CSI Connect

Wayfinding is the ability to navigate your way through the unknown. In days past, you had a stake in deciding where you were going, whether that was reading the stars, following a trail, or reading a map. Today we have become so used to pulling out our phones and finding our way using Google or Apple maps that we follow directions blindly and trust the AI that is pointing the way.

The last two years have taken us off course, offering a moment for us to stop and recalibrate our direction. We have come back to an unpredictable school year that had moments of uncertainty that often looked unrecognizable. Our students and families have had to navigate new rules, new relationships, and a new view of the world around them. There is no AI that can predict or give you accurate directions for these new times. We have had to learn from each other and from our wrong turns. 

Here at CSI, we have to refocus our attention and look to our north star, our vision for where we want to go. That requires some wayfinding and collaborating with our students and greater community to see and navigate the path ahead. While we know that hard work is involved, our community is ready to rally the Wolfpack and add to the foundation that we started building before being disrupted. We are ready to venture into the unknown, using our curiosity to uncover a world full of possibility as we grow together as Campbell School of Innovation, a place where everyone can find their way. 

We had our first "middle school dance" this last Friday evening.  Three students came to the Principal's office last November inquiring about the possibility of a dance in the spring. Their answer? "Absolutely! I'm excited for you to do some research and come back with a plan." So often, our students have big ideas that they want to achieve and they have no idea where to start. They often wait for the adults to step in and take lead or take over. 

Our small team of seventh grade students took this on and made it their project. They worked their lunch times and arranged meetings as they organized their plans. They had a little help securing their DJ and one of their teachers took a couple of them on a field trip to the Dollar Store and made a Costco run, but the students developed their budget, made lists of what was needed, and set up their decorating team as well as organized their clean-up plan. They sold tickets during their break time and produced flyers and videos advertising the event. They established a dress code and set behavior expectations. They also helped create the information that went home to families. 

On the day of the dance, the Innovation Cooking class made several gallons of lemonade (after sending out an ask for lemons and sugar which parents happily supplied) and at the end of the school day, the students moved our lunch tables outside with the help of our custodian. They then got busy decorating the Bistro (our multi-pupose room) and preparing for the big event. They had organized food tables and assigned staff to different locations and different jobs. By 5:30 when the doors opened, they were ready! 

Students arrived dressed in semi-formal attire and the exitement was evident from the smiles to the dancing through the door. The students invited our staff to dance with them, laugh with them and talk with them, and we enjoyed getting to know them in a very different atmosphere. Their ownership of this event was evident. At the end of the night, they were exhaused and very proud of what they had accomplished. Their Spring Fling was a huge success!

Our Virtual Tour 

Additional questions? Please call our office, 408-364-4222.

We are happy to welcome our students back to the 2022 part of our school year! We face a few challenges with the covid virus spiking this month but we continue to follow our current protocols and weekly testing. If your student is showing any symptoms, please keep them home and have them tested as soon as possible. A one time supply of rapid test kits have been made available to our district and will go home with students this Thursday (1/6) to help support families. Each student will receive one box with two test applications in it.  Here at CSI, we will continue to test students every Tuesday. If someone in your family has tested postive and your student has been exposed, please keep your student at home and let our office know. A member of our tracking and tracing team will contact you for more information and next steps. We hope this surge in cases will pass quickly and we will continue to support students as needed.