President's Message
Dear MSJHS Families,
Spring 2026 was a semester to remember. We held the Lunar New Year Luncheon, supported the WASC accreditation visit, cheered the Warriors to their first-ever NCS Basketball Championship, put on a wonderful Teacher Appreciation Luncheon, celebrated our traffic and MPPFA volunteers, and sent CO2026 off to Grad Night at Universal Studios. MSJ students and staff also shone brightly — Model UN won at Nationals, Science Olympiad advanced to States, and Nancy Benton was named FUSD Educator of the Year.
I am personally grateful to have introduced new initiatives I hope will stay with MPPFA:
- Career Exploration Fair — first year, ~300 attendees
- Zeffy — zero-fee fundraising platform, now fully adopted by the incoming exec board
- AP Resources — parent-facing writeup and video walkthrough to help families navigate AP season
And revamped what already existed:
- MSJ Reflections Student Panel — 4th year since 2023 · 235 registrations · 95% rated 4–5 stars
- Guest Speakers — Family Resource Navigators, FUSD Superintendent, MSJ Teachers Panel with record GBM participation of 50–60 members
- Media & Technology — MPPFA web content, Zoom management, WhatsApp administration, and digital presence kept current all year
To every volunteer, donor, and parent who showed up this year: you are the reason MPPFA matters. Go Warriors. 💚
Anusha Vaidyanathan
MPPFA President, 2025–2026
Spring 2026 Summary
- Jan 21 GBM Family Resource Navigators; Career Fair preview
- Jan 24 Event Career Exploration Fair (~300 attendees)
- Feb 18 GBM FUSD budget; Raise the Base; Career Fair success recap
- Feb 27 Event Lunar New Year Staff Luncheon
- Mar 2 Wellness Bike Blender / Reboot Your Commute
- Mar 4 Visit Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) accreditation visit
- Mar 25 GBM WASC completion; MUN & Science Olympiad; PAC update
- Apr 2 Event Spring Expo — inducted CO2030 families, raffle!
- Apr 6–10 Event Multicultural Week — MPPFA sponsors henna artist & mariachi band
- Apr 15 GBM Spring Expo recap; MC Week; Q&A with MSJ teachers
- Apr 2026 Wellness YEPC Fentanyl Awareness — Freshman Health
- Apr 27 Event 🍔 McTeacher's Night Fundraiser at McDonald's
- May 1 Event Teacher Appreciation Luncheon
- May 2 Event MPPFA & Traffic Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon
- May 25 Webinar MSJ Reflections: CO2026 Student Panel
- May 27 GBM Final in-person GBM — year-end recap, new board announced
- Jun 4–5 Event Grad Night — Universal Studios Hollywood
🌟 Jasmine Basrai — VP Fundraising
MPPFA President 2023–25 · VP Fundraising 2025–26
- Spearheaded the new MSJ Marquee on Mission Blvd — a lasting gift to the school
- Conceived and led MPPFA's first-ever McTeacher's Night at McDonald's
- Co-created the first-ever MSJ Car Meet with ASB — joyful community-building event
- Brought institutional knowledge as former President, raising the bar across fundraising all year
⭐ Lakshmi Deshkulkarni — Secretary & Operational Backbone
- Coordinated all facility bookings — GBMs, Career Exploration Fair, hospitality events, and more
- Organized printing of MPPFA T-shirts and banners for a polished, unified event look
- Showed up at every event, doing whatever it took to make things run smoothly
- A quiet pillar of strength — MPPFA would not have run the same without her
- Incoming MPPFA President 2026–27 — already leading by example all year
💰 Regina Dong — Treasurer & Financial Operations
- Managed Fremont Business bank account, PayPal, Venmo, check processing, matching donations & vendor payments
- Kept liability insurance up to date — required to sponsor and host school events
- Filed MPPFA's taxes with our CPA and paid city dues
- Ensured overall financial and compliance operations of the PFA ran smoothly all year
🌟 Special mention: Leina Ikeda (CO2028) — went above and beyond in organizing surveys, personally amplifying them to the student body via Instagram and StudentSquare, providing timely updates to the MPPFA board throughout the semester, and leading the AP curriculum feedback collection from students.
2025–2026 MPPFA Board
MSJHS Model UN
Won Best Delegation at the National Model UN Competition in New York — representing MSJ on the national stage.
MSJHS Science Olympiad
Took 2nd place at Regionals and advanced to the State Championship in April — a major achievement for the team.
Nancy Benton
Social Science Teacher · FUSD Educator of the Year 2026
MSJHS Boys Basketball — First-Ever NCS Division IV Champions
The Warriors capped a historic 22–11 season by winning the school's first-ever North Coast Section (NCS) Division IV championship. Entering the playoffs as the No. 4 seed, they pulled off an improbable run — defeating No. 1 San Marin in the semifinals (49–45) and No. 2 Rancho Cotate in the final (46–40).
After the NCS title, the Warriors advanced to the CIF State Division V regional tournament, winning back-to-back games over Oroville and Weed before falling in the regional semifinals. A season the entire MSJ community will remember.
MSJHS Boys Basketball team & coach with Ms. Bonomo · MPPFA's Lakshmi, Ratnakar & Anusha (in black) joined the whole school and Principal Perez to cheer on the Warriors
WASC Visit Completed — March 4, 2026
The Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) accreditation visit assessed school quality and standards in a rigorous multi-day review.
How MPPFA Helped
MPPFA members met directly with accreditors to provide the parent community's perspective on school strengths and areas for growth: Anusha Vaidyanathan, Jasmine Basrai, Lakshmi Deshkulkarni, Sushil Goel, Giridhar Agoram, and several other parents gave direct feedback to the visiting team.
Program Schedule — Expert Seminars
| Room | Session 1 (10:15–10:45) | Session 2 (11:00–11:30) |
|---|---|---|
| B1 | Business Development / Cloud Computing Rajesh Vijayaraghavan |
Business Development / Cloud Computing Rajesh Vijayaraghavan |
| B2 | Data Analytics Shilpa Vasuki |
Hardware Engineering Karthik Sundararaman |
| B3 | Medicinal Chemistry Edward Njoo |
Medicinal Chemistry Edward Njoo |
| B4 | Law Rakhee Mehta |
Law Rakhee Mehta |
| B10 | U.S. Navy Sgt. Jung, Byung (Brian) |
U.S. Marine Sgt. Snaitahead |
| B15 | Product Management Kristin Chen |
eCommerce Software Product Management Trupa Patel |
| B16 | Biomedical Engineering / Medical Physics Sastry Vedam |
Immunotherapy Research Ruth Ian |
| B17 | Writing and Media Rashika Sharma |
Healthcare Anne Saleem |
| B18 | Public Employment & Real Estate Alesia Strauch |
Technology and Real Estate Chung Wu |
| B24 | Clinical Laboratory Science David Luong |
Clinical Laboratory Science David Luong |
MSJHS's first-ever Career Exploration Fair was a student-driven event, conceived and organized by MSJ DECA — with special thanks to officers Dhivya and Celina and their faculty advisor Mr. Liu for their leadership and energy in bringing the fair to life. The MSJ College & Career Center, led by Ms. Wei Leng Ng, provided essential guidance and coordination, ensuring students had meaningful access to professionals across nine career fields. Student representatives from L2 and MPPFA showed up in full force as volunteers, making the day run smoothly for the over 300 attendees. The bulk of students who benefitted were 8th–10th graders — a formative time for exploring interests and mapping out future paths. The fair offered two 30-minute expert seminar sessions running in parallel across ten rooms, from Law and Biomedical Engineering to the U.S. Navy and Marines. Principal Perez was a visible presence throughout the day.
🤝 How MPPFA elevated this event: Anusha Vaidyanathan and Jyothi Krishnamurthi mentored the student organizers, vetted logistics, and guided the team every step of the way — transforming what began as a student after-school initiative into a full community fair. MPPFA provided facility rental sponsorship, liability insurance, snacks, donuts, and overall organizational support to make the scale and quality of the event possible. Lakshmi Deshkulkarni arranged custom-printed travel mugs as MPPFA-sponsored gifts for the speakers.
☕ Coffee generously donated by Starbucks Las Palmas (Mission Blvd & Las Palmas, Fremont) — thank you to store manager Benjamin Wong for supporting our community events.
New 🪧 MSJ Marquee Unveiled!
The new MSJ Marquee — a capital project championed by Jasmine Basrai (VP Fundraising) — was installed on Mission Blvd and immediately became a visible symbol of school pride and community connection. Jasmine led the project from concept through vendor coordination with Silicon Valley Graphics to final installation.
Advertising on the marquee benefits the school directly — businesses and community organizations can purchase display time, with proceeds supporting the school.
🎓 Graduation Messages Campaign — Senior families sponsored personalized messages on the marquee June 1–3, celebrating the Class of 2026 on Mission Blvd. Raised $400 via Zeffy. ✅
🏢 Advertise on the Marquee — businesses and community orgs welcome.
Contact: vp_fundraising@mppfa.org
The result of years of sustained PAC advocacy — MPPFA pushed for clearer, fairer processes for families to raise concerns about teacher issues and grade accuracy.
Teacher Issues — 5 Steps → 4 Steps (Article 30, Aug 2025)
BEFORE
- Mandatory to approach teacher first
- No documentation
- Unclear timelines
- 5 steps to final decision
AFTER
- Admin-facilitated Step 1 option
- Written summaries required
- 5-day appeals, 15–20 day resolutions
- 4 steps to Asst. Superintendent
Student Grade & Record Inaccuracies (Jan 2026)
FUSD now has a clear process for families when a grade doesn't reflect work submitted, contains a clerical or calculation error, is based on factors outside course standards, or when a student record contains inaccurate information.
Families can now submit a written request to the Superintendent or designee. A meeting must be held within 30 days. If the request is denied, families may appeal to the School Board within 30 days — and the Board's decision is final.
🔗 Grade Challenge Process Update (Jan 2026): mppfa.org/committees/parent-advisory-committee/grade-challenges-update
✅ Finals restored for 2026–27 school year
Advisory Period was not voted in this cycle. Teachers cited concerns about student misuse of the period and the need to protect instructional minutes. While the outcome was disappointing, MPPFA PAC will continue to address parent and community concerns, and work collaboratively with the school, Principal Perez, and teachers to find solutions that work for everyone.
While specific changes being considered by FUSD are confidential at this stage, the MSJ community should expect to see positive outcomes that reflect the feedback you have given. Your voices — through surveys, board meetings, and conversations — are being heard and acted upon.
Superintendent Larsen presented FUSD's structural budget deficit at the Feb GBM. Fremont receives significantly less per-pupil funding than neighboring districts; reserves risk falling below 3%.
- District made $20M in cuts last year
- MPPFA supporting Raise the Base campaign for regional COLA
Sign petition: raisethebase.org | Contact Senator Wahab, Assemblymember Lee re: AB1204
✅ Highs
- Digital & Marquee Momentum — strong fundraising from marquee advertising and fee-free Zeffy campaigns
- Community Engagement — high parent involvement in food drop-offs and community raffles
⚠️ Lows
- Full department donations — paused to protect core fiscal stability
- Instead of scholarships this cycle, MPPFA focused on direct student recognition — gift cards for ASB, the MSJ Student Store, and for the MSJ Reflections student panelists as a thank-you for sharing their time and insights
MPPFA migrated to Zeffy this year — a zero-fee fundraising platform that passes 100% of donations directly to MPPFA.
- GPay, credit card, bank account, Apple Pay, Venmo & checks
- End-to-end visibility, curated campaigns, raffles & reports
- Automatic tax receipts to donors
- Paperless Maze Day coming next year!
| Category | Amount |
|---|---|
| Teacher Lunches / School Events | $6,043.89 |
| Career Center + Wellness | $4,100.00 |
| Grad Nite | $3,364.50 |
| ASB Speakers & Events | $2,494.99 |
| Insurance | $2,037.00 |
| Chinese New Year Event | $2,000.00 |
| Traffic Volunteer Appreciation | $1,709.63 |
| Zoom Webinar License | $1,437.19 |
| Banners | $1,245.83 |
| Traffic Supplies | $1,229.97 |
| Car Show Food & Drinks | $1,065.12 |
| MPPFA T-Shirts | $846.38 |
| Professional Services | $660.00 |
| Coffee with Principal | $359.59 |
| Storage Supplies | $329.43 |
| Art Teacher | $187.41 |
| CA Registration Fee | $75.00 |
| Printing | $63.95 |
| Postage | $17.77 |
New this period: facility rental, teacher appreciation luncheon, Zoom webinar license, volunteer luncheon.
Donate: mppfa.org/donate (Venmo, PayPal or check to "Mission Possible" at MSJ office) · Ask your employer about corporate matching — it doubles your gift!
Ms. Arshiya Sultana
MSJ Science Teacher
Ms. Nancy Benton
MSJ Social Science Teacher
MPPFA Teacher Representative
MPPFA hosted a candid Q&A session with two of MSJ's most dedicated teachers — giving parents a rare opportunity to hear directly from educators about what life looks like inside the classroom, how students can make the most of their time at MSJ, and how parents can best support their kids. The session was open, honest, and deeply appreciated by the community.
youtube.com/watch?v=Vh4hNp2_zbo · MPPFA YouTube channel
MPPFA believes in being an inclusive community — one where children with learning differences can find their space and thrive at MSJ. With that in mind, MPPFA President Anusha Vaidyanathan personally invited Sujatha Ranganathan to speak at the January GBM and moderated the session. Sujatha is an ex-MSJ parent, technology professional, and board member of Family Resource Navigators and Healthier Kids Foundation — who shared a deeply personal story of advocating for her son through his time at MSJHS (2014–18).
💬 Sujatha's son was diagnosed with ASD in 2008. She navigated IEP goals, class placements, after-school activities (no-cut teams like cross country & track), and college counseling — sharing what worked, what didn't, and how other MSJ families can do the same. Her talk was a powerful reminder that "advocacy is stressful — but you don't have to do it alone."
- Choosing the right courses and activities that play to your child's strengths
- Knowing your child's rights — IEPs, accommodations, documentation
- Building allies: teachers, counselors, and peer parents
- College/career pathways and transition planning for diverse learners
- "Speak up for a child, even if they are not yours."
📞 510-547-7322 · ✉️ info@familyresourcenavigators.org · 🔗 tinyurl.com/GBMFamilyResource
📝 Mock AP Exam — April 24, 2026
MPPFA partnered with Magna Education to bring Mock AP Exams to MSJ — offering personalized feedback on Free-Response and Multiple-Choice questions across 6 AP courses.
📖 Taking APs — A Guide for MSJ Parents & Students — April 15, 2026
Quality over quantity. There's no magic number of APs. Take what you can handle well — colleges value rigor, but APs relevant to your intended major matter more than sheer count.
Course ≠ exam. The AP course grade goes into your GPA (weighted). The May exam score (1–5) does not affect your GPA — but can earn college credit or placement, depending on the school.
Each college sets its own credit policy. A 4 or 5 can save tuition, skip intro courses, or free up time for a double major — but policies vary widely by school.
APs outside MSJ are an option. Self-study or an external provider (UC Scout, BYU, Elite Prep) are viable paths — confirm exam availability and A-G credit rules.
- Taking APs — A Guide for MSJ Parents & Students (Slide Summary) NEW
- Taking APs — A Guide for MSJ Parents & Students (Document) NEW
youtu.be/ETFwRAv-ark · AP Guide Q&A · MPPFA YouTube channel
🆕 New MPPFA AP Resources
Available at: mppfa.org/current-resources/aps-curriculum
Critical unfilled positions:
- F – Entrance to Horseshoe Loop: 0% filled (5 slots/week)
- G – Mission Drop-off Loop: 0% filled (5 slots/week)
- D1 – Student Parking Lot Exit (Palm): 0% filled (3 slots/week)
⏱️ Just 45 minutes/week makes you a hero for 1,800 students. Sign up: traffic.mppfa.org/signup
Traffic volunteers can now download an official digitally-signed PDF certificate from their dashboard at traffic.mppfa.org — showing name, total service hours, and weeks served. Ideal for corporate volunteer hour matching programs.
DO NOT drop off on Palm Ave. Students run across active traffic lanes. Use designated zones inside the Horseshoe Loop only.
- No right turn while exiting the Horseshoe Loop
- Do not stop & wait in flowing traffic on Palm St
- Senior volunteers graduating — please sign up for next year!
Alongside Alameda County Schools, MSJHS campaigned to fight climate change, stay physically healthy, and reduce traffic. The crowd-favorite Bike Blender returned — spin the bike to blend a fresh fruit smoothie!
🏆 Congrats to Tim Nguyen who won the $50 Clipper Card prize!
The Youth Emergency Preparedness Council (YEPC), in collaboration with Song for Charlie, delivered a Fentanyl Awareness presentation integrated into the Freshman Health curriculum — a critical issue addressed proactively.
- Led by Junyi Xu and Jessica Ramirez with MSJ students and the Chinese community, with special recognition to Henry Liang — an alumni parent who continues to work with MSJ
- Food, decorations, and raffle prizes for teachers and staff
- FUSD and city officials joined — they look forward to this event every year
- MPPFA President Anusha Vaidyanathan addressed guests and drew winning raffle tickets
- MPPFA booth engaged new and enrolled families
- Inducted CO2030 MSJ families into MPPFA WhatsApp groups
- Grad Nite and Spring Expo raffle fundraisers held
Our first-ever McTeacher's Night at Mission San Jose McDonald's — teachers, ASB officers, and Principal Perez worked behind the counter for an evening of friends, family, and fun. McDonald's expressed interest in sponsoring future MPPFA events including Coffee with the Principal.
🤝 A new community partnership — great blueprint for future dining fundraisers!
- MPPFA sponsored henna artist and mariachi band
- Henna artist coordination — Sangeeta Khandelwal
- Student reps reported "breathtaking performances on Friday"
Over 100 teachers, support staff, and educators joined MPPFA volunteers for a festive Cinco de Mayo luncheon — a full-school celebration in the heart of the school day. The Open Bar Taco (Taquizas La Mejor) was well-received by the staff.
Parents went above and beyond — many dropped off cookies, desserts, and treats on top of the catered spread, turning it into an overflowing feast. The generosity of the community was on full display.
📅 Held mid-school-day — we wished we could invite the whole community, but the teachers deserved this moment all to themselves. 💚
Organized by Ratnakar Verma, this was a fitting and well-organized tribute to the traffic volunteers, Grad Night team, and the extended MPPFA community. Outgoing and incoming members came together, and Principal Amy Perez presided over the event — a meaningful touch. Volunteers were invited to leave reflections on a shared paper board — a heartfelt reminder of what this community is all about. Thank You, Heroes. 🙏
🎢 Universal Studios Hollywood — Park Closed. Just for Them.
Universal Studios Hollywood shuts its gates to the public for one wild night — and thousands of graduating seniors from across the country take over. Every ride, every attraction, every corner of the park: theirs. This is Grad Bash — and it's been going strong for over 50 years.
- Organized by WorldStrides, coordinated locally by the MPPFA Grad Nite Committee — right after MSJ Graduation on June 3! 🎓
- Seniors travel from high schools all over the country for this one-of-a-kind all-night celebration
- Universal Studios Hollywood closes to the public — the park belongs entirely to graduating seniors for the night
- Every ride, show, and attraction open — no lines, no crowds, just the Class of 2026 and their chaperones
🌟 The Team Behind Grad Nite
⭐ Alisa Ho — Grad Nite Chair — Organized Grad Nite end-to-end, from registration and logistics to coordinating with WorldStrides and managing every detail leading up to departure. Kept parents informed throughout — payment deadlines, what to pack, schedule updates — and then showed up as a chaperone herself to see it through to the very last moment. An extraordinary commitment to the Class of 2026.
⭐ Jessica Ramirez — Designed and maintained the Grad Nite information page on the MPPFA website, keeping all details current and accessible. Also created the custom CO2026 Grad Nite lanyards — a memorable keepsake for every senior on the trip.
⭐ Anusha Vaidyanathan — Provided Zoom support for the Grad Nite informational sessions, ensuring parents could attend and ask questions regardless of location.
Chaperones
⭐ Anusha Vaidyanathan — Outgoing Chair · Ratnakar Verma — Tech Chair 2026–27
- Anusha Vaidyanathan and Jessica Ramirez resurrected MPPFA's Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn — revived active posting using Buffer.com scheduled posts for consistent community updates
- Ratnakar Verma tag-teamed with Anusha through the rest of 2025–26 and continues as Tech Chair into 2026–27 — ensuring a smooth handoff and continuity
- Created the CO2030 WhatsApp group for incoming 9th graders — keeping families informed ahead of school reopening in August; Shilpa Viswanathan and Suravi Karmacharya serve as WhatsApp admins
- Moved the CO2026 group to a dedicated alumni community to make space for the incoming class
- Moderated MSJtalk community forum
May 25, 2026 · MPPFA's 4th consecutive panel since 2023 · First ever all-student panel · 7 Class of 2026 MSJ students · Brown, UCLA, Northwestern, West Point, American University, CSU East Bay, Washington University
What the Panel Covered
ACADEMICS
Course choices, pathways, study habits
MAJOR, COLLEGE & CAREER
How each panelist chose their path
SPORTS & MUSIC
Lessons beyond GPA and admissions
EXTRACURRICULARS
Real, measurable impact — not just clubs
SUMMER PROGRAMS
What actually paid off
SAT STRATEGY
Resources that moved the needle
CLUBS & RESOURCES
MSJ resources most students never use
STRESS & MENTAL HEALTH
Where MSJ stress really comes from
CLOSING ADVICE
The line each panelist wishes they'd heard freshman year
youtube.com/watch?v=D21gkvUqPI0 · Resources and panelist bios in the comments
🌟 CO2026 Panelists — Congratulations & Best Wishes!
Four student representatives regularly attended MPPFA GBMs this spring, bringing the student perspective directly to parent community meetings — on bell schedules, finals, advisory, sports, and student life.
Student updates across the semester:
- Jan — AP info seminar interest; advisory & finals feedback; new PE coach
- Feb — ICE protest (hundreds of students, Feb 6); winter sports wrap-up; Sophomore elections; Grad Nite announced
- Mar — Charity Fashion Show; Multicultural Week; Bell Schedule Survey released to students
- Apr — Multicultural Week performances; AP season begins
- May — APs complete; Prom (highly popular); spring sports over; seniors graduating in 4 days!
- AP feedback — Collected student AP questions to help shape MPPFA's informational resources for underclassmen
The final GBM of the 2025–26 school year brought the community together in person — capping off a packed semester with a year-end financial recap and announcement of the new board.
Outgoing board members Anusha Vaidyanathan, Jasmine Basrai, and Regina Dong received flowers in recognition of their service this year.
