Lawndale Tribune AND lAwNDAle News The Weekly Newspaper of Lawndale Herald Publications - Inglewood, Hawthorne, Lawndale, El Segundo, Torrance & Manhattan Beach Community Newspapers Since 1911 - Circulation 30,000 - Readership 60,000 (310) 322-1830 - November 3, 2016 The Music Center’s 38th Annual Very Special Arts Festival Students from Lawndale High School perform on stage as part of The Music Center’s 38th Annual Very Special Arts Festival. More than 5,000 children with disabilities and their mainstream peers from all over Los Angeles County gathered to celebrate the arts and their artistic achievements in both the visual and performing arts. Photo courtesy of The Music Center Wiseburn Directors Talk Common Core Alignment and Permits at Board Meeting By Haleemon Anderson The Wiseburn School District is closer to aligning assessment and grading tools with Common Core, the state-wide K-12 educational standards that have gained traction nationwide, with 43 states adopting them so far. At last week’s meeting, Deputy Superintendent Chris Jones reported working on developing a new report card that will reflect Common Core language. He said new grade books would also be aligned with Common Core. In this way, lessons, progress monitors and grades would be matched. For example, the common core principle of perseverance will be incorporated into math work habits. In addition to actual math calculations, students’ effort will be assessed using the phrasing, student “persists with challenging tasks.” Wiseburn students have access to smart devices to do classwork and projects, and digital proficiency is an essential part of the classroom. Teachers even have electronic grade books. A digital citizenship component has been added to grading, again reflecting Common Core standards. “What this is doing, is really upping our game,” said Jones, who is also making adjustments to the STAR reading assessment test to more accurately predict when student interventions are needed. The goal is to tailor instruction to meet needs and to get students identified at early levels. Superintendent Tom Johnstone gave a report on the permits currently being accepted by the district. By the numbers, there are 46 from Compton Unified; 254 from Hawthorne; 164 from Inglewood and 332 from LAUSD. Thirtytwo percent of Wiseburn’s transfer population comes from LAUSD, which represents 13 percent of all Wiseburn students. Johnstone said the total of transfers, and therefore permitted students at Wiseburn, is 41.5 percent. When choice blocks are implemented, that total number will drop by 4 percent, down to 39 percent total transfer population. Dave Wilson, chief business official, reported on the district’s legal accounts. He said there has been a decrease in legal fees for the past fiscal year, and that trend should continue. “We’re doing much better,” Wilson said. Vince Madsen, director of facilities planning, gave a report on energy audit findings, and concluded that money the district is eligible for, from Proposition 39, will allow upgrades to LED lighting at the schools. The district coordinates its energy saving measures with Johnson Controls managing the operations, upon board approval. Madsen was extremely upbeat about the LED installation, saying, “Bill (Denney, maintenance and operations manager) won’t have to change light bulbs [ever].” Board member Roger Banuelos thanked the Dana staff for hosting the South Bay Hack-athon. Eighty students from Wiseburn, Torrance, Manhattan Beach and Lawndale school districts participated. Banuelos said it was nice to see students engaged in engineering and science. Banuelos announced that on Nov. 9, a visit is planned at the new high school site. And finally, Banuelos noted he is coordinating with the DaVinci Board on the RISE applications. Madsen also gave the board an update on contingency budgeting for the high school construction. There is currently $555,000 left in the budget, which Balfour is handling, and a total of $1.5 million left in the budget. Johnstone also spoke on Da Vinci Rise programs. He reported on a visit to LMU for a Deans panel on the School of Education. The panel focused on improving teacher education programs. Johnstone is also working on an exit strategy for Project Optimal. The program, which provides current special education teachers with training in mild to severe developmental protocols, has trained thousands of teachers. The program is completely online. It allows teachers with existing special ed credentials to add additional authorizations needed to work with students who present autism, early childhood traumatic brain injury, emotional disturbances, and other special needs. It is open to teachers throughout the state. Johnstone said the program is a threat to universities, because it is streamlined and accessible online. Johnstone said he has a team of three looking at the governance piece of the program. Currently the Wiseburn Board sponsors the innovative program, which is a joint venture with the SELPA (Special Education Local Plan Area) and the California Teacher Credential (CTC) program. The SELPA coordinates with school districts and the County Office of Education to provide a continuum of programs and services for disabled individuals from birth through 22 years of age. Actions items on the agenda included unanimous approval of a tentative agreement between WUSD and the Wiseburn Faculty Association; ratification of a salary increase for senior management; a salary and benefits increase for non-represented employees; and approval of P.S. Arts as district arts coordinator. Johnstone said the action on behalf of P.S. Arts is a good one. “They write all our grants,” Johnstone said. He said the non-profit organization brought Wiseburn $20,000 in grants last years. The board unanimously adopted Resolution No. 16/17.08, reflecting the state mandate to consolidate local elections with state ballots. The effect of the resolution will be to extend current city board members terms from four years to five. “This will save quite a bit of money,” Johnstone said. Wiseburn School District will be closed Friday, Nov. 11 in observance of Veterans Day. In keeping with tradition, the board will meet once only, in the months of November and December, unless otherwise noted. The next regular meeting of the Wiseburn Board of Directors will be held off regular schedule, on Nov. 17, at 7 p.m. The meeting is preceded by a one-hour closed session. • Inside This Issue Certified & Licensed Professionals.......................2 Classifieds............................3 Food.......................................5 Hawthorne Happenings....3 Legals................................ 6-7 Pets........................................8 Police Reports.....................2 Sports....................................4 Weekend Forecast Friday Partly Cloudy 73˚/58˚ Saturday Sunny 71˚/59˚ Sunday Partly Cloudy 68˚/57˚
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