Principal’s Message

Melville S. Jacobson School Community,

My name is Derek Sprecksel. It is an honor to be the Principal at Jacobson Elementary School. This will be my sixth year at Jacobson, my fourth as the Principal.  I served as the Assistant Principal at Jacobson for two years prior to becoming the Principal, also serving as the Villalovoz Elementary School Assistant Principal during that time.  This will be my twenty-second year in education, all in the Tracy Unified School District.  Prior to becoming an administrator, I was a teacher at West High School for sixteen years. I also coached boys’ basketball at West High for fourteen years, in addition to serving as the athletic director there for five years. My wife is an English teacher.  This school year will be her twenty-third in the Tracy Unified School District.  We have three children.  I enjoy spending time with my family, reading, and sports.  

I am passionate about all students participating in an excellent educational experience.  We have an enthusiastic, dedicated, caring Team at Jacobson to work with our students every day, helping them to reach their full potential.  We believe every student can succeed at school.  

A celebration for Jacobson during the 2022-2023 school year was STEM implementation in all grades.  Students accessed several STEM units of study, developing their skills in academic discussion, higher level questioning, and fully participating in the engineering process, collaborating with each other to improve their project designs.  STEM instruction will continue to be an emphasis at Jacobson Elementary School.

It is essential that all students read at or above grade level as soon as possible.  Literacy is at the core of a solid academic foundation.  The 2023-2024 school year will be the third year of Jacobson Elementary School’s Book Flood.  Every student will continue to get a free book from their teacher at the end of each month of school.

We emphasize teamwork and collaboration at Jacobson.  We will continue to work together to support all students.  We also will continue to build positive, meaningful relationships with our school community.  It has been extremely rewarding working with our students, staff, and parents at Jacobson the past five years.  I am appreciative of the partnership we have with our school community.

The 2022-2023 school year was positive, productive, and rewarding.  Our Jacobson Elementary School Team is looking forward to an amazing 2023-2024 school year! 

Thank you,
Derek Sprecksel, Principal