Courtesy of reporter Megan Bagdonas, via her story in today's Daily Breeze, a few more details for you on the TIP Academy's withdrawal of their petition to start a charter school in Palos Verdes.
Yet it's still unclear precisely why they backed off ... could it be something to do with the 500-or-so peeved parents who packed a public hearing on the matter, many of whom decried the very idea of a charter in their area?
The TIP Academy, a charter school that's been seeking to operate in Palos Verdes, sparking a whirlwind of controversy there that culminated recently in a heated public meeting on the matter, has withdrawn its application to the school district.
A press release from PVPUSD says the group withdrew its charter petition on Monday, just about exactly two months after first submitting it.
I don't yet know why myself, but reporter Megan Bagdonas is on it. Watch for the full story in Thursday's Daily Breeze.
An academic living locally -- one who, coincidentally, has been quoted here in the Daily Breeze a time or two -- has just been awarded a prestigious Fulbright Scholar award.
Thanks to the honor, Torrance resident Roger G. Robins, Assistant Professor of History and Political Science at Marymount College in Rancho Palos Verdes, will spend the 2008-2009 school year lecturing in Japan, where he will lead courses in American history and religion at Tokyo University.
Congrats Roger, that rules!
According to flackage sent my way by the school, "the Japan Lectureship is one of the most coveted awards in the Fulbright Scholar Program, which will send approximately 800 U.S. faculty and professionals abroad this year."
Established in 1946 under legislation introduced by the late Senator J. William Fulbright, the program’s purpose is to build mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the rest of the world.
Award recipients are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement, as well as demonstrated leadership potential in their fields. The program is sponsored by the United States Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. It operates in over 150 countries worldwide.
This is too sweet to go unmentioned, so here you have it:
About a week ago or so -- it could have been two weeks, I lose track of time so easily, sigh -- my colleague Megan Bagdonas wrote a short story about efforts on the Hill to raise enough money to fund salaries for teachers who may be laid off from Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified due to the massive funding cuts all but certainly coming down from the state.
Well a few days ago Megan gets faxed copy of a letter from Silver Spur Elementary first-grader Isabella Parks, who donated and hand-delivered her stash of stockpiled "chore money" to the "Save Our Teachers Now" campaign.
Here's the text , unedited:
"I'm Isabella Parks and I whant to save are teachers. This will be a big oppertonuty for me so here is all the money I have from my chores."
Tres adorable!
Rancho Palos Verdes resident and Cal State Long Beach professor Teri Yamada, along with her Cambodia-based colleague Kho Taraith, who she works with on the Nou Hach Literary Project, have been lauded with the Jeri Laber International Freedom to Publish Award.
Yamada supervises -- and Taraith, from Phnom Penh, actually directs -- the project, an international organization that supports Cambodian literature, writers and academics. (Nou Hach was one of Cambodia’s finest early modern writers, an intellectual and a diplomat.) .
“I’m thrilled that we have received this award,” said Yamada, a faculty member of the university's Comparative World Literature and Classics Department. She said she is proud of the project’s reputation as a literary organization that will publish any kind of literary expression within the genres of short fiction and poetry.
“There are other literary organizations in Cambodia directed by the government where participants must belong to a specific political party," Yamada added. "We don’t do that. We are apolitical. Everyone is welcome.”
The project’s cultural efforts include the Nou Hach Literary Journal, the Nou Hach literary competition -- an annual writer’s conference, the writer’s workshops, the classical poetry CD and booklet, the newspaper insert of short fiction and poetry, a literary radio program and a literacy outreach to rural areas.
Yamada's future goals include setting up an Internet café and desktop publishing business to provide an independent source of revenue. She anticipates using the award's accompanying $5,000 grant to fund the
upcoming fifth issue of the Nou Hach Literary Journal as well as a new printer and computer for the Phnom Penh office.
She'll officially receive the award in April at the annual PEN benefit dinner hosted by International PEN, the world’s oldest human rights and international literary organization.
Administered by the Association of American Publishers, the Laber Award is given annually to a book publisher outside the United States who has demonstrated courage and fortitude in the face of political persecution. First bestowed in 2003, it has previously recognized such groups as the independent Iranian publishing community, in care of the Shirin Ebadi Center for Defenders of Human Rights.
The award is named in honor of Jeri Laber, one of the founding members of the International Freedom To Publish Committee, who served as co-founder and director of Helsinki Watch from 1979 to 1995. The IFTPC itself was founded by the Association of American Publishers in 1975. It was one of first groups in the world formed specifically to defend and broaden the freedom of the written word and to protect and promote the rights of book publishers and authors around the world.
For more information about the Nou Hach Literary project and Journal, see www.nouhachjournal.net.
Fourth graders at Silver Spur Elementary School in Rancho Palos Verdes had a day full of hands-on activities designed to enhance their knowledge of Golden State history.
The campus's inaugural "Old California Day," which has just concluded, featured guest speakers on subjects including Native American beading, native plants and California's cowboys.
The 100-ish participating fourth graders also got to get their hands dirty -- literally -- panning for gold in a makeshift vat of water, silt and sand; crafting adobe bricks; painting tiles; and making candles.
Inspired by required curriculum, the event was the brainchild of teacher Gail Warner.
For complete and colorful details on the day, see the School Notebook page in Monday's Daily Breeze.
Hoping to stave off the layoffs of nearly 60 full-time teachers, some Palos Verdes community members have launched an intensive fund-raising campaign dubbed Save Our Teachers Now.
Banding together for the two-month effort (the campaign goes through the end of May), a coalition consisting of the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District, the Peninsula Education Foundation, all fifteen units of the PVPUSD council of PTA’s and Booster Clubs from many of the individual schools aims to raise $1.2 million.
From the press release:
"As a result of the budget proposed by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, the PVPUSD faces an annual budget reduction of $3,700,000. The district will be forced to adopt a budget for the next school year, which after many other cutbacks and the prudent use of reserves, will still lead to the lay-off of 59 full-time teachers. A loss of this number of teachers, which would be added to approximately 20 retiring teachers not being replaced, will cause the district to face an “absolutely unacceptable increase in class sizes," according to Walker Williams, Superintendent of Schools for PVPUSD.
If the campaign succeeds in reaching its goal, a large portion of the involuntary lay-off notices which went out on March 15th will be rescinded. Save Our Teachers Now is soliciting donations to the campaign from individuals, organizations, and foundations. The campaign was launched with lead gifts totaling $250,000 from the Peninsula Education Foundation, and several of the PTA units, and is asking all district parents to make a tax-deductible donation to the campaign of at least $200 per student enrolled in PVPUSD.
Among the programs in the district to be lost, in the absence of a successful Save Our Teachers Now campaign, are Option 1 kindergarten, 3rd grade and 9th grade class-size reductions (20:1) put in place over the last several years by the district. In addition, personnel such as counselors, librarians, nurses, and technical support specialists, as well as elementary music, will be cut back from current levels. In a recent on-line survey completed by the Peninsula Education Foundation, 952 respondents stated preserving smaller class sizes was the number one priority at the elementary and intermediate schools levels, and the second priority at the high schools, behind only academic and College counseling.
Dave Wagman, President of the Foundation commented, “We feel that this campaign addresses the powerful concerns of our district’s parents for their children’s education. This campaign gives them a positive and meaningful way to deal with their frustration with the state of education funding in California.”
The group has also established a website: www.saveourteachersnow.com.
The Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District has called a special meeting for Tuesday night, to hold a public hearing regarding TIP Academy, the charter school hoping to open a location on the Hill.
Academy representatives will make a presentation, then the public will have an opportunity to speak its piece to the board.
The session kicks off at 6:30 p.m., in the gym at PV High, 600 Cloyden Road.
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
The Palos Verdes Homes Association is offering qualified high school seniors, college students or graduate students an opportunity for awards from the Brandel Scholarship fund.
Eligible applicants must be accepted at or attending an accredited college or university with a major in architecture, civil engineering, land use planning, or fine arts.
In addition, at least one parent must be a property owner in Palos Verdes Estates or the original Miraleste area of Rancho Palos Verdes. Selection criteria include academic achievement, essay, letters of recommendation and community activities.
The deadline to apply is April 11, 2008. Applications may be obtained from the Homes Association office, 320 Palos Verdes Drive West, Palos Verdes Estates, or from area school guidance centers.
These educational scholarships were established in memory of Harry Brandel Jr., who served on the board of Palos Verdes Homes Association for 44 years. For more information, call (310) 373-6721.
Just wanted to post a brief note to readers of the School Notebook blog. I have left the Daily Breeze after 4 1/2 years covering schools in San Pedro, Carson, Wilmington, Gardena, Lomita and the Palos Verdes Peninsula.
As the Breeze looks in other directions for education coverage of these areas, I'll just note that I've had a blast reporting on these schools. I've learned a lot from the teachers, administrators, parents and others who provide the daily sweat to educate the area's diverse community of students.
Other opportunities lay ahead for me, which I'm excited to tackle.
Thanks again.
Paul Clinton
A group planning to open a charter school on The Hill in September is pitching their concept as an innovative alternative to the high-performing schools of the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District. They've partnered with Sandra Kaplan, a USC researcher, and plan to teach state standards for English, math and other subjects using the method known as "differentiated instruction."
The group has provided a link to a video that explains what that means. To view it, click on Video Session 1. The best thing to do is save the video on your hard drive, then watch it. You'll need RealPlayer, which you can get here.
The Palos Verdes Peninsula school board has agreed to prepare layoff notices, put more students into classrooms and slash administration for the 2008-09 school year.
The move Thursday comes in response to steep cuts announced by Sacramento and would trim nearly $4 million from the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District's budget over the next 18 months.
"We're going to have to be, along with every other district in the state, very prudent with what we spend," board President Malcolm Sharp said. "The banner we're marching under is we have to plan for the worst and hope for the best."
The cuts are expected to be finalized Feb. 28. At that time, the district would send layoff notices to more than 50 employees, officials said. The district must issue the notices to teachers, counselors and other certificated employees by March 15.
Read Paul's story for more.
We asked two Rancho Palos Verdes community members who have been outspoken on the TIP Academy proposal to explain their points of view in a pro/con format.
Read on to the following posts for the "con" from Paula Stapleton, a mother of students attending Mira Catalina Elementary School and Miraleste Intermediate School, who has been fighting the project. She's also a counselor at Palos Verdes High.
The "pro" is from Michael Schwerdtfeger, a father of three children attending Mira Catalina Elementary School, who is one of the main organizers of the school.
Michael Schwerdtfeger is one of the principal organizers of TIP Academy Palos Verdes. He lives in Rancho Palos Verdes and has three children attending Mira Catalina Elementary School. Here's what he says about the plan:
TIP Academy PV will provide an exciting new learning opportunity to kids. The curriculum is designed to focus on big picture ideas, teach our children to “love to learn” and use a teaching style that matches each child’s learning style. TIP PV will provide a place for our children to learn to be independent thinkers and problem solvers, and break away from the restrictive structure that is placed on teachers within public schools.
TIP PV is a demonstration school and as such is committed to enhancing the public school system in Palos Verdes. TIP PV will offer training for all teachers within PVPUSD on differential instruction and other innovative teaching techniques. In addition, TIP PV will provide choices to parents which will increase the quality of education for all public schools within PV.
While we believe that the PVPUSD is one of the finer school districts in the state, we strongly believe that competition, innovation, and choice can make the district even better. California’s approximately 700 charter schools (with 89 new charter schools opening in 2007) have brought change and innovation to the state’s schools, and are clearly the future direction of education. While some may suggest that the PV school district is “good enough,” the supporters of TIP Academy Palos Verdes believe that the founding of a charter school in Palos Verdes can turn a very good school district into a great one by keeping the district on the cutting edge of education.
TIP Academy will provide a public school choice that will keep tax money and our children’s state assigned educational dollars in the Palos Verdes public school system, rather than forcing those interested in such an alternative away from public education into private schools or home schooling.
For information about TIP Academy Palos Verdes, please see www.tippv.org.
From Paula Stapleton, parent, Rancho Palos Verdes:
Families move to Palos Verdes because it offers children what is perhaps the best public education in California. Residents are passionate about their children’s education and the public school system that provides it. They contribute to PTA, booster clubs and the Peninsula Education Foundation, volunteer in classrooms, and donate countless hours for the common good. Currently, the district is threatened with a three to four million dollar budget shortfall and the community is rallying to protect their children from the resulting fallout. With every dollar critical, it is increasingly challenging to ensure that all children continue to receive a top-notch public education. The proposed TIP Academy PV runs counter to this goal. Common sense dictates that having to support a new school site while maintaining current sites will be costly. Having the charter school open to any student in the state of California (required by law) whose ADA will only cover a portion of their educational costs will further contribute to the fiscal crisis.TIP proponents questioned about the cost to the district can only respond that they “expect” PVPUSD will make appropriate decisions about declining enrollment and act reasonably in incurring oversight costs. They implicitly claim their desire for a different learning environment for their own children trumps the common good.
Palos Verdes schools can measure the success of its students by their outstanding test scores. TIP Academy professes they do not “teach to the test”. Not surprising since the TIP Encinitas School, on which they are modeling their program, has lower test scores than the schools in Palos Verdes and, in fact, score in the middle of the pack within their own district. The “test” they refer to measures mastery of the California State Standards of which all schools, charter or not, are required to teach by law.
The concept of “differentiated instruction” which TIP proponents claim provides the required innovation to justify the charter school is not new, revolutionary or cutting edge. It has been a staple of teacher training for over 25 years and is provided to Palos Verdes teachers on a continuing basis.The bottom line is TIP Academy will siphon funds from existing students and has nothing new or compelling to offer. It’s a risky financial and educational experiment that must be rejected!
Check out the Daily Breeze on Saturday to read about the $4 million in proposed budget reductions over the next 18 months. The retrenchment plan was given the green light by the board Thursday evening.
At a Thursday meeting, Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified member Ginny Snider (a former kindergarten teacher) indicated she could be supportive of a group planning to open a charter school in the fall.
The TIP Academy Palos Verdes may have gained an ally in Snider, who said she supports more options for students.
"I just like that students have options and opportunities," she said. "I'll leave it at that."
The Palos Verdes Peninsula School District's board approved a new elective at its Thursday evening meeting: aerospace engineering.
The course would be offered at Palos Verdes Peninsula High School, but open to students at Palos Verdes High. It could be ready as early as September.
A similar course is offered by the Manhattan Beach Unified School District in a partnership with the Southern California Regional Occupation Center.
The Palos Verdes school district will discuss its 2008-09 budget, which would take a significant hit under the current budget being discussed in Sacramento. Cutbacks are expected, including the elimination of 59 positions.
Look for Paul's Daily Breeze story on Saturday for all the details.
During a meeting hosted by organizers of a new K-8 charter school planned for The Hill, organizers laid out their plan for the school, while answering a slew of questions about their methods, organization and potential drain on PVP Unified resources.
Michael Schwerdtfeger, a parent of three kids attending Mira Catalina Elementary who's leading the effort, struggled to get through a PowerPoint presentation, as parents peppered him with questions.
About 25 people showed up at Rolling Hills Methodist Church in Rolling Hills Estates for the meeting.
A group of parents developing a charter high school for The Hill (called TIP Academy Palos Verdes) have sparked a vigorous debate about the merits of the effort that's spilled onto Internet message boards and the Breeze Web site.
Paul's Feb. 3 story collected 114 comments on the school.
The topic has also generated discussion on a parent message board for Torrance Unified.
Organizers are hosting an informational meeting about the school at 7 p.m. Wednesday (Feb. 13) at Rolling Hills United Methodist Church, 26438 Crenshaw Blvd. in Rolling Hills Estates.
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.
High-performing public and private schools on the Palos Verdes Peninsula may face an educational competitor if organizers of a charter school can open it by September.
So far, more than 70 families have expressed interest in TIP Academy Palos Verdes.
"We've been generating interest from the community, and it's been increasing rapidly," said Michael Schwerdtfeger, a founder and Rancho Palos Verdes resident with three children attending Mira Catalina Elementary.
The school would offer kindergarten through eighth-grade classes for about 225 students.
Read Paul's story for more.
Palos Verdes Peninsula High School in Rolling Hills Estates will open its doors today to families of prospective students from 5 to 8:15 p.m.
For the first hour, teachers will give demostrations of lessons. From 6 to 7 p.m., parents and students are invited to visit classrooms. Following that, current students, administrators, teachers, counselors and others will be available to answer questions.
For more information, contact Associate Principal Mitzi Cress at 310-377-4888, ext. 273 or via e-mail at cress@pvpusd.k12.ca.us.
Paul Clinton reports that the Palos Verdes Peninsula School District is looking at nearly $4 million in budget cuts through the 2008-09 school year in response to the state funding cuts. That would include some layoffs.
District managers have identified as much as $3.7 million worth of cuts, which would include the elimination of 57 teachers, counselors and other positions.The district will notify teachers, counselors and other certified personnel of layoffs by March 27. Layoff notices for janitors, secretaries and other classified staff will be mailed by Feb. 28, the district said Thursday.
Courtesy of Megan Bagdonas:
At their meeting tonight (Jan. 22), Palos Verdes Estates City Council will vote whether to approve staff recomendations for a restricted parking zone in neighborhoods surrounding Palos Verdes High School.
The city staff report recommends sending out ballots to property owners whose homes would be included in the proposed zone.
The parking restrictions would include no parking on Monday through Friday from 1 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the neighborhoods north of the school, from Chiswick Road to Dalton Road. South of the school — from Epping Road to Yarmouth Road — restrictions would include no parking from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Residents would be given stickers expempting their cars from the parking restriction zone.
The issue of overflow traffic and limited parking has been an issue in Palos Verdes Estates ever since the initial traffic study came out in December 2001 for the reopening of the high school.
Read the report from Paul and Gene Maddaus on the State of the State speech. More details will come forward, when Schwarzenegger unveils his budget on Thursday.
South Bay legislators and school officials reacted warily Tuesday to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's State of the State address, in which he announced plans to intervene in failing schools and reform the state's budget process.
Due to the budget crunch, Schwarzenegger has scaled back his education ambitions for 2008. Instead of broad-based reform, the governor will seek more affordable measures that could include state takeovers of districts or schools.
On Tuesday, the governor singled out 98 school districts that have underperformed for five consecutive years. The Los Angeles Unified and Lennox school districts made the list.
Los Angeles Unified Trustee Richard Vladovic, who represents the San Pedro-
to-Watts district, said he believes the district is already taking steps to improve its schools and doubted that state intervention would be far-reaching.
"Do I think he'll come in and take over L.A.?" Vladovic asked. "Absolutely not."
Four South Bay schools have landed on U.S. News & World Report's first ever-ranking of the 100 best high schools in America.
The California Academy of Math and Science, a charter of Long Beach Unified but housed in Carson at CSU Dominguez Hills, topped the local presence with its 21st place ranking nationwide. The Animo Leadership Academy in Inglewood landed at No. 31, while Palos Verdes Peninsula High came in at No. 89. Palos Verdes High School also made the list, at No. 93.
The magazine, which for years has been so ranking colleges and universities, teamed with analysts from School Evaluation Services to develop the methodology to analyze how well high schools serve their students. They factored in poverty and economic status, including disadvantaged students, average students, and college-bound students to make those measurements.
According to the methodology, a best high school is one that succeeds at the following:
1) Attains performance levels that exceed statistical expectations given the school's relative level of student poverty, as measured by state accountability test scores for all the school's students in the core subjects of reading and math;
2) Achieves proficiency rates on state tests for their least advantaged student groups (e.g., black, Hispanic, and economically disadvantaged students) that exceed state averages; and
3) Prepares its students for college, as measured by student participation in and performance on Advanced Placement (AP) tests, which are administered by the College Board.
Using this methodology, more than 18,500 high schools in 40 states were analyzed for inclusion.
The issue hits newsstands on Monday, but the "America's Best High Schools" package is available now online.
After volunteering at the San Pedro-Harbor Animal Shelter, Rolling Hills Preparatory 11th-grader Sarah Ruttenberg became attached to a Chihuahua she named Mel. The pup was misdiagnosed with a thyroid problem and it was going to be put to sleep, but Ruttenberg decided to foster Mel until she could find him a home.
For all the details, read Rebecca Villaneda's story in the Palos Verdes Peninsula News.
An 1,800-page analysis of the two-year private college's plan to refurbish its library and build on-campus dormitories has hit the table, but has yet to win over activists who have complained about it.
Here's the gist of the objection from Megan Bagdonas' story:
But the sticking point for neighbors remains a proposal to build two on-campus dormitories to house 255 students. Residents say the neighborhood isn't compatible with potentially rowdy coeds bunking down in their bucolic enclave.The Concerned Citizen Coalition, which formed in 2000 in response to Marymount's expansion plans, says it's not the increased number of cars that worries them but who's behind the wheel.
"We're not talking about traffic doubling or tripling; we're talking about the nature of it," activist Tom Redfield said. "As it is, the campus gets very quiet in the late afternoon. "But with (the dorms) we would have (students) here 24/7, and that would totally change the nature of our community."
Attend the Rancho Palos Verdes Planning Commission meeting at 7 p.m. on Tuesday (Nov. 27) at Fred Hesse Community Park, 29301 Hawthorne Blvd.
Three public and seven private school educators were honored Wednesday by the Palos Verdes Peninsula Chamber of Commerce and Rotary Club of Palos Verdes Peninsula as top educators on The Hill. The kudos flew at an awards luncheon at the Los Verdes Country Club. Here they are:
1) Bob Adam, English-as-a-Second-Language teacher, Rolling Hills Preparatory School.
2) Margaret Butler, fifth-grade teacher, St. John Fisher School.
3) Margaret "Peggy" Costello, social science teacher, Rancho del Mar Continuation High School.
4) Stacy Dunn, fifth-grade teacher, Dapplegray Elementary School.
5) Malynn Hogan, social studies and math teacher, Miraleste Intermediate School.
6) Charlton Jackson, math teacher and coach, Chadwick School.
7) Sean Lathrom, social studies instructor, Riviera Hall Lutheran School.
8) Carol Murin, kindergarten teacher, Lunada Bay Elementary School.
9) Nancy Sanders, English professor, Marymount College.
10) Duncan Sutton, music and worship ministries director, Crestmont College.
The annual boutique to benefit the preschool comes to the Rolling Hills Estates campus Thursday and will run through Sunday.
A variety of items will be sold that are made or donated by parents, friends, families and many local merchants. The proceeds will go toward buying new educational and outdoor equipment for students at the private school.
Beautiful holiday gifts, handmade items, baked goods; fresh herbal gourmet vinegars, Broadacres' famous bean soup mix, cookie mixes, candy, and paintings will be sold. There will be silent auctions offering dinners at local restaurants and a new edition of the "Broadacres Cookbook" celebrating the school's 56 years of operation.
The holiday boutique's hours are from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday through Sunday at the school, 4915 Palos Verdes Drive North (one and a half blocks west of Silver Spur).
Please call if you have any merchandise you would like to donate and the school will arrange a pick up for you. Call 310-375-7301 and aks for Director Gayle Walti or owner Bettie Brown.
Monica Liu, a 12th-grader at Palos Verdes Peninsula High School, won honorable mention in the prestigious Siemens Competition in Math, Science and Technology at the California Institute of Technology over the weekend.
Liu, who lives in Rancho Palos Verdes, earned $1,000 for herself and $2,000 for her high school for research she presented relating to skin cancer. Liu’s research focuses on developing a method to sensitively detect melanoma cells circulating in the blood. Her research may eventually help predict cancer metastasis and enhance targeted cancer therapies, a competition spokesman said.
Liu is quickly building an impressive track record. She co-authored a paper on melanoma detection accepted for publication in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology. She is currently a student researcher at the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center near Torrance. Liu excels in piano, flute, voice studies, ballet and modern jazz. Her audiences may be surprised, when she discusses her cancer research before her piano performances.
Liu plans to study neuroscience and molecular biology, along with public policy, and would like to work in public health.
She also currently represents 6.4 million students in California as a full-voting student member of the California State Board of Education.
The Breeze editorial desk is throwing the nod to incumbent Dora de la Rosa and Larry Vanden Bos for the PV school board, shifting gears from its stance in the 2003 race, when it endorsed de la Rosa and now-incumbent David Tomblin.
Read why in the editorial.
The four candidates for the Palos Verdes Peninsula school board have drawn battle lines on the district's kindergarten program, which offers extended hours in four of the six elementary schools. Two incumbents (David Tomblin and Dora de la Rosa) have sided with challengers (Tomblin with Paul Neights, de la Rosa with Larry Vanden Bos) on the issue.
Here's Paul's story on the race.
Silver Spur Elementary School has scheduled a week of activities starting on Monday to promote a healthy lifestyle to coincide with Red Ribbon Week.
The Rancho Palos Verdes school will host the Super Kids Academy, a California Science Center assembly extolling the values of health, exercise and sleep.
Health booths will be set up at lunchtime and a fun run is scheduled for Friday (Oct. 26). The school is at 5500 Ironwood St. and can be reached at 310-378-5011.
Join the four candidates seeking seats on the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified school board for a town hall-style forum with questions from the public.
Candidates Dora de la Rosa, Paul Neights, Dave Tomblin, and Larry Vanden Bos will face off for two seats on the five-member panel on Nov. 6. Tomblin and de la Rosa are the incumbents.
The League of Women Voters and Palos Verdes Council of PTAs will host the forum, which is set for 7:30 p.m. Thursday in the Board Room of the district's headquarters (formerly Valmonte School), 3801 Via La Selva, Palos Verdes Estates.
We spent some time with PV High students who spend their Sundays not with family, but working to convert a Chevy from petrol fueled to biodiesel fueled. Or rigging up an underwater submersible. Or writing HTML Web code from scratch.
Here's a factoid. Biodiesel sells for $3.49 per gallon.
Check out Paul's story.
The budding journalists at Palos Verdes High School's Live from 205 -- a reference to their classroom studio at the Palos Verdes Estates campus -- have posted their report on Homecoming Week.
Watch the video to discover who won King and Queen, see a few highlights from the football game against Bishop Montgomery, get a student review of Across the Universe and hear about the One Laptop Per Child project.
Over the weekend we reported on a San Pedro charter high school's difficulties nailing down a building and a generous gift to The Hill's private Chadwick School.
The Port of Los Angeles High School, a two-year-old charter has made academic strides, but struggled to pin down an agreement to lease a former shipping company's headquarters. » Read the story here.
Roger MacFarlane, a Palos Verdes Estates shipping executive, has established a $1 million endowment to Chadwick for promising students who qualify for financial aid. » Read the story here.
Denise Leonard left Cornerstone Elementary School, three weeks into the school year. The Cornerstone principal angered a group of parents in June, when she required students to cut off the tips of plastic weapons on 2-inch army men on mortarboards. She left for personal reasons and declined to speak for the Daily Breeze story.