Imperial Valley News - California Recognizes Three Schools for Exemplary Independent Study Programs

Imperial Valley News - California Recognizes Three Schools for Exemplary Independent Study Programs:

"Sacramento, California - State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell today congratulated three California public schools selected by a joint project of the California Consortium for Independent Study and the California Department of Education to receive the Exemplary Independent Study Recognition Award (EISRA).

'California's public school system provides viable options that parents can use to create the best learning environment for their children,' said O'Connell. 'The Classical Academy, La Entrada High School, and Tamiscal High School have exemplary independent study programs that challenge students with a rigorous academic program, and provide flexibility and personalization. This individualized approach is the right fit for some students, and these schools have a great track record of helping such students succeed academically. By receiving this award, these schools are designated as shining examples for other independent study programs to emulate.'"

Paly Voice - Cut policy violates state educational codes

Paly Voice - Cut policy violates state educational codes:

"The Palo Alto High School administration has initiated a truancy policy to discourage Paly students from cutting classes.

The policy currently states that any student with an unexcused absence is required to attend one hour of Saturday School for each unexcused absence. During the 2008-09 school year, 69 percent of Paly students were legally considered truants.

The administration arranged the new policy in response to these statics.

'A group of teachers got together with the attendance office and we discussed ways to get kids to go to class,' Assistant Principal Jerry Berkson said."

Palo Alto Online : Experts to discuss special ed in hard $$ times

Palo Alto Online : Experts to discuss special ed in hard $$ times:

"Providing for special needs children in lean times -- such as facing state budget cuts -- will be the topic at a gathering of experts in Palo Alto Thursday.

'Crisis and Opportunity: A Policy Forum about Early Intervention Services for Children with Special Needs' will begin at 6 p.m. at the Koret Family Resource Center of Jewish Family and Children's Services, 200 Channing Ave.

The forum's target audience is education professionals and policymakers, but is open to the public, according to organizers.

State funding for services for children with special needs has been cut."

Symbolism? German Solar Team Bests U.S. In Shadow of U.S. Capitol - Scitizen

Symbolism? German Solar Team Bests U.S. In Shadow of U.S. Capitol - Scitizen:

"Team Germany has emerged victorious from the three-week Solar Decathlon that overtook the National Mall in D.C., shedding a solar-powered spotlight on young clean technology innovators. But the German victory in a U.S. dominated competition may be a portent for the future of U.S. leadership in clean energy innovation."

The Solar Decathlon, in its fourth iteration, involved twenty teams of college students from all over the U.S. as well as Germany, Spain, and Canada. Each team submitted a solar-powered house for competition in 10 individual contests. Importantly, Team Germany succeeded in edging out the closest competition, Illinois and Team California in the net-metering contest, which a test to see how much power a house generates relative to how much it consumes.

The victory, while certainly well deserved, seems particularly poignant in the context of concerns about U.S. economic competitiveness in clean energy technology innovation. Given that this year is the first in which international teams competed in the Solar Decathlon, it seems to be a harbinger of what's to come in the clean energy sector as technologies mature and the markets continue to develop.

'Ingredients' takes aim at food giants - Hawaii Features - Starbulletin.com

'Ingredients' takes aim at food giants - Hawaii Features - Starbulletin.com:

"Lush with rolling, green hills dotted with free-ranging sheep and flourishing crops punctuated by the vibrant oranges, purples and reds of ripe produce, director/screenwriter Robert Bates' 'Ingredients' articulates visually the fecundity of possibility for America's food system. The documentary travels coast to coast — from California and Oregon to Ohio and New York — to offer a comprehensive view of the local food movement that's taken hold nationally."

The film offers the viewpoints of farmers, chefs, activists, educators and scholars who discuss looming issues of food security in the United States and demonstrate how the growing, selling and consuming of food raised within a 100-mile radius promotes food sustainability, supports local economies and nurtures the environment.

"Ingredients" also delivers the bad news about our current farming system, which it defines as "agribusiness." Based on scientific advances, agribusiness was born during the age of industrialization to feed the masses. The paradigm of agribusiness is big business, relying on the use of chemicals in the fields and fossil fuels to transport food hundreds of miles from where it grows.

Back-yard bounty | StarTribune.com

Back-yard bounty StarTribune.com:

"Mark Campbell has been gardening since he planted a lily of the valley in second grade. But he never planned to make money from it. Or to spend six months living in a tent so he could study sustainable agriculture. Or to fill his Edina yard with so many fruit trees and hostas that he'd need a spreadsheet to keep track of them all.

In many ways, Campbell is an accidental gardener.

He's the kind of guy who worked a stint at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum on a whim. 'I went out to buy apples one day and got a job,' he said."

And it was a love affair with herbs that led him to start a garden-based business in the mid- 1980s.

"I was way into herbs," he said. "I had 13 kinds of basil. I had edible flowers and heirloom tomatoes. I was growing back then the varieties you see now."

The "oddball" offerings from his garden attracted the attention of Lucia Watson, who bought them for her Minneapolis restaurant. And somehow Campbell ended up supplementing his herb business by cooking at Lucia's Restaurant.

Daily Commercial

Daily Commercial:

"Average tuition prices rose sharply again this fall as colleges passed much of the burden of their own financial problems on to recession-battered students and parents.

Average tuition at four-year public colleges rose 6.5 percent, or $429, to $7,020 this fall, according to the College Board's annual 'Trends in College Pricing' report, released Tuesday. At private colleges, the average list price for a year of coursework rose 4.4 percent to $26,273.

Those figures hide wide variations -- public college students in California, Florida, New York and Washington have seen double-digit percentage increases, while the University of Maryland used federal stimulus funds to freeze tuition this year."

UC Davis News & Information :: UC Davis Receives $1 Million to Enhance K-12 Teaching

UC Davis News & Information :: UC Davis Receives $1 Million to Enhance K-12 Teaching:

"The UC Davis School of Education has been awarded a $1 million grant to help small teams of K-12 teachers develop projects that enhance teaching and learning in the classrooms.

The grant from the California Postsecondary Education Commission provides funding for a three-year project headed by Joanne Bookmyer, director of teacher research at the Cooperative Research and Extension Services for Schools (CRESS) Center. The funds will enable the center, working with partners from Humboldt State University and West Sacramento Early College Prep, to manage what it has dubbed the Pacific Coast Teacher Innovation Network.

Through the program, faculty from the schools of education and other departments at both universities will work with teams of teachers at public, private and charter schools to improve their teaching skills and mastery of the subjects they teach."

Montessori Building Deemed Unfit - Sacramento News Story - KCRA Sacramento

Montessori Building Deemed Unfit - Sacramento News Story - KCRA Sacramento:

"Safety concerns will force students from the Capitol Campus of the California Montessori Project in Sacramento.

Students moved into the Old Marshall School in August from a smaller church space. California Montessori Project leases the building from the Sacramento City Unified School District, which also oversees the charter school.

A top-to-bottom review found the midtown Sacramento building doesn't meet current state building codes or earthquake specifications for building safety, new Sacramento City Unified Superintendent Jonathan Raymond said.

Parents found that out Monday.

Obama gets a flu shot, but not for swine flu | 44 | washingtonpost.com

Obama gets a flu shot, but not for swine flu 44 washingtonpost.com:
"President Obama received a seasonal flu shot Tuesday afternoon, a White House official said. A White House physician administered the shot while accompanying the president on a trip to New York, where he is attending fund-raisers for the Democratic Party and a House candidate.

The first lady and Obama girls had received their seasonal flu vaccines previously.

The seasonal flu shot does not vaccinate against the H1N1 swine flu virus, and Obama is not in one of the groups -- such as pregnant women, health-care workers and those under age 24 -- designated as high-priority for receiving the scarce H1N1 vaccine."

East Bay LGBTQ Welcoming & Inclusive School Forum

East Bay LGBTQ Welcoming & Inclusive School Forum


HELP GET MORE LGBTQ PARENTS AT YOUR SCHOOL AND MAKE IT MORE WELCOMING AND INCLUSIVE!

Parents, Teachers, Administrators and other School Staff Invited

Alameda Unified Experience Highlighted!

Our Family Coalition is pleased to invite you to participate in our annual East Bay Welcoming and Inclusive School Forums. This forum is designed to give school administrators, teachers and parents an introduction to some of the innovative and groundbreaking strategies to creating inclusive and welcoming environments for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) parents and their children which is needed now more than ever. There will also be an opportunity for incoming Kindergarten parents to get to talk with parents, teachers and administrators associated with schools in their district.

Register: Click here!

When: Thursday, November 5, 5:30pm-8:30pm

Where: Malcolm X Elementary School, 1731 Prince Street, Berkeley (map it)

Help us promote this important event!

We need your help to encourage your schools parents, teachers, and administrators to attend this important event. Please click on the flyers below to print.
East Bay School Forum
English flyer
Spanish flyer

Go to web site: http://www.ourfamily.org/

voiceofsandiego.org: Schooled... 'Bad to Catastrophic'

voiceofsandiego.org: Schooled... 'Bad to Catastrophic':

"San Diego Unified will have to cut between $119 million and $175 million from its 2010-2011 budget and shave another $16.6 million from its spending this school year after running up unbudgeted expenses, staff told the school board this morning.

Pinning down the exact amounts of the future cuts still involves some guessing: Depending on the economy and what the legislature decides, the state deficit could force between $3 billion and $6.4 billion in educational cuts statewide. That could translate into as much as $175 million, according to staff estimates."

San Diego Unified had earlier estimated its deficit for 2010-2011 at $64 million. The district was already trying to avoid unpopular cuts it had tentatively planned to reduce that sum, such as ending magnet programs and high school athletics, closing schools and eliminating librarians. It was able to avoid those cuts last year by shooing senior employees out with a golden handshake and using stimulus dollars.

UC Davis study of kids' blood mercury levels finds no autism link - Sacramento News - Local and Breaking Sacramento News | Sacramento Bee

UC Davis study of kids' blood mercury levels finds no autism link - Sacramento News - Local and Breaking Sacramento News Sacramento Bee:

"In one of the largest studies yet, UC Davis researchers said Monday that they found no real difference in blood mercury levels of children with, and without, autism.

The study, published in Environmental Health Perspectives, measured blood mercury levels of 452 children, 249 of whom had autism. Those with autism had lower levels, but it was because they eat less fish. Once researchers took fish consumption into account, the difference disappeared."

George Washington Carver School of Arts and Science

George Washington Carver School of Arts and Science

Lights On! Open House: October 22

Greetings!
Please join us for Lights On! Open House. We will showcase an original dramatic production of sin and redemption called Metamorphosis. This world premiere is accompanied by an original student guitar and vocal composition. After the show you invited to visit the classrooms to experience the high school program. You will have a chance to meet the teachers, students, and learn more about Carver.We hope to see you at the high school Thursday night from 6-8 pm.

Allegra Alessandri, Principal
George Washington Carver School of Arts and Science

Lights on! Open House: October 22

World Premiere of an original student production:

Metamorphosis

Open House

Classroom visits
School Tour
Meet the faculty
High School Program Highlights
Everyone welcome of all ages.

10101Systems ParkwaySacramento, CA 95827

6:00 PM-8:00PM

Community Event:

Rosemont Neighborhood Parade

Please join us Friday, October 23 for the first annual neighborhood parade from 4-6.

We meet the the corner of Southport and Keifer between 3:30 and 4:00.

After the parade we will meet back at the high school for a family pot luck and Haunted House.

Remeber to bring a dish to share and your own plates, utensils and cups.

Carver's Website
George Washington Carver (GWC) School of Arts and Science is a public Waldorf-Methods High School.
Our school is located within the Sacramento City Unified School District near the city of Rancho Cordova and Mather Air Force Base.
Our school is located on a brand new 13.5-acre campus.

Applebatch: Are books needed in schools?

Applebatch: Are books needed in schools?:

"James Tracy, the headmaster of Cushing Academy in Ashburnham, Connecticut, told the Boston Globe that “the last thing a school library needs these days is books. What it really needs is a good cappuccino machine.” This, as you could imagine, is stirring up a lot of controversy among parents of the New England prep school."

Administrators at the prep school have given away many of the library’s collection of classic novels, popular poetry books, and several reference books. They are trashing the books and purchasing a $500,000 digital learning center. The digital learning center will include flat screen TV’s, cubbies for laptops and a small coffee shop with a $12,000 cappuccino machine. For those of you that don’t know what a digital learning center is, it is over 10,000 novels in a 5 pound lap top form folder. The librarian who has been at the prep school for over 17 years told the Globe she will miss the books that have been a part of her life for over the past decade. She says “there’s a sensual side to them - - the smell, feel. The physicality of a book is something really special.”

Are states following stimulus plan rules for schools? - CNN.com

Are states following stimulus plan rules for schools? - CNN.com:

"Creating and saving jobs while boosting investment in the future are among the top goals of the Obama administration's $787 billion economic stimulus plan."

And according to a preliminary report on stimulus funding for schools by the Department of Education and the Domestic Policy Council, the stimulus plan has created jobs.
State governments have created and saved at least 250,000 education jobs -- and restored nearly all their projected education budget shortfalls for fiscal years 2009 and 2010 -- according to preliminary findings released Monday by the White House.

But some states that used the funds to fill existing budget gaps could face a crisis when the money runs out after 2010. And the Department of Education has chastised certain states for their stimulus funding programs and warned them that they risk their chances at getting other DOE grants down the road.

The stimulus funds appropriated $48.6 billion for the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund to help keep and create jobs and advance education reforms over a period of two years, the report said. The program dedicates $39.8 billion for public elementary, secondary and higher education and other services. Another $8.8 billion will go for other activities such as public safety or government services.

"To date, $35.5 billion of the SFSF allotment has been obligated and $13.2 [billion] is forthcoming," the report added.

Open Doors, Lots of Them - PTOToday.com

Open Doors, Lots of Them - PTOToday.com

It's important to make it as easy as possible for parents to get involved. Are you doing all you can?
Written by Tim Sullivan

The dawning of a new school year is the perfect time to set goals and commit to making change for your group. In that spirit, I have a simple question for you: Is it easy for parents to get involved at your school?

Before you answer, take some time to think. We parent group leader types always think that the answer is yes. But we have to put ourselves in others’ shoes. For most of the parent groups I work with, it’s really easy to get involved if meetings on the second Tuesday of the month are good for you. It’s really easy if Teacher Appreciation Week is up your alley. It’s really easy if you have an outgoing, joiner personality.

In other words, it’s really easy for people to get involved if their skills, interests, and schedules are just like ours.
But what about all those parents who have very different schedules? What about those parents with amazing talents who don’t fit into your current involvement offerings or those parents less comfortable in big social settings?

In this coming school year, how can you create opportunities for these folks to get involved? Maybe it’s a weekend morning event. Or perhaps it’s a "share your passion" night or international night, when parents can show off their hobbies or cultures (you’ll be amazed at the variety of unique experts in even a small sampling of families). Can you create opportunities for people to help from home? Give folks the chance to get involved on their own terms and you’ll broaden your connections.
And what about those parents, especially dads, who’d prefer to do anything over attending a traditional PTO meeting?

Pushed Out | Teaching Tolerance

Pushed Out Teaching Tolerance


Pushed Out
Number 36: Fall 2009
Eight year-old “Jenny” was suspended from her third-grade class for two days for bringing a pair of cuticle scissors to open the wrapper on her school breakfast. Under the school’s zero tolerance policy, Jenny’s teacher believed she had no choice but to report Jenny to the principal. Humiliated and traumatized, Jenny missed two days of school, and now has a suspension on her permanent school record.

“Joseph” was 13 when the bullying against him started. Under his school’s strict discipline rules, all students involved in a fight received the same punishment, regardless of who started it. After several fights that resulted in repeated, multi-day, out-of-school suspensions, Joseph fell further and further behind, failed the seventh grade, and became increasingly alienated from his school. He eventually dropped out.

These stories are all too typical of what is happening in schools across America. Significant numbers of students are being pushed out of school as a result of “zero tolerance” school discipline policies. While nobody questions the need to keep our schools safe, teachers, students, and parents are questioning the methods we are using in pursuit of that goal.

Initially enacted to counter violent behavior and drug use, zero tolerance school disciplinary policies have expanded to cover more minor misbehavior. As a result, the U.S. has experienced dramatic increases in the number of students suspended, expelled and referred to law enforcement for school-based incidents.
These practices are paving the way for higher dropout rates and involvement in the criminal justice system, a pathway often referred to as the “school-to-prison pipeline.” Likewise, these practices have been shown to worsen the climates of our schools, leading to teacher burnout.

Zero tolerance is a failed approach. Zero tolerance policies — policies that mandate predetermined consequences for rule infractions, regardless of the circumstances — were initially aimed at making schools safe. The best way to prevent serious violence at school, the theory went, was to ban any and all weapons or threats of violence, and to accept no excuses.

Over the past decade, however, many school districts have enacted harsh disciplinary consequences — suspensions, expulsions, alternative schools and referrals to law enforcement — for a broad array of student actions. These “one-size-fits-all” policies often apply not only to possession of weapons, drugs and alcohol, but also to possession of medications legitimately possessed by students, school supplies and common objects such as nail clippers and scissors. Zero tolerance policies have also been applied to behaviors like truancy, tardiness and vague catch-all categories such as “insubordination” and “disrespect.”

State Campaigns - Skills2Compete

State Campaigns - Skills2Compete:

"The Skills2Compete-California campaign seeks to raise awareness of the need to train California residents for middle-skill jobs, which require more than high school but less than a four-year degree. These jobs make up the largest portion of California’s labor market. Prior to the recession, California was already experiencing shortages of middle-skill workers in crucial industries. With high unemployment throughout the nation, this is precisely the time to ensure California is training the middle-skill workforce that will be critical to economic recovery and long-term success."

For more information go to:
http://21stcenturyapprenticeship.workforce3one.org/view/2000929242073528346/info
http://www.skills2compete.org/site/c.fhLIKYPLLuF/b.5540699/k.9C1B/State_Campaigns.htm
http://www.californiaedgecampaign.org/

Better training could help fill technical jobs

Better training could help fill technical jobs:

"California must improve adult education and community college programs to help laid-off workers retrain for technical positions that will open up in the next several years due mainly to retirements, according to a report issued Monday."

The study, titled "California's Forgotten Middle-Skill Jobs," uses federal data to look at current and projected employment in the state.

It divides jobs into three categories: 25 percent that can be done with a high-school diploma, 35 percent that require a bachelor's degree or higher, and 40 percent that require a post-high-school certificate or two-year degree.

Issued by a coalition including labor and business interests, the report looks at what it will take to retrain adults already in the workforce for that 40 percent of middle-skills occupations such as licensed vocational nursing, heating and air-conditioning installation, and paralegal work.

Although the report comes at a time when high unemployment has created a glut of workers, it anticipates that when the economy recovers in a few years, employers could be hobbled by a shortage of skilled technicians.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/10/20/BUFF1A6FAI.DTL#ixzz0UUbHCSOn

For more information go to:

http://21stcenturyapprenticeship.workforce3one.org/view/2000929242073528346/info

http://www.skills2compete.org/site/c.fhLIKYPLLuF/b.5540699/k.9C1B/State_Campaigns.htm

http://www.californiaedgecampaign.org/