Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Final Context Map
Final Context Map
Diana Salazar
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Table Of Contents
References Page 15
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The Central School Community believes in creating an atmosphere that develops self-
esteem, to promote a lifetime desire for learning and to help children achieve their maximum
potential through quality instruction and guidance, thereby, becoming responsible, caring, and
demonstrate compassion for others, tolerance for our differences, and acceptance for members of
the community. Educators will teach a curriculum that goes beyond the fundamentals and expose
students to the world around them. Central Elementary will acknowledge diversity and share our
Rationale
I agree with Central School’s mission statement. Education is important, but it is also
important to teach our students how to become valuable members of society. I also agree with
teaching students to believe in themselves so they may grow up to be confident and independent.
Students should be encouraged to make goals for themselves and learn how to achieve them.
Central Elementary does not have a vision statement but has a lot to offer the community.
Central Elementary is a title one school made up of 94% Hispanic and has a strong sense of
community. For their vision, I would expand on the concept of community and teaching students
about compassion and acceptance. Although most of the student are of the same ethnicity, it’s
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important to expose students to different cultures around the world so that they realize that the
About Escondido
Escondido is located in North County San Diego along the
The school is surrounded by small independent businesses, the public library, a Christian church,
Mexican, 8% White, 4% Asian, and 24% other. People in the area have an
education level ranging between elementary school and high school (World
The majority of people employed work in sales, restaurants, and labor jobs (Escondido
Crime Rates and Statistics, n.d.). The area is considered low-income with a median household
income of $54,000 and the majority of people rent their homes for an average of $1,200 a month
(NICHE, n.d.). Homes in area sells between $300,000-$500,000 and the medium value of homes
Central Elementary was built in 1938 and is one of the oldest schools in the Escondido
Union School District (Breannan, 2018). Central Elementary is a public school that teaches
grades Kindergarten to 5th grade. Central is made up of 600 students, consisting of 94%
Hispanic, 1% Black, 3% White, 2% other (Breannan, 2018). 77% of students are eligible for free
lunch and 8% are eligible for reduced lunch (Public School Review, n.d.). Central Elementary is
a Title I school. It is ranked 5298th out of 5692 from the state of California and has a 23%
reading proficiency and an 11% math proficiency (SchoolDigger.Com, n.d.). Stephanie Rosson-
Niess is the current principal of Central Elementary and has been there for 2 years. She cares
about the staff, the students, the community, and has created a positive and caring environment
for all.
Central Elementary received funding from proposition E and has undergone a $11.8
million-dollar renovation during the summer of 2018 (EUSD, 2018). The school is surrounded
by new fencing, has added new landscaping, and added new grass on their fields. With the
renovations, new preschool and kindergarten areas were built with their own playgrounds and 6
new classrooms for each area (Breannan, 2018). 1st to 5th grade classrooms are located in the
original buildings and are separated by long hallways. Central also updated their electrical and
wi-fi system throughout the school and built a brand-new family liaison center for the
community. The school has a computer lab, a library, and is in the process of opening a STEM
lab for 3rd-5th graders. Central Elementary is embracing the new and still remaining true to their
original culture.
Ethnographic Interview
I had the pleasure of interviewing Holly Dodd on September 24, 2018 at Central
She has lived in Escondido for 38 years and all her children attended Central Elementary at one
point. Holly has also worked for the Escondido Union School District for 18 years as an
program at Central Elementary. I have been in the district for 18 years and have been all over
the district as an instructional assistant. I love working with teachers and especially working
with students.
I have been in Escondido since I was 20 years old so for 38 years. I lived in San Marcos
before that but have lived around Escondido my whole life. I have 3 daughters and all my
daughters attended school at Central and my grandkids attend school in Escondido as well.
Q: How would you describe changes in the community from back then to now?
Back then children were more respectful. School had more rules and seemed stricter.
There weren’t many video games or I-Pads and computers were just starting to become known.
There was no social-media and children seemed to interact more with one another. There was a
lot of face to face interactions among people. Children and people were more sensitive to one
another and didn’t have technology at their fingertips. Everyone seemed more conservative as
well and no one talked openly about sex or had tv shows that expressed people’s sexuality.
Children loved school and everything that came with it like the library and school functions.
Now, kids react to life events and right away turn to social media. People seem less sensitive and
students don’t seem as excited for school functions as they did when I went to school.
Q: How have you seen the community and school change over the years?
There’s a lot more people that live in Escondido then there used to be. There’s also a lot
more students in the district and I’ve noticed that there’s more low-income students and families.
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It seems like there was an Autism explosion too. Since I worked in the district, special education
was very segregated, and you didn’t hear a lot about autism. In the late 80’s when my daughters
when to school, I saw special education beginning to integrate with general education. There
were no busses back then either. Parents drove their kids or kids walked to school.
There was a time where school was year-round, and it lasted for about 10 years. It
eventually faded out because families had a hard time finding childcare when students were on
vacation. Parents relied on after school programs and it enabled parents to go to work.
Childcare seemed more affordable for low income families and kids loved their afterschool
program. I know afterschool programs are still around, but I do think there are as many as
Q: What do you know about Central Elementary and what do you think of the school?
I know that Central was the first elementary school in Escondido. I remember performing
a dance routine here at Central when I was 15 years old in the auditorium. It’s funny because
the auditorium looks exactly the same. Central is clean, the people are so nice, and students
seem safe outside the gates. I love that there’s little to no traffic. I feel comfortable and it’s a
nice place to be. Most of the rooms are in good shape. It’s a large campus, friendly, and it’s in a
beautiful spot.
Talking to people from other districts, I think other school districts are far more
advanced with their technology than Escondido. I feel like there’s more technology in other
schools. Escondido has a lot of old schools that are outdated, and I would like for old buildings
to be modernized and have better interiors. I love when schools are well maintained and upkept.
It’s reassuring know that our kids are going to school in buildings that are neat and clean. It
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makes everyone’s learning environment more enjoyable. I would also like to see more dance
programs, art programs, science programs, and some type of engineering programs for students
parents and teachers. PTA meetings are held once a month to plan
family events and raise money for classroom materials, field trips, and
raise money for teacher events such as luncheons. Teachers and parents also collaborate together
to organize a running club. The running club gives students the opportunity to release energy
when they are forced to come to school early in the morning. Students in the running club can
ensure that someone will be on campus keeping them safe and the running club motivates
students to set and meet running goals. Students run around the track while parents and teachers
keep track of how much they have run. At the end of the month, students are recognized for the
One club that teachers appreciate and treasure is their Volunteer Club. Volunteer Club is
made up of parents who volunteer their time every Wednesday to help teachers. Parents come to
the school in the morning and help teachers make copies, complete prep work, and assist
teachers in what they need. Volunteers are made up of parents around the community that want
Central Elementary underwent construction over the summer and their need to reach out
to families was seen through the new buildings. A new Family Engagement Center was built for
families in the community. The Family Engagement Center is a meeting place for families and is
used for other community purposes. The center has a family liaison who is extremely involved
with the community and promotes educational classes for parents and monthly meetings
discussing issues surrounding the community such as alcohol and drug abuse. The center also
collects food and clothes from the community and donates it to families in need.
Kids is feeding families in need. Students will be given a backpack full of healthy and hearty
meals to feed their families and new distributions will occur every two weeks.
Central Elementary wants students to succeed and has programs available to assist with
care for families. The YMCA helps students with homework, provides them with
snacks, and encourages outdoor structured activities. There’s also a new online
Engage NY Homework is an online program that parents can access to learn and understand their
child’s math homework. The online programs allow families to watch modules and learn about
The Center for The Arts of Escondido has a civic partnership with Central Elementary.
The Center for the Arts offers field trip opportunities, performances for youth, artist and
performer led classes, free arts and crafts workshops for families, and music education programs.
The Center for the Arts also encourages students and teachers to create their own art and will
Central Elementary has a strong sense of community and it’s demonstrated through the
programs and opportunities offered to their students and families. Central Elementary has
discussed and is planning to have doctors and dentists come to the Family Engagement Center to
provide health services for the students, their families, and the community. The school expands
on helping students beyond the classroom and it inspires teachers and families to help one
another.
An Escondido Union board meeting was held on September 13, 2018 at the Escondido
district office. The meeting was scheduled to start at 7:00 p.m. but started about 7 minutes late.
There were 10 board members on the panel consisting of 6 men (4 White, 1 Latino, 1 African
American) and 4 women (all White). The board does not accurately represent Escondido.
Escondido is made up of 51% Hispanic, 39% White, 6% Asian, 2% Black, and 2% other. In
attendance, there were 2 union representatives (White males), 2 cameramen, 1 news reporter and
about 30 people in which a majority were White. A security officer was also present to store
As the meeting started, meeting roles where established and explained. The notetaker was
also the time keeper and made sure speakers did not go over the time limit. The agenda was
presented, guidelines were established, and rules of conduct for the meeting were explained.
Speakers who wanted to address the board had to fill out a form prior to the meeting in order to
address their concerns. Speakers were given 3 minutes to address the board and had a timer on a
big screen facing them to let them know how much time they had left. Once the 3 minutes
expired, a buzzer would sound and the timer on the big screen would flash red. After rules were
one was a teacher and the other a mother of a middle school student.
The teacher spoke about the removal of a staff member at her school.
She explained how the majority of students at her school deal with
trauma and inconsistency in their lives. The school lost 3 teachers last year and this year 1 new
male teacher was hired to teach a 3rd/4th grade combo class. The male teacher was a perfect
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addition to the school and students related very well to him. Without notice and without
notifying his students, the male teacher was told he would be moving to a new school starting the
next day. The teacher was emotional as she addressed the board. As she continued to describe the
situation, the timer on the big screen began to flash red and the loud buzzer sounded. Due to the
sensitivity of the situation, the teacher was allowed to finish her statement. When finished she
was given a “thank you” and the board invited the next person to the podium.
The next speaker was a mother of a 6th grader whose daughter was being bullied at
school. Since the beginning of school, her daughter had been slapped in the face and had
received a hate note. The mother was extremely concerned and want reassurances that the
schoolboard would do something about this issue. When she was done speaking, the board
members gave her a “thank you” and moved on to the agenda. The mother left the room after she
spoke, and the superintendent walked out of the meeting to talk to her and her daughter. The
meeting continued, and the board went through the agenda. The agenda consisted of a
presentation about the budget, voting on naming one of new buildings after a former teacher,
voting on new proposals, and board members discussing events they attended throughout the
week. Board members continuously swayed away from the agenda and were able to have the
freedom to discuss different topics without time restraints. At the end of the meeting, the
facilitator informed every one of the next board meeting and the meeting was over.
The board members did not discuss the issues that were brought up in the beginning of
the meeting. By not doing so, I felt that board members dismissed the community’s concerns and
did not acknowledge the severity of the issues. Escondido strives in collaborating with its
community and it’s important to remember that our students come first. It takes a village to work
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together to meet all their needs and as the teacher in the board meeting said at the end, “work
References
Breannan, D.S. (2018). North County students head back to schools with new buildings,
programs. The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved from
http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/communities/north-county/sd-no-back-to-school-
20180815-story.html
Neighborhood Scout (n.d.). Escondido Crime Rates and Statistics. Retrieved from
https://www.neighborhoodscout.com/ca/escondido/escondido-blvd#overview
World Population Review (n.d.). Escondido, California Population 2018 (Demographics, Maps,
Graphs). Retrieved from www.worldpopulationreview.com/us-cities/escondido-ca-
population/