Yong Zhao

THOUSAND OAKS, CA - An internationally known advocate for educational reform who has designed schools and founded institutions will speak at California Lutheran University at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 21.

Yong Zhao will present “From Job Seekers to Job Creators: Educating Creative and Entrepreneurial Talents for the New Economy” in the Lundring Events Center. A reception for the Michael A. Moffitt MemorialEducational Leadership Lecture will begin at 5 p.m. CLU’s Graduate School of Education and Corwin, a Thousand Oaks-based publisher of professional development resources for pre-K through 12th-grade educators, are sponsoring the free event.

Educational institutions continue to reward compliant test-takers, even when it is clear that we need creative and entrepreneurial talents who can take full advantage of technology and globalization and tackle the tough challenges facing us, according to Zhao. With more than half of recent college graduates unemployed or underemployed, he thinks it is time for a new approach.

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Ventura County Sheriff's Department

The Camarillo Police Department will be hosting a program to educate newly licensed and future drivers.

The “Start Smart” Program is a cooperative effort between the California Highway Patrol, Camarillo Police Department, teenage drivers, and their parents.

In an attempt to remain proactive and not reactive, Start Smart is designed to help young drivers and their parents/guardians understand the responsibilities associated with driving a motor vehicle. Start Smart will show how a poor choice behind the wheel can change the lives of everyone involved. Our goal is to raise awareness and reduce the number of teen-related injuries and deaths due to collisions.

Interested parents are asked to call Sergeant Renee Ferguson at 805-388-5132 for more information and for reservations call the Camarillo Police Department Community Resource Unit at 805-388-5155 to make a reservation. Space is limited to 20 students and their parents. There is no charge to attend the program.

Sophia Pina

On January 15th Sespe held their annual spelling bee competition. Participating 4th and 5th grade students were given an extensive list of words to study in preparation for the competition. The competition was tough as all participants made it successfully through the first 10 rounds unscathed. After 14 rounds Sophia Pina emerged as the champion by spelling the word “Rustic.” The runner-up was Leslie Ceja who will serve as an alternate at the County Spelling Bee. Congratulations to all of our participants and good luck to Sophia at the Ventura County Spelling Bee!

Spelling Bee Champ Fred Ponce

Excitement and tension filled the room as Mountain Vista Elementary competitors completed a 2-day Spelling Bee. The competition was inconclusive on Wednesday, so the event was paused and resumed for a finale later that week. Fred Ponce was declared the Spelling Bee Champ after five rounds when he correctly spelled the word “lousy” on Friday, January 18, 2013. Quan Nguyen, runner-up, will accompany Ponce to the Ventura County Star Spelling Bee to be held Saturday, March 2, 2013, at CSUCI campus.

Chrissy Schieferle (right), principal of San Cayetano Elementary, and Maryellen Garcia (left) give a report on San Cayetano School. Schieferle also announced that Friday will be her last day. She has taken a job with Ventura County Education Department.
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The first Fillmore Unified School District (FUSD) Board Meeting of 2013 presented a snapshot of what teachers and administrators expect to achieve this year along with the State level changes to the student assessment system. Also, three District schools presented each of their restructuring plans to address what the California Board of Education calls Program Improvement (PI) which applies to all of FUSD and a suggestion of new names for Fillmore High School (FHS) Sports Arenas.

Assistant Superintendent Michael Johnson reiterated the need to move forward with implementing the Common Core Standards Curriculum into the classroom as soon as possible stating that FUSD is about six months behind. Superintendent Dr. Alan Nishino commented, “If we wait too long we’ll be at the back of the pack, not in front.” Johnson also informed the Board that the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tom Torlakson, has recommended shifting the focus of standardized testing to requiring student to think critically, solve problems and show a greater depth of knowledge. Torlakson is recommending changing testing with computerized assessments instead of the multiple-choice scantron fill in the bubble tests. The conclusion the State Educators came up with was that there was too much testing in California schools. Starting in the 2013-2014 school year many of the tests/assessments that students have regularly taken, including the California Standards Test, will be suspended.

Chrissy Schieferle, principal of San Cayetano Elementary, and Maryellen Garcia were the first school to address the Board with their report. San Cayetano teaches kindergarten through fifth grade with 430 students and demographics of 85% Hispanic, 13% White, 50% English learners and is in its sixth year as a PI school and, as a result, at the end of the last school year half of the staff was replaced. The restructuring seems to have helped and based on test results from the 2011-2012 Standard Testing And Reporting (STAR) assessment San Cayetano met all state and federal targets to meet what is called Safe Harbor and has improved its Academic Performance Index (API) Score by 34 points. At the end of the presentation it was announced that Friday will be Schieferle’s last day at San Cayetano as she has taken a job with the Ventura County Education Department.

The next school to present their report was the principal of Mountain Vista Elementary, John Wilber. Mountain Vista is the newest of the four elementary schools in the district with construction having been completed in spring of 2008 and employs 20 full-time teachers, serving approximately 600 students. Mountain Vista did not meet its grown target for English Language Learners for 2011-2012 decreasing from 31.3% proficient to 30.6 and English Language Arts also dropped from 43.3% to 41.2%. This resulted in the school not meeting its Annual Yearly Performance (AYP) goal. School wide the decrease was from 50.8 to 48.8 proficient.

The final presentation by Piru Elementary Principal Diana Vides had mixed results. Piru Elementary is the small campus with nine teachers. Students come from predominantly working class families in which 90% are socio-economically disadvantaged with 52% designated Limited English Proficient and 10% eligible for migrant services. Piru Elementary did not meet all its growth targets for 2011-2012 and remains in PI for 5 plus years. The Safe Harbor target for English Learner students was met, but Math fell behind dropping from 53.5% in 2010-2011 to 50.8% in 2011-2012.

Sespe School Principal Scott Carroll was ill and will be presenting his report at the next board meeting on February 5, 2013.

Joe Woods, Chairman of the Fillmore High Schools Hall of Fame spoke to the Board about the possibility of honoring past students and coaches by giving their names to FHS’s Football Stadium and other areas along with retirement of certain numbers and names. Arena names suggested are; Football Stadium-Eugene “Red” Kennedy Stadium ( Ventura County Hall of Fame and FHS Sports Hall of Fame as a Coach); Football Field-Don “The Blade” Burroughs Field (Class of 1949 is in Ventura County Hall of Fame and FHS Sports Hall of Fame. He played Pro Football for the L.A. Rams and the Philadelphia Eagles and a member of the 1960 N.F.L. Champion Eagles Team); Gymnasium-Richard “Toolie” Palmer Gymnasium (Fillmore Class of 1933 is in the Ventura County Hall of Fame, FHS Sports Hall of Fame as a player and a coach). Suggested numbers and names to retire are; Football- Coach’s Eugene “Red” Kennedy, Bruce Dempsey and players William “Bill” Pearson class of 1942, Don “The Blade” Burroughs class of 1949; Basketball- Coach’s Richard “Toolie” Palmer, Jim Fauver and players Mike LaRoche class of 1964, Rosa Aparicio class of 1977, Jamie Arundell-Latshaw class of 1993; Baseball-Coach Tom Ecklund and players Rick Stewar class of 1977, Kevin Gross class of 1979; Track and Field and Cross Country- Coach Epigmenio L. Epi Torres and players Leroy J. Goodenough class of 1920, Sammy Johnson class of 1939, Loni Larson class of 1988, and Maribella Aparicio-Hernandez class of 1993.

Sammy Martinez, substituting as Speaker of the House, informed the Board that last Saturday was Winter Formal and it went very well. He also said the Associated Student Body continues to collaborate with the Middle School to help them with many of their functions and that Pennies for Patients is starting January 28th through February 15th.

There was an action to approve a change of venue for the FHS Prom. Last year’s Junior Class did not raise enough money to fund a prom location in Ventura County as required by the FUSD rules. The cheapest location in Ventura County was $20,000 with highs of $40,000 in areas like Ojai. So the prom committee looked into other locations outside of the county and found that Valencia Country Club could be allocated for around $7,000 and the Valencia Hyatt around $8,750. Nishino suggested there be a change from requiring the prom the held in Ventura County to a mileage radius of 25 miles which would allow the students to take advantage of areas with lower rates.

In a continuing effort to help women advance their education, the local Fillmore chapter of P.E.O. (Philanthropic Education Organization) will be offering financial awards this spring. To be eligible, you must be a woman who attends or has been accepted to an accredited undergraduate degree program or a vocational/skills training program, live within the 93015 Zip code area, and have at least a 3.5 grade point average. Anyone interested should contact the College and Career Center if you are a student at Fillmore or Sierra High School or contact Patricia Morris at morrisp905@gmail.com. The deadline for application is March 25, 2013.

Camarillo, CA - CSU Channel Islands (CI) recently earned an award from the Ventura County Emergency Planning Council for its Gas Pipeline Emergency Plan. Voted the “Best Emergency Plan for the County,” the CI plan is the first of its kind in Ventura County and the California State University system to comprehensively address institutional readiness and response to a gas pipeline disaster. It was created in the wake of the 2010 San Bruno gas pipeline explosion, which killed eight people and destroyed 38 homes, and at the request of the CSU Chancellor, who has called for all CSU campuses to prepare gas pipeline emergency plans.

CI Police Chief John Reid accepted the award last month at the 2012 Emergency Planning Council Awards Ceremony, held at the Derby Club in Ventura.

“It is very satisfying to be recognized by Ventura County's Emergency Planning Council, as it signals CI's commitment to Emergency Preparedness,” said Chief Reid. “Public safety is my highest priority, and after having seen the results of the catastrophic explosion in San Bruno, I knew it was important to examine whether such an incident was possible here.”

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THOUSAND OAKS, CA - California Lutheran University has received a challenge grant of $500,000 from the John Stauffer Charitable Trust to establish the John Stauffer summer research program in chemistry.

CLU is calling on alumni and friends to make the additional donations needed to match the trust’s contributions, bringing the endowment for the John Stauffer Research Fellows Program in Chemical Sciences to $1 million. An anonymous donor already has committed the first $200,000.

At full funding, the endowment would provide fellowships to about 10 students a year to conduct original research full time for eight weeks with mentoring from faculty. It would also cover travel costs for the students to present their research at professional conferences. Grady Hanrahan, the John Stauffer Endowed Professor of Analytical Chemistry, will direct the program.

The new endowment will provide opportunities for many more chemistry majors to conduct summer research. Currently, two or three chemistry students have been conducting summer projects through the Swenson Science Summer Research Fellowship program. CLU’s long-term goal is to allow all interested and qualified undergraduate chemistry students to participate in summer research.

The John Stauffer Charitable Trust is a private foundation in Pasadena created by the will of one of the principal officers and shareholders of the former Stauffer Chemical Co. The foundation supports universities and hospitals in California.

For information about donating to the endowment, contact Kristine Calara at 805-493-3837 or kcalara@callutheran.edu.

Moorpark College will be celebrating Multicultural Day on Tuesday, April 9, 2013, from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Moorpark College campus and is seeking presenters and vendors interested in selling their wares. This year’s theme is “The ‘I’ in Diversity.” Multicultural Day is an officially sanctioned alternative day of instruction designed by the faculty, staff, and students. It is used to foster knowledge, sensitivity, understanding, and appreciation for cultures around the world via learning activities from many diverse areas. The festival features performances, storytelling, music, dance, theatre, presentations, lectures and exhibits, demonstrations, panel discussions, hands-on activities, and a variety of food, merchant, informational and educational booths ranging from local to international organizations. To sell your wares (at college student friendly prices), interested non-food vendors can contact Linda Loiselle at (805) 822-8238 or LLoiselle@vcccd.edu. Food vendors can contact Bob Darwin at (805) 378-1433 (x1652) or rdarwin@vcccd.edu. Interested presenters can contact David Birchman at (805) 378-1400 (x1689) or dbirchman@vcccd.edu or Steven Pfeffer at (805) 378-1400 (x1655) or spfeffer@vcccd.edu. Visit www.moorparkcollege.edu/mcd for a presenter submission form and information updates.

Fillmore Unified School District

FILLMORE UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF EDUCATION
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 18, 2012
5:00 P.M. – CLOSED SESSION
6:30 P.M. - REGULAR MEETING
627 SESPE AVENUE, FILLMORE, CALIFORNIA

AGENDA
5:00 p.m.
A. CALL TO ORDER
B. ROLL CALL
C. 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. Upon recognition by the President of the Board, please come forward and identify yourself before speaking. The Board of Education reserves the right to limit speaking time to three (3) minutes or less per individual.
D. CLOSED SESSION
The Board of Education will meet from 5:00 to 6:30 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 12-13-11
o Expulsion Case Number 12-13-12
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Fillmore Unified School District

FILLMORE UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
REGULAR MEETING OF THE ALTERNATIVE GOVERNANCE BOARD
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2012
8:00 A.M. REGULAR MEETING
627 SESPE AVENUE, FILLMORE, CALIFORNIA
BOARD ROOM

AGENDA
8:00 a.m.
A. CALL TO ORDER AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG
B. ROLL CALL
C. 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. Upon recognition by the President of the Board, please come forward and identify yourself before speaking. The Alternative Governance Board reserves the right to limit speaking time to three (3) minutes or less per individual.
ACTION
1. Approve Minutes Regular Meeting Held September 5, 2012
2. Approve the Submission of the Implementation Plan for the AGB Recommendations from Sespe and Mountain Vista to the FUSD Board for Approval
D. INFORMATION/DISCUSSION
3. Review Calendar of AGB Site Visits
4. Discuss AGB Implementation at Fillmore High School
F. FUTURE MEETINGS
5. Review Suggested Board Meetings for the 2012 School Year
G. ALTERNATIVE GOVERNANCE BOARD CLOSING COMMENTS AND AGENDA BUILDING
H. ADJOURNMENT
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, if you need special assistance to participate in this meeting, please contact the Superintendent's Office at (805) 524-6038. Notification 48 hours prior to the meeting will enable the district to make reasonable arrangements to ensure accessibility to this meeting [in accordance with Government Code 54961 and Board Bylaw 9320(a)].

Fillmore Unified School District

FILLMORE UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF EDUCATION
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2012
5:00 P.M. – CLOSED SESSION
6:30 P.M. - REGULAR MEETING
627 SESPE AVENUE, FILLMORE, CALIFORNIA

AGENDA
5:00 p.m.
A. CALL TO ORDER
B. ROLL CALL
C. 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. Upon recognition by the President of the Board, please come forward and identify yourself before speaking. The Board of Education reserves the right to limit speaking time to three (3) minutes or less per individual.
D. CLOSED SESSION
The Board of Education will CONTINUED »

Ventura College offers a variety of options for those who wish to improve their English language skills. The new English for Multilingual students (EngM) are for students who do not identify as English as a Second Language (ESL) students, yet experience challenges with writing, grammar, and reading comprehension. The Academic English as a Second Language program helps limited-English proficient students improve their English through intermediate and advanced level courses in the areas of communication, writing/grammar, and reading/vocabulary. Computer Assisted Grammar (ESL 10) helps native and non-native speakers of English develop their grammatical skills through self-paced computer modules. Classes are offered at Ventura College and at the Ventura College Santa Paula site. Financial aid is available to qualifying students. For more detailed information: visit www.venturacollege.edu/engm; www.venturacollege.edu/esl; by email at vcesl@vcccd.edu; or call (805) 654-6484.

The Ventura College Santa Paula site is now open for registration, offering a semester of classes and resources available to the community. Classes begin January 14, 2013. Visit the new Santa Paula site at 957 Faulkner Road, Suite 106, Santa Paula, or register online at www.venturacollege.edu/apply. Financial aid is available to those who qualify. Classes at the Santa Paula site include Computer Applications; Introduction to Business; Professional Reception Skills; Medical Assisting; Child Development; English Composition; English as a Second Language (ESL); English for Multilingual students; Art Appreciation; Health and Wellness; History; and introductory courses to Criminal Justice; Communication; and Psychology. Day classes offered at Fillmore High School include Child Development and Organization and Management. No parking permit is required. Free academic and career counseling, financial aid assistance, and Math, English, and ESL assessments are available.

THOUSAND OAKS, CA - The U.S. Department of Education has awarded California Lutheran University a $1.6 million grant to expand its TRIO Upward Bound Math and Science Center over the next five years.

The grant will enable the center to prepare 75 low-income students each year to continue their education beyond high school in science, technology, engineering or mathematics. This is an increase of 20 students per year.

The students, all aspiring to be among the first generation in their families to go to college, attend Channel Islands, Hueneme, Oxnard and Pacifica highschools in Oxnard, Hawthorne and Leuzinger high schools in Los Angeles County, Fillmore High School and Santa Paula High School.

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Congratulations to both our football team and cross country team for making it to CIF! Fillmore High School is proud of our athletes for getting our school recognized. On another note, we just had our Renaissance Honor Roll Night last Wednesday honoring students with a 3.5 or higher for two consecutive semesters. We will be having our Renaissance Rally on November 16th to also honor these students for all their hard work. Fillmore High School’s Red Ribbon Week is from 10/29-11/2 and the theme this year is “The Best Me is Drug Free”. We will also be holding our Blood Drive on November 7th so we encourage the community to come and support!

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – Nov. 14, 2012) The public is invited to watch fourth- through eighth-graders compete at a FIRST LEGO League Robotics Qualifying Tournament from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 2, at California Lutheran University.

Twenty-eight teams from local schools will bring the robots they designed to the CLU-sponsored event to compete for a spot at the regional competition, which will be held later in December.

FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to inspiring young people’s interest in science and technology. Its LEGO League program challenges 9- to 14-year-old students to build LEGO-based robots tocomplete specific tasks.

“Senior Solutions” is the theme for this year’s event in which students build robots to aid senior citizens. Teams will give presentations on the topic as part of the competition.

Volunteers are needed to assist with registration, setup, coordination, judging and refereeing. Robotics experience is not necessary.

The free event will be held in the Gilbert Sports and Fitness Center, which is on the north side of Olsen Road near Campus Drive in Thousand Oaks.

For more information, contact Bob Rumer at rrumer@callutheran.edu or 805-377-8369. For more information on FIRST, visit http://www.usfirst.org.

This past Saturday, November 10th, the Fillmore High School Band participated in the 30th Annual Field Competition at Granada Hills Charter High School. Our students received 2nd place in our Division and 4th place overall! Congratulations students – you did an awesome job! In case you’d like to see how great our band is, their last competition of the season will take place at the ‘Battle of the Bands’ at Moorpark High School this Saturday, November 17th. Our Bands’ performance time is 12:30pm and admission is $10 adults/$7 seniors and children under 2 free.

Camarillo, CA - With the passage of Proposition 30 Tuesday, eligible students at CSU Channel Islands (CI) can expect to receive refunds of the 9 percent tuition fee increase previously enacted by the CSU Board of Trustees for the 2012-2013 academic year. The refunds, ranging up to $249 per semester for full-time undergraduates, will be processed by Wednesday, Nov. 28, using students’ original form of payment. The exact amount and eligibility for student refunds will be calculated by the Financial Aid office, taking into account waivers, grants, financial aid packages and balances due on student accounts.

Voter approval of the tax measure means that the CSU will avoid a $250-million mid-year budget cut. Annual tuition rates for full-time undergraduate students will revert to $5,472 – the same as in 2011-2012. The CSU’s budget will essentially remain flat for the remainder of the fiscal year, but state funding is still approximately $1 billion – or 33 percent – less than it was four years ago.

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