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Charter school appeal
The San Mateo County Board of Education is currently reviewing a petition for a new charter school in the Sequoia Union High School District. The County review follows the denial of the Everest charter petition by the Sequoia district board in September. To help ensure factual representation of the Sequoia district's perspective on the Everest charter school appeal, we have posted here the District's submission to the San Mateo County Board of Education in mid-November. The County board is scheduled to hold a public hearing and make a decision on the appeal on Mon., Dec. 8 at 7 p.m. at the County Office of Education, 101 Twin Dolphin Drive, Redwood City.
New teachers bring a world of experience
Fifty new teachers joined the Sequoia district this year, including several who have embraced teaching as a second career. One new teacher was an alternate in taekwondo for the Beijing Olympics. Another worked on Mission Impossible II in a previous career in film and TV, and another was formerly a police officer. Nearly two-thirds of the new teachers hold master's degrees, and 40 percent can speak a language other than English, including Spanish, Italian, French, Mandarin, Vietnamese, German and Hebrew. Several of the new faculty attended school abroad - in Australia, Chile and Spain - and a number have taught outside the U.S. - in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, England and China.
Veteran teachers still exceptional stand-outs
The new teachers have been embraced by veteran teachers, including four exceptional teachers who were recently honored for 40 years of service to students and the community: Arlene Kolber, science teacher at Woodside, who leads the school's award-winning robotics program; Frank Moura, music teacher at Menlo-Atherton, who has trained generations of musicians and, just this past summer, traveled with the band to the Montreaux Jazz Festival in Switzerland; Gary Thurston, social studies teacher at Woodside, who was actually a member of the school's first full graduating class and is now the parent of a Woodside student; and Pam Wimberly, physical education teacher and highly successful girls basketball coach at Menlo-Atherton.
Construction activity in high gear
The most recent bond measure supported by the community continues to make possible enhancements to the District's schools, including construction of fabulous performing arts centers at Carlmont and Menlo-Atherton and renovation of classrooms and new tennis courts at Sequoia. Meanwhile, Woodside is just getting under way with construction of a new health and engineering wing that will house an all-new health careers and engineering science program and an expanded robotics program. All of the campuses have also installed an advanced new security system that provides added protection for students, staff and visitors and around-the-clock protection of the District's facilities and equipment.
Student newspapers in the Sequoia district
The faculty, staff and administration of the Sequoia district are driven by a commitment to providing students with a high quality education and robust high school experience. As part of that commitment, the District has embarked on a fresh look at student newspapers and student journalism programs across the Sequoia district. The District will be supported in this endeavor by the San Francisco Peninsula Press Club, which has offered its full support and encouragement. Meanwhile, Carlmont High School is well under way with restarting its student newspaper in early December. Raphael Kauffmann, an English teacher at Carlmont with a degree in broadcast communications, has assumed the role of newspaper advisor. The next issue of the Scots Express is eagerly anticipated.
Reaching out to parents of middleschoolers
The recent districtwide Parent Information Night kicked off a season of reaching out to the parents of seventh and eighth graders who are already looking ahead to high school. Over 500 parents from nearly two dozen middle schools participated in the districtwide event, and hundreds more attended the informational nights at the individual schools in recent weeks. Each of the schools support incoming and new freshman students - and their parents - with focused initiatives aimed at ensuring a smooth transition to high school. Click here to view or download a podcast of the presentations at the districtwide event.
District round-up
Most may be too young to vote but that didn't stop students from across the Sequoia district from getting involved in the democratic process. Nearly 400 students served as poll volunteers on Election Day, and students at Carlmont and Woodside held schoolwide mock elections (results resembling the real election). . . . In late October, Woodside kicked off a year of celebration activities in honor of the school's 50th anniversary. (Click here for information about the festivities planned throughout the year.) . . . The Sequoia district and others up and down the state are facing increasing financial challenges this year and next -- a situation exacerbated in San Mateo County by losses associated with the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy. Work is under way on several fronts to combat the District's financial challenges while vigilantly protecting the exceptional education provided by the schools.
People in the news
Morgan Marchbanks, principal of Sequoia High School, has received the prestigious Summit Recognition Award, an honor reserved for a small number of educators and others nationally who promote equity and racial justice in schools. . . . James Lianides, Ed.D., Woodside High School alumnus and former superintendent of the Pacifica School District, has been named assistant superintendent and chief business officer of the Sequoia District. . . . Sixteen District seniors have been selected as semifinalists in the 2009 National Merit Scholarship Program - an honor received by less than one percent of high school seniors nationwide.
Fact of interest
An average 96 percent of 2007-08 graduates of the District's four comprehensive high schools went on to college, including those who chose schools locally and top-tier universities across the country and abroad.
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