Monthly Archives: April 2014

Restraining order isn’t answer to bullying, Corey says – Daily Republic

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By Ryan McCarthy

The superintendent of the Fairfield-Suisun School District spoke Thursday about being bullied as a seventh-grader, said misinformed people from around the country have emailed the district and that a court order is not the answer the extremely serious issue of bullying.

“The key to stopping bullying is not a restraining order,” Kris Corey said. “It is education.”

Her remarks during the superintendent’s report at the school board meeting came after national media attention to the Fairfield-based district. The father of a Rolling Hills Elementary student obtained a temporary restraining order against a 9-year-old that requires the youth stay at least 2 yards away from the man’s son at Rolling Hills.

via Restraining order isn’t answer to bullying, Corey says Daily Republic.

Parents, students feel impact of ‘15 Minutes’ – Benicia Herald

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April 10, 2014 by Donna Beth Weilenman

Two-day program gets graphic, emotional in effort to keep students from drunken driving.

Elaine DiStephano summed up the emotions she and others felt over their two days’ participation in “Every 15 Minutes,” a program designed to urge Benicia and Liberty high school students to avoid drinking or using drugs and driving.

“You think you can be prepared,” DiStephano said. “Even though it’s fiction.”

But she quickly realized the emotional toll of the simulated death of her son, Antonio, a Benicia High student.

The night before she spoke to an assembly of students, she said, “I woke up every two hours.” She had trouble waiting to see Antonio at school Wednesday.

via Parents, students feel impact of ‘15 Minutes’.

Report gives low marks to Bay Area districts for teaching poor, Latinos, blacks – Vallejo Times Herald

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By Sharon Noguchi

When it comes to educating Latino, African-American and poor students, Bay Area school districts do at best a mediocre job, according to a report published Tuesday by an Oakland-based education advocacy group.

The Vallejo City Unified School District earned an overall grade of D. And though overall improvement among students of color and low-income students fell to a D from a C last year, the district did improve the size of the achievement gap between black and white students (from a D to a C) and between Latino and whites (from a C to a B).

In Santa Clara, San Mateo, Alameda and Contra Costa counties, seven districts earned a D-plus, the average for the four counties. Seven districts earned a D. San Jose Unified — which has a 52 percent Latino and 3 percent black population — was among them.

via Report gives low marks to Bay Area districts for teaching poor, Latinos, blacks – Vallejo Times Herald.

Drunk driving ‘deaths’ hit Benicia parents, students hard – The Reporter

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Times-Herald staff writers Posted:

Slumped over the hood of a heavily damaged maroon car was Michelle Minahen, in her long prom gown. She had been ejected through the windshield during a crash, caused by a drunk driver.

The teen was pronounced dead at the scene Tuesday morning in front of hundreds of her peers at Benicia High School.

On Wednesday, in an emotional climax to a two-day simulation, Michelle came back to life and was reunited with her grateful parents. She and her family all had participated in a grueling activity aimed at saving young lives.

via Drunk driving ‘deaths’ hit Benicia parents, students hard – The Reporter.

Doug Ford: Need to invest in higher education – The Reporter

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By Doug Ford

Last week, I had the good fortune to be invited to lunch and a “Conversation with University of California President Janet Napolitano.” The event, organized by the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC), was attended by about 500 Californians. Many others listened in via the Internet.

In a preliminary presentation, Hans Johnson, PPIC Bren Fellow, pointed out that California faces a severe workforce skills gap. Projections are that by 2025, the state will have a shortage of 1 million college graduates and a shortage of another million at the two-years-of-college level. The severe cuts to higher education during the past 10 years are illustrated by these facts: In 2001-02, for every dollar spent on corrections, $1.89 was spent on higher education,  but in 2011-12, for every dollar spent on corrections, only 89 cents was spent on higher education.

via Doug Ford: Need to invest in higher education – The Reporter.

Schools Use Student Data to Find Signs of Trouble, Help Struggling Kids | MindShift

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By Sammy Mack

At Miami Carol City Senior High in Florida, a handful of teachers, administrators and coaches are gathered around a heavy wooden table in a conference room dubbed the “War Room,” looking through packets of information about several students.

There are others at the table, too: analysts from the group Talent Development Secondary, which monitors student data; City Year, a nonprofit that provides mentors; and Communities in Schools, which connects kids with health care and social services.

“The point of all this isn’t to collect data. It’s to change what’s happening for individual kids.”

It’s a lot of cooks in the kitchen, but they’re all here to help students who are just starting to show signs of trouble.

via Schools Use Student Data to Find Signs of Trouble, Help Struggling Kids | MindShift.

Tobacco Use Prevention Grants – Year 2014 (CA Dept of Education)

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SACRAMENTO—Work by educators to decrease smoking among students received a boost today as State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson announced 14 California school districts will share almost $17 million in tobacco-use prevention grants from the state.

The list of grantees for the total $16.6 million in Tobacco-Use Prevention Education (TUPE): Grades 6-12 Cohort J Tier 2 grants is attached.

“The safety and well-being of our students are at the heart of what we do as educators,”Torlakson said. “Leaders across California have made great strides in the fight against smoking, but the rise of e-cigarettes and other developments means that our work is far from over.”

via Tobacco Use Prevention Grants – Year 2014 (CA Dept of Education).

A word, a sentence, a lesson for Rodriguez High students – Daily Republic

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By Ryan McCarthy

The “justice system revered all over the world” moved Wednesday to the multipurpose room at Rodriguez High School, where students saw a driving under the influence court trial and conviction.

Attorney David Gallegos, representing defendant Shane Entzel, praised protections the U.S. justice system provides and during his closing argument told the student advisory jury that “the prosecution doesn’t have the final word.”

“You do,” Gallegos said.

The word from the student jurors was guilty. Solano County Superior Court Commissioner Raymond C. Wieser Jr., who presided over the court trial and would decide the defendant’s fate, announced the same verdict earlier.

via A word, a sentence, a lesson for Rodriguez High students Daily Republic.

At Benicia High School, a portrait of lives shattered – Benicia Herald

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‘Every 15 Minutes’ grabs, keeps teens’ attention with depiction of drunken driving consequences.

Hooded figures and black-clad teenagers pulled back dark shrouds, unveiling the bloody spectacle of a head-on collision in Benicia High School’s upper parking lot Tuesday morning.

Some of the vehicles’ occupants wailed in pain and grief. One girl, wearing a bright red prom dress, lay silent and motionless halfway through the windshield of one of the cars.

The mangled vehicles were flanked by more students in white makeup and black T-shirts, representing youth killed in alcohol-related accidents.

No one died Tuesday at Benicia High — and the goal of the program, known as “Every 15 Minutes,” was to make such an impression on the Benicia and Liberty High students watching that future fatalities may be avoided, too.

via At Benicia High School, a portrait of lives shattered.

Vallejo school board to discuss Mare Island Technology Academy, cutting of positions – Vallejo Times Herald

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Times-Herald Posted:

The Vallejo school board will meet twice this week.

During its regular meeting today, the board will be asked to approve cutting the equivalent of fewer than two classified positions.

The board will be asked to eliminate eight hours from the adult school registrar position, four from a clerk, and one each from a site safety supervisor and teacher assistant.

The board also will get an update on Mare Island Technology Academy, the Vallejo City Unified School District’s first charter school. Additionally, the board will hear about the progress of the Local Control Accountability Plan, part of the state’s new method of funding districts.

via Vallejo school board to discuss Mare Island Technology Academy, cutting of positions – Vallejo Times Herald.

Parcel tax survey results go before Fairfield-Suisun trustees Daily Republic

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By Ryan McCarthy

Forty-four percent of people interviewed by a public opinion and marketing research firm give an excellent to good rating for the Fairfield-Suisun School District, while 24 percent rated the school district as only fair and 11 percent gave Fairfield-Suisun a poor rating.

Twenty-two percent had no opinion when Gene Bregman & Associates of Santa Cruz County conducted 404 interviews after Fairfield-Suisun contracted with the firm in January to survey public opinion for a possible parcel tax.

via Parcel tax survey results go before Fairfield-Suisun trustees Daily Republic.

Charter school, LCAP on Dixon Unified agenda – The Reporter

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By Reporter Staff Posted:

Meeting Thursday night in open session, Dixon Unified School District leaders will hear about the petition to renew the charter for Dixon Montessori Charter School and receive an update on the development of the Local Control Accountability Plan, or LCAP.

Superintendent Brian Dolan will guide the discussions.

By state law, charter schools must periodically renew their charters, typically for several years.

A key component of Gov. Jerry Brown’s Local Control Funding Formula, state school districts’ LCAPs detail what educators, governing boards and teachers must do to educate students and how they are going to measure results.

via Charter school, LCAP on Dixon Unified agenda – The Reporter.

Vacaville High School club distributes prom dresses – The Reporter

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By Richard Bammer

For high school senior girls, it is, perhaps, never too early to think about the prom. But in an era when prom expenses for girls can top $1,500, according to a Visa survey last year, prom may be out of reach for many families, especially the half of Americans that are considered poor or low-income.

The all-important dress is among the major cash outlays, and at Vacaville High School, members of a chapter of Becca’s Closet have made sure that no one misses the prom because of that cost.

The nonprofit Becca’s Closet (www.beccascloset.org) was created by Rebecca Kirtman, a Florida teenager. Her idea was to collect and give dresses to high school girls who wanted to attend their prom or homecoming but could not afford one. A cheerleader and honor student, she died in an auto accident in 2003, and the group’s mission has since spread across the nation and world.

via Vacaville High School club distributes prom dresses – The Reporter.

What Will Happen to ‘Big Data’ In Education? | MindShift

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By Anya Kamenetz

Yesterday, a $100 million startup lost its last customer. According to a Politico article, the state of New York, inBloom‘s last remaining client, will delete all student data on the repository due to privacy concerns.

InBloom’s company spokesperson told Politico the nonprofit was “pushing forward with our mission,” though at the moment there are no known state partners.

InBloom’s trajectory has shined a spotlight on the public’s sensitivity around what happens to student data. When it first began as a mammoth ed-tech project in 2011 by the Council of Chief State School Officers, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Carnegie Corporation called the Shared Learning Infrastructure, the purpose was to provide open-source software to safely organize, pool, and store student data from multiple states and multiple sources in the cloud. That included everything from demographics to attendance to discipline to grades to the detailed, moment-by-moment, data produced by learning analytics programs like Dreambox and Khan Academy. An API — application programming interface — would allow software developers to connect to that data, creating applications that could, at least in theory, be used by any school in the infrastructure.

via What Will Happen to ‘Big Data’ In Education? | MindShift.

Rodriguez High to be site of DUI trial – Daily Republic

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By Ryan McCarthy

The court trial for a defendant charged with driving under the influence in Solano County will take place Wednesday in the multipurpose room at Rodriguez High School, part of a program to show students the consequences of drinking and driving.

Witnesses from the Fairfield Police Department and Solano County Bureau of Forensics will testify during the court hearing. Solano County Superior Court Commissioner Raymond C. Wieser Jr. will preside.

via Rodriguez High to be site of DUI trial Daily Republic.

Solano College to hold Stop the Violence summit with Vallejo events – Vallejo Times Herald

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Times-Herald staff report Posted:

The 9th annual Peace Summit, a 3-day “Stop the Violence” jamboree, takes place starting Tuesday, April 22-24 on the Solano Community College Fairfield and Vallejo campuses.

The events are free and include guest speakers, walks, a documentary and more. Keynote speaker is Lecia Brooks, who leads the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Alabama in its outreach efforts to promote social justice issues.

Stop the Violence Summit starts 9:30 a.m. Tuesday in Building 1400 on the Fairfield campus with panel discussion on “The Impact of Violence,” followed by a “Peace Vigil” and a “Peace Walk” starting at noon at the Clocktower.

via Solano College to hold Stop the Violence summit with Vallejo events – Vallejo Times Herald.

Travis school board to meet regarding wage agreement – The Reporter

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By Reporter Staff Posted:

When Travis Unified leaders meet tonight in Fairfield, they will consider ratifying a tentative wage agreement with school-support employees.

The five-member governing board likely will approve the tentative pact between the district and Chapter 454 of the California School Employees Association for the 2014-15 school year.

CSEA is the union that represents the district’s classified employees, among them bus drivers, cafeteria workers, custodians, and some clerical workers. Though based in Fairfield, TUSD operates Cambridge and Foxboro elementaries in Vacaville.

via Travis school board to meet – The Reporter.

Vacaville school leaders consider bond change – The Reporter

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By Richard Bammer

A collective eye cast on the bottom line, Vacaville Unified leaders at their next meeting will consider signing off on a resolution to lower the principal and interest on an existing general obligation bond, possibly saving taxpayers some $2 million.

At their April 3 meeting, trustees heard a report by financial adviser Jon Isom, with board member Michael Kitzes calling for the extra time to mull over options. Trustees then agreed to defer a vote until April 17.

If the measure is approved, the principal of the refunding bonds — stemming from the $101.3 million Measure V bond passed by local voters in 2001 — will not be more than $28.5 million.

via Vacaville school leaders consider bond change – The Reporter.

Deal announced on teacher dismissal bill that governor would support | EdSource Today

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By John Fensterwald

Signaling the resolution of an acrimonious issue, Assembly Education Committee Chairwoman Joan Buchanan, D-Alamo, introduced a bill Friday to make dismissing teachers charged with severe misconduct quicker, easier and cheaper.

Buchanan praised the compromise that was reached, and said that Gov. Jerry Brown, who vetoed her version of the bill last year, would sign it. Brown spokesman Jim Evans confirmed in an email, “As introduced, the Administration supports Assemblymember Buchanan’s approach.”

“I want to thank the education community for its willingness to continue to work on this critical issue,” Buchanan said in a statement. “We share a common goal of keeping our children safe and providing a fair and efficient process.”

via Deal announced on teacher dismissal bill that governor would support | EdSource Today.

Districts develop goals for foster youth | EdSource Today

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By Susan Frey

As districts set their goals for the next school year and allocate funding under the new California school finance system, they have to consider for the first time a small, highly at-risk subset of students: youth in foster care.

Under the new Local Control Funding Formula, districts must develop Local Control and Accountability (LCAP) plans, and they must give particular consideration to the needs of English learners, students from low-income families, and students in foster care.

Districts are used to considering the challenges faced by low-income students and English learners, said Teri Burns, senior director of policy and programs for the California School Boards Association. But “the area of foster youth is a new one for most districts,” she said. “It’s not one where districts have taken real direct action in the past.”

via Districts develop goals for foster youth | EdSource Today.