Superintendent Jack-O'Connell
California State Superintendent of Public Instruction

SACRAMENTO — State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell today announced that since the beginning of this year the number of school districts that may be unable to meet future financial obligations because of the continuing state budget crisis and inadequate funding for public education has increased by 38 percent. The list of school districts is attached.

"We are seeing an alarming spike in the number of school districts that are having trouble meeting their financial obligations,” said O’Connell. “Schools on this list are now forced to make terrible decisions to cut programs and services that students need or face bankruptcy. This trend will worsen if the Governor’s proposed cuts to public education are enacted in the 2010-11 budget. I have grave concerns that more and more school districts will face financial crisis unless state lawmakers find solutions to the state budget crisis and provide adequate funding for our schools.”

Public education in California received $17 billion less in state funding than anticipated over the last two budget years. As a result, more than 20,000 teachers have received pink slips this year. Summer school has been eliminated, class sizes are increasing, and art, music, libraries, school nurses, and sports programs have been cut.

The California Department of Education CONTINUED »

Superintendent Jack-O'Connell
California State Superintendent of Public Instruction

SACRAMENTO – State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell today announced California was awarded nearly $416 million through the School Improvement Grants (SIG) program from the U.S. Department of Education.

“I am very grateful to President Obama and U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan for making this critical funding available for California’s persistently lowest-achieving schools,” said O’Connell. “This grant will help fund efforts to turn around persistently struggling schools in order to prepare their students for success in college and careers.”

The federal School Improvement Grants program is authorized under Section 1003(g) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act that is intended to provide all children equal access to education. SIG is designed to improve student achievement in schools identified for program improvement, corrective action, or restructuring.

In March 2010, as required by state law and SIG program regulations, the California Department of Education identified 188 schools considered to be the persistently lowest achieving. These schools are required to make dramatic changes to improve teaching and learning and help prepare thousands of students for a brighter future. The SIG program provides resources to fund the school turnaround activities. The identified local educational agencies (LEAs) and schools applying for SIG funding must fully implement one of four school intervention models during the 2010–11 school year as required by state and federal law. The four models are:

Turnaround Model: The LEA undertakes a series of major school improvement actions, including replacing the principal and rehiring no more than 50 percent of the school's staff; adopting a new governance structure; and implementing an instructional program that is research-based and vertically aligned from one grade to the next, as well as aligned with California's adopted content standards.

Restart Model: The LEA converts a school or closes and reopens a school under a charter school operator; a charter management organization; or an education management organization that has been selected through a locally determined, rigorous review process, using state educational agency provided guidance. A restart model school must enroll, within the grades it serves, any former student who wishes to attend the school.

School Closure Model: The LEA closes a school and enrolls the students who attended that school in other schools in the LEA that are higher achieving. These other schools should be within reasonable proximity to the closed school and may include charter schools or new schools for which achievement data are not yet available.
Transformation Model: The LEA implements a series of required school improvement strategies, including replacing the principal who led the school prior to implementation of the transformation model, and increasing instructional time.

LEAs and school districts are responsible for ensuring that one of these four models is implemented at each school that they commit to serve in the SIG application. The $415,844,376 made available to California is being distributed by formula to the state and will then be competed out by the state to school districts. LEAs may apply for SIG funds at http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/sw/t1/sig09.asp. The California Department of Education will make recommendations to the State Board of Education for approval of the LEA applications.

To view the list of schools identified as persistently lowest achieving, and for more information about the identification process, please visit http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/ac/pl/index.asp.

Fillmore Unified School District

FILLMORE UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
SPECIAL MEETING OF THE BOARD OF EDUCATION
TUESDAY, JUNE 29, 2010
5:15 P.M. – CLOSED SESSION
6:00 P.M. – SPECIAL BOARD MEETING
627 SESPE AVENUE, FILLMORE, CALIFORNIA

AGENDA

The public may review or request a copy of support materials provided to the Board Members where the word materials appears.
5:15 p.m.
I. CALL TO ORDER AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG
II. ROLL CALL
III. PUBLIC COMMENT ON CLOSED SESSION AND NONAGENDA ITEMS,
PETITIONS
This is the time and place to address the Board. State law prohibits the Board from acting on issues not included on the agenda; however, requests may be made for discussion of specific topics at subsequent meetings.
IV. CLOSED SESSION
The Board of Education will meet from 5:15 to 6:00 p.m. to consider matters appropriate for Closed Session in accordance with Government Code Sections 3549.1, 54956.7 through 54957.7 and Education Code Section 35146. If the Board does not complete Closed Session discussions at this time, the Board may adjourn to Closed Session at the end of the regular meeting. DISCLOSURE OF ITEM(S) TO BE DISCUSSED IN CLOSED SESSION Labor/Negotiations (Government Code 54957.6)
o Update; Direction to CONTINUED »

Bert Rapp, the City of Fillmore Public Works Director will lead an engineering bicycle tour of Fillmore on Sunday June 27th. The tour is intended for High School or Junior College students looking for a career choice and might be interested in Civil Engineering.

The tour will begin at City Hall at 1:00 and travel to the various public infrastructure facilities around the city and return to City hall about 5:00. Participants will see how we get our drinking water and deliver it to the customers. They will learn how the Foothill Pressure Zone saves the water customers $40,000 a year in electricity costs and how water reservoirs are designed for seismic forces.

Pole Creek will give up some of its hydraulic secrets and the mighty Santa Clara River’s geomorphology will be uncovered. Participants will learn how the city engineers design environmentally friendly flood protection along the river and how the sidewalks can be constructed to be root resistant to street trees.

Keeping streets safe in a small town is essential, so as we ride we will discuss traffic calming techniques and look at some of the improvements the City of Fillmore has made.

The bike riders will stop by the CONTINUED »

Bethany College has named Jacob Arroyo of Fillmore to its Spring 2010 Academics Deans Honor Roll. To be recognized, a student must be full-time with a semester grade point average of at least 3.50 on a 4 point scale for the fall semester.

Last Saturday Night the Fillmore High Alumni Association held it's annual Alumni Dinner and a great time was had by all who attended. Some Alumni came in from all over the United States, and California. You may have seen the parked Motor Homes in the Parking lot. One of the highlights of the evening was a peek preview of the 99 game history of the Fillmore/Santa Paula football series that will be available after November 1st, 2010. Interviews and old film footage was shown. Even part of a film footage from the 1930 Flashes/Cardinals game. if you didn't make it to the dinner and you want to reserve your copy (before they run out), call the Alumni Office at 805-524-0416. They will bill you at a later date. The hard working Board of Directors are already working on Next years Dinner. You won't want to miss it.

The second Highlight of the evening was the annual awarding of the Alumni Scholarships. This years Alumni Scholarship recipients are as follows: The John and Nit Lemley Scholarships went to Esteban Casas, and Kellsie McLain. The Richard Ortega Memorial Scholarship went to Andres Casas. The American Legion Scholarship went to Anthony Chavez. The Vernon and Arlene Nelson Scholarship went to Jazzmin Galvez. The Wm. Brisby Science Scholarship went to Amanda Hernandez. The Stella Harthorn Memorial Scholarship went to Megan Louth. The Dulcie Arnold Scholarship went to Kelsey MacDonald. The Carl and Helen Siechert Scholarship went to Moneh Magdaleno. The Fillmore Masonic Temple Scholarship went to Rebecca Vassaur, and the Fillmore Breakfast Club scholarship went to Alejandra Lopez. See you all at next years dinner on June 4th, 2011. GO FLASHES!!

Over two hundred fifty alumni and guests enjoyed an outstanding alumni dinner when they met Saturday at the Memorial Building to celebrate the 97th alumni banquet. Under the direction of Vice President, Mark Ortega, and with the assistance of the entire alumni board, the evening was carried out in a quick and efficient manner.

The evening started with much visiting my alumni members from the 1930's through the 1980's, including the ten recently graduated seniors who received alumni scholarships. The dinner part of the evening was opened with the posting of the colors by members of Troop 406 of the Boy Scouts, followed by the serving of the meal by the Bardsdale 4-H, which was prepared by Gary Laird Catering.

Honored classes from 1945, 1950, 1955, 1960, 1965, and 1970 were recognized, with many class members traveling quite some distances to be in attendance. Alumni members from Virginia, Texas, New Mexico, Montana, Arizona, Washington, Oregon and Hawaii were all in attendance.

Door prizes, which were provided by Lupe Vasquez, Gertrude Gathright, Carmen Zermeno, Beylik Family Farms and Mission Produce were given out to lucky winners. The 50-50 raffle was won by Sandra Warring O'Connor who came from Hawaii.

The entire evening was deemed a huge success by those in attendance, as well as the alumni board, who are already planning next year's banquet, which will be held on Saturday, June 4. So mark your calendars as it should be another great occasion.

KCLU AM/FM, the National Public Radio station for Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, won four 2010 Mark Twain Awards for broadcast excellence in the Western United States from the Associated Press Television and Radio Association on Saturday.

KCLU’s Jim Rondeau, John Palminteri and Lance Orozco were honored for Best Live Coverage of a News Event for their reporting on Santa Barbara County’s Jesusita Brushfire in May 2009.

Orozco won a Twain Award for Best Spot News Story for his live, on-scene coverage of Ventura County’s 2009 Guiberson Fire. He also won for Best Sports Reporting for “The Oldest Dodger,” a story about a Ventura County man who’s the oldest living member of the Major League Baseball team.

John North, who produces special projects for KCLU, tied with KSAK in Walnut, Calif., for Best Special Program “Not In My Backyard,” an hour-long documentary about the problems California is facing in monitoring paroled sexual offenders.

KCLU competed against CONTINUED »

California State University Channel Islands

Camarillo, Calif., June 15, 2010 – A recent release of the Impact of the California State University System report from the Office of the Chancellor reported the positive economic impact of CSU Channel Islands (CI) on the Central Coast region, including Ventura County, and on the state.

This analysis includes the fiscal impact of campus spending on the region and the state, the jobs generated by CI, on workforce preparation, and higher alumni earnings which contribute to the state’s tax base.

Annual spending related to CI, $135.5 million, generates a total impact of nearly $240.5 million on the statewide economy. This impact sustains more than 1,200 jobs in the region and more than 2,000 jobs statewide.

From the standpoint of local and state tax revenue, the impact generates tax revenue in excess of $6 million per year at the local level and $13.7 million at the state level.

“While an economic analysis cannot CONTINUED »

California State University Channel Islands

Camarillo, Calif., June 14, 2010 – When registration for fall 2010 classes opens on Monday, June 21, CSU Channel Islands (CI) will implement a new system of tiered registration for new students. The campus faces over-enrollment for the 2010-11 year due to the high demand from prospective students. The new limited tiered enrollment will help to evenly distribute first-choice courses among students.

The new tiered system will address two issues: promoting fairness for students needing specific classes for their major or graduation, and reducing the number of classes to meet the financial constraints facing CI in the wake of budget reductions by the state. This will impact students’ class schedules for fall 2010.

Dr. Jane Sweetland, Dean of Enrollment at CI, said, “We’ve been working hard to find ways to support both the success of our continuing students and provide access to as many students as possible. While the state is not supporting growth on this campus, demand has grown exponentially. Our goal is to provide an excellent educational opportunity for all our students.”

Tiered registration will involve students CONTINUED »

Fillmore Unified School District

FILLMORE UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF EDUCATION
TUESDAY, JUNE 15, 2010

5:15 P.M. – CLOSED SESSION
6:00 P.M. - REGULAR MEETING

627 SESPE AVENUE, FILLMORE, CALIFORNIA

AGENDA
The public may review or request a copy of support materials provided to the Board Members where the word materials appears.
5:15 p.m.
I. CALL TO ORDER AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG
II. ROLL CALL
III. PUBLIC COMMENT ON CLOSED SESSION AND NONAGENDA ITEMS, PETITIONS
This is the time and place to address the Board. State law prohibits the Board from acting on issues not included on the agenda; however, requests may be made for discussion of specific topics at subsequent meetings.
IV. CLOSED SESSION
The Board of Education will meet from 5:15 to 6:00 p.m. to consider matters appropriate for Closed Session in accordance with Government Code Sections 3549.1, 54956.7 through 54957.7 and Education Code Section 35146. If the Board does not complete Closed Session discussions at this time, the Board may adjourn to Closed Session at the end of the regular meeting. DISCLOSURE OF ITEM(S) TO BE DISCUSSED IN CLOSED SESSION School District Pupils (Education Code 35146)
o Expulsion Case Number 09-10-25 CONTINUED »

Written by By TRIP GABRIEL for The New York Times

The staff of Normandy Crossing Elementary School outside Houston eagerly awaited the results of state achievement tests this spring. For the principal and assistant principal, high scores could buoy their careers at a time when success is increasingly measured by such tests. For fifth-grade math and science teachers, the rewards were more tangible: a bonus of $2,850.

But when the results came back, some seemed too good to be true. Indeed, after an investigation by the Galena Park Independent School District, the principal, assistant principal and three teachers resigned May 24 in a scandal over test tampering.

The district said the educators had distributed a detailed study guide after stealing a look at the state science test by “tubing” it — squeezing a test booklet, without breaking its paper seal, to form an open tube so that questions inside could be seen and used in the guide. The district invalidated students’ scores.

Of all the forms of academic cheating, none may be... http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/11/education/11cheat.html

In perhaps the President Obama's most stealth campaign to date, the federal government has been slowly tightening its grip on the education sector to little fanfare. Rather than working through the democratic legislative process, this Administration has circumvented Congress to enact an ill-conceived education agenda that will weaken accountability, reduce transparency and minimize choice while only adding to the national deficit.

For close to four decades, the... http://blog.heritage.org/2010/06/11/morning-bell-prolonging-educations-r...

Enlarge Photo

SACRAMENTO – State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell today released the results of a survey of local educational agencies (LEAs) to find out how state budget cuts to public education are affecting them. O’Connell held a news conference in the Natomas Unified School District in Sacramento County where all eight elementary school libraries were shut down to close a budget gap. The survey results are attached.

“The survey results make clear that school administrators are making heartrending decisions to balance their dwindling budgets while trying valiantly to keep students’ best interests in mind,” said O’Connell. “Sixty-five percent of districts that responded to this survey made cuts to building and school grounds maintenance, 58 percent cut funding for instructional materials, and 58 percent reduced funding for district administration. Forty percent of respondents have reduced the number of teachers; reduced or eliminated summer school; increased class sizes; and cut art and music classes, closed libraries, eliminated school nurse positions, and canceled sports programs.

“These deep cuts to our schools were made even though the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act provided critical funds to save education jobs last year. These funds are now running out, and our state budget picture continues to look bleak. In the Governor’s May Revise, he proposes another $1.5 billion in general-purpose funding cuts that will exacerbate the current annihilation of services to students.

“Our public education system is in crisis. These cuts hurt students and hurt California’s future economic viability. I call on the Governor and the Legislature to show the courage and leadership needed to find a budget solution that puts students first and protects our schools from further cuts.”

The California Department of Education launched CONTINUED »