My Sister in the news...And not in JAIL how impressive

Jessica made the paper - here is the article...



Los Primeros Magnet School teacher Jessica Cisneros Elliott shows seventh-grade students Garrett Rivera, left, and Keith Kemper, both 13, the art of origami during special activities time at the school last week. Principal Esther Winkelman recently announced the magnet school wants to focus its curriculum on arts and sciences to define its magnet program.



Arts and sciences will be the likely focus for Los Primeros Magnet School as a result of a survey taken last week of the school's parents and staff.
The focus, if approved by Pleasant Valley School District trustees, will influence all subjects taught at the kindergartenthrough-eighth-grade school and could be implemented by the fall.
"It's our job now to flesh it out and develop it," said Principal Esther Winkelman.
Winkelman said the school will develop a more specific plan of how the arts and sciences curriculum will look and present it to the school board after spring break.
Los Primeros Magnet School evolved from Los Primeros Structured School, which the school board moved from downtown to an east-side campus last year, dropping the "structured" title in favor of the "magnet" status. The district asked Los Primeros parents, administrators and faculty to agree on a focal point for the school.
"Structured" refers to a rigid instructional program- students are expected to follow specific rules of conduct, educators focus on the basics, for example. "Magnet" schools, developed in the 1970s in an attempt to desegregate schools, offer specialized curricula. There is no difference in funding.
Earlier this year, Los Primeros' school advisory council, composed of five parents and five staff members, presented seven possible choices as the school's focus: leadership and community service, enrichment through the arts, arts and sciences, liberal arts, visual and performing arts, no magnet focus and a write-in selection.
Parents and staff narrowed the choices down to arts and sciences or communications and arts in a survey last month. Last week's survey revealed the final choice, and Winkelman delivered the news on Monday evening in a recorded phone message to Los Primeros families and staff, the school board and the rest of the district.
Magnet choices were described in the survey in general terms because the possibilities for any specific program "are endless," said Barbara Likovich, school advisory council chair.
Elements of most of the choices already exist in the school's curriculum, Likovich added.
The advisory council would like the focus to be integrated into some subjects by this fall but realizes it could be several years before it's implemented schoolwide, Winkelman said.
In addition, the arts and sciences magnet will be everchanging as state, district and other resources change, Winkelman said.