About School
- STATEMENT OF NON-DISCRIMINATION
- CHALLENGE SUCCESS
- INCOMING 6th GRADE STUDENTS
- MISSION & HISTORY
- SAFETY
STATEMENT OF NON-DISCRIMINATION
Statement of Non-Discrimination
(Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, § 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973)
The Tustin Unified School District does not discriminate in any employment practice, education program, or educational activity on the basis of race or ethnicity, color, ancestry, nationality, national origin, ethnic group identification, age, religion, marital or parental status, physical or mental disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, veteran or military status, medical condition, pregnancy and related conditions, retaliation, or political beliefs; the perception of one or more of such characteristics; or association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics. The District will take steps to assure that the lack of English will not be a barrier to admission and participation in District programs. A copy of the District’s nondiscrimination policy is available from the Tustin Unified School District Office.
The following position is designated Coordinator for Nondiscrimination at Hewes Middle School to handle complaints regarding discrimination, harassment, intimidation, or bullying, and to answer inquiries regarding the District’s nondiscrimination policies:
Lisa Swain
Assistant Principal lswain@tustin.k12.ca.us 714-730-7348 ext. 82244
Any student who feels that he/she has been subjected to discrimination, harassment, intimidation, or bullying should immediately contact the Coordinator, the principal, or any other staff member. In addition, any student who observes any such incident should report the incident to the Coordinator or principal, whether or not the victim files a complaint.
Any school employee who observes an incident of discrimination, harassment, intimidation, or bullying or to whom such an incident is reported shall report the incident to the Coordinator or principal, whether or not the victim files a complaint
CHALLENGE SUCCESS
In 2019/20, Hewes Middle School is partnered with Foothill High School (along with other high schools in our district) in Stanford’s Challenge Success program, which uses a specific framework to drive policy and practice changes that lead to more balanced and engaging school communities.
Challenge Success believes that our society has become too focused on grades, test scores, and performance, leaving little time for kids to develop the necessary skills to become resilient, ethical, and motivated learners. After all, success is measured over the course of a lifetime, not at the end of a semester.
Hewes has assembled a team of educators, parents, and students, to explore initiatives that align with our school’s specific needs. We have learned research-based best practices from experts in the field and network with other school teams tackling similar challenges, to identify and implement policies and practices that improve student well-being, broaden the definition of success, and promote academic engagement.
Click HERE for a great Challenge Success time management tool for students.
INCOMING 6th GRADE STUDENTS
MISSION & HISTORY
We are the Highlanders!
Hewes' Mission is to maximize student learning and personal responsibility through a rigorous curriculum, a respectful environment, and the collaborative efforts of staff, students and parents.
Recent Recognition
- 2015-2025 - WASC Accredited School
- 2015 - Gold Ribbon School
- 1990, 1999, 2005 - California Distinguished School
- 1993 - National Blue Ribbon School
Facility
The Hewes facility, opened in 1966, reflects a caring and nurturing environment. Often compared to a Hacienda, classrooms encircle the central quad areas where students, staff and parent volunteers gather outside of instructional periods. Though well protected from outside intrusion, the campus in itself provides a sense of openness that invites interaction and involvement.
As a result of the passage of TUSD's 2004 Measure G, Hewes Middle School underwent major renovations. During this renovation Hewes received a new roof, exterior doors, drinking fountains, concrete walkways, paint, handicap railings, and upgraded staff, student and physical education bathrooms. Hewes physical environment is a priority to all members within this learning community. Each year Hewes PTA's Campus Beautification program and ASB raise thousands of dollars to add trees, benches, seating areas, umbrellas, flowers and fountains. Several Eagle Scout projects have also added to the overall enhancement of the campus grounds. These ongoing beautification efforts have greatly enhanced the Hewes’ campus appearance.
Celebrating Our History
According to legend and word of mouth, Hewes was scheduled to open in the fall of 1966, but as construction was behind, students instead opened the year attending Columbus Tustin in a double session. Hewes later opened in January of 1967. The area around Hewes looked very different at that time.
Hewes Middle School celebrated 50 years on June 9, 2017. The tradition of honoring, "Rich Past, Bold Future," is honored in the academic programs offered at Hewes and supported by the staff to ensure students are provided a 21st century learning environment.
SAFETY
Tustin Unified School District Emergency Preparations
Each time a tragedy impacts a school somewhere in the U.S., there is a reaction felt across every other school community. These events also serve as a reminder that we have to remain vigilant on our own campuses. Sound partnerships with local law enforcement/fire agencies are vital to making sure we can maintain a safe and effective learning environment for students and staff. Trust built through years of work between TUSD and local authorities pays off when sites face events like the wild fire evacuations in 2017. Great SRO (School Resource Officer) relationships also continue to pay dividends in other more routine ways each day. Even with these resources and experiences, the best way to be prepared for an incident of any kind is to be proactive.
TUSD has protocols in place for many different emergency situations ranging from natural disasters to active shooters. The most vital of these is our “PSA” or “Prepare, Survey, Act” protocol. It applies to every emergency scenario we may face and has been endorsed by all of our policing agencies.
Prepare:
A proper response to any emergency scenario begins by being knowledgeable, trained in possible responses, and equipped with the supplies to handle the situation.
The following steps are some of the actions taken in TUSD to prepare for a variety of emergency scenarios:
- Student Services and Administrative Services meet with local law enforcement multiple times per year to assure alignment and effective communication.
- Administrative and teacher training is provided each year on emergency response. Policing agencies have also provided trainings to sites upon request.
- Student Services staff attends the Safe Schools Conference each year to hear the latest advice from experts including leaders from the Department of Homeland Security.
- TUSD drills for many emergency scenarios on every campus, multiple times per year. These drills are reported to and tracked by Student Services. A good example of a coordinated drill effort is the “Great California Shake Out” that happens each October.
- Student Services staff, Administrators, M&O (Maintenance and Operations) staff, and school resource officers perform school safety walks each year on every campus in TUSD.
- Visitors to school campuses must sign in and enter campus through the main office once the school day begins. Fences and locked pedestrian gates at all campuses help to maintain security.
- School safety plans are updated each year at every campus.
- Emergency radios are in place at each site.
- Titan HST (an instant-message-based app) allows for real-time communication between TUSD staff.
- New emergency equipment and supplies have been sent to all TUSD sites. This includes new storage bins, solar chargers, food and water, and search/rescue equipment.
- Special iPads for use in emergency scenarios have also been distributed to all sites. These iPads contain all site-level emergency plans, student emergency card data, and campus/utilities maps for each site.
- Table-Top simulations of emergency scenarios are conducted by Cabinet and Student Services staff each year.
- Gas-powered generators have been distributed to each site with medically fragile students to prevent medical issues as a result of lost power. These generators are started and maintained in conjunction with AED battery testing at each site multiple times each year.
- FIRST members, teachers, administrators, and staff consistently work to build positive relationships with students, to prevent bullying, to enhance school connectedness, to “capture kids’ hearts,” and to identify/intervene with students approaching crisis.
Survey:
The “Prepare, Survey, Act” protocol in place in TUSD differs from other “Run, Hide, Fight” or strict “Shelter in Place” protocols because it allows professionals the freedom to make appropriate decisions based on situational awareness. Therefore, teachers and administrators are asked to survey the situation and to maintain situational awareness throughout an ordeal. While it may be appropriate to “lock down” or “shelter in place” as a general first step in a given situation, a teacher feeling their students are in imminent danger by doing so may make the decision to evacuate students to an area they find safer. This permission to make the right decision based on first-hand information is vital to saving lives in active shooter situations. Examples of where this permission could have potentially saved lives was in Columbine/Sandy Hook where shelter in place was maintained for all classes even when it was known that the shooters were systematically coming down hallways from room to room. Escape out a back door/window may have been an option, but wasn’t allowed. Further, the recent Florida ordeal was initiated with a fire alarm pull. Understanding that there is nothing “automatic” about an evacuation, and that teachers need to maintain situational awareness may have resulted in getting students back into classrooms more quickly. This is said in hind-sight, but shows the importance of being aware of a scenario before acting.
Act:
Another essential element of the PSA protocol is the ability for staff and students to act swiftly based on their training and first-hand situational awareness. The “why” has already been explained, but the permission to act accordingly is the key piece of the puzzle. The default action may be to lock down when the campus becomes unsafe due to an intruder or police activity in an area, but knowing you have permission to run/fight/barricade your class within the room/evacuate out a window or off campus gives a professional many more options that could be more appropriate in a given circumstance. The default action of “Run or Hide” as utilized in other protocols may not be best due to the size of today’s schools. Those were intended mainly for adults encountering a scenario in their workplace or other public venue. Picture all 3,000 plus students at Beckman “running” as an initial reaction to a crisis, and you will understand why it isn’t an ideal protocol on a high school campus. Knowing, however, that you have permission to run/hide/fight once you have situational awareness or when you have no other option could save lives.
TUSD will continue to train, learn, and improve safety for students and staff wherever we can. While it would not be wise to disclose all elements of school safety planning to the general public, it should be known that all of our sites take preparation for a variety of anomalies very seriously.