March 2010 Archives
- Ed Jones Educational Center from 6-8 p.m. April 13
- Ramona Middle School from 6-8 p.m April 22
- Gladstone Elementary School from 6:30-7:30 p.m. on May 19
- Grace Miller Elementary School from 6:30-8 p.m. May 19
- La Verne Heights Elementary School from 7-8 p.m. May 20
- Roynon Elementary School from 6:30-8 p.m. May 20
- Oak Mesa Elementary School frm 7-8 p.m. May 26
- Allen Avenue Elementary School from 6-8 p.m. May 27
- Ekstrand Elementary School from 6:30-8 p.m. May 27
With stadium construction finally completed, Don Lugo athletes and musicians will finally get to play in a $7 million stadium, with seating for 4,000, an elevator for the disabled, synthetic turf, a synthetic track, elevated-field lighting, a public-announcement system, a press box, concession stands, a ticket office, and a brown and gold electronic scoreboard.
An official dedication ceremony at the new stadium will be held on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.
Bettison-Varga's theme was "The Genius of Women" and she used the opportunity to describe how women's talents have been suppressed.
"Women still need to be written into the history book," she said.
But the college can help change the structure in society that allows the suppression to flourish, she said.
"As we prepare women leaders, access and opportunity must be financially preserved to enable talented students to study at Scripps College," Bettison-Varga said.
A Chino Valley Unified staff report on Tuesday recommended that the school board at its next meeting cancel most of the layoff notices recently sent out.
Ahead of the March 15 state notification requirement, the district sent layoff notices to employees - mostly teachers - believing significant education budget reductions statewide were likely.
For the next school year, the district projects to save about $153,000 by replacing 160 senior teachers with less-experienced, lower-paid teachers. The report identifies about 71 laid-off K-8 teachers needed to fill the positions now open from early retirement.
Thirty-one non-teaching positions could be eliminated or reduced, according to a resolution approved Tuesday by the Upland Unified school board.
The final cuts will be made by Sherri Black, assistant superintendent of human resources.
The approval will "allow my office to start the process of looking at seniority lists and determining which employees that are on this list that might be able to bump into other positions or to possibly be moved into some of the vacant positions that we have in the district," Black said.
The bill rewrites a four-decades-old student loan program, eliminating its reliance on private lenders and uses the savings to direct $36 billion in new spending to Pell Grants for students in financial need.
In what is being described as the biggest piece of education legislation since No Child Left Behind nine years ago, the bill would also provide more than $4 billion to historically black colleges and community colleges.
"This is a great thing, because it saves money in the Pell Grant program that will help go toward our student's education," said Diana Minor, director of financial aid and scholarship at Cal Poly Pomona.
For each of the next two years, the district will spend about $1.5 million of its unrestricted general fund reserves, or about 60 percent.
At the end of 2011-12, the reserves are projected to be about $2.1 million.
The spending will leave Claremont Unified with a little less than 4 percent of annual funds in reserve, said Lisa Shoemaker, district assistant superintendent of business services.
The American Federation of Teachers announced today the appointment of Michael S. Powell as assistant to the president for communications.
"I am very excited that Michael will be leading our communications team as we tackle the myriad of issues confronting educators, healthcare providers and public servants," said AFT President Randi Weingarten.
Powell has been a leading communications strategist in the private and political worlds. He developed strategies for Fortune 500 companies--including for Nextel, when its communication devices failed to work during 9/11.
He helped the state of California with its message and media campaign to address an energy crisis that had resulted in rolling brownouts. Powell has extensive political campaign and congressional experience, having served as a strategist for Democratic U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives and gubernatorial candidates.
In addition, he served as chief of staff for Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) and former Rep. Joseph Kennedy (D-Mass.).
(Courtesy information)
Among school districts, Upland Unified had the most county group and individual champions with 18, followed by Fontana Unified with 11. Among individual schools, Upland High had the most individual and group champions with 16.
The individual and group champions advance to the California History Day competition in Pasadena from May 6-9.
from an ABC press release --
In an interview with ABC News today - Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan had the following to say about the graduation rates of NCAA players:
"If you can't graduate two out of five of your players, I just think your priorities are out of whack," Duncan told ABC News. "What it tells me is there is a lack of institutional commitment."
"I just don't know why we tolerate those handful of places whose values are not proper," Duncan told ABC News.
"The overall majority of these players will never go on to make a dime playing basketball, they're making money for their universities and they're going to have nothing to show for it."
The interview was part of Ron Claiborne's report tonight on "World News with Diane Sawyer."
read the story by Bradley Blackburn here
Our Lady of the Assumption School in Claremont fielded a team that captured Third Place Overall among the 100 Catholic schools participating in the 20th anniversary Catholic Schools Junior High Academic Decathlon March 6 at the Los Angeles Sports Arena. A total of 1,000 sixth-through-eighth graders were cheered by a crowd of 6,000 friends and family members.
In addition to individual competitions in Current Events, English, Fine Arts, Literature, Math, Religion, Science and Social Studies, the students worked as a team in competitions for Logic (where OLA won 5th place) and a Super Quiz (where OLA took 9th place). Points were awarded in all these categories to determine the top ten teams over-all.
From the Gov.'s desk:
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger joined by a bipartisan group of governors representing Connecticut, Kansas, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Virginia and West Virginia issued a statement today and sent the following letter yesterday to the U.S. Department of Education.
The letter requests that the U.S. Department of Education accelerate the timeline for the release of Race to the Top Phase One peer reviewers' comments and scores. The letter also requests an extension of the deadline to submit the Race to the Top Phase Two application until July 1, 2010:
"California is committed to fight for the additional education reforms necessary to make sure we have the strongest Race to the Top application possible and we must have sufficient time to evaluate the changes needed before we resubmit our application."
The event, which will begin with registration at 7:30 a.m., has three divisions: Elementary (Grades 4-5), Junior (Grades 6-8) and Senior (Grades 9-12). There are 91 entries in all the divisions, representing six county school districts and one private school.
History Day gives students a chance to compete in a variety of categories on a historical theme. The students' work is judged by historians, educators and other professionals in related fields. This year's theme is "Innovation in History: Impact and Change."
The Elementary Division only has one category of competition, posters. In addition to the poster category, the Junior and Senior divisions also have exhibit, documentary, performance, Web site and research paper categories. The awards ceremony for the county competition is scheduled to begin at 2:30 p.m. on March 20. Champions of the respective divisions advance to the California History Day event on May 6-9 in Pasadena.
The event is sponsored by the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools. Summit High School is located at 15551 Summit Ave. in Fontana.
Recipients of the Education Medal of Honor and Distinguished Service Award will be announced and recognized at a banquet on April 26 at the Hilton Garden Inn in Victorville.
Nominations for the Education Medal of Honor were made in six categories: Volunteer in Action/Community Volunteer; Volunteer in Action/Service Group; Partners in Education/Small Business or Franchise; Partners in Education/Corporation; Excellence in Education/Education Professional; and Excellence in Education/Student Alumni.
"I think it does (matter). School is expensive. I would like to pay off my debt at some point," said Crompton, 19, of Salt Lake City.
Harvey Mudd ranks No. 4 among colleges nationwide in midcareer salaries earned by graduates and No. 3 for recent graduates, according to data from PayScale.com.
The median starting salary for Harvey Mudd graduates is $71,000, and the median midcareer salary is $125,000, according to the data.
Those salaries rank the private liberal-arts college above such universities as Stanford and Princeton.
Photos by Frank Perez, Correspondent
Chaffey, Redlands and Chino Hills high schools will be among 62 teams competing today, Saturday and Sunday at the 31st annual competition in Sacramento.
A win won't be easy.
Students will be tested in math, economics, science, language/literature, music, art, social science as well as the French Revolution.
The students will also have to give impromptu and prepared speeches in front of a panel of interviewers.
Earlier this year, Chaffey High in Ontario won the San Bernardino County competition.
In a rare occasion, the runnerup, Redlands High, and third place Chino Hills High scored enough points to also participate in the state finals.
Chaffey's score in the county competition was eighth best in the state. Redlands finished 14th and Chino Hills was 19th.
"Good luck charm? No, I'm just taking three ties and spare set of batteries for my calculator," said Mario Rodriguez, a student on the decathlon team from Chaffey High.
Twenty students had one-on-one time with author and artist Sim n Silva, who encouraged an appreciation of visual arts though nature.
"This was really cool," sixth- grader Sifa Ngalo said. "He taught us about the rules of color and how to draw, and how everything has rules, even nature."
Among those struggling to get through the system are "super seniors" - students who have enough units to graduate but are missing select courses for their degree.
But help is on the way - officials announced earlier this month that CSU will use $50.9 million in federal stimulus funds to add 8,100 more classes to the fall schedule at its 23 campuses.
With the funding, Cal Poly Pomona and Cal State San Bernardino as well as campuses system-wide have launched a new initiative to improve graduation rates and help underrepresented students to complete college.
From State Supt. desk: State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell today issued the following statement regarding the first official release of the draft common core state standards. "The draft common core state standards are rigorous and will better prepare students for college and careers in the 21st century," O'Connell said. "They are well organized to give a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn so teachers and parents will know what they need to do to help all students succeed in both college and the workforce. They are internationally benchmarked and will make us more competitive as a nation. "The development of these standards has been led by the governors and chief state school officers in 51 states, territories, and the District of Columbia, along with teachers, school administrators, and other education experts. I encourage the public to review the draft common core state standards and provide feedback during the public comment period." The Council of Chief State School Officers and the National Governors' Association led the development of the draft common core state standards in English-language arts and mathematics that provide a clear and consistent framework to prepare all students for college and the workforce. For more information on the draft common core state standards, please see www.corestandards.org.
Nikias will succeed Steven B. Sample, who has led USC since 1991. In November 2009, Sample announced his decision to retire August 2, 2010.
Over the course of his career as a researcher, educator, and university administrator, Nikias has earned accolades for his leadership, innovation and fundraising, as well as his ability to build partnerships among varied constituencies.
The school's student progress in English and language arts has been at a lower rate than expected by NCLB standards. This has caused the school to be placed in Program Improvement status for the current school year.
The federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 requires each school identified for school improvement to revise or develop a school plan in consultation with school staff, outside experts and others.
Charter officials are holding out for a change of heart by the district.
Officials with Oxford Preparatory Academy are interested in moving to the former Los Serranos Elementary School site closed last year. But boardmembers say the approved opening of a virtual online high school and other district educational uses there next fall, rule out the use of the site for the charter.
The virtual school at Los Serranos is envisioned to provide an online multimedia curriculum where students learn via the Internet from home and on a personalized schedule.
Six San Bernardino elementary schools and Pacific High School made the list of California's lowest-performing public schools. A new state law says those schools will have to shut down, fire their administrators or become charter schools.
San Bernardino City Unified School District, with seven schools on the list, is behind only Los Angeles Unified and San Francisco Unified in the number of schools targeted for intervention. Stockton Unified also has seven on the list.
"We were aware there would be some schools on the list," said Linda Bardere, a spokeswoman for San Bernardino City Unified School District. "We had no idea as to the actual number. Of course, one is too many."
In the meantime, Oxford Prep officials continue to mull where to open their K-8 academy next fall.
The school board in January ruled out having the academy use the Los Serranos site. Instead, the board approved having the site be used for its new Chino Valley Virtual High School.
From CSU desk:
Do you know of a Japanese American student who was removed from a California State University campus in 1941-42 and sent to an internment camp?
Six California State University campuses are searching for 250 Japanese American students who were forcibly removed from CSU campuses during World War II and relocated to internment camps, interrupting their academic careers.
The U.S. House of Representatives adopted, on March 3 with unanimous consent, a resolution commending the California State University system on its 50 years of educating students and serving the diverse communities of California.
The text of the resolution specifically highlights the accomplishments of 91,000 graduates annually, "pioneering" outreach efforts, 32 million hours of community service annually and the system's positive economic impact on the state of California.
Zoe Lofgren (D-CA16), Wally Herger (R-CA2) and 43 other members of Congress co-sponsored the resolution-representing the vast majority of the California delegation.
As the resolution was being considered, CSU Chancellor Charles B. Reed was in Washington, D.C. leading a delegation of trustees, presidents, and other CSU supporters to advance the system's federal policy and project priorities, culminating in CSU Hill Day on March 3.
From State Superintendent's desk:
Working to ensure access to high-quality education for all students, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell, Secretary of Education Bonnie Reiss, and State Board of Education President Theodore R. Mitchell today released a preliminary list of 188 California public schools identified as persistently lowest achieving.
The list is subject to approval by the State Board of Education which is expected to take up this issue, (agenda item #18) on Thursday. http://www.cde.ca.gov/be/ag/
Longtime board member David Stine said the relationship between the elected school board and elected superintendents has been "the most frustrating issue" during his 21 years on the board.
"I believe we either need an appointed superintendent and take the politics out of the county office or we do not need an elected county board," Stine wrote in a letter he read at last week's board meeting announcing his decision not to seek re-election in November.
His chair looked big enough to swallow him. His feet, showing off a pair of colorful Converse sneakers, failed to reach the floor.
At 9 years old, Mason didn't look experienced enough to run Hermosa Elementary School in Rancho Cucamonga.
But there he was talking into the walkie talkie, making the classroom rounds and checking the weather to see if an indoor lunch is necessary. One teacher asked Mason for a raise. Another asked for a day off.
Longtime board member David Stine said the relationship between the elected school board and elected superintendents has been "the most frustrating issue" during his 21 years on the board.
"I believe we either need an appointed superintendent and take the politics out of the county office or we do not need an elected county board," Stine wrote in a letter he read at this week's board meeting announcing his decision not to seek re-election in November.
Riverside Community College District's youngest campuses passed the major test in their quest to become colleges with today's announcement that the Accrediting Commission of Community and Junior Colleges voted to approve college status for the 18-year-old institutions.
The Commission's action in granting each campus initial accreditation follows successful site visits by accrediting teams this past October and culminates a complex eight-year process.
Students, faculty, and staff celebrated the Commission's decision as a life-changing moment for the campuses. Opened in 1991, both campuses have seen their enrollments grow from 3,000 to more than 9,000 students, mirroring the population boom in surrounding communities.
From the Workers for Justice desk:
Food service workers report chronic overwork, multiple injuries, unreliable work and benefits, and poverty pay. Over 90% of Pomona College's food service staff and a third students have signed a petition to College President David Oxtoby calling for "Fair Process".
President Oxtoby issued a statement to workers and students rejecting the workers' desired method of unionization, the card check, in favor of the NLRB sanctioned "secret-ballot" vote. Workers explicitly selected the card check method because it subverts the threat of intimidation, a threat with recent historical precedent at the College.
Dissatisfied with the President's response, workers and students will rally outside of the semi-annual Board of Trustees meeting on Saturday.
What: Pomona College food service workers and students rally
Where: Marston Quad, Pomona College, Claremont, CA
When: 2:30 PM, Saturday, March 6th
*Photography and Video Available
Located in Claremont, California, Pomona College is ranked among the top liberal arts colleges nationwide, and has one of the largest endowments in the country. This sequence of events is the culmination of a long history of labor struggle and student-worker solidarity at the College. Last Spring, at the request of food service workers, students organized a boycott of dining halls to address non-guaranteed summer work hours and holiday pay. Although workers received a slight increase in guaranteed hours, they continue to report working unpaid hours as well as failing to disclose injuries due to fear of reprisal.
From the State Supt. desk:
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell today commented on the U.S. Department of Education announcement that California was not selected as a finalist in Phase 1 of Race to the Top (RTTT) competition.
"I am disappointed that California was not selected as a finalist in Phase 1 of the Race to the Top competition," O'Connell said.
"We developed a very thoughtful application that outlines how we can make systemic changes to California's public education system that will improve outcomes for all our children. Our application was supported by nearly half of the districts in our state, and it remains a good framework to guide our education reform efforts.
We look forward to seeing the federal reviewers' comments about our application to consider how we might improve our chances in Phase 2 of the competition. In the meantime, we will continue to work with the local educational agencies committed to improving student outcomes through our Race to the Top work."
The cuts include 18 English teachers, eight assistant principals, eight librarians, seven math teachers and a French teacher.
"These cuts are deep and hurtful, and there are some things, right now, on the table, that will be very difficult to go through with," said Superintendent Mat Holton.
"We will get through this. We will remain solvent - we have to because that is our commitment to our district, to our board and our students."
Claremont Unified's elementary and intermediate intervention programs that have been typically offered during the summer vacation months fell victim to budget cuts, school officials said.
The enrichment program will be offered to K-8 students this summer at Condit Elementary and El Roble Intermediate schools.
The program includes classes in art, computer survey, crafts, drama, instrumental music, sports, study skills, language and science.
The program will run from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. June 28 to July 23. The Fourth of July will be observed as a nonstudent day on July 5.
Claremont Unified's partnership with the Claremont Educational Foundation - a nonprofit that serves as a funding partner with the school district - led to the enrichment program being available, said Jim Coombs, assistant superintendent of educational services for the school district.
The program, self-funded, will not have an impact on Claremont Unified's general fund, officials said.
For more information on the enrichment programs and its classes, call Claremont Unified's offices at 909-398-0609 or visit www.cusd.claremont.edu.
The layoffs will save the district about $7 million.
Another $2.7 million could be saved if the board decides to not renew contracts with temporary teachers.
The board in February approved about $14 million in cuts to salaries, services and programs and is depending on another $12 million in cuts through union negotiations. About $21 million needs to be cut out of the school board's three-year budget report before it is sent by March 15 to the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools.
The cuts also included replacing high school librarians with library technicians, who would not be certified.
But we had a meeting here today. We had the first meeting already with the various different leaders on Monday and I thought it would be very important to bring more people together again and talk more about the importance of funding education, if it is kindergarten through 12th grade, if it is community colleges, if it is universities, the whole university system.
Photo Credit: Justin Short, Office of the Governor. |
from the desk of Congressman Garamendi:
Today, on the 50th anniversary of the California State University system, Congressman John Garamendi, D-Walnut Creek, a former CSU trustee and University of California regent issued the following statement:
"Fifty years ago today, the State of California made a decision that would alter the course of a nation. By establishing the California State University system to work in conjunction with the University of California and California's community colleges, our state's forward thinking policymakers declared that California would be a state where higher education was the birthright of every qualified resident...
Fourteen California State University campuses have received the highest federal honor that universities can receive for their commitment to service learning and civic engagement.
The CSU's 14 campuses are among more than 700 institutions of higher learning that were named this week to the 2009 President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for exemplary service to America's communities from the Corporation for National and Community Service. Launched in 2006, the Honor Roll recognizes colleges and universities nationwide that support innovative and effective community service and service-learning programs.
Stine has played an active role in education for 50 years, including as principal at Chaffey High in Ontario from 1984 to 1988.
"After careful consideration and with a great deal of ambivalence, I have decided not to run for re-election in November," Stine, 74, said. "My decision to make the early announcement is because I wanted to give ample time for someone who wanted to run."
The announcement was made at Monday's board meeting.
San Bernardino County has a five-member Board of Education. Trustees are elected to serve four-year terms, with each trustee representing a portion of the county.
Stine represents Area B, comprising Alta Loma, Central, Etiwanda, Mt. Baldy Joint, Ontario-Montclair and Upland Unified school districts.
"I think he represented this area very well," said Jim Kidwell, deputy superintendent of human resources at Ontario-Montclair School District. "He's often come over and talked to me about programs, and I've appreciated him keeping us informed about what's happening in the county."
"His expertise on how schools run and his advice will be missed by those he's worked with," Kidwell said.
Stine has served seven years as the chairman of the Department of Educational Leadership and Curriculum at Cal State San Bernardino and is continuing to teach graduate courses in educational administration at CSUSB and Brandman College on a part-time basis.
Stine lives in Upland with his wife, Deborah, who is a professor at Cal State San Bernardino. The two are working on a book about educational ethics in California.
Every curve and every edge has a purpose, lending each creation as piece of art.
With the help of Maloof master craftsman Mike Johnson, a dozen Chaffey Joint Union High School advance woodshop students were invited to create their own masterpiece during a workshop on Saturday at Chaffey High School.
Students measured, sawed, shaved and shaped a piece of black walnut wood into a letter opener. The milk chocolate color piece of wood was almost an inch wide and 12 inches long.
"This relaxes me," said Javier Guzman, Montclair High senior. "When you look at what you've done, you become really proud of what you have accomplished."
The campus, which has 500 students in grades pre-kindergarten to third, celebrates Read Across America day the last Friday in February rather than today2, the birth date of children's author Theodor Geisel, better known by his pen name, Dr. Seuss.
The early celebration allows the school to pull out all the stops.
"We do an all-day literacy extravaganza," said Principal Alicia McMullin.
