School Notebook

For 90 minutes Wednesday night and again Thursday, refreshments will be served as the faculty and staff Port of Los Angeles High School answer questions and offer information during the San Pedro-based charter campus's "enrollment open house."

Parents and guardians of current eighth-grade students -- from any district; the free, public charter is open to anyone -- are invited to the 250 West 5th Street site, from 6 - 7:30 p.m., to learn more about the school that offers elective coursework in maritime studies and international trade and boast the motto, "The world is our classroom."

Enrollment applications and admissions information may also be obtained by calling (310) 832-9201 ext. 272 or via the school's website.

Posted by Shelly Leachman at 6:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The press releases keep pouring in about the various area schools that scored well in myriad recent academic competitions -- academic decathlons, science olympiads et al.

The latest concerns the performance of Pedro-based Park West Place Elementary during the latter contest; specifically, the 22nd Annual Los Angeles County Science Olympiad held March 15 at Cal State LA.

Details, courtesy of an email from one Luanne Stevens (thanks, Luanne!): A team of fifteen 4th and 5th grade students from Park Western Place Harbor Math Science Magnet took home gold medals from the the Science Olympiad. With 48 elementary schools competing, the highest-scoring teams received gold medals, while the others were awarded silver and bronze based on the team's total score. Park Western Place had the second highest total score in the competition.

Team members are as follows: Isaac Cano, Brandon Choe, Sophia Collins, Kate Finn, Celeste Goodwin, Hanethzie Granados, Zane Grissett, Austin Labador, Nicholas Martinrez, Cassidy Mernin, Amanda Perez, Evan Rezai, Gary Runnels, Yasmine Saxey-Santillo and Scott Stevens. Team leader is Susan Goldberg, the school's Magnet Coordinator.

Congrats, Park Western!

Posted by Shelly Leachman at 3:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Los Angeles School Board member Richard Vladovic will talk about how the state budget will affect local schools at 6:30p.m. Monday at a meeting of the Northwest San Pedro Neighborhood Council.

Vladovic also will talk about other issues of concern to San Pedro.

The council meets at Peck Park Auditorium, 560 N. Western Ave., San Pedro. Other agenda items include the city's budget, a discussion of trees on North Gaffey Street and lending possible support for an after-school program at Dana Middle School.

Posted by Toni Sciacqua at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

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

Posted by Paul Clinton at 1:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Family and friends of Greg Smith will gather Saturday (Feb. 23) at California State University, Dominguez Hills to dedicate a garden to the late faculty member.

Smith was an avid environmentalist and one of the original professors when CSUDH opened in Carson in 1968.

He specialized in social geography, a field that explores how people are shaped by their physical surroundings.

Smith died suddenly in 1997, five years after he retired from teaching, while hiking near South Lake Tahoe.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 5:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Los Angeles Unified School District is hosting a meeting Wednesday (Feb. 13) to update the community on plans for a new high school at Angels Gate Park. At the meeting, which will start at 6 p.m., district real estate managers will present schematic drawings to show the general layout, form and overall appearance of the school and site.

The public is invited to comment on the project, which will be built on a portion of 43 acres owned by LAUSD. The district is planning an 810-seat school costing $89.17 million that could expand to 1,215 seats.

The meeting will be in the San Pedro High School auditorium, 1001 W. 15th St. For more info, call 213-893-6802.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 1:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Los Angeles Unified School District announced final results of its Academic Decathlon competiton of 64 high schools at UCLA on Saturday. Local LAUSD schools didn't fare as well this year, as none will move ahead to the state competition. Palisades Charter High School won the competition with 50,121 points.

Narbonne High in Harbor City finished highest, at No. 10, with 40,593 points. The school also finished in the top 15 in the Super Quiz and top 10 in essay and math categories.

Other teams from local schools:

No. 40: Gardena High, 29,435 points
No. 48: San Pedro High, 26,541 points
No. 50: Carson High, 26,229 points
No. 51: Banning High, 26,159 points
No. 53: Westchester High, 25,480 points

Here are the top students from the local schools:

Jenivee Elloran, Banning High School (Wilmington)
Jan Victor Andasan, Carson High School
Tri Huynh, Gardena High School
James Veil, Narbonne High
Cosmin Barbu, San Pedro High School
Chris Onwuka, Westchester High School

Also, Narbonne's Carlos Ortego had a perfect score on the Super Quiz.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 3:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A charter operator will head to Los Angeles Unified's newest committee today to restart its effort to bring schools to San Pedro and three other areas.

The Magnolia Science Academy, with two schools in Reseda and a third set for Venice, plans to open a San Pedro campus in the fall. Last summer, Magnolia shelved plans for a San Pedro school after failing to pin down suitable property.

Founder Joseph Hurmali is confident the school won't have the same problem this time around because its leaders have more time and have broadened their search.

Read Paul's full article here.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 11:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Mario Danelo's family and coaches saluted the late Trojan placekicker's work ethic, down-to-earth character and playful demeanor Monday as they unveiled a mural in his honor in San Pedro.

Called "Livin' the Dream" - an expression Danelo used often to describe his life - the 12-by-8-foot glass-tile mural hangs on the east-facing wall of the English building at San Pedro High School, where he once attended classes.

The 21-year-old Danelo died Jan. 6 after he fell from a San Pedro cliff.

"If Mario was sitting here, he would wonder what this fuss was all about," said Mike Walsh, who coached Danelo at San Pedro High. "He didn't view himself as special."

For more, read Paul's story.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 11:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

There were only about 20 people who attended the district's initial meeting Monday evening at San Pedro High to hear about the district's plan to develop a high school on LAUSD-owned acreage at Angels Gate Park. The high school would be built on a 23-acre slice of 43 the district owns in the park. The city of Los Angeles ownes one third or the park.

District officials discussed the school plan Monday and responded to several questions from residents who live in the neighborhoods to the south and west about access to the site.

Roderick Hamilton, a regional development manager for LAUSD, said the district would pursue an agreement with the city to upgrade a road entering the northeastern area of the site from Gaffey Street, instead of using Alma Street on the rear.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 1:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Head to a meeting at 6 p.m. today, if you're interested in hearing about the LAUSD's proposal to develop a 1,200-seat high school on a portion of the 43 acres owned by the school district in Angels Gate Park.

The budget is guaranteed, not like a failed plan to build at the Ponte Vista site.

Here's an exerpt from Paul's story:

Unlike the earlier plan, the project's $89.17 million is guaranteed, Hamilton added.

"We're planning 1,215, but we're planning to build 810 in the first phase of it," Hamilton said. "Then we'll see if there's more money down the road for it."

Posted by Paul Clinton at 11:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Two local bands competed in the Los Angeles Unified School District’s annual Band and Drill Team Championship on Saturday.

Narbonne High School in Harbor City and San Pedro High School were in the field of 31 competitors to showcase music and dance skills.

Groups were judged in the areas of music performance, general effect and visual performance.
Awards were also given for top auxiliary (drill team, dance or flags) units as well. The competition was hosted by East Los Angeles College in Monterey Park.

Addendum: Narbonne's drill team won the Auxiliary category; San Pedro High's band placed second among all bands.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 8:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Port of Los Angeles High School ran over a few humps on the road to a 5-year lease for their San Pedro school site, at 250 W. Fifth St. They could exhale Thursday, as the Harbor Commission granted them the deal, which allows the school to purchase the building by 2012.

Read Paul's story for more.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 11:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Check out Paul's follow-up on Tasby, the 17-year-old shot and killed at a Halloween party in San Pedro.

Teammates from the basketball team remembered the leadership skills of Tasby, who was pencilled as the starting center for the Pirate varsity team in January.

"He wasn't a gang-banger," said Chris Clayton, a 12th-grader and forward. "He worked really hard."

Known affectionately as "LT," Tasby would challenge other players to skill competitions. He once bet a player $5 he could dunk a basketball wearing cleats. "Bet five" was his catchphrase, players said.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 8:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Defensive end Laterian Tasby was shot and killed Saturday during a gang-related brawl at a party in San Pedro. Here's an exerpt from Melissa Evans' story.

Tasby, 17, was pronounced dead at the scene of the party in the 500 block of 11th Street in San Pedro, a spokesperson with the Los Angeles Police Department Harbor Division said.

San Pedro High School football coach Mike Walsh said he received about a dozen calls late Saturday night and Sunday morning from students and friends of Tasby.

"I don't think there was anyone I knew who didn't like him," Walsh said. "He was outgoing, funny, polite, and may have been one of the hardest working members of the team."

Posted by Paul Clinton at 10:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

From Paul Clinton's story in Saturday's Daily Breeze:

The Los Angeles Unified School District has quietly shelved a plan for a public high school in San Pedro, a move that staves off a nasty legal fight with an influential developer.

Rather - if funds become available - the district could build an academy-style school in Lomita, which has emerged as the leading option among several other locations.

Here's the link.

Posted by Toni Sciacqua at 6:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A multi-agency task force swept through Carson, Harbor City, San Pedro, Torrance and Wilmington today, citing 163 teenagers for truancy and arresting 10 others.

The students had ditched classes at Banning High, Carson High, Narbonne High, San Pedro High and Torrance High. Read our story.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 3:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The independent San Pedro school (grades 6 to 12) has hired Olivia Carnahan as assistant head of school. Carnahan, 50, worked her way up the insurance industry ladder from a receptionist to an office manager. The Redondo Beach resident graduated from UCLA in 2001 with a bachelor's degree in history. She has a lifelong "passion for teaching," according to a school press release.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 3:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As if he were baptizing a newborn, Cardinal Roger Mahony (on Sunday) sprinkled holy water onto the new Mary Star of the Sea High School building on former Navy land sandwiched between Taper and Western avenues in San Pedro.

The campus was 13 years in the making and gives students an updated, more spacious learning environment. Here's our story.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 11:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

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.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 6:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Librarian Sharon Ogomori is looking to build up the school's magazine offerings, since there's no funding available for subscriptions. Students are asked to bring in any current issues they've finished reading. Ogomori is looking for teen, celebrity, fashion and news magazines.

The library is open before school, during nutrition, at lunch and after school until 3:30 p.m.

Posted by Paul Clinton at 9:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)