Dear Martinez School Parent Community,
I am writing to provide you with some important news and updates regarding Martinez Junior High School. First, I am very happy to announce that Ms. Kerry Cusack was appointed as the new Principal for Martinez Junior High School, effective July 1, 2019.
Ms. Cusack comes to MJHS with a deep understanding of the rich history and strong tradition of MUSD. She is an MJHS alumni, AHS alumni, former Social: Studies teacher and coach at AHS, as well as the assistant principal for AHS during the last three years.
Ms. Cusack has overseen Special Education for AHS, worked closely each year with the 9th grade students, overseen athletics, and has been an integral part of working to address student culture and discipline.
Ms. Cusack will provide a commitment to collaboration, ensuring the voice of the staff is heard and valued as we all work toward making MJHS a place of safety, inclusivity, and excellence. As Ms. Cusack embarks upon this work, I believe it will be important for all members of the MJHS community to embrace this opportunity for Ms. Cusack to continue her long commitment toward MUSD staff and students
MJHS is full of great students and committed staff however, as you may be aware, there are concerns related to student conduct and campus climate that need to be addressed. It is my sincere desire that all students of schools in Martinez Unified, including MJHS, are able to be safe at school and to feel safe at school. Each time I am on the campus it is evident that the large majority of our students are high character kids making good choices. We will continue working to address the· conduct of students who have not yet consistently demonstrated those attributes.
As we move toward the close of the year, I’ll be spending much more time on the MJHS campus, as will members of my district office administration, working directly with students, and the MJHS staff to help address areas of concern. As a community, working together in collaboration and cooperation, I believe we can reach solutions and make progress toward meaningful changes and improvements.
These are initial steps and do not reflect the full extent of actions that may be taken in the immediate future or further into the future. Additional collaboration and dialogue with staff, students, and parents will be an important part of further action plans.
Part of the initial efforts to make improvements will involve reminding our students of behavior expectations and addressing examples of behavior that is not meeting expectations and increasing supervision for the campus. If there are specific concerns you may have, l’d be more than happy to meet with you or talk you directly. Please feel free to contact me at ccammack@martinez .k12.ca.us.
Additionally, if there are ever things that you see or hear about which you or your student want to report, you may do so by using our completely anonymous Say Something program. You can download the Say Something app for your mobile device. Additionally, you can use the website to report concerns as well at: www.saysomething.net/; each and every report will be addressed and investigated.
Thank you for your time and consideration of this message and the information included. Should you have any specific questions please feel free to contact me directly.
Sincerely,
CJ Cammack
Superintendent
