Freshman confronts college cafeteria food

Adam Thursby, a freshman at UC Riverside, writes:

One of the things about college I was not looking forward to was the cafeteria food. My mom is a wonderful cook, and I’m a fairly picky eater. Those two did not bode well for my attempt to live off dorm food.

But after five weeks, I’m happy to report that I’m somewhere between thriving and surviving.

There certainly have been some times when the food has been terrible -- especially my first week in Riverside. By Wednesday of that week I was sure I would die of starvation by midterms. That obviously hasn’t happened (midterms were last week), but there have been some meals that have sent me running back to my room for a Cup O' Noodles.

One of the highlights, or lowlights, depending on how you look at it, has been the Cuban Beef, which is a few slabs of some unidentifiable meat with about a quarter pound of salsa dumped on top. Underdone, flavorless corned beef has also made a couple of appearances. By far the best, or worst, depending on how you look at it, was Ropa Vieja, a Cuban beef dish. I can’t actually tell you what it was, since I didn’t actually eat it. I didn’t learn much in my three years of high school Spanish, but I did manage to pick up the meaning of ropa vieja: old clothes. Yummy.

Canter says no to a third term try

(Board of Education President Marlene Canter at a news conference.)

Marlene Canter's Westside seat on the L.A. Unified school board will be open. The Times has learned that Canter won't seek a third term.

Canter, 60, characterized her decision as purely personal.

Canter has been best known for leading efforts to ban sodas and junk food at schools, while also improving the nutrition, taste and accessibility of school breakfasts and lunches. As for other accomplishments, she notes an increased focus on academic accountability and improved test scores as well as the district's massive school construction program.

Canter, who owned a successful teacher-training business, financed her own initial bid for office and was never regarded as beholden to the political interests that have tried to control the seven-member school board.

-- Howard Blume

Photo credit: Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times

Response to 'No Child' regulations

Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education and former governor of West Virginia, issued a statement, which appears after the jump, in response to final regulations to strengthen the No Child Left Behind Act announced today by U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings.

(The Alliance for Excellent Education is a policy, research, and advocacy organization in Washington.)

Arts education gets $1.8-million in foundation funds

Some good news for arts education: The Wallace Foundation today announced a $1.2-million grant to the Los Angeles County Arts Commission and a $600,000 planning grant to Los Angeles Unified School District.

M. Christine DeVita, president of the foundation, explained why the money was being given: “We believe every child –- and our broader society –- benefits from high-quality arts learning and that arts education deserves a secure place in our communities. Arts learning can enhance a child’s ability to learn how to learn; it can develop skills of persistence and teamwork; it can enhance the school experience for students -- sustaining their interest and enthusiasm for learning; and it can nurture empathy and foster imagination through experiences that the arts uniquely provide."

The $1.2-million grant will enable the Arts for All program to build on its first six years. The strategies the grant supports call for deepening Arts for All’s partnerships with the 28 Los Angeles County school districts which joined the initiative.

Several new elements will be added: coaching customized to meet district-specific needs and building a national cadre of specialist coaches to augment local expertise; the creation of a leadership fellows program to enhance the arts education knowledge of district leaders; and the launch of a professional development program to increase the capacity of arts coordinators and teachers to deliver quality arts instruction.

The grant to L.A. Unified will support research on arts instructional practices that involve arts teachers, classroom teachers and the arts community.

There are two primary components to the Wallace Arts for Young People Initiative at LAUSD.  The first involves the convening of seven groups to consider, think, plan and make recommendations for for arts education in the district. These convening groups include teachers, arts teachers, large budget arts organizations, public education administrators, national arts experts and the public and parents. 

The second component is the retrieval of essential information and data related to the implementation of arts education for all students. 

-- Mary MacVean

Photo: Dance class at Rockdale Elementary School. Credit: Clarence Williams / Los Angeles Times

Don’t get left behind!

Steven Hicks, a teacher at the Accelerated School, a public charter school and a teaching ambassador fellow with the U.S. Department of Education in Washington, writes:

(Steven Hicks, back row at right, and some of his colleagues. In the front row fellows Julie Shively, Bobbi Cirizia Houtchens and Gillian Cohen-Boyer; middle row at left, Jocelyn Pickford, chief of staff for the Office of Legislation and Congressional Affairs, and fellow Stephanie Canada; and with Hicks, fellow Jonathan Eckert.)

You are cordially invited to attend a special event and don’t even need to leave the comfort of your laptop. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings this morning is delivering remarks at South Carolina Educational Television about strengthening No Child Left Behind. 

Spellings will discuss better reporting for uniform graduation rates and enhancing parents’ educational options for their children. Her remarks and the question-and-answer session are available via webcast live. But if you miss it, don’t worry. The materials are here. 

By now, you are probably asking what would make you pause for all of this. I’ll give you a hint: It has to do with new regulations to strengthen and clarify No Child Left Behind. Well, sit back, get comfortable, and listen. It was a dark and stormy night. …

This summer, while most teachers were getting lesson plans in order, sending out welcome letters to new students and readying classrooms, Congress was passing the Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2009. The president signed it on Sept. 30 -- the end of the government’s fiscal year. And what does that have to do with the price of pencils in your classroom? And why should you care? Well, I’ll tell you. First, let me back up a bit. Pay attention! This is important. Knowledge is power.

The original Department of Education was created in 1867 to collect information on schools and teaching to help the states establish effective school systems.  It became an office rather than a department in 1868, and was only formalized as today’s cabinet-level Department of Education in 1980. During the last 141 years, the name has changed and so too its mission. Originally a large data collection machine, its mission today is to promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.  Education is primarily a state and local responsibility.  By law, the department cannot endorse or create curriculum nor tell states what their standards should be. It takes its marching orders from the laws that Congress passes.

What laws? I’m glad you asked. The latest revision of the 1965 Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the most comprehensive federal law governing K-12 education (though not special education), was signed into law Jan. 8, 2002. You probably know it by its other name: the No Child Left Behind Act. On the East Coast, they say NCLB. But in the West, we say "nickelbee." It is arguably the most significant federal education law to date, with the objective that each child in America will meet the high learning standards of his or her state by 2014. It aims to close the achievement gaps among specific groups of students, and ensure that a highly qualified teacher teaches every child. It is based on stronger accountability for results, more flexibility for states and communities, proven education methods and more choices for parents. In 2007, it was up for reauthorization, but a little thing called the election got in the way, and its birthday slipped by without candles or balloons. 

Even the secretary of education wanted some changes, but Congress wanted to wait on making significant changes at this point. Since a whole new throng of people will be moving in this January, they thought it best to let sleeping dogs lie. The law is funded until March 6, 2009, because we are on a continuing resolution, and it stays the same until then or until a new law is reauthorized. 

Now back to the price of pencils and why you’ve kept reading. Last year, about $1 trillion was spent nationwide on education. About 9% of that came from the federal government. That’s a lot of pencils, computers, and teachers; it amounted to 2.3% of the federal government's $3 trillion budget in fiscal year 2008. Now, here’s the really important part. Since NCLB was not reauthorized, my boss, Secretary Spellings, proposed regulations for Title I to strengthen and clarify the law. She’s pretty committed to making sure we use the lessons learned over that last six years. Without Congress reauthorizing NCLB, her only choice was to propose changes to the Title I regulations, a significant part of NCLB: Improving the Academic Achievement of the Disadvantaged. 

Heels rule at arts high school

Anna Rajo-Miller, a student at Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, writes:

Going to an arts high school for more two months now, I have grown accustomed to seeing students dress in unusal attire at school. Boys in skirts, leather jackets in 95-degree weather, metallic leggings, you name it, I've seen it. There is one fashion accessory that continues to amaze me, though. All over school, there are girls walking around in heels.

Stilettos, wedges, slingbacks ... everywhere! Don't get me wrong, I love heels as much as the next girl. But my shoe-wearing experience has been limited to the comfort of Converse sneakers and the occasional sandal. These girls have taken the shoes off the runway and into the hallway.

Who knows what inspired it. Maybe it was Serena Van Der Woodsen's Choos or Carrie Bradshaw's Manolos. One thing is for sure: Throw out the Pumas, it's all about the pumps.

Photos by Anna Rajo-Miller

Lukewarm support and less for L.A. Unified bond

As reported in today’s L.A. Times, the $7-billion Measure Q seeks, in large measure, to make older schools comparable to new ones. And the vast majority of students in L.A. Unified attend older schools. (Above, Steven Naranjo, left, sits in his seventh-grade class at Hollenbeck Middle School, which could see improvements if Measure Q passes.)

But despite support from Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, the largest local school bond in state history has generated less enthusiasm among some powerful interest groups and civic leaders than past bonds. Most acknowledge that schools in the district need additional funding, but, beyond that, they have their issues.

From L.A. Unified's viewpoint, here is what the building program has accomplished.

Read on for a sampling of other perspectives from major unions, the Chamber of Commerce, charter schools, Connie Rice and Eli Broad, and a Westside parent:

Snoopy for president?

Children of all ages have for decades learned life lessons from the likes of Snoopy, Lucy and Charlie Brown. So why not lessons in democracy?

    

Fifth-graders at Amestoy Elementary School in Gardena are using a curriculum called "You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown" -- also a television program being broadcast on Tuesday -- to look at the 2008 presidential campaign. It includes a mock election (polls close Tuesday) online (Snoopy is winning in California).

Their teacher, Jean Maree Lillard, said today that when her students first arrived in her classroom, they were already talking about the historic nature of the election -- an African American presidential candidate, a female vice presidential candidate.

"So I took that as a teachable moment, and I created my own lesson plan," which included the "Peanuts" characters. She has used the program to teach vocabulary and the basics of elections, such as campaigns and political parties, she said.

Three of her students are also running for student council office this fall. One of the big lessons they've learned: "They don't want to make promises they can't keep," Lillard said.

-- Mary MacVean

Photo courtesy PEANUTS: © United Feature Syndicate Inc.

Learning the dangers of distracted driving

We wrote about one safe driving campaign the other day, and here's another.

Allstate Insurance recently launched the Action Against Distraction nationwide campaign, which includes a Teen Driving Challenge on Monday at Memorial Coliseum.

The participants -- students from Crenshaw, Dorsey and Manual Arts high schools -- will try to negotiate an advanced driver training course designed to show the dangers of distracting driving habits, such as talking to passengers, radio channel-surfing, or loud music. 

-- Mary MacVean

From the edusphere

Some schools headlines from around the region:

MATTIE protests closure to county (Long Beach Press-Telegram)

Critics hit high school graduation rare goals (Inland News)

Fanfare for new high school (Long Beach Press-Telegram)