With the school year winding down, and senioritis setting in on much of the Class of 2012, Dixon High School honored 21 of its brightest students.
The ceremony honoring the students took place on Monday night at the theater at Dixon High. To be a Distinguished Scholar means that each of the students maintained a 4.0 or above grade-point average throughout the course of their high school year.
By Vivian Po
New America Media
A new education report finds that California schools are under more stress than ever after years of budgets cuts.
The first report by EdSource to analyze school stress factors, “Schools under Stress: Pressures Mount on California’s Largest School Districts” identifies eight factors that make it more difficult for a school to provide quality education to all of its students.
“Unless you are a parent or a student, you don’t know what is going on in schools,” EdSource executive director Louis Freedberg told reporters from ethnic media outlets at a recent briefing in downtown Los Angeles co-organized by New America Media.
SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson released the following statement, urging teachers and students to take a moment today to observe Harvey Milk Day:
“One of California’s greatest strengths is—and always has been—our diversity. We are fortunate to live in a state where there is such great potential for the contributions of all to be acknowledged and appreciated.
“Harvey Milk helped blaze this path while he was alive, and it’s a path we continue to walk now more than three decades after his death. It leads us all the way from California’s classrooms to our nation’s White House.
via Harvey Milk Day.
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More California school districts than ever before are nearing or on the brink of insolvency. The State Department of Education’s Second Interim Status Report for 2011-12, released yesterday, named 188 districts with serious financial problems; of those, twelve have negative certifications, meaning they won’t be able to meet payroll and other bills for this academic year.
It’s a steep increase over the first interim report, released last February, which we wrote about here. At that time, there were seven districts on the negative list and 120 in qualified status. With the increases, more than 2.6 million of California’s 6.2 million school children attend schools facing uncertain financial futures.
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The state PTA backs the tax initiative financed by civil rights attorney Molly Munger; the California Teachers Association and the Association of California School Administrators endorsed the governor’s initiative. This week, the California School Boards Association decided to support both.
On Sunday, at the urging of CSBA’s board of directors, school board members in the Delegate Assembly voted 129-79 to encourage their constituents to vote for both tax proposals that will appear on the November ballot. They did so after an hour-and-a-half debate and after defeating, by voice vote, an amendment calling for CSBA to support only Munger’s “Our Children, Our Future” initiative. There was no motion to support only “The Schools and Local Public Protection Act of 2012,” which Gov. Jerry Brown and the California Federation of Teachers are sponsoring.
via CSBA: Vote for both tax plans – by John Fensterwald – Educated Guess.
Terri Bush, SCOE’s Classified Employee of the Year, was honored at the 2012-13 Solano County Educators of the Year event held on May 2 at the Joseph A. Nelson Center. Watch the two and a half minute video of Bush, which was shown at the event.
via It’s Classified School Employees Week and we appreciate everything you do to sup….
When Gov. Jerry Brown called the state budget “a pretzel palace of incredible complexity” last week, he was stating, in his inimitable way, the obvious.
During Brown’s governorship three decades ago, the budget was a relatively simple and understandable document. Revenue was relatively easy to calculate and spending obligations were clearly delineated. But today’s budget is complex almost beyond comprehension, and Brown wants to make it more so.
via Dan Walters: Incredible complexity of school finance hits home.
Presented to California School Boards Association
via State Budget Update.
School districts with 2.6 million of the state’s 6 million K-12 students are in “financial jeopardy,” state schools Supt. Tom Torlakson declared Monday, including 12 so troubled that they are virtually insolvent.
The largest school district in Torlakson’s negative list appears to be Vallejo Unified, but a number of large districts are on the qualified list, which denotes financial problems, including LA Unified, San Diego Unified, Oakland Unified, Elk Grove Unified, Sacramento City Unified and San Juan Unified.
via Torlakson says 188 California school districts in ‘financial jeopardy’.
School districts that want a slice of the latest, nearly $400 million in Race to the Top competitive grants will have to put a major focus on helping schools tailor instruction to the needs of individual students—and agree to evaluate school board members and superintendents—under draft regulations slated to be released by the U.S. Department of Education today.
The department anticipates giving out about 15 to 20 four-year grants, of up to $25 million each. Districts will be able to apply for the funds individually, or as part of consortia with other districts, even those in other states. And charter schools—as well as other organizations that are defined as a “local education agency” by their states—can compete, too.
SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson warned today that 2.6 million California children now attend schools in districts that are in financial jeopardy—the highest number of financially troubled districts in state history.
“This is the kind of record no one wants to set. Across California, parents, teachers, and administrators are increasingly wondering how to keep their schools’ lights on, their bills paid, and their doors open,” Torlakson said. “The deep cuts this budget crisis has forced—and the uncertainties about what lies ahead—are taking an unprecedented and unacceptable toll on our schools.”
The state’s Second Interim Status Report for 2011-12 also shows a record-high 188 local educational agencies (LEAs) are either in negative or qualified financial status. That’s up 61 LEAs from the First Interim Status Report for 2011-12 issued in February, and up 45 from the Second Interim Report for 2010-11 issued a year ago.
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The Legislative Analyst’s Office is suggesting an alternative to the massive cut to K-12 schools and community colleges that Gov. Jerry Brown is proposing if his tax initiative fails in November. Instead of a real spending cut of $2.8 billion or $415 per K-12 student, districts and community colleges would be cut $1 billion or only $162 per K-12 student, under the LAO plan.
The LAO detailed its alternative in an analysis of Brown’s May budget revision, which the nonpartisan, independent agency released on Friday (see pages 21-22 in the pdf version). The difference is the size of Proposition 98 spending obligation that is calculated for this year and next year, separate from the tax increase.
via LAO: No need to cut schools $5.5 billion – by John Fensterwald – Educated Guess.
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One hundred years ago last month, the cry “women and children first” echoed on the decks of the ill-fated Titanic. A century later, the ship carrying California’s future is listing in the water. However, it seems that today no one is willing to make a sacrifice: It’s every man, woman and child for himself or herself.
California was once the envy of the country — beautiful beaches, good jobs, a booming economy, and the promise of the best public education system, including top-notch, affordable state colleges and universities. However, the economic seas became rough in 2007 with the impact of the recession. In an effort to keep California afloat, our leaders in Sacramento — unable or unwilling to right the ship by raising revenue— scrambled for items to dump overboard. The value of education plummeted as other budget items were given priority, and education funding became the primary target, suffering a disproportionate loss of revenue. From 2007-08 to 2010-11, K-12 education funding sustained 54 percent of the loss of revenue, although it represented approximately 40 percent of the General Fund. In contrast, corrections sustained just a 4 percent loss, despite representing approximately 10 percent of the General Fund.
via Watching California public schools sink — a preventable Titanic – by Tamara Hurley.
By the fall semester, students at Solano Community College’s Vallejo Center should find plenty of what’s been in short supply the last few years — parking spaces.
The board of trustees Thursday awarded a $1.1 million contract to GradeTech Inc. for a Vallejo Center parking lot expansion.
The amount is slightly below what was originally budgeted for the project, or $1.2 million.
via Solano College moves ahead with new parking lot for Vallejo satellite campus.
A handful of Vallejo educators and students rallied Friday in protest of severe cuts in the state’s public education system.
“I feel like you have to make it right. They’re not going to change anything unless you bring complaints to them,” said Chajanee Patton, a 15-year-old Vallejo High School freshman.
Like the rest of Vallejo High — and indeed, the rest of the Vallejo City Unified School District — Chajanee had no school Friday because of a district-wide furlough, effectively shortening the school year by a day.
via Vallejo teachers, students protest cuts to school on furlough day.
Hogan Middle School eighth-grader Monica Patenia says she already wants to be a nurse some day, so it wasn’t surprising the nursing exhibit at Thursday’s Career & Life Expo was the most interesting part to her.
“This is for the future,” said Patenia, adding that she seeks a medical career because she “wants to help people be healthy.”
The goal is similar for Hogan eighth-grader Calishia Reed, who said the expo’s CPR exhibit was her favorite. Reed said she hopes to be a doctor or a nurse some day.
via Vallejo 8th-graders offered new ways to evaulate success.
Two Hogan Middle School students were arrested Friday night for breaking into the school and attempting to steal a computer monitor, Vallejo police said Saturday.
At about 7:30 p.m., police received reports of two teenagers throwing rocks and breaking windows at the school at 850 Rosewood Ave.
via Two Hogan Mmiddle School students arrested for breaking into ….
A unique club at Dixon High School aims to give students a stronger sense of where food comes from.
It’s called the Garden Club and it’s designed for students to learn about where food comes from and gives them an opportunity to learn about gardening techniques.
via Unique Club at Dixon High Gives Students Opportunity to Hone Gardening Skills.
FAIRFIELD — Fairfield High School senior Daniele Theobald scrambled up the steep, vegetation-covered bank of a creek in the Rolling Hills subdivision, the end of a tape measure in her hands.
The distance across the creek bed is 75 feet. It took some work to find out, but Theobold said she didn’t mind.
“I think it’s awesome,” she said. “I love being outdoors.”
Just a few minutes earlier, senior Karina Ramirez had put her hands into the few inches of water flowing in the creek. She rubbed the algae and muck, loosening tiny invertebrates to flow into a net held by another student.
via Fairfield High students monitor health of Rolling Hills creek.
FAIRFIELD — The 16th annual City of Fairfield High School Science Fair took place Saturday at Vanden High.
Students at Armijo and Vanden high schools entered 90 projects into the competition.
Judging took place in the morning and afternoon, and prizes were awarded for physical, life and environmental sciences.
via Vanden and Armijo high schools participate in science fair.