As the traditional school year got underway in September, national news focused on a sobering, shameful moment in our country's history of race relations. The heart-wrenching and racially tinged attacks between African American and white students unfolding in Jena, Louisiana, seemed to come out of nowhere after decades of slumbering complacency over the belief that we have become a color-blind society. The one thing I learned as a history teacher is that those who fail to learn the lessons of history are doomed to repeat them. So in the weeks ahead, I urge educators to seize the "teachable moments" of the Jena 6 story, to discuss its implications and to begin a process of introspection and examination of the racial divides that continue to exist not only in Jena but around the nation and in California.
As we witnessed with the recent releases of the Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) Program and National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) test results, there remains a disturbingly persistent achievement gap between black or Latino students and white or Asian pupils. We know that all students can learn to the same high levels, so we have a moral, ethical, and economic responsibility to challenge anything that is holding back groups of students. As you know, I have asked the statewide P-16 Council to work with educators and researchers throughout California and with the California Department of Education (CDE) to develop sustainable strategies to close the achievement gap. In this process, we will be asking difficult questions about what is holding back students, and seeking to identify new ways for schools to create the best environments that promote learning and a sense of belonging for all students.
The Jena 6 incident reminds us that it is time for Americans to move beyond merely embracing tolerance and demanding justice for egregious, highly publicized wrongs. We must now take action to search for what may be difficult solutions to eliminate any barriers, intentional or not, that divide us racially and that diminish the lives of any group of people based on the color of their skin. As California educators, we can take action by seriously examining all factors that may feed into the achievement gap. That is why I am holding an Achievement Gap Summit on November 13-14 in Sacramento, and bringing together some of the best minds in the country to focus on ways we can help all students achieve to their fullest potential.
I urge you to attend the Achievement Gap Summit and listen to such renowned speakers as Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) host Tavis Smiley, actor Edward James Olmos, philanthropist Lowell Milken, scholars, and education stakeholders. To register, please visit the Achievement Gap Summit Web page (Outside Source). Also, if you are searching for preventive ways to make your school environment safer, please review our Bullying and Hate-Motivated Behavior Prevention Web page or call Stephanie Papas, School Health Education Consultant, Safe and Healthy Kids Program Office, at 916-445-8441 or by e-mail at spapas@cde.ca.gov.
Honoring Teachers
This month's Department Highlights honors one of Orange County's 2007 Teachers of the Year, Frederick P. Lammers, who has been a biology and health science teacher and swimming and water polo coach at Santa Ana Valley High School in the Santa Ana Unified School District since 1976.
"Early each school and summer morning, as the sun is coming up and steam is rising off the water, Fred can be found on the pool deck teaching his students how to compete as water polo and swim team members," wrote Antonio Espinosa, then-principal of the school, in Lammers' application for the California Teachers of the Year program. "He is a shining example of a gifted educator and demonstrates the difference a teacher can make in the lives of his students."
Mr. Lammers said in the application that there was a point early in his nearly 30-year career that he thought, "Anyone can do this job." That assessment did not last long. "Now I realize it is a select few who have the right temperament, attitude, and perseverance to be outstanding teachers," he wrote.
He has watched his own personal teaching style evolve over the years. He wrote, "And though times have changed and trends come and go in education, my commitment to the students and their learning has given me a quiet sense of pride in my profession."
He wrote that he finds himself repeating himself, but for good measure. He says some of his classic phrases are: "If you write it, you'll remember it." "There is nothing wrong with hard work." "No excuses, just results." "These catch phrases help students clarify what my attitude is and what I expect theirs to be," he says. "Structure and discipline are keystones for a comfortable and productive class environment."
As a coach and teacher, Mr. Lammers sees the epidemic of obesity that has confronted California and every other state in the nation. He is an advocate of wellness policies that spell out what kind of food can be served on campus and dictates physical fitness goals. "Knowledge is power, and changes in behavior only come through education with a consistent and correct message. School districts that embrace and promote a comprehensive wellness policy can only reap benefits in terms of healthier students, better academic performance, and a healthier work force and surrounding community," he says.
Mr. Lammers received a bachelor's of science degree and a master's degree at California State University, Long Beach. He holds several credentials.
Legislative Update
This year State Superintendent of Public Instruction (SSPI) Jack O'Connell sponsored 16 bills in the state Legislature. As of September 26, the following is the status of nine of the bills, three of which have been chaptered, and six of which are before the Governor:
Chaptered bills:
- Assembly Bill 647 (Salas) changes the method of allocating Tobacco Use and Prevention Education (TUPE) funds to a single competitive grant.
- AB 685 (Karnette) will make technical changes to various provisions of existing law regarding individuals with exceptional needs.
- AB 485 (Solorio) will prohibit a nonpublic, nonsectarian school or agency whose certification has been revoked from being eligible to apply for re-certification for two years from the revocation date.
Bills Before the Governor:
- Assembly Bill 252 (Coto) would allow school districts to order standards-based tests in Spanish from the current Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) Program contractor and require districts to cover any costs associated with administration, scoring, and reporting for non-English language students in dual immersion programs. .
- AB 347 (Nava) would implement a proposed settlement agreement in the Valenzuela v O'Connell et al. lawsuit by placing conditions on the receipt of funding that requires school districts to provide an additional two years of intensive instruction and services to pupils who have not passed the California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE) by the end of twelfth grade.
- Senate Bill 132 (Committee on Education) is the annual Technical Omnibus bill.
- AB 1663 (Evans) would make various revisions conforming state law to federal requirements relating to, among others, pupil identification, assessment, and eligibility; individualized education program development, including notice, implementation, and review; procedural safeguards, including due process hearing procedures and requirements; and pupil information confidentiality.
- SB 733 (Torlakson) as amended, would reauthorize the Instructional Materials Funding Realignment Program for six years.
- SB 734 (Torlakson) would reauthorize the follow-up adoption review by the California Department of Education (CDE) and fee charged to publishers, as well as place in statute the review for social content compliance and fee charged to publishers.
Bills of Interest:
- Assembly Bill 45 (Swanson) would require the return of local board authority, within a specified timeframe, of any operational area recommended for return by the Fiscal Crisis Management and Assistance Team (FCMAT).This bill was sent to the Governor on September 10. Y
- AB 1148 (Brownley) would require the CDE to annually report publisher price quotations submitted for instructional materials to be adopted that year, summarize requirements imposed on publishers, and estimate the net per-pupil cost of purchasing a complete set of instructional materials adopted for that year. This measure would also require the SSPI to consider the process publishers utilize to provide ancillary materials to districts, and recommend to the Legislature by January 1, 2009, whether or not that process should be modified or prohibited. This bill is before the Governor.
- AB 1379 (Brownley) would require the SSPI to identify alternative criteria and other measures, such as transcripts, alternative assessments of equal rigor, or portfolios, by which pupils who are regarded as proficient but unable to pass the CAHSEE may demonstrate sufficient proficiency to receive a diploma. This bill is before the Governor.
- Senate Bill 20 (Torlakson) no longer deals with school meals and nutrition. Instead, this bill clarifies and strengthens the process by which the State Board of Education (SBE) approves petitions for statewide benefit charter schools. The bill also appropriates $18 million in funding for purposes of the Charter School Facility Grant Program. SSPI Jack O'Connell authored the first bill (SB 740, Chapter 892, Statutes of 2001) that provided funding for the Charter School Facility Grant Program. SB 20 was signed by Governor on September 21.
- SB 123 (Romero) would extend the current exemption for special education students to pass the CAHSEE to the Class of 2008. It would provide pupils with disabilities who have met all other state and local graduation requirements but are unable to satisfy the high school exit examination requirement an opportunity to demonstrate mastery of the academic content through an alternative process.
- SB 826 (Padilla) would reassign the requirement to develop American Indian Education Curriculum with the University of California Subject Matter Projects instead of the State Librarian. The bill is before the Governor.
- AB 150 (Lieu) would establish the California Financial Literacy Initiative for the purpose of improving financial literacy by offering materials for teachers and schools to provide high-quality financial literacy education for pupils in kindergarten through grade twelve.
- AB 438 (Price) would revise exit criteria for the Immediate Intervention/Underperforming Schools Program (II/USP) and the High Priority Schools Grant Program (HPSGP) by requiring schools to meet or exceed Academic Performance Index (API) growth targets, including targets for numerically significant subgroups, averaged over three years for HPSGP and averaged over two years for II/USP. The bill is before the Governor.
- SB 219 (Steinberg) would require that all test scores and accountability data of a pupil enrolled in an alternative education program (AEP), including community schools, community day schools, continuation high schools, and independent study, be included in the referring school's API if that school is the school of residence for the pupil, unless the pupil has been referred to the AEP by a juvenile court judge or other correctional or judicial official or unless the pupil is under a mandated expulsion order. It would also require the drop out rates for pupils who drop out of eighth or ninth grade in the calculation of a school's API score. This bill is before the Governor.
- SB 405 (Steinberg) was significantly amended on August 17 to expand upon the Middle and High School Supplemental Counseling (MHSSC) Program. This bill would expand the program requirements to require participating school district high schools to require each high school within its jurisdiction to develop a list of coursework and experience necessary in order to assist pupils who have not satisfied or who are not on track to satisfy the curricular requirements for admission to the University of California and the California State University. This measure is before the Governor.
- AB 1061 (Mullin) is an administration-sponsored bill that modifies the data elements school districts are required to report on the school accountability report card (SARC) for each school. This measure is before the Governor.
- AB 494 (Huffman) would express the Legislature's intent that high-achieving schools and school districts be given additional deference when applying for waivers, as specified. The bill would also express the Legislature's intent that the SBE gives particular attention to certain factors when identifying high-achieving schools and school districts. This bill is before the Governor.
You can find more information regarding these bills on the Official Legislative Information Web site (Outside Source).
Speakers Identified for Upcoming Achievement Gap Summit
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell has announced a prestigious lineup of speakers and session leaders that will be featured at the Achievement Gap Summit he is hosting on November 13-14 at the Sacramento Convention Center.
Keynote speakers during the two-day Summit are: Tavis Smiley, a Public Broadcasting Services (PBS) late-night television talk show host, political commentator, and author of eight books about love, loss, and faith by African Americans from all walks of life; Edward James Olmos, actor, producer, director, and community activist; Dr. Douglas Reeves, founder of the Center for Performance Assessment, an international organization dedicated to improving student achievement and educational equity; Chester Finn, Jr., a scholar, educator, and public servant, who has been at the forefront of the national education debate for 35 years; and Richard Rothstein, a research associate of the Economic Policy Institute, and an adjunct lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
In addition to the keynote speakers, there are a number of featured speakers who will lead panel discussions and break-out sessions, including: Lowell Milken, Chairman of the Milken Family Foundation; Jamal Abedi, a professor at the University of California, Davis; Michael Cohen, President of Achieve; Dr. Ronald Ferguson, an economist at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard.; and Kate Kinsella, Ed.D., an adjunct faculty member at San Francisco State University.
A number of other notable education stakeholders will lead discussions, including Russlyn Ali, Founding Director of Education Trust-West; Kevin Johnson, Founder and CEO of St. HOPE Academy; and many more.
For a complete list of Summit speakers, biographies, registration information, and additional information on the Achievement Gap Summit, please visit the Achievement Gap Web page (Outside Source).
New Members of the California P-16 Council
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell announced the appointment of six new members to the California P-16 Council. The P-16 Council includes educators, parents, elected officials, business leaders, researchers, librarians, and students that represent all segments of public education from preschool through college. O'Connell has charged the P-16 Council with the development of a specific and ambitious plan that will hold the state of California accountable for creating the conditions necessary for closing the achievement gap.
The new members are:
- Carlos Garcia, Superintendent, San Francisco Unified School District
- Debra Watkins, President, California Alliance for African American Educators
- Horace Mitchell, President, California State University, Bakersfield
- Patricia Rucker, Legislative Advocate, California Teachers Association
- Saundra Bishop, Director, Compton Adult School
- Philip Halperin, President, Silver Giving Foundation
The California P-16 Council Subcommittee and P-16 Unit
The California P-16 Council Subcommittee members and staff have been hard at work this month, each holding a number of conference calls, as well as face to face meetings, among their respective membership and staff, to discuss both their collective research to date, and the constructive input they have received from educators statewide, and also that of our own front-line California Department of Education (CDE) employees.
Relative to CDE staff involvement, the P-16 Unit consultants have continued conducting Department-wide "brown bag lunch" gatherings to encourage our own pool of experienced education experts to inform the discussion on the CDE's current and potential role in closing the achievement gap. This month the achievement gap related topics were poverty and race and privilege.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell Kicks Off Financial Literacy Campaign
Tackling head-on the problem of financial illiteracy among California teenagers, State Superintendent of Public Instruction (SSPI) Jack O'Connell and other state and education officials teamed up with San Francisco 49ers Quarterback Alex Smith and representatives from Visa to announce the statewide rollout of a new effort to improve the money management skills of California students.
As part of this effort, SSPI O'Connell and California State Board of Equalization Chairwoman Betty Yee are distributing to every high school in California, free copies of "Financial Football," an interactive money management video game with a National Football League (NFL) theme developed by Visa.
"Responsible money management is a critical part of surviving in today's world," O'Connell said. "The earlier we can make our students financially literate, the better off they will be in the future. I am so pleased that Board of Equalization Chairwoman Betty Yee, Visa, and the NFL share my concern about the financial futures of our students. They are leading partners in our effort to make free financial literacy tools available to schools, teachers, students, and their parents."
O'Connell announced the new Financial Literacy Web page, where students, teachers, and parents can access free financial literacy learning tools offered by a variety of consumer organizations and financial institutions, including the "Financial Football" game. The resources are sorted by age-appropriate grade spans.
"Financial Football" is the centerpiece of Visa's nationwide educational initiative with the NFL and PLAYERS INC, designed to help students tackle their financial futures. This computer-based game is accompanied by a classroom curriculum and can also be downloaded for free on cell phones.
Annual Statewide Student Identifier Maintenance Submission Due
The California Department of Education (CDE) will be collecting official enrollment, graduate, and dropout data this fall via the Statewide Student Identifier (SSID) Maintenance, or via the fall submission for local educational agencies (LEAs) participating in the California School Information Services (CSIS) State Reporting Program. The submission window for the Annual SSID Maintenance will be from October 3 through December 10, 2007. By December 10, your LEA must do all of the following: (1) submit all required data for all of your schools to the CSIS Program; (2) generate and review the Enrollment Summary and Census reports; and (3) certify the accuracy of that data. Certification of the Annual SSID Maintenance submission by the deadline is critical for your LEA because the official enrollment count is used to calculate funding for a number of categorical programs, including SSID maintenance funding. Therefore, failure to submit this data on time jeopardizes funding. To be successful, the CDE and CSIS strongly recommend that LEAs begin to take the necessary steps to prepare for this submission now. For more information on the Annual SSID Maintenance submission and the steps that LEAs need to take, please contact the CSIS Program, at 916-325-9260 or by e-mail at support@csis.k12.ca.us.
Training to Better Serve Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders
The Diagnostic Center, Northern California (DCNC) continues to provide technical assistance local school districts. In addition to their assessment and training services, the DCNC has developed a program of comprehensive professional development projects designed to provide in-depth content training and multiple levels of follow-up support to selected LEAs. During the 2006-07 school year, both the Rio Linda Union School District and the Las Lomitas Elementary School District requested assistance to develop programs to better serve their students with Autism Spectrum Disorders, specifically Aspergers Syndrome.
The project, entitled "Enhancing Classroom Success for Students with Social-Cognitive Differences," involved five elementary schools and focused on recognizing the characteristics of students with social-cognitive differences, the development of school-wide frameworks for interpreting and understanding student behavior, and learning strategies to address poor social relationships, emotional dysregulation, sensory overload, and academic challenges.
Full-day trainings were provided to all elementary general education and special education staff, including paraeducators. Monthly on-site consultations involved demonstration teaching, coaching, and problem solving sessions. For further information please contact Mary Anne Nielsen, Director, DCNC, at 510-794-2500.
Clearinghouse for Specialized Media and Technology Wins National Award
The California Department of Education's (CDE's) Clearinghouse for Specialized Media and Technology (CSMT) was selected in September as a winner of a 2007 Digital Education Achievement Award for a Web-based system that helps students with disabilities access curriculum.
The CSMT uses a Web-based Instructional Materials Ordering and Distribution (IMODS) system to help students with disabilities access the general curriculum. California teachers use an online shopping cart located on the CSMT Web page to order state-adopted textbooks, workbooks, literature books, and other instructional materials in accessible formats. These accessible formats include Braille, large print, recordings, and American Sign Language video books. In addition, CSMT is now offering electronic files of many titles that can be downloaded as MP3 audio recordings, computer Braille files, and eTEXT files.
The CSMT, which is part of the CDE's Curriculum Frameworks and Instructional Resources Division, was cited in the "Teacher-Focused" category. The Digital Education Achievement Award is a national program that recognizes outstanding Web sites and cutting-edge ed-tech applications.
New Director for the California Department of Education's Learning Support and Partnerships Division
Gordon Jackson has been appointed Director for the Learning Support and Partnerships Division. Gordon has been with the California Department of Education for eight years serving most recently as the Administrator for the District and School Program Coordination Unit in the School Improvement Division since September of 2000. He brings with him 26 years of educational experience including 10 years as a classroom teacher and 16 years as an administrator. He has also served as a board trustee on a local school board.
New Director for the California Department of Education's New Language Learner and Support Division
Hector Rico has been appointed Director for the Language Learner and Support Division that was established this summer. Hector has been acting as the Interim Director for the School and District Accountability Division since June 2007. Prior, he was the administrator of the English Learner Accountability Unit since August 2006. Héctor began his work at the California Department of Education (CDE) as a bilingual consultant in 1997, monitoring school districts' programs for English learners under the Comité and Coordinated Compliance Review processes. In between his assignments as a CDE consultant and then administrator, he served as a district Title VII coordinator and an elementary school principal. His career in education also includes serving as a high school vice principal, a middle school teacher, and an elementary school bilingual teacher.
The Language Learner and Support Division brings together three existing units: (1) the English Learner Accountability Unit from the School and District Accountability Division (SDAD); (2) the Migrant, Indian, International Education Office from the Learning Support and Partnerships Division (LSPD); and (3) the Language Policy and Leadership Office from the Professional Development and Curriculum Support Division (PDCSD).
How Does Your District Receive United States Department Agriculture Donated Commodity Food?
This is an excellent time for a discussion with your Business Official and Food Service Director about the options available to your district for ordering and having your United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) commodities delivered in order to determine the most cost effective way your schools can receive USDA foods.
The California Department of Education's (CDE's) Food Distribution Program (FDP) is committed to providing excellent customer service while maintaining low-delivery and storage fees in order to provide cost-effective operations that can assist you in stretching your valuable food service funds. The delivery fees we charge are low, and we have recently invested more than $1 million in improving our warehouse and delivery operations. Please take advantage of this opportunity to assess your options. The deadline for notifying the FDP of any changes is December 1, 2007, for the 2008-09 school year.
There are several options that the FDP uses to distribute USDA donated commodities to schools:
- State Food Distribution Center: a school receives commodities directly from one of the two State Distribution Centers (SDCs) and participates in the regular offering process.
- State Co-operative: a school orders commodities using a pre-planner and receives their commodities through one of the SDCs.
- Private Co-operative: a school orders and receives commodities through membership in a private co-perative.
For more information, please contact Carol Guenther-Wilson, Commodity Consultant, Commodity Distribution Unit, at 916-324-9875 or by e-mail at cguenthe@cde.ca.gov. You may also contact Amy Bell, Commodity Consultant, Commodity Distribution Unit, at 916-322-5051 or by e-mail at abell@cde.ca.gov.
Shaping Health as Partners in Education Workshops on Breakfast
School district officials are invited to attend one of the California Department of Education's (CDE's) Shaping Health as Partners in Education (SHAPE) Fall Workshops, entitled "Breakfast Scores High on Closing the Achievement Gap." School breakfast is an evidence-based, yet relatively simple intervention that supports the CDE's priority to close the achievement gap. Breakfast will be highlighted as a strategy for closing the achievement gap at the CDE's upcoming Summit in November.
The SHAPE workshops are being presented by the Nutrition Services Division in collaboration with the CDE's P-16 Council, who are leading the CDE in formulating strategies to address the achievement gap. Other workshop partners include the California School Board Association, the California School Nutrition Association, and the California Food Policy Advocates.
By attending a regional workshop, you will hear highlights of the extensive and compelling research documenting the positive impact of breakfast on academic performance. The workshops will also present solutions to some of the common barriers encountered when initiating or expanding breakfast programs, along with promising practices, such as breakfast on the bus, universal classroom breakfast, and others, which may be shared by school food service directors, principals, and superintendents.
The workshop series will be offered in 11 locations statewide from November 5, 2007, to January 17, 2008:
Bakersfield: November 5, 2007
Fresno: November 8, 2007
Los Angeles: November 16, 2007
Hayward November 27, 2007
Redding: November 30, 2007
Ontario: December 4, 2007
Salinas: December 7, 2007
Sacramento: December 10, 2007
Santa Rosa: December 14, 2007
Costa Mesa: December 17, 2007
Palm Springs: January 17, 2008
Registration is $15 and includes a working lunch. For more information, or if you are interested in sharing your success in overcoming logistical barriers involving a school breakfast program at one or more of these workshops, please contact Heather Reed, Nutrition Education Consultant, Nutrition Services Division, at 916-323-3581 or 800-952-5609 or by e-mail at hreed@cde.ca.gov.
Planting the Seed for California Instructional School Gardens
Nearly 4,000 schools statewide were given garden grant awards totaling over $10.8 million in September. These funds are the result of Assembly Bill 1535 (Nunez) (Chapter 437, Statutes of 2006) that authorized the California Department of Education (CDE) to award $15 million in grant funds for the California Instructional School Gardens (CISG) Program. This legislation planted the seed for instructional school gardens and created the CISG Program.
The CISG Program provides schools $2,500 and $5,000 grants for equipment, supplies, educational resources, and professional development for teachers and staff to create or expand the school garden as a learning laboratory and to provide students with integrated, experiential learning-directly linking this learning to academic classes or to enhance the after-school program.
Instructional school gardens are an excellent opportunity for community involvement. Statewide, the California School Garden Network (CSGN) is a resource for schools with instructional gardens. You can find useful resources and publications on the CSGN Web site (Outside Source).
Schools that did not receive a CISG Program grant this fall may apply through their district, county office of education, or direct-funded charter school for grants in February/March 2008 through an online application. Those schools that received a grant notification in September must complete and submit the paperwork they received with the grant notification to receive the grant funds.
For more information on the CISG Program, please visit the CISG Funding Results Web page.
School Community Violence Prevention
The School Community Violence Prevention (SCVP) Grant Program will release this month the SCVP Request for Applications. The SCVP Grant Program is administered by the School/Law Enforcement Partnership, a joint effort between the Attorney General's Office and the California Department of Education. Funding is awarded to local education agencies to address school safety and violence prevention needs identified by school staff, law enforcement, students, parents, and community partners. Grants are awarded for a maximum of $500,000 for a maximum of five years. In 2006-07, $17.3 million dollars in SCVP grants were issued to 31 grantees. This year, 10 percent of grant funds will be awarded to small rural school districts, and 20 percent of grant funds will be set aside to address gang violence. For more information regarding the SCVP Grant Program, please contact Stephanie Papas, School Health Education Consultant, Safe and Healthy Kids Program Office, at 916-445-8441 or by e-mail at spapas@cde.ca.gov. Additional information is available on the Funding Web page.
First Statewide Student Assistance Program Conference
The Learning Support and Partnership Division (LSPD) is sponsoring its first statewide Student Assistance Program (SAP) Conference. The Conference will take place in partnership with the California Masonic Foundation and will be held on February 5-6, 2008, in San Francisco. Nationally renowned professionals will provide an exciting forum exploring best practices, innovations, science-based evidence, and effective intervention techniques achieved through successful SAPs.
For more information regarding SAPs, please visit the SAPs Web page. For more information regarding the SAP Conference, please visit the SAP Conference Web site (Outside Source).
Categorical Program Monitoring Training
Safe and Healthy Kids Program Office staff are scheduled to support the Safe and Drug, Alcohol, Tobacco Education (S&DATE) portion of the Categorical Program Monitoring (CPM) training that will take place in October as follows:
- October 4 in Riverside at the County Office of Education (COE)
- October 18 in Humboldt County
- October 19 in Los Angeles at the COE
- October 30 in Oroville for Lassen and Butte Counties
For more information regarding the CPM training, please contact the Safe and Healthy Kids Program Office, at 916-319-0920.
Tobacco Use Prevention Education
The Safe and Healthy Kids Program Office has released a Request for Applications (RFA) to provide $3.1 million to the 58 county offices of education for the purposes of technical assistance and leadership activities in support of local educational agencies' violence, alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs prevention programs. A fact sheet that demonstrates the connection between student tobacco use and academic achievement can be found on the WestEd Healthy Kids Survey Web page (Outside Source).
For more information regarding the RFA please contact the Safe and Healthy Kids Program Office, at 916-319-0920.
2007 Ready to Learn Conference
The Counseling, Student Support, and Service-Learning Office, in partnership with the EduAlliance Network, will host the 2007 Ready to Learn Conference on October 14-17 at the Hyatt Regency in Orange County. The theme of this year's conference is, A Conference for Educators Who Are Dedicated to Helping At-Risk Students Achieve Success: Strategies for Early Identification, Intervention, and Dropout Prevention. The staff and organizers strive to provide a conference that gives participants the strength-based strategies and skills they need to inspire at-risk students to stay in school and graduate. All sessions and topics work together to help transform schools into caring communities for all students, from kindergarten through high school.
For more information regarding the conference please contact the Counseling, Student Support, and Service-Learning Office, at 916-323-2183.
Second Year Underway For New Oral Health Assessment Requirement
Schools should now be sending home information about the new oral health assessment requirement to all kindergarten students and all first graders who did not attend public school kindergarten last year. Many schools included this information in kindergarten registration packets. By May 31 of each school year, students should submit proof to their school that they have had an oral health assessment. A form for this purpose as well as a waiver request is available on the Oral Health Assessment Web page. The form and waiver request are also available online in several other languages.
This new requirement was established by Assembly Bill 1433, signed into law by the Governor on September 22, 2006. The new law (California Education Code (EC) Section 49452.8) requires that by May 31 each year students in kindergarten (or first grade if it is their first year in public school) submit proof of an oral health assessment performed by a licensed dentist or other licensed or registered dental health professional.
By December 31 each year, districts are responsible for aggregating the data received from pupils in May of the prior school year and for sending an annual report to the respective county office of education. For example, by December 31, 2007, districts must submit to their county office the information received from students by May 2007 (the prior school year's kindergarten students).The specific information that must be included in the district report is available on the Oral Health Assessment District Reporting Web page, as well as a link to an optional online reporting system. If districts choose not to use the online system, they should check with their county office concerning the preferred reporting format. A standardized paper form for this purpose is not provided by the California Department of Education (CDE).
If you have any questions regarding the implementation of EC Section 49452.8, please contact Donna Bezdecheck, School Health Education Consultant, School Health Connections and Healthy Start Office, at (916) 319-0283 or by e-mail at dbezdech@cde.ca.gov. If you have any questions regarding the related apportionments for this program, please contact Marcie Gregory, Education Fiscal Services Assistant, Management Assistance, Categorical Programs, and Audit Resolution Unit, at 916-324-4537 or by e-mail at mgregory@cde.ca.gov.
California State Teachers Retirement System Offers New Convenience at Counseling Offices
California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) members can now personally turn in retirement applications and other forms at five counseling offices around the state as well as mail or drive paperwork to Sacramento. During a pilot period starting on October 15, 2007, CalSTRS counseling offices in San Francisco, Fresno, San Diego, Humboldt, and Downey will accept documents. For more information regarding the counseling offices, please visit the Benefits Counseling Services Directory - CalSTRS Web site (Outside Source).
CalSTRS counseling office clerical staff will date stamp and send documents overnight to Sacramento. However, they cannot process applications or forms received in their offices or accept payments. Following the trial period, CalSTRS will evaluate the program and determine if it will be continued or expanded.
For more information regarding the teacher retirement system, please contact CalSTRS, at 800-228-5453 or visit the CalSTRS Web site (Outside Source).
