[Submitted by Tom Ito, Fillmore High School Principal]

Last school year, Fillmore High School was recognized as being in the top 11% of the Washington Post’s “America’s Most Challenging High Schools”. Because the data is one year behind we were recognized for the 2016 school year. In the 2017 school year, Fillmore High School catapulted into the top 7% of eligible schools and will be receiving the same national award in 2018.

Longtime Washington Post columnist Jay Matthews explains how they arrive at the national rankings, “We take the total number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and Cambridge tests given at a school each year and divide by the number of seniors who graduated in May or June. I call this formula the Challenge Index. With a few exceptions, public schools that achieved a ratio of at least 1.00, meaning they had as many tests in 2016 as they had graduates, were put on the national list.”

The top national ranking is not by chance as the students, teachers, counselors and administrators of Fillmore High School have worked very hard to create a college going culture. An increasing number of students have taken challenging courses each year and have worked diligently at keeping their grades up.

Another indicator of the positive change in academic culture at Fillmore High School is the sudden rise in the number of college eligible graduates. In the past several years Fillmore High School has ranked in the top third of Ventura County high schools in college eligible seniors, otherwise known as UC/CSU a-g eligible students. The future looks bright with the number of college eligible students sure to rise when the data from the classes of 2017 and 2018 are released. Our preliminary college eligibility calculations of those classes indicate that we could rank among the top five schools in the county.

Ventura County Sheriff's Department

Members of the Fillmore Citizen Patrol are trained volunteers who assist in meeting law enforcement objectives for normal daily operations as well as during times of disasters and emergencies. Members of the Citizen Patrol Team patrol the community in a white patrol vehicle with ‘Fillmore Police, Sheriff Citizen Patrol’ on each door. There are currently 11 volunteers who have served nearly 800 hours of their own time to the Santa Clara Valley Community last year.

Fillmore Citizen Patrol volunteers are a uniformed function of the Police Department that works in patrol, at the station, and at the resource centers. The extra eyes and ears in the community allow deputies to respond quickly to crimes in progress and intervene on emergency situations.

By utilizing volunteer groups for such basic yet needed tasks, Sheriff’s Deputies are able to spend more time on patrol and focus more on their primary task - keeping our community safe.

The Citizen Patrol also conducts other community service duties provided by the Police Department such as parking enforcement, towing abandoned vehicles, and vacation house checks. In addition to patrolling our community, Fillmore Citizen Patrol members assist with parades during the May Festival and Christmas, and assist with our local Fillmore/ Piru Relay for Life.

Recently, Citizens Patrol members teamed up with the Sheriff's deputies assigned to the Fillmore Police Department to educate the youth of our community. Citizen Patrol members have made short presentations to students on safety. Citizen Patrol members are also involved in afterschool and programs to develop positive interactions between the youth of and law enforcement.

The Fillmore Citizen Patrol has also awarded numerous scholarships to students within our community. For 2015 & 2016, scholarships totaling nearly $7000 were awarded to 8 Fillmore High School students. If you are interested in joining Fillmore Citizen Patrol, are 21 or over and live in the community of Fillmore or unincorporated areas of Piru and Bardsdale, please contact the Fillmore Police Station or Citizen Patrol Member Lisa Hammond at 805-524-2233.

Prepared by: Citizen Patrol Member Lisa Hammond
Approved by: Captain Dave Wareham

[Article Written By Jerrold Ridenour]

Good morning, I'd like to introduce you to a family-friendly event that is debuting next weekend in Historic Downtown Fillmore.

But first a quick backstory.

I have been a character performing at Steampunk conventions and events , Poplock Holmes at your service, a quick talking, fast rhyming Chap Hop MC (That's Victorian Hip-Hop) and have been at the center of the Steampunk subculture the last half decade. When they added art to STEM education a light bulb flickered. Steampunk literally is artistic interpretation and practical, creative applications of STEM technology. Instantly the vision of a pop up museum/circus celebrating the rich history of STEAM in America, specifically at a location where an old Steam train could be ridden and Steam engines be brought in and cranked on. A place with a historic feel where a Steampunk town could pop up with all of it's old world skills and craftspeople.

So I'd like to introduce you to The Steam Festival coming to Fillmore, Ca. November 4th and 5th. There will be Steampunk music, vendors, workshops, a scavenger hunt with STEAM lessons, Steampunk art installations with prizes for the scavenger hunt and other contests that help you explore the imaginative Steampunk environment. There is also a free field trip Friday for local schools to get a preview of the event and experience 5 demos (one for each STEAM facet) to experience through a visceral learning experience firsthand the practical applications of STEAM in the real world.

When the train comes to town it brings with it all sorts of colorful entertainers, contraptions & crazy spectacles to behold. The festival is one part science fair and one part traveling circus, “The STEAM Festival” sets up a world which co-exists in the old Train and Steam museums that dot the west coast. This time it’s in historic Fillmore, California. There are activities and adventures at every turn. A stage is brought in for the musical entertainment. A curated ensemble of Steampunk music create a festive atmosphere that will be live broadcast online and via AM radio signals by Steampunk Podcast professionals “Dreadfully Punk”. There will also be a vendor alley where patrons can grab their own goggles, top hat or any number of goodies and gadgets from unique vendors. Steam Machines will run at the Steam Engine and Machine display, a scavenger hunt will send children to all corners of the festival grounds to learn interesting S.T.E.A.M. facts as they complete their quest, and of course the museum will showcase their splendid Steam powered equipment. While all this fantastic fun is unfolding, there will be educational panels about items of historical significance like Antique Cameras, Antique Musical Instruments like the Theremin, Improvisation workshops, Junk build-offs, and more fun workshops at “The STEAM Festival”

There is a lot to see, learn, feel and experience at the first annual tri-fecta of Steam, The Steam Festival. Please visit www.thesteamfestival.com and feel free to call/email with any questions. Thank you!

Bob Crum

Long ago I bought my first camera while in the U.S. Air Force stationed in Okinawa. A 35mm film point and shoot gem. A delightful camera sufficient for my needs at that time. But not without quirks. The film counter seldom accurate. Exposure mostly a matter of luck. Were it not for bad luck, I would not have had any. Tempted often to toss it out of the RB-47 at 30,000 feet.

I brought that camera home and used it until the film advance lever jammed. At that time, Konica introduced their Autoreflex T which used an external light meter cell to set the lens diaphragm automatically for proper exposure. At least a better exposure than me skinny dippin'down at the creek. So I bought model T.

As cameras got better I bought into the Canon system... AE-1 and A1 cameras. State of the art film cameras all.

Which brings to mind that some still think “film” is the only true photography. Digital not authentic. Purists think photos printed from film have that “look” about them that isn't duplicated with digital processing. In a word: Pooey!

For decades I had a love/hate relationship with film photography. You load a roll of film and invoked a higher power for help. Select Tv or Av mode ('auto' if in doubt), mash the shutter button, and pray. No way to know the results until the film was processed and prints made. But I digress.

Besides gear limitations, creativity was greatly limited. I bought an enlarger and made a darkroom in the garage. Spent hours burning and dodging in the dark lit only with a red light attempting to create a photo. Many sheets of photo paper wasted in the process. Not even a little do I miss the ghastly odor of developer and fixer.

Back to the present and landscape photography specifically. Whether in Av (Aperture priority) mode or Tv (Shutter Priority) mode, float the ISO and proper exposure is less of a problem with today's cameras. What's left? The all important composition!

Too often, the biggest problem I see with up and coming photographers is that they don't stop long enough to ask: What is it I am shooting and why? What is the image subject and meaning? Too often too many think a great photo magically happens when the shutter release button is pressed. Au contraire. A digital camera merely records data... the photographer makes the photograph. Remember?

Which brings me to “style”. A photographic style can be applied somewhat by camera programming but style comes alive when imparted during photo processing. Yes, the dreaded post processing! But digital photography opens up a world of creative possibilities that couldn't even be dreamed of with film photography. Key word: Creative. Creativity is a photographers adrenaline!

One of the recurring questions I receive is whether the Photos of the Week are straight from the camera or processed. Straight from the camera? I always record photos in RAW (300ppi) mode. But a RAW image is only data. Like film or yore, it has to be processed.

Photo editing is a topic I have yet to address. Will do just as soon as I can present it in an interesting manner. Oy, the demands of a photography columnist are exasperating!

This week’s Photo of the Week: The handsome Great Pumpkin of Fillmore. Rumor is that the Headless Horseman lusts for this charming head. The clock ticks. Will the Great Pumpkin ride into midnight on a black horse?

Send your comments, questions or suggestions to bob@fillmoregazette.com

Video courtesy Fillmore Fire Department.

Chris Theisen, General Manager for the Ventura Regional Sanitation District spoke first in the Presentations part of Tuesday’s regular meeting. Unfortunately a camera malfunction forced this reporter to leave before hearing the discussion. His remarks will be reported in a later edition. However, a last minute fix permitted some photos.

SESPE AQUIFER EXEMPTION:
The Seneca Oil Company is seeking to have the Sespe aquifer removed from the Safe Drinking Water Act which would permit it to extend its fraction operations closer to Fillmore’s large aquifer. Approximately 40 opponents of the Seneca proposal attended Tuesday’s meeting and urged that the Council send a strong letter to the Environmental Protection Agency condemning such a move.

The Council unanimously agreed to send such a letter. Each member spoke out against Seneca’s plan, arguing that fracking so close to the city’s aquifer could have catastrophic consequences leading to an eventual contamination of the aquifer.

Councilmember Diane McCall recalled an old Western adage, “We fight for whiskey. We kill for water.” That statement metaphorically sums-up the determination of the Council and city to halt any attempt by Seneca Oil to extend its fracking operation closer to our aquifer.

The Council will send a strong letter to the EPA opposing such a move.