There are some things that just make Durham a little more, well, Durham. 

One of those things took place again today when Mr. Plummer and his high school band students could be seen performing at each school site and moving around campus in Mr. Plummer’s truck and trailer.

This is an experience you just don’t receive on another campus and it gives a little part of the homecoming experience to students at the elementary school and intermediate schools. (if you missed it, there are some videos attached).

It’s also not everywhere where you can walk around an intermediate school campus and see students instructing each other on how to do tricks with a Yo Yo.

These are just a couple of things among so many other opportunities that make Durham such a unique quality place for our students to attend school.

If you have been near the elementary school or intermediate school offices, you may have seen some new signs appear this week.

These new signs were created by students in collaboration with high school agriculture mechanics teacher Brady Deaton.

Mr. Deaton indicates that he is now setting up a system for project requests that can be submitted, and then he will assign projects to students in his advanced classes.

Take some time to check out the work these students have completed (see attached photos).

Thank you to Mr. Deaton and his students for helping improve our campuses!

In case you haven’t heard, this is homecoming week at Durham High School. This is a very fun event for students and families, but it does put some extra strain on the maintenance and operations team. 

As usual, our MOT did everything in its power to have everything in place with a powder puff football game on Monday; home volleyball game on Tuesday; cross county, intermediate school soccer and power puff volleyball on Wednesday  - and, of course, the homecoming game on Friday.

The My Ride phone application is live. This system allows parents to know when the bus is arriving at their bus stop in the morning and after school. It also allows parents to see when their students scan on and off the bus/van.

So far, 13 parents have downloaded the app and created an account.

If your student rides the bus, we encourage all parents to download the app and create an account.

https://www.durhamunified.org/page/transportation

DES (from Samantha Brown)
This week at Durham Elementary was filled with student leadership, health screenings, academic competitions, and community appreciation!

We kicked off the week on Monday with our Student Council meeting and dedicated time for teacher grade-level collaboration. On Tuesday, our campus showed off its spirit for Tiger Gear Tuesday while our PBIS Leadership Team met to focus on positive school culture. Mid-week, our Health Office hosted 5th Grade Hearing & Vision Screenings on Wednesday.

We wrapped up a wonderful week on Friday by celebrating National School Custodian Appreciation Day and thanking our incredible custodial crew for keeping our campus safe and clean! Our 2nd graders enjoyed an exciting field trip to the Feather River Fish Hatchery in Oroville, and our 4th and 5th grade classroom finalists showcased their knowledge during the AgriBee Competition in the MPR; congratulations to our winners: 1st Place: Olivia Bertagna, 2nd Place: Lillie Verba, and Alternate: Kepler Umber (see photo below). 

Upcoming Events at DES: October 5 – October 9, 2026

Fire Safety Week

Monday, October 5

• Welcome Back, Kelly Bischel

• Early Release: 1:40 PM

• Grade Level Collaboration: 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM

Tuesday, October 6

• Tiger Gear Tuesday — Show your Durham Tiger pride!

• Reading Pals: DES Room 34 (1:00 PM – 2:30 PM)

• October Staff Meeting: DES MPR (3:00 PM – 4:30 PM)

• 5th Grade Human Growth and Development Parent Preview in 5th grade classrooms (6:00 PM  - 7:00 PM)

Wednesday, October 7

• DES Walk and Squack (2:50 PM – 3:10 PM)

• 4-H Meeting: DES MPR (6:30 PM – 8:30 PM)

Thursday, October 8

• Reading Pals: DES Room 34 (1:00 PM – 2:30 PM)

Friday, October 9

• DES Art Docent Chalk Day — Theme: “Under the Reef”

• 5th Grade Human Growth & Development (1:30 PM – 2:30 PM)

DIS (From Josh Rowe)
DIS held our annual Jog-A-Thon last Friday, and it was another successful event for our students and ASB program. The Jog-A-Thon has been DIS ASB’s largest fundraiser for decades and continues to be a longstanding tradition for our students. In fact, several current staff members remember participating in the event when they were DIS students themselves.

A huge thank you goes to our student joggers, parent volunteers who counted laps, Durham High School Interact students who helped throughout the event, and everyone who donated their time and resources.

Students are now collecting their pledges, with all pledge money due by October 7. We are also continuing to collect prize donations through October 9. If you would like to partner with us and you can find our wish list here: https://a.co/0d9F5VVO A special thank you to Casey Leen and Leen Construction for their generous donation in support of our students and the event.

New DIS Office Sign!
We know that finding the DIS Office has proven to be a little challenging at times, so we are excited to share our brand-new DIS Office sign!

A huge thank you to Mr. Deaton and his Durham High School students, who designed, cut, powder-coated, and mounted the new sign for us. Their craftsmanship looks fantastic and, most importantly, our office should now be much easier for families and visitors to find!

We appreciate Mr. Deaton and our DHS students for using their skills and talents to help improve our campus

First Quarter Wrapping Up
The end of the first quarter is quickly approaching, with the grading period ending October 9. Students still have time to finish missing assignments, improve grades, and seek additional support before the quarter closes.

DIS continues to offer after-school academic support three days each week:

• Tuesday: Homework Help with Mrs. Hering

• Wednesday: Math/Homework Help with Mrs. Comer

• Thursday: Homework Help with Mr. Richards

These sessions give students another opportunity to get individualized assistance, complete assignments, and build stronger academic habits.

October minimum Day & Professional Development
Monday, Oct. 12, will be a districtwide minimum day. DIS students will be released at 12:10 pm.

District staff will use the afternoon for professional development and collaboration focused on strengthening instructional practices and better supporting student learning.

This October also brings something new to our calendar, with no school on Monday, Oct. 19.

Clubs at DIS
Student clubs are in full swing at DIS and are providing students with additional ways to connect with their peers and school community.

The latest craze on campus has been yo-yos, and Mr. Halsey is helping students turn that interest into an opportunity to learn new tricks, share their skills, and connect with other students. The Yo-Yo Club meets on Wednesdays in Room 5.

Students looking for something different can join the Dungeons & Dragons Club on Thursdays in Mrs. Kusie’s room. Students are welcome regardless of experience, including those who have never played and simply want to learn.

Mrs. Schnitzius also leads our California Junior Scholastic Federation (CJSF) Club, which recognizes students for strong academic achievement while providing opportunities for leadership, service, and involvement in our school and community. CJSF members meet monthly to plan activities, discuss upcoming opportunities, and find ways to make a positive impact at DIS and beyond.

It has been great to see students finding ways to connect with one another around shared interests, academics, leadership, and service outside of the classroom.

Upcoming Events
October 9 — 1st Quarter Ends
October 12 — Minimum Day
October 14 — Picture Make-Up Day
October 19 — No School
October 26–30 — Red Ribbon Week
November 10 — Medieval Feast
November 11 — No School in Observance of Veterans Day

DHS (From Marty Wilkes)
October's student of the Month is Landon Salindong.  Landon has a 4.25 GPA and is a three time Master Wrestling Champion and finished in the top 12 at the state championships last year.  Landon is captain of this year's wrestling team.  Landon will be looking to wrestle in college and is looking at several colleges including Grand View, Franklin and Marshall, Northern State, and Cal Poly.  Landon will be majoring in Biology or Bio Chem in preparation for medical school.  He is currently taking Physics, SOU English, SOU Government, Calculus, and Butte Spanish 3. 

Counseling:
This week in Advisory students learned about Battle of the Beads, a homecoming game sponsored by the DHS Cheer Team, by watching a cute video put together by Elizabeth Graham and featuring several of our DHS cheerleaders and staff. Students then created spirit chain links used to decorate the Library by responding to the prompt “What makes our school feel like home?” and played a competitive game of Durham Family Feud. Counseling was BUSY this week with the CSU Conference, presentations by representatives from UC Santa Cruz and UC Santa Barbara, submission of CalGrant GPAs, Butte College Transfer Day and the fall Counselor Conference at Butte College. 

The CSU and UC application submission window opened on Thursday for all eligible students interested in applying. Next week we will begin our college application help at lunch on Tuesday (10/6).

Homecoming week has been full of Trojan spirit! Students came out in droves for dress up days; Freshmen dominated Powder Puff on Monday; Seniors came back mightily to claim the W in Power Puff.  PTA has kept students fed and hydrated with breakfast on Monday and Italian sodas on Thursday; the week capped with our rally on Friday where classes displayed their homecoming posters, ASB led skits and games, cheerleaders performed and crowned the Battle of the Beads winner and our homecoming court was introduced. Don’t miss out on the final homecoming activities at the football game tonight at the DHS Coliseum - JV plays at 5:30 and Varsity at 7:00, homecoming candidates will be introduced, with our King and Queen being crowned, in between games. It was a great week to be a Trojan!! See attached pictures. 

Upcoming events and activities to be aware of:
Oct. 2 - UC Santa Barbara Presentation @ 10:00 (Parents are welcome to attend)
Oct. 6- College Application Help during lunch
Oct. 13  Reg2go Registration
Oct. 13  College of Behavioral and Social Science tour and Chico State.
Oct. 15  SAT/PSAT test

Athletics:
Volleyball:  The girls got back into the win column over the weekend in a big way.  The girls went 6-0 in their tournament without losing a single set.  The Volleyball team also picked up two more league wins during the week.  The girls are now 24-3 overall and 6-1 in league  Swimming just keeps winning. Tennis is 4-2 in league and has a 8-2 overall record.  The boys open league play tonight with their Homecoming game vs Colusa.

Volleyball: 
Oct. 6 vs Paradise
Oct. 8 at Pierce
Oct. 13 at Willows
Oct. 20 vs Colusa

Football:
Oct. 2  Homecoming vs Colusa
Oct. 9  at East Nicolaus
Oct. 16 vs Paradise

AG:
Spirit Arrangement Pick-up TODAY (Oc.t 2) from 2:30-4pm
Mum Sale - Oct. 4 @ Grange Farmers Market 
Project Comp Awards Banquet - Oct. 6
Advanced Floral Arranging Field Trip Oct. 7
Shasta College Field Day - Oct. 8th

Student Services and Supports (from Marilyn Bertolucci)
 
Congratulations to Tiffany Biro who won our first IEP Attendance Raffle!!!!! 

“Marilyn, how can I win??”

 It is easy!! Every time you attend an IEP and stay until the end your name is entered in the drawing. At the end of the month a name is pulled from the bucket and the winner will receive a treat. 

Thank you to everyone who has attended an IEP so far this year. Your time and input are appreciated by the Special Education Department, myself and the families of each student. 

Reading Universe Check out the Video Library and the 10 Maxims: What We’ve Learned So Far About How Children Learn to Read!

Maxim 5

Comprehension — the goal of reading — is a language-based process that draws on multiple skills and strengths, including a solid foundation of vocabulary and background knowledge.

Have a spectacular weekend!

Weekly Update Archive