Think Cool!
10/02/26 KHSTA UPDATE
Welcome to October -- where it’s supposed to be cooling off, but someone missed that memo!! Not sure if time is flying by for you or dragging on, but either way, you’ve reached the last week of the first quarter.
Updates will come out every Friday EXCEPT for the last Friday of the quarter. Please check your junk mail folder if you are not receiving them. Past updates will be archived on the KHSTA website (khsta.org).
KEENAN VIDEOS
Just an additional reminder: Per our contract, Keenan videos were due to be completed by September 30. If you have not completed them by the deadline, you may be subject to a write-up.
If you still have videos outstanding, please make sure they are completed this weekend. If you are called in by the administration regarding this, please make sure you bring your representative with you.
FIVE YEAR EVALUATION CYCLE
With the evaluation cycle starting up, a number of questions have been asked regarding the five year evaluation cycle. There is information on the five year evaluation cycle in the Collective Bargaining Agreement in Article 10. An FAQ sheet is attached.
ACCEPTABLE COMMUNICATION WITH CLUBS/TEAMS
All communication with students, whether related to clubs, teams, or other activities, must take place through an approved app or platform where parents can be included in the conversation.
There should be no one-to-one communication between staff and students (such as coach-to-player or advisor-to-club-member communication), regardless of how brief, routine, or insignificant the communication may seem.
Platforms such as ParentSquare, Remind, and similar approved apps provide appropriate ways to communicate with student groups. Please ensure that your app settings are configured so that messages are sent to the entire group and that private, one-to-one messaging is disabled or otherwise prevented.
BARGAINING TEAM APPLICATION
This spring, KHSTA will be bargaining with the district. Mindy Montanio, KHSTA’s vice president, is the new bargaining chairperson and will be interviewing potential members of the bargaining team for this three year cycle. If you missed the application email earlier this week, use this link to apply: https://forms.gle/MFvKQKk8b3vUv82aA. KHSTA will also be looking for members to represent their sites and specialty groups for the contract committee as well. You can use the same form to apply for the contract committee. A bargaining information sheet is attached.
10 MINUTE MEETINGS
This month, the 10 Minute Meeting topic is The Bargaining Process. Site reps will be hosting a 10 minute meeting to tell you more about bargaining. In case you can’t make that one, a virtual 10 Minute Meeting will be hosted on Thursday, October 22.
10 Minute Meeting 8:00am: https://kernhigh-org.zoom.us/j/86720948007
10 Minute Meeting 4:15pm: https://kernhigh-org.zoom.us/j/86073436368
CONFERENCES
KHSTA offers scholarships for the following CTA conferences. KHSTA’s Exec Board reviews applications once a month, so please apply at least 30 days prior to the conference dates.
Conferences Available for the 2026 - 2027 school year (conferences will be added as they are announced):
New Educator North, November 13 - 15, 2026 (SFO Marriott, Burlingame)
CTA Organizing Academy, January 15 - 17, 2027 (Las Vegas)
Good Teacher North, February 5 - 7, 2027 (Burlingame)
New Educator South, February 19 - 21, 2027 (Hilton OC, Costa Mesa)
Equity and Human Rights, March 5 - 7, 2027 (Santa Clara)
Good Teaching South, March 12 - 14, 2027 (Garden Grove)
Women's Conference, April 16 - 18, 2027 (San Diego)
To apply for a conference: https://forms.gle/3aGLseLbXeRrJvgC8
IMPORTANT DATES
New Teacher Mixer - Wednesday, October 14, 2026 (new educators to KHSD)
Wills and Trusts Workshop - Monday, October 19, 2026
A list of all the important dates in the contract is attached for your reference: Important Dates.
VIRTUAL OPTIONS FOR YOU
All of the following events will be virtual. Zoom links will be available in the updates as the date of the event gets closer. Here are some of the things that will be available:
10 minute meetings for anyone who is unable to attend their site’s 10 minute meetings -- these will occur on the second Thursday of each month, unless they need to be rescheduled for presenter conflicts. This month’s 10 Minute Meeting will be on the bargaining process.
EXEC BOARD/REP COUNCIL
The current list of KHSTA Exec Board and site representatives is listed below. Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions.
Happy Friday!!
KHSTA Executive Board
President: Cathy Adams (FrHS)
Vice President: Mindy Montanio (HHS)
Secretary: Stephanie Valenzuela (AHS)
Treasurer: Norma Procell (HHS)
State Council Reps
Elise Sotello (KL)
Candi Romero (TdS)
Tamara Clark (VWHS)
Joanne Barrick (HHS)
Jesse Aguilar (GVHS)
Membership Chair: Dave Ziegler (LHS)
PAC Chair: Allysa Jones (FHS)
Past President: Vickie Shoenhair (Shafter)
Site Representatives
Arvin: Stephanie Valenzuela,
Ty Newton
BAS: Linda Colvin
BHS: Hillary Sanders,
Randy Bennett
CHS: Kayole Bradford, Kim Henry
CVHS: Alix Garcia
DOHS: Olive Garrison,
Hannah Richert
District (includes all district programs):
Danny Arretche (KL),
Adriana Vasquez (TOSA)
EBHS: April Bynum,
Rosemary Silverman
Foothill: Elizabeth Deckard,
Allysa Jones
Frontier: Lara Winn
GVHS: David Lollar, Vanessa Salazar
HHS: Meaghan Barber Smith,
Jennifer Nelson
IHS: Robb Polski, Tanya Whitehouse
KVHS: Casey Robinson
LHS: David Ziegler,
Marycoco Ramirez
MMHS: Rafael Ruiz,
Matt Day
NHS: Erika Zeimet, Tonya Davis
Nueva:
RHS: Kim Smith, Nathan Claunch
ROP/CTEC: Chad Wright,
Scott Trimble
Shafter: Jessica Smith,
Brian Feaster
South: Kim Gillis, Christopher Medina
Stockdale: Gaby Scully
TDS:
VWHS:
Vista: Brian Mlenar
West: Eliza Pearsey, Steve Willis
Liaisons
COUNSELOR: Joanne Barrick (HHS)
NURSE: Jamie Henry (IHS)
PSYCHOLOGIST: Angelina Gonzales (ABLE)
TEACHER-LIBRARIAN: Rosalie Fuentes (EBHS)
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