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Tuesday, June 19, 2012

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Education Headlines

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Butte County Board of Education approves 2012-13 budget

The budget was prepared with the assumption that Gov. Jerry Brown's proposed tax increase initiative won't pass at the November general election.

Calif. applies for No Child Left Behind waiver

California has submitted an application seeking a waiver from the federal No Child Left Behind act, which has labeled thousands of schools as failing. But the application submitted Friday lacks key reforms outlined by President Barack Obama when he offered states relief from the much-maligned testing requirements.

Former Portola Valley school official spent $100,926 of district's funds to renovate his home, D.A. says

Former Portola Valley schools superintendent Timothy Hanretty embezzled $100,926 from the school district to renovate his home, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney's Office.

Balboa Gifted-High Ability Magnet can't become a charter school

The Balboa Gifted-High Ability Magnet has lost its bid to become an affiliated charter because its merit-based admissions policy violates the open-to-all regulation for charters, officials said.

Ready to jump in

Less than three hours after arriving for his first day, Lowder already had met with the district's legal-affairs director, Lily Cervantes, and Chief Financial Officer Wayne Martin. There also were mundane tasks: signing up for a district credit card, ordering business cards and moving into the office that had become vacant 72 hours earlier with the retirement of Carl Toliver.

Judge will decide by Wednesday whether to seal or nullify Heritage High School suspensions

A Contra Costa County judge says he'll decide by Wednesday whether to intervene in disciplinary action taken by Heritage High School against seniors who carried out a prank at the Brentwood school a week before graduation.

Long Beach school board rejects Rosie the Riveter charter renewal

The Long Beach Unified School District won't renew Rosie the Riveter High School's charter because of concerns about the school's financial stability, officials decided Monday.

California lawmakers target linking of student IDs to test scores

State lawmakers weighed in Monday against a controversial practice in which schools issue student IDs and notebooks that are color-coded to show how the student did on standardized testing.

California schools facing shorter year

Sydney Walker is scared. She is worried her children, who attend San Juan Unified schools, won't be prepared for college or classes next year if state lawmakers allow school districts to cut the school year by as many as 15 days. That could shorten the school year to 160 days – tying California with Colorado for the shortest school year, and well below the national norm of 180 days.
Monday, June 18, 2012

Schools tread carefully on social media

School officials acknowledge the power of using social media in educating today's students, who they call "digital natives." Social media can also be a tool to communicate more efficiently with parents and the community. But for the time being, school personnel are hesitant to use it on a wide scale.

Changes ahead for Atascadero school

The Atascadero Unified School District broke ground Friday on a renovation project that will bring widespread changes to Monterey Road Elementary School.

Newport-Mesa district close to naming new superintendent

Next week the Newport-Mesa Unified School District will announce its selection for the new superintendent. According to district spokeswoman Laura