Schools Get Helping Hand from Wells Fargo
November 25, 2008
SAN FRANCISCO - Wells Fargo Bank recently donated more than $100,000 to over three dozen elementary, middle and high schools in San Francisco.
Of that amount, which includes money raised through Wells Fargo and KNBR’s “Adopt-A-School” effort, the San Francisco Unified School District will receive $30,000 for program support. Read more
Pacific Islanders’ Need Boost in Academic Scores
November 18, 2008
S.F. School District working on a five-year plan
SAN FRANCISCO - A San Francisco Human Rights Commission hearing at City Hall on November 13 discussed solutions to low high-school graduation rates, especially among African Americans and Pacific Islanders.
In nine of California’s largest urban districts, African Americans and Pacific Islanders (including Samoan, Read more
Custodian Sweeps Aside Language Discrimination With Lawsuit
November 11, 2008
Sues Oakland Unified School District for workplace language requirement
A custodian who was not allowed to work because of an English requirement reached a settlement with the Oakland Unified School District in early October.
Farm Meng Saephan, a refugee from Laos, had worked for the district for two years before being laid off Read more
SFUSD High Schoolers Support Obama: Youth back Prop V, reject Props 6, 4 and 8 in mock election
November 4, 2008
SAN FRANCISCO - San Francisco Unified School District high school students overwhelmingly supported Barack Obama in a mock presidential election, with at least 87 percent voting for the Democratic senator.
Prop V, which supports the continuation of the JROTC program in district schools, passed with 57 percent of the vote. Prop 6, which would mandate that youth aged 14 or older who are convicted of gang-related Read more
Vietnam Refugee Named Volunteer of the Year: Hoa Tran Gives Back to Immigrant Students at Newcomer High School
October 28, 2008
SAN FRANCISCO - San Francisco School Volunteers, a group that recruits and places volunteers in city public schools, honored Hoa Tran as Volunteer of the Year at an Oct. 14 lunch reception at the Fairmont Hotel.
For the past five years, Tran has assisted with classroom projects in Newcomer High School’s computer lab and has taught its staff and students applications such as PowerPoint. Tran also created customized tools to Read more
Lincoln High School’s Spirit Pays Off in High School Musical Contest
October 21, 2008
San Francisco’s Lincoln High School was ranked ninth last month out of thousands of schools vying to win the “High School Musical 3: Senior Year” School Spirit Contest.
Schools earn points by completing online trivia quizzes, submitting videos and photos that express school spirit, referring others to the contest MySpace site and text messaging. Read more
SFUSD Goes Green in the Classroom
October 14, 2008
SAN FRANCISCO - Last month Mayor Gavin Newsom and San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Carlos Garcia launched a plan to promote environmental justice and green practices in the curricula of The City’s schools through service-learning.
The two-year Environmental Service Learning Initiative will integrate environmental practices in lesson plans. Read more
San Rafael School Hosts Beijing Exchange Teacher
October 7, 2008
SAN RAFAEL, Calif. - Liying Ma, head of the Chinese Language Department of Beijing No. 2 Experimental Primary School, will teach and observe Mandarin courses at Saint Mark’s School for three weeks this month.
“My goals with this visit are to learn about the American way of education and to take it back to China, so they can learn something from the U.S.,” Ma said. “I also want to provide help to Saint Mark’s and improve their Read more
Palo Alto Youth Observe Confucius Day
September 30, 2008
International school of the peninsula’s students honor teachers with flowers
PALO ALTO, Calif. - Vases overflowed with roses, tulips and irises as nursery, pre- kindergarten and kindergarten students placed the flowers onto tables in front of the International School of the Peninsula on September 26 to commemorate Confucius‘ birthday on September 28. Read more
Bill Disaggregating API Students Awaits Governor’s Approval
September 23, 2008
Bill would separate ethnic subgroups in education databases
A bill requiring the state to separate Asian/Pacific Islander students into ethnic subgroups in education databases passed the Senate on Aug. 21.
The bill, sponsored by state senate majority leader Gloria Romero, would help educators develop strategies to meet the specific needs of each ethnic group and make curriculum adjustments where necessary. Read more
College Students Using Rice Cookers to Eat Healthy
September 16, 2008
This fall numerous Asian American first-year college students will be living away from home and battling the “Freshman 15,” the infamous 15 pounds gained from eating burgers and fries everyday, due to the unrestricted freedom of choosing what one eats.
With the hope of getting Asian American freshmen to eat foods similar to mom’s healthy home cooking, a new book offers recipes for preparing meals using a rice cooker. Read more
D.A. Launches Childhood Trauma Training for SFUSD Teachers
September 9, 2008
District Attorney Kamala Harris launched the first training session on childhood trauma for San Francisco Unified School District teachers on August 22 at Burton High School.
The training, which included teachers from Burton and Willie Brown Academy, focused on helping school personnel identify and support students who have undergone emotional, mental or physical abuse. Read more