Walnut High choirs present Pops Concert

Walnut High School Choirs will perform their spring Pops Concert at 7 p.m. on Friday, May 1, and Saturday, May 2, in the Walnut High School Theater, 400 N. Pierre Road in Walnut.

The cost is $8 for adults and $7 for students, seniors and kids.

The concert features the music of the ’70s and a live instrumental combo. The Mustang Singers, Treble Choir, Chamber Singers and Rhapsody in Blue will include lots of choreography.
All are under the direction of Lisa Lopez.

For information, call (909) 594-1333.

Rowland Unified seeks community input on budget cuts

Rowland  Unified School District will hold a special Community Input Meeting on Wednesday, April 29 at 6 p.m. regarding proposed budget reductions for the 2009-10 school year. The community forum will be held at Rincon Intermediate at 2800 E. Hollingworth St., West Covina.

  Because of state budget cuts, Rowland Unified faces a loss of $9 million in funding for the 2009-10 school year. This is in addition to the $5.8 million in reductions already made during the current fiscal year. The Superintendent’s Budget Reduction Recommendations, are posted on the district’s website at www.RowlandSchools.org under Budget Update or at the Rowland Unified District Office, located at 1830 S. Nogales St., Rowland Heights.

On March 10, the Rowland Unified School District Board of Education voted to place Measure E, a local school parcel tax, on the ballot – to be conducted by mail ballot this coming June.

If voters approve Measure E, it will establish a local, temporary and secure funding source for Rowland schools that could not be taken away by the state and used to support specific Rowland Unified educational programs. The cost to RUSD property owners would be $120 per parcel per year for only 5 years. All homeowners age 65 and over would be eligible for a senior citizen exemption.

If passed by two-thirds of RUSD voters, Measure E would provide stable local funding to: maintain college preparation classes and high school counselors; preserve student health/safety/security services; provide adequate instructional materials and classroom technology; keep school libraries open; protect small class sizes; maintain music and art programs; and retain qualified, experienced teachers.

            For further budget information or questions regarding the Rowland Unified Budget or Measure E, the public can visit www.RowlandSchools.org or call (626)854-8352 or email info@rowland.k12.ca.us

            The Rowland Unified School District serves 17,500 students at 23 elementary and secondary schools in the communities of Rowland Heights, Walnut, La Puente, City of Industry, and West Covina. 

26th Annual Fiesta of Books in El Monte

Community children in preschool through sixth grade are welcome this Saturday, May 2 to the 26th Annual Fiesta of Books from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the El Monte Community Center, 3130 Tyler Ave., El Monte.

Sponsored by the El Monte Community Services Department, El Monte City School District and Mountain View School District, the event will feature over 8,000 books available to the children free of charge thanks to various community groups donations.

Each child will receive two free books of their choice and a free dictionary will be given to each family. Several adult level and slightly used books will also be available to handout to parents and teens.

Storybook characters like Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz, Harry Potter and Mother Goose will also be on hand to greet the young readers.

Volunteers will be on hand reading books and offering arts and crafts activities to the children. The three local libraries, Norwood, El Monte and South El Monte, will provide materials regarding the programs available at each library.

For more information, call Detective Roger Cobian, chairman of the event, at (626) 580-2183, or contact one of the local libraries mentioned above.

Nogales Poetry Club performs Wednesday in Rowland Heights

In
celebration of Poetry Month, the Nogales High Poetry Club will be hosting its
first annual poetry performance show–WORDS: 
Literacy Through Poetry
, held at the Little Theater on the Nogales
High campus at 6:30 pm.  It is spoken word at its finest! With one of the
most diverse groups on campus, the Nogales Poetry Club will perform/read
original poems as they express themselves with haikus, sonnets, metaphors, personification,
symbolism, rhyme imagery etc.

The goal is not to just put on a good show, but to
enhance literacy through poetry.  We aim to extend the uses of poetry by
harnessing student enjoyment of poetry as a means to improving the level of
literacy.  A love for poetry and word play can help students become not
only better readers and writers, but also poets in their own right.

In addition to the Nogales Poets, a segment of the
night will include an open mic, where students, staff and the community will be
able to share their own  poetry, or their favorite poets work. Space on
the open mic list will be limited, so prompt arrival is suggested.  Mark
April 29th on your calendar as we celebrate WORDS!

Where: 
Nogales High
School Little Theater

When: 
Wednesday April 29th

Time:
 6:30 pm

Who: 
Nogales High
Poetry Club

Why: 
In Celebration of Poetry Month and its influence on literacy.

Admission: 
$1

Contact/Info
Cory Cofer  (Poetry Club Advisor)  626-965-3437 x3625

Day on the farm for Hacienda Heights students

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About 435 students from around Southern
California learned about agriculture and how it’s used to make everyday
goods, like food and clothing, at the Pomona Fairplex on Tuesday.

Agricultural Day, or AG Day LA, is designed to educate students about the state’s No. 1 industry – agriculture.

Local schools included Kwis Elementary and Sparks Elementary in the Hacienda La Puente Unified School District.

Read the whole story in the Hacienda Heights Highlander.

MTV presidents talks to Mount San Antonio students in Walnut

Brian Graden, president of MTV, VH1 and Logo Networks, was the guest speaker at the Humanities and Social Lecture Series at Mt. SAC yesterday.

Graden talked about his many successes with television, a media that he’s loved since growing up in a small farm town.

But more importantly, Graden discussed his many failures along the way. Failure to be true to himself, failure to pursue his own dreams.

That was his most important message, do whatever makes you truly happy and success will follow. That’s a point that is lost today with everyone pursuing money.

Read about his great lecture in an upcoming story in the Walnut Highlander.

Mt. SAC celebrates Earth Day in Walnut

Mt. San Antonio College will celebrate Earth Day on Wednesday from 9:45 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Native-American spiritual leader Robert John will talk about Native Americans and the environment. The event will be held at the Student Life Center at Mt. SAC.

Later,Christopher Nyerges will host the Edible Wild Plant Workshop  from 11:30 a.m. to 12:55 p.m. in the Student Life Center.

On Thursday, the film “Are We Running Dry?” will be shown from 4:45 p.m. to 6 p.m. in Room 1205 of Building 7. The movie deals with water-related health issues in the American Southwest.

Hacienda La Puente Unified celebrates Week of the Young Child

The Hacienda La Puente Unified School District will celebrate the Week of the Young Child on Wednesday, April 22.

An open house will be held from 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. in the cafeteria of California East School at 1000 California Ave., La Puente.

Families can learn about all the child development and early primary programs that the district offers at little or no cost.