Email  Print

TSN news, Employee 101, school calendars, tutoring, art colleges, gifted enrichment, $1,000 scholarships

Education Roundup

 

I was sad to hear that a changing of the guard is in the works at the Teacher’s Support Network.  Lynn Ross, who helped launch the program six or seven years back, has left to pursue other opportunities and a new head is to be announced shortly.  Lynn did an amazing job growing the organization and fostering the trust between Sonoma Valley High School teachers and the dozens of volunteers helping out in their classrooms on a regular basis.  Lynn is responsible for my involvement with high school’s College & Career Center and I saw first hand how hard she worked to get TSN to where it is today.  

• • •

Sonoma Valley Teen Services is offering “Employee 101” classes designed to help young people ages 13 to 24 to become effective employees. On Nov. 12 (10:30 a.m. to noon), the class covers customer service, work attire, conflict resolution, workplace ethics, paychecks and bank accounts and other practical topics. The class on Nov. 19 (10:30 a.m. to noon), covers effective resumes and job interviews. Both take place at the No Name Café at the high school and cost is $10; scholarships are available. “Food Handling Safety Certification” will be offered at the Valley of the Moon Teen Center on Oct. 19 (4 to 7 p.m.) and includes exam prep and the exam itself. Cost is $20. Space is limited; early registration is advised and scholarships are available. To register, email classes@svteens.org or call Cristin Lawrence at 812-3960.

• • •

What do you think of the new totally comprehensive Schools Events Calendar on the “Our Schools” web page? It includes (or will soon) event data from every school in the Sonoma Valley Unified School District, all in one place. Truly a beautiful thing if you have children at more than one school, or you are trying to schedule an event and wonder who else might having something going on that day.  Send me your feedback and suggestions as we fine-tune this ambitious new service.

• • •

Last Friday, a small crowd gathered for an open house at the El Verano Preschool which is expanding its program, thanks to grants from the Ernest Bates Foundation and the Vadasz Family Foundation. With every recent study underlining the importance of the pre-school years, how terrific to see an expansion of the pre-school offerings in the Valley.  

• • •

Did you know that with a child’s $20 membership to the Boys & Girls Club, they have access to free top-notch tutoring?  They have even expanded their offerings. Math: All levels on Mondays from 5 to 7 p.m. and Wednesdays from 6 to 9 p.m. and science:  biology and chemistry on Tuesdays from 6 to 8 p.m.  I have heard absolute raves about the high school teacher/BGC tutor Tammy Rivara’s ability to help kids who are struggling with tough math. This is the best deal in town.

• • •

Speaking of the Boys & Girls Club: Did you see their clever and gorgeous “Monopoly”-themed mailing, titled “Every student wants to land in college: This is how the Boys & Girls Club helped 19 of them advance”? The piece profiles the first students to benefit from the Club’s College Bound program with a short piece on each student, a photo and his or her plans for college. Kudos to Robin Eurgubian at the club and all the teens there who are taking advantage of this great program.

• • •

If your child is in the second through eighth grades and received an “Advanced” score on the STAR language arts or math, or a 95 percentile or higher on any nationally-normed standardized test last year (like the Stanford-10), did you know they likely qualify to participate in the Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth gifted program? This is a very well-respected national nonprofit program but few families in this area are familiar with it. It costs only $37 to enroll and the enrichment opportunities provided to your child include: above grade level capabilities testing, weekend workshops, summer camps, scholarships and more. I am a big fan of the program and have attended a number of their workshops. For more information, go to www.jhucty.edu.

• • •

Santa Rosa Junior College is offering two science events for K-12 teachers, students and families interested in digital media, science, computer technology, engineering, industrial technology and math. The first is the North Bay Science Festival, which will be held Saturday, Nov. 5, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Infineon Raceway. There will be demonstrations and hands-on activities. For more information, email rdchudofsky@santarosa.edu, 778-3628.  The second activity is a Planetarium open house on Friday, Nov. 4, with shows at 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. at the Planetarium in Lark Hall. No late seating and no children under 5. For details, call 527-4372.

• • •

I was excited to hear that Sassarini’s fourth grade teachers, Maggie Pat and Curtis Duff, want to take the entire fourth grade class to the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento to enrich the students’ exploration of California history (and the emigrant experience). Unfortunately the school can’t afford the $900 price tag for the trip, so teachers, parents and students have started fundraising for the trip.  Their first event is a car wash on Saturday, Oct, 22, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Sonoma Chevrolet dealership on West Napa Street.  Good luck to the class and kudos to Sonoma Chevy for always being the first step in and offer their site for fundraisers of this kind.

• • •

Tina Baldry of the Mentoring Alliance reports that 48 mentors and mentees “enjoyed a day of fun, excitement and relationship-building as they triumphed over the high and low elements at the Challenge Sonoma Ropes Course. High in the redwoods behind the Sonoma Developmental Center, participants worked together in small groups, building trust and confidence through teamwork, encouragement and problem-solving. After lunch, the pairs conquered their fears as they took to the high ropes and flew down the zip line.” The ropes course experience was made possible through the Mentoring Alliance’s Empowerment Fund, in part provided by a grant from Impact100.

• • •

I urge high school students of any age who are interested in studying the arts – dance, music, art, theater and other mediums – to attend the upcoming free college fair highlighting colleges, universities, conservatories and other specialized artistic programs. The Performing and Visual Arts College Fair is on Sunday, Oct. 23, from noon to 2:30 p.m. at Nob Hill Masonic Center, 1111 California St. in San Francisco. The list I saw of colleges attending included every single art school I had ever heard of nationwide.

• • •

School fundraiser season is upon us. Send us your information and we’ll try to help drum up support. Altimira Middle School is hosting its second annual fundraiser, The Howl, on Saturday, Oct. 22 at Little Switzerland. Open to all, the night features dinner and dancing and includes appetizers, raffle, small silent auction, buffet dinner and dancing. Dancing starts at 8 p.m. with live music from Flash Fiction (with Altimira teacher Mike Curtin) alternating with DJ “Bubba” with all of the most popular Latin dance music. Tickets are $35. “After Dinner” tickets are available for $15 each, starting at 8 p.m. Auction donations are still being accepted. Funds raised this year will be used to fund teacher requests (for equipment for the drama class, veggie boxes for the horticulture class, etc.).

• • •

Every single week, the website Zinch.com gives away a $1,000 to a high school student for a winning three-sentence answer to a specific question. Last week it was: Describe a family tradition you’d like to pass down and why it’s important to you. What a great way to win some quick money.

• • •

“Crossing Thin Ice – The Secrets of Influential Parenting,” is a seminar for the parents of young people between 8 and 18 years old. Jeff Schadt, president of the Youth Transition Network, has done extensive research on what it takes to parent emotionally and spiritually healthy kids so parents can help them launch successfully and succeed for life on their own after high school. This conference aims to give parents the tools to open up communication and gain influence with their youth. The program will be held at Hanna Boys Center on Friday, Nov. 4 from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. and Saturday, Nov. 5 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. A box lunch is available for purchase on Saturday for $5. Cost is $25 a person. To register, visit www.crossingthinice.com.

• • •

Send me your comments, thoughts and story ideas at ourschools@sonomanews.com.