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Wednesday, January 23, 2013

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State schools chief calls for moratorium on risky bonds




Education Headlines

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Taft parents vent fury over inaction prior to shooting

Nearly two weeks after a shooting at Taft Union High School that left a 16-year-old student critically injured, community members at an information meeting at the school Tuesday demanded to know why administrators allowed the alleged shooter back on campus after he had allegedly threatened classmates.

Lode arts center killed in emotional vote

The Calaveras High School band will never play the national anthem in a 500-seat performance hall once proposed for the campus in San Andreas. The school's choirs won't raise their voices there. And drama students won't stage "Annie" or "Oklahoma."

S.J. schools prepare for the worst

Twenty-four years later, memories of the 1989 Cleveland School massacre still linger like a bad dream in Stockton, resurfacing with news of every schoolyard shooting.

MPUSD trustees postpone vote on superintendent's leave of absence

Trustees of Monterey Peninsula Unified School District put off until next week approval of the superintendent's request for a leave of absence.

Novato charter school group delays petition a year

The group proposing the North Bay Academy charter school in Novato will halt efforts to open in fall 2013 and submit a new petition to open a year later, organizers announced late Tuesday.

Legal muscle sought for Fresno Unified trustee election

People seeking a special election in the McLane High School trustee area want legal help asking a judge to force the issue. Petitioners learned this month that incorrect information from the Fresno County Office of Education kept them from collecting enough signatures to trigger an election.

State schools chief calls for moratorium on risky bonds

California Schools Chief Tom Torlakson and state Treasurer Bill Lockyer have asked school district officials to stop issuing capital appreciation bonds.

SD schools to balance budget without layoffs

For the first time in years, the San Diego school district will try to balance its budget without issuing a large number of layoff notices under a plan that’s billed as favoring people over property.

Antioch Unified, teachers union reach tentative agreement on contract

The teachers union and school district here have reached a tentative agreement on a three-year contract that would provide much-sought raises and increase the district's contribution to health insurance premiums.

Despite budget woes, superintendents' pay rises

With California’s public school system facing economic uncertainties – even with the passage of a tax increase under Proposition 30 – some of the most financially troubled districts have been elevating the payroll for top administrators, a review of district data shows.

Years after bond's passage, no start on new Sierra Madre school

The middle school, slated to benefit from a $350-million bond approved in 2008, has been operating out of trailers since the old campus' demolition in 2010.

Teachers financing guns

The state teachers' retirement system is attempting to divest itself from a company that finances the manufacture of assault weapons like the one used at Sandy Hook Elementary School. But even if it does, it still won't be out of the gun business.
Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Schools watching governor's education funding proposal closely

Local school districts are cautiously optimistic about a new funding formula Gov. Jerry Brown announced last week that will distribute state funds based in part on the degree to which districts serve poor students and English learners.

Transitional kindergarten hailed as success

This is transitional kindergarten in the Lodi Unified School District, and by all accounts, the course that is one-notch-above-preschool-but-not-quite-kindergarten is a booming success after the first half of its inaugural year.

A look at school security in SLO County after Sandy Hook

In the wake of the Connecticut attack, the topic is the subject of much discussion throughout the county as districts evaluate their campuses and consider changes.