Oxford Preparatory Academy - South Orange County Home

We believe that all students are unique and gifted individuals

Congratulations OPA SOC and OPA SV for 2023 California Distinguished School Recognition

Congratulations OPA SOC and OPA SV for 2023 California Distinguished School Recognition Image
    
Chancellor Velez's Welcome Message (2022-23) Image

Chancellor Velez's Welcome Message (2022-23)

OPA Champions and Families, 

My name is Kerry Velez and I am the Chancellor of Oxford Preparatory Academy- South Orange County. It is my pleasure to welcome everyone to the 2022-2023 school year. I look forward to meeting you and continuing the tradition of excellence that OPA-SOC is known for. 
 
At Oxford Preparatory Academy, we are committed to working collaboratively to develop life-long learners in a safe and caring educational environment where students are challenged, scholarship is expected, and differences are valued. At OPA we cultivate learners who are effective collaborators, communicators, critical thinkers with strong character who will make a positive impact in our school and community. 

I am so proud to work with such an incredibly talented staff who challenge students to higher levels of thinking and learning. We truly believe that all students are unique and gifted individuals.  Our goal is to prepare your child to be able to compete in a competitive world academically and social-emotionally. At OPA, we pride ourselves in educating the whole child and preparing our students to leave our school ready to handle all academic rigors in their education. 

On a personal note, the 2022-2023 school year will mark my eleventh year with Oxford Preparatory Academy. I earned my Bachelor of Arts degree in Liberal Studies along with my Multiple Subject Teaching Credential from California State University Long Beach. I also have my Masters of Arts in Educational Administration along with my Administrative Services Credential. I started my career as an elementary teacher and then moved into administration where I was Dean at OPA-SOC for the past four years. I am now humbled and honored to be your Chancellor.

Thank you for entrusting OPA-SOC with your children everyday. It is an honor and responsibility we do not take lightly. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the school office and we will be happy to assist you. I look forward to an exciting and memorable school year! 

Kerry Velez 
Chancellor 
[email protected] 
949-305-6111 
 

News & Announcements

May 14, 2023 Featured Photo

May 14, 2023

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This is your last chance to complete the Intent to Return form for the 2023-2024 school year. As we anticipate our staffing needs for next year it’s helpful to know if your Champion will be returning to SOC next year. Please take a moment to fill out the Intent to Return form for each of your students. (LINK to the INTENT TO RETURN- this is for TK-4th grade only)

Thank you so much for taking the time to complete the form! It really does help in our planning as we start to prepare for next school year.

Have a wonderful week!

Mrs. Velez
May 8, 2023 Featured Photo

May 8, 2023

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This week we are officially kicking off our CAASPP testing for Champions in 3rd-8th grade! Our students have been preparing all year to be able to showcase their knowledge on the state test. We want this testing period to be a positive one for our Champions. A good night's sleep, a hearty breakfast, arriving at school on time, and words of encouragement help start their day go a long way! If you have a student in a testing grade, please make sure they come to school with a charged chromebook and wired headphones (earbuds will not be compatible for the test). It is imperative that students attend school during our testing window, which will take place over the next three weeks. You can see a detailed schedule by viewing the CAASPP Chancellor Chat presentation.

It is also that time of year again where we send out the student Intent to Return forms for all of our Champions. As we anticipate our staffing needs for next year it’s helpful to know if your Champion will be returning to SOC next year. This year Champions in grades TK-4 will be able to complete the form linked below. Students in grades 5th-7th will be receiving a separate link from Mr. Briquelet. Please take a moment to fill out the Intent to Return form for each of your students by May12th. (LINK to the INTENT TO RETURN- this is for TK-4th grade only)

I also wanted to extend a HUGE thank you to all of our wonderful volunteers who put on an amazing Golf Tournament. It was an incredible night and I couldn’t be more humbled by the generosity of our OPA community. Thank you to everyone who came out for the event!

Have a wonderful week!

Mrs. Velez
April 23, 2023 Featured Photo

April 23, 2023

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CAASPP testing will begin on Tuesday May 9th!
Don’t forget that I will be hosting a Chancellor Chat in Honour Hall that will focus on state testing, how you can help your own child prepare for the test, and I will share additional resources that are available for all parents.

As mentioned above, CAASPP testing will begin on Tuesday, May 9th. Attached you will find the Letter to Parents that explains what the test is, provides the resources that will be covered in our Chancellor Chat and the schedule for our 3rd-8th grade students.

Please make sure you read through the Schoolwide Updates in the message. There are some amazing opportunities to get involved and volunteer on campus. If you are a cleared volunteer and are available to come assist with supervision on May 3rd for the schoolwide celebration, please reach out to your child’s
professor to schedule a time.

Lastly, I want to thank everyone for their patience as we installed the upgraded entry system for the front office. When visiting the campus, our front office staff will now be able to open the front door remotely. As you approach the front door, please listen carefully for the door to unlock and you will be able to open it. Again, thank you so much for your patience and support and we continually work to improve our campus security.
Have a wonderful week!
Mrs. Velez
April 30, 2023 Featured Photo

April 30, 2023

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I can’t believe it’s May! We are only 32 days away from the last day of school. We have a lot to fit into the last 6 weeks which includes our upcoming Golf Tournament, CA Distinguished School celebration, CAASPP testing, Field Trips, International Week, AstroCamp, M.A.J.O.R.S., SOC Showcase, Trimester Awards, and MORE! There are going to be a lot of different volunteer opportunities during these events. Please make sure that you are a cleared volunteer if you would like to be on campus and interacting with our Champions. If you have questions about how to become a cleared volunteer, make sure you contact the front office.

On Wednesday, May 3rd, Dr. Kernan announced that we will be holding a Special Board meeting with Open Session convening around 9:30 a.m. It is at that time that we hope to be able to announce details about our new OPA Middle School. Make sure you mark your calendar and join via Zoom.

Last, we are so excited for our Golf Tournament happening this Friday. I want to extend a HUGE thank you to the countless volunteers who have been working so hard to make this event happen. Make sure you purchase any last golf balls this week for a chance to win $2500 on Thursday! Thursday will also be an ALL SCHOOL STAR WARS dress day to kick off our CAASPP testing theme of MAY THE SCORES BE WITH YOU! Students are encouraged to dress as their favorite Star Wars character (please no masks) and they might even see some staff dressing up too!

Have a wonderful week!

Mrs. Velez
April 16, 2023 Featured Photo

April 16, 2023

I hope everyone had a restful weekend as we gear up for another busy week at SOC. Our 3rd grade Champions have been diligently working and preparing for the LIving Museum. I am so excited to see this OPA tradition come back to life! It has always been one of my favorite events and I know how much hard work goes into this project. Believe it or not, my very own 3rd graders completed this project over ten years ago! It’s true what they say that the days are long but the years are short and it’s hard to believe we only have two months left of school.

Also happening this week is our April Board Meeting. It will take place on Tuesday, April 18th at our OPA-SV campus. During this board meeting we will be recognizing our OPA Ambassadors! Our Parent Ambassadors have given up their time to attend meetings, volunteer on campus, and take a leadership role at our school. These amazing parents will serve as our Parent Ambassadors for the remainder of this school year and next school year. We appreciate all of the time and effort you have given for our school. I would like to congratulate Tina Asadi, Celeste Bowden, Yekta Dowlati, Betsy Freiler, Courtney Garfinkle, Brandy Matthews, Tina Mehrazar-Arzani, Susan Phipps, and Dawn Maltin! You have all had an incredible impact on our school this year! There are still going to be a lot of opportunities for parent involvement towards the end of the year, especially with International Week coming up from May 30th- June 2nd so make sure you save the date!

As always, please make sure you read through the information below. We hope to see everyone at the Honour Society Camp Out and Day of Service this weekend!

Have a wonderful week!
April 9, 2023 Featured Photo

April 9, 2023

I hope everyone had a wonderful and relaxing Spring Break. We are excited to have everyone back on campus Monday morning and can’t wait to hear all about the wonderful adventures that many Champions had over the past week. We would also like to welcome some of our 8th grade students back from exploring Washington D.C. Thanks to the support of Honour Society for organizing this trip, we were able to offer this exciting experience again for our Champions. It was definitely a trip to remember!

Our events calendar is jam-packed with different whole school, grade level, and classroom events until the end of the school year so please make sure you read everything thoroughly and mark your calendars! First up is our 5th grade Champions leave tomorrow morning for Irvine Ranch Outdoor Camp followed by Trimester 2 Awards taking place on Thursday and Friday this week. If you plan on attending the awards ceremony in person, please make sure you allow yourself enough time to be checked in by the front office. Please make sure you bring your government issued photo I.D. with you as well.

We look forward to having an amazing week back with plenty of sunshine!

Mrs. Velez
March 26, 2023 Featured Photo

March 26, 2023

We have officially made it to the last week before Spring Break! It is going to be a fun and busy week with M.A.J.O.R.S (Making Academic Jumps Over Rigorous Standards) and hopefully a break from the rain. We will also be hosting another Parent Education Night on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. at our SOC campus that will focus on Mental Health Awareness.
March 19, 2023 Featured Photo

March 19, 2023

This week officially marks the beginning of the third trimester! It’s hard to believe spring is upon us and we are gearing up for state testing in a couple of months. I am also thrilled to announce that we had a record breaking number of applications during Open Enrollment, with over 3,000 applications submitted!
November 13, 2022 Featured Photo

November 13, 2022

I want to keep this week’s message short and sweet. As the first trimester officially comes to an end on Friday, on behalf of our entire OPA-SOC staff we would just like to say how incredibly thankful we are for the continued support we have received throughout this school year. We would not have been able to accomplish everything we have so far without our amazing parent community.
Report cards will be available for parents to view on Aeries on Friday, December 2nd. The month of December will be jam packed with events so make sure you read all correspondence so you don’t miss anything! We look forward to finishing the last week of this trimester strong. Don’t forget that there is no school for Thanksgiving Break and the front office will be closed from Monday, November 21st through November 25th. Have a wonderful week.

Upcoming Events

MAJORS

Time: 2:15 PM – 3:15 PM

MAJORS

Time: 2:15 PM – 3:15 PM