a team, creating a space where students feel safe expressing themselves.

I’m most looking forward to this no longer being my first year!!”

Ms. Levine took students to sing the national anthem at the closing Oakland A’s stadium last month. She has several more singing trips scheduled including the Bay Area and a southern California trip to Disneyland and Universal Studios. Donations are always welcome to help more students participate.

SAILs up!

TOP PHOTO: Jessalynn Levine, vocal music teacher, with Aptos students who sang the national anthem at the closing of Oakland A’s stadium.
In foreground: Madison Reid, right behind her is Madelyn Pate, front row of students is from left, Jinnin Nay, Leila Voeltz, Rylie Knudsen, Avery Ruddick, June Zelmon, Dakota Bamford, second row from left is Julia Blevins, Mateo Cuprill and Jessalynn Levine.