School Notebook

As reported by Shelly Leachman in Saturday's Breeze, here's what each district would face under education funding cuts proposed by Gov. Schwarzenegger:

Centinela Valley Union High
Cuts: $3.5 million from a $68 million budget

El Segundo Unified
Cuts: $1.4 million from a 26.4 million budget

Hawthorne Unified
Cuts: $3.4 million from a $48.5 million budget

Hermosa Beach City Unified
Cuts: $0.4 million from a $9.4 million budget
Proposals: 28 teacher layoffs, increased class size

Lawndale Unified
Cuts: $2 million from a $30 million budget

Lennox Unified
Cuts: $1.9 million from a $61 million budget

Los Angeles Unified
Cuts: $460 million from a $8 billion budget

Manhattan Beach Unified
Cuts: $0.9 million from a $36 million budget
Proposals: 5-7 teacher layoffs, fund transfers, combining course sections at Mira Costa, using reserves

Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified
Cuts: $4 million from a $95 million budget
Proposals: 50 layoffs, increased class sizes, eliminating extended-day kindergarten

Redondo Beach Unified
Cuts: $2.2 million from a $67.5 million budget
Proposals: Increased class sizes, early retirement incentives, combining classified positions, introducing fee-based transportation for athletic teams, reducing substitutes, using one-time monies

Torrance Unified
Cuts: $9.4 million from a $196 million budget
Proposals: 70 full-time teachers, 11 custodians, 5.5 full-time special ed teachers, reduction of security at high schools, elimination of incentives including the School Safety Violence Program and the P.E. Incentive Program, early retirement incentives, reduction of travel/conference allowances

Wiseburn Unified
Cuts: $0.5 million from a $17 million budget

Posted by Toni Sciacqua at 9:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The California Linguistic Minority Research Institute released a report with a list of 100 high schools that account for the largest share of students who leave a high school before collecting a diploma.

Based on each institution's number of dropouts for the 2005-2006 academic year, five South Bay high schools landed among the study's 100 worst offenders.

Narbonne High in Harbor City ranked 70th, with 166 dropouts or a dropout rate of 4.7 percent; Banning High in Wilmington sits at 77th with 158 dropouts or 4.5 percent of its enrollment that year.

With 154 dropouts and a dropout rate of 4.2 percent, Carson High landed at 81st place; Leuzinger High in Lawndale was at 88 with 145 dropouts (4.3 percent); and Gardena High hit 93rd with 141 dropouts, or 4 percent of its 2005-2006 enrollment.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 5:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

After placing fourth in the county contest and falling short of the point threshold for a wild-card bid, the long-dominant academic decathlon team of Torrance's West High School will not advance to the state competition this year.

Instead, Alhambra's Mark Keppel High School, runner-up the past two years, was named the winner of the event on Thursday, with second-place finisher Duarte High School tagging along as the wild card. The state showdown takes place March 8-10 in Sacramento.

Read our story for more.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 11:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Aiming to get through the school year without going bankrupt, the Centinela Valley Union High School District is considering a $1.2 million package of immediate cuts that include increasing class sizes, freezing overtime and eliminating some extra money-making jobs for teachers.

The temporary reductions, which also nix long-term substitutes and freeze conference attendance, would ensure solvency through the current semester, according to interim Superintendent Jose Fernandez.

"These are short-term remedies designed only to meet our needs between now and June 30," Fernandez said, describing the multilayered proposal as a "quilt of cuts that did not penalize our employees."

"This buys us time," he added. "We have to survive today to be able to fight tomorrow."

Announcement of the cuts came during the school system's first-ever State of the District presentation, held during a special board meeting Tuesday at Leuzinger High.

A crowd of several hundred that included Los Angeles County Superintendent of Schools Darline Robles heard the Fernandez-delivered report, which urged "finding a way to collectively solve the problems that were not just created overnight with solutions that will stand the test of time."

Read Shelly's story for more.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 2:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Interesting nuggest in Shelly's story about the new hirings. Turns out, the recently fired superientendent is still collecting coin:

It was also revealed on Tuesday that the district's prior, recently fired leader is still collecting a paycheck.

Though she was ousted in December, previous Superintendent Cheryl White continues to receive her roughly $157,000 annual salary, (Board President Gloria) Ramos confirmed, noting that a separation agreement has yet to be reached.

"Technically, she is on administrative leave," Ramos said of White. "We would hope that Dr. White would care enough about the district to work with us on an amicable separation."

Posted by Paul Clinton at 11:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Inspections required by state law found textbook shortages, deteriorating campuses and underqualified teachers at eight local campuses in Los Angeles Unified and Centinela Valley school districts.

County auditors singled out Hawthorne High School's campus for special scorn, detailing the dirty fountains, rotting wood, leaky roof, exposed wiring and pervasive bird droppings in a 24-page memo released last week.

Many of the restrooms were locked when the campus was inspected at a time when students were attending classes, records show.

A second Centinela Valley Union High School District campus, Leuzinger High in Lawndale, also was listed in poor condition because of broken and cracked windows, doors and locks that don't operate properly, trash stored in heating vents and one classroom with a wobbly wall.

Read Paul's story for more.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 11:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Centinela Valley Union High School District Superintendent Cheryl White was fired Wednesday in a heated special board meeting marked by tension among trustees and outrage among many trustees.

White's supporters call her "the best superintendent the district has ever had," while her detractors say progress in the district has stalled during her tenure. She was terminated, effective immediately, in a 3-2 vote that pitted newly elected trustees Gloria Ramos and Sandra Suarez, as well as two-year board member Rocio Pizano, against members Rudy Salas and Francisco Talavera.

For a full account of what unfolded, read my story in today's Daily Breeze.

Posted by Shelly Leachman at 3:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Want a few nuggets of education-related news? Here you go.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 11:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Centinela Valley Union High School District has won a Golden Bell award from the California School Boards Association for its transition services to special-education students.

Targeting students 14-22, Centinela’s transition services provide comprehensive pre-employment training to equip pupils with marketable job skills as well as independent-living and social skills. It assists students with their transition from high school to working life and provides a variety of follow-up services.

The Golden Bell Awards aim to promote excellence in education by recognizing outstanding curricular programs that address the changing needs of California students.

The district will officially be recognized during a luncheon in San Diego on December 1.

Posted by Shelly Leachman at 4:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Shelly Leachman breaks down the Centinela Valley Union High School District school board race here.

Posted by Toni Sciacqua at 7:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Candidates for school board in the Centinela Valley Union High School District will participate in a public forum Thursday night in the Del Aire neighborhood.

Incumbents Jorge Arroyo and Rafael Ramirez will face off against their respective challengers, Sandra Suarez and Gloria Ramos, in the 7-9 p.m. event being hosted by the League of Women Voters.

The session is being held at Juan de Anza Elementary School, 12110 S. Hindry Ave., in Hawthorne.

Posted by Shelly Leachman at 6:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Teach for America recruit Lauren McCabe -- currently teaching senior English and government at Environmental Charter High School in Lawndale -- has an interesting post about plagiarism on the Los Angeles Times' newest blog, "The Homeroom," where she is a regular contributor.

After discovering several plagiarized essays among her students' latest assignments, McCabe wrote, she expressed her frustration to an administrator and came away with an enlightened view about the possible psychology behind the practice.

Read it here.

Posted by Shelly Leachman at 3:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here's an excerpt from Shelly's story about the inspiring students of Lawndale High's new music program:

What a difference a year makes. A dozen months after a handful of enterprising, passionate students started their own band at then band-less Lawndale High - teaching themselves, coaching each other, choosing their own music and sharing instruments purchased at pawn shops - the school has launched a full-scale music program. “You sit in this classroom and just go, ‘Look what we did,’” said senior Glenda Mendoza, 17, an alto saxophonist who was part of last year’s remarkable startup effort.

» Read the story here.

Posted by Toni Sciacqua at 6:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Budding francophiles at Lawndale High are crying foul over their school's decision to cancel its French classes and jettison teacher Marie Alcindor to nearby Leuzinger, citing a lack of interest.

"There just aren’t enough students to warrant having a full-time French teacher at Lawndale," Superintendent Cheryl White said.

After arguing hard that the move is a setback to their progression toward college -- the UC and CSU systems require two years of the same language, but recommend three -- upset students were extended a potential olive branch this week.

Administrators now say they hope to bring the language back part-time, offering it only before and/or after school. (Zero period starts at 7 a.m.; seventh period runs from about 3-4 p.m.)

Regardless, the so-touted "college prep" school is left with just one foreign language on it's regular schedule, a language that many students there already speak: Spanish. Tres interresant.

For the full story, read Thursday's Daily Breeze.

Posted by Shelly Leachman at 12:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)