Blog

Dear RISE community, 

It is with profound sadness that I write this letter to inform you that one of our beloved students, Maximus Laguna, passed this week on Wednesday, May 26th. Our condolences and thoughts go out to the family and friends of Max. He has been a part of the RISE family since his initial enrollment at our Hawthorne campus in August of 2017. Monday, May 24th, marked a celebration of Max’s 20th birthday. Throughout his time at RISE, Max consistently brought a sense of joy, leadership, maturity, and warmth to our school family. He stood as a beacon of courage in our community, and his growth, development, and feedback were pivotal in shaping the foundation and evolution of RISE. 

During this time, as the school community processes this tragic news and copes with grief, we will offer counseling and bereavement services to all of our students and staff in need. Death can be difficult for us to understand, especially when it is sudden. Many of us may be confronted with a variety of emotions, which might include shock, sadness, and confusion.

Students may have had no experience in coping with loss of a classmate or for some, this may be far too familiar. We are working to support our students through counseling by our Student Support Services Team (SSS) and our staff through our Employee Assistance Program (EAP). If you feel that your students need to speak to a counselor or other adult, please do not hesitate to call the school and let us know. 

Max will be honored in this year’s 2021 June graduation ceremony. If you are interested in providing further support to Max’s family, below you can find a GoFundMe link that will collect funds to be contributed to funeral expenses and any other needs the family has at this time. We know that a sudden loss can be jolting, for this reason we want you to know of our care and support. 

Maximus’ GoFundMe: https://gofund.me/32f9c0f5 

Sincerely, 

RISE families, many of you may have heard about mask mandate changes by CDC for vaccinated individuals. Before this takes effect in our school, the state must review and then LA County before any of those recommendations are implemented. Until we receive notice from Los Angeles Department of Health, masks are still 100% required on school sites. Please continue to wear your masks, social distance, and hand wash. Thank you!

Familias de RISE, es posible que muchos de ustedes hayan oído hablar de los cambios en el mandato de las mascarillas por parte de los CDC para las personas vacunadas. Antes de que esto entre en vigencia en nuestra escuela, el estado debe revisar y luego el condado de Los Ángeles antes de que se implemente cualquiera de esas recomendaciones. Hasta que recibamos una notificación del Departamento de Salud de Los Ángeles, las mascarillas siguen siendo obligatorias al 100% en los planteles escolares. Continúe usando sus máscaras, distancia social y lavado de manos. ¡Gracias!

Starting 5/13/21, Los Angeles County vaccination providers begin offering the Pfizer vaccine for 12 to 15-year-olds at vaccination sites that offer the Pfizer vaccine. All eight county run sites will be open and able to vaccinate children 12-17; teens should be accompanied by a parent, guardian or responsible adult, and present a photo ID and verification of age.  For a full list of sites across the county offering Pfizer vaccines, please visit http://bit.ly/PfizerSites . To schedule an appointment, visit www.VaccinateLACounty.com. Walk-ins are welcome at all 8 county-run sites. Parents or teens with questions about the vaccine should contact their healthcare provider or visit the Public Health website for more information on vaccine safety and efficacy.

CoLabL Talent Accelerator

Apply for the Talent Accelerator internship this Summer! 

What is it?

Students will work with a team of other Da Vinci students and corporate mentors on several real projects aligned to employer and industry needs alongside CoLabL Talent Accelerator. Please review the below documents for more information:

How do I apply? 

1. Apply by MAY 17th at 5pm
   1. Apply online here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DaVinciSummer2021

• You’ll need: 

o    An updated resume, saved in PDF form as “firstname_lastname_resume”

o    A maximum one page essay describing why you would like to participate and what makes you a good fit for the program saved in PDF form as “firstname_lastname_essay”

o     Students will be informed of selection via email by May 21st at 5pm

• Dates: The project consultancies will run from July 12th-August 6th.

○ They will be 100% remote (Online)

• Hours: There will be 10 hours/week of work. There will be 60 minute mentoring and upskilling workshops each week. Students will work on 1 individual projects and 1 team projects during the internship.

Other details: 

• ELIGIBILITY: Open to all grade levels, but students are expected to communicate with industry partners and Natasha independent of parents/guardian. Students are expected to communicate promptly and professionally via email.
• SUMMER SCHOOL CREDIT: You will have the opportunity to earn 5 summer school credits for participating. It will reflect on your transcript as “Summer Internship Program”.

Need help with a resume? 

Check out these resources below and feel free to share your resume with Natasha via Google Docs for feedback.

• Resume templates 
• Resume samples 
• Resume action verbs 

Questions or Concerns? 

Reach out to Natasha Morrison, Dir. of Real World Learning, at nmorrison@davincischools.org

Hi RISE High Students and Stakeholders,

We are excited to offer internship opportunities and career experiences this summer! Due to the ongoing pandemic, most internships will continue to be remote.  Companies are still determining how/when to bring their full-time staff back to in-person work, therefore are unable to host interns onsite. Please see below and keep an eye out for application updates/timelines.

Summer Career Development Options:

(Students will receive 5 summer school credits for any of these options)

Internship through the LA Chamber of Commerce Bixel Exchange LA Tech Talent Pipeline: Apply for an internship through this incredible program by June 15th.  They have internship positions (paid and unpaid; virtual
and in-person) at companies like Snapchat, Verizon Wireless, Kaiser Permanente, and Boingo Wireless. Find out more information and apply HERE.  If you are admitted, please email Natasha so she can add you to the internship summer school programming.

CoLab Talent Accelerator (Project Consultancy): Students will work with a team of other Da Vinci students and corporate mentors on several real projects aligned to employer and industry needs alongside ​CoLabL​ Talent Accelerator. The project consultancies will run from July 6th-August 6th and be 5-10 hours/week of work.

Outside internship: Are you able to secure your own internship (this can be in-person or remote)?  Let Natasha know so she can make sure you earn summer school credit for it!  She will verify with the employer and onboard you onto the Da Vinci summer internship programming.

Other details:

• ELIGIBILITY:
  • Open to all grade levels, but students are expected to communicate with industry partners and Natasha independent of parents/guardian.  Students should communicate promptly and professionally via email.
  • All students applying for project consultancies or Bixel Exchange internships must have an up-to-date, error-free resume. You can view resume resources here.
  • Application review will include a historical grades review

Questions or Concerns?  

Reach out to Natasha Morrison, Dir. of Real World Learning, at nmorrison@davincischools.org