Hello Da Vinci Scholars and Families,

Check out the new real-world learning opportunities below.

For students interested in mental health:

Lady Gaga’s Born This Way Foundation is offering The Be There Certificate. This is a free, self-paced learning experience designed to increase mental health literacy and provide you with the knowledge, skills, and confidence needed to safely support anyone who may be struggling with their mental health. It provides a deep understanding of Be There’s 5 Golden Rules — a simple but actionable framework on how to recognize when someone might be struggling with their mental health, your role in supporting that person, and how to connect them to the help they deserve.

For students interested in animation:

Story Xperiential is offering a 9-week online experience that takes you behind the scenes at Pixar and introduces you to world-class storytellers. You’ll follow the Pixar process to create a storyreel of your own short story. You’ll livestream with different Pixar storytellers every Monday, submit your work to a gallery and receive ongoing feedback. At the end, your work will be showcased in an online exhibition. Next session begins October 3rd. Artistic experience is not required, the program is all about story. The program costs $25 for youth ages (13-18) and $250 for youth ages 18+. To learn more & register, click here.

For students interested in science or are looking for a paying job:

The California Science Center is offering temporary positions for Community Teen Interns paying $16.04 an hour. You must be a sophomore, junior or senior with a minimum 2.0 GPA available to work starting October 1, 2022. See the flyer for details. Fill out this application and email it to hr@cscmail.org to apply.

For students interested in the tech world:

Innovate<her> is offering a free 45-minute virtual course on User Experience Design (UX). Understanding UX is a beginner course for creative thinkers, problem solvers, and game changers! Learn the basics of UX Design and get to know how a designer thinks. You don’t need any prior knowledge or any materials. You only need a computer and internet access. To apply, click here.

Hello Da Vinci Scholars and Families,

Cloud Computing is one of the fastest-growing careers in the United States! Amazon Web Services (AWS) Certified Cloud Practitioners earn on average up to $131,465 annually.

El Camino College is now accepting applications from current juniors and seniors who want to join the After-School Cloud Computing Career Pathway program, it’s FREE!

STUDENT & PARENT INFO SESSION – Online via Zoom

Wednesday, August 24th
6:00pm – 7:15pm
RSVP for Info Session

For more information, please click here.

Welcome Back Da Vinci Scholars! It’s nice to see you all back on campus. Please see the announcements below.

For students interested in health-related fields: 

Introduction to Ophthalmology Virtual Course: Project InSight is pleased to offer an opportunity for students to participate in Introduction to Ophthalmology where they will learn about the branch of medicine concerned with the study and treatment of disorders and diseases of the eye. The course is open to 20 Los Angeles students interested in the medical field or eye health to join the 12-week virtual course this fall. This course will be taught by California Credentialled Science Teachers and will meet weekly beginning September 13 for one hour online after school on either Tuesday or Thursday. For more specific information, please use this link.

We are looking for web developers to connect with our Computer Science teacher, Mr. Marintsch, at Da Vinci Communications. Should you have any connections, please email Ms. Rodriguez at crodriguez@davincischools.org.

Good morning Da Vinci Families,

Welcome to the first day of the 2022-23 school year! Please review the flyers for student pick-up and drop-off procedures. Remember to give yourself enough time to maneuver through the parking lot. We look forward to seeing you today and the start of the new year!

We’re excited to welcome 50 new teachers, counselors and support staff to the Da Vinci family. We are honored that so many talented individuals have chosen to make Da Vinci their new home. For some, they are Da Vinci alumni or recent graduates of Da Vinci’s in-house teacher residency program in partnership with the Alder University Graduate School of Education. All total, Da Vinci has 25 alumni employed across our organization.

Da Vinci Schools invests significant resources into supporting new and returning educators who receive approximately 23 days of professional development (PD) each year, including two weeks of training in August at the start of the new school year.

Last week, new teachers from across Da Vinci came together for a full day of new teacher orientation and professional development support with mentor educators from Da Vinci Institute, Da Vinci’s professional learning center. New teachers played team building games, toured all schools, and were introduced to Da Vinci’s signature programs and practices.

With all new and returning educators back at their individual school sites, the focus has been on reflection and goal setting, logistics, project-based and real world learning planning, curriculum building, special education, assessment, school culture, social-emotional learning, restorative justice, addressing equity and opportunity gaps, advisory planning, dual enrollment, all grade level and job-alike planning, and much more. There’s also been plenty of time for fun community building activities and getting spaces ready for students.

This year, teachers and students are transitioning to a new learning management system known as Canvas. Canvas syncs with PowerSchool, our student information system, and is what most colleges use giving students a head-start on knowing how to access course materials and other resources.

Da Vinci is continuing to expand our pool of dedicated educators and support staff. Check out our current openings here. We are so excited to start the new school year! Together, we are preparing students to lead, innovate, and thrive in the modern world.