YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
Vol. 15, No. 43
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Circle of Friends gets a boost
October 27, 2017
Fire Relief Donations
by Dawnmarie Fehr Correspondent
The Byron Union School District (BUSD) and the Discovery Bay Community Foundation (DBCF) have joined forces to bring specialneeds and general education students together. Thanks to a donation from the DBCF, the district has been able to expand its Circle of Friends (COF) program. “Every year, our foundation donates money to many different entities, and one we always donate to is Byron Union School District,” said Jim Mattison, founder of the DBCF. “This year, we wanted to do something a little different – something with the specialneeds kids. I met with (the district) to see what we could do.” Kelly Basmagian, BUSD assistant superintendent, said Mattison’s timing couldn’t have been better. “(Jim) really wanted to do something with special ed, and I had just met with my support staff to see how we could increase our Circle of Friends program,” Basmagian said. “Now, because of the foundation, we will be able to provide this program to all schools, district wide.” COF is an inclusive program that works
Local groups, individuals and businesses step up efforts to aid North Bay fire victims. Page 6
Marsh Creek Fish Kill Photo courtesy of BUSD
Members of the Byron Union School District pose with Jim Mattison, center, of the Discovery Bay Community Foundation, as they accept a check for $7,000 from the foundation for the school district’s Circle of Friends program. and special-needs student who sit together at lunch once a week. This builds relationships
to integrate special-needs kids with the rest of the student population. One of the program aspects includes students forming ‘circles of friends’ comprised of general education
see Friends page 30
LUHSD outperforms state English scores by Aly Brown Staff Writer
Liberty Union High School District (LUHSD) 11th-grade students recently took part in statewide testing and scored higher than the state average for English language arts (ELA), but the district has room to grow in mathematics. As a whole, students in the LUHSD who met or exceeded the standards for English and math were 68.35 percent and 31.92 percent, respectively. According to LUHSD Superintendent Eric Volta, two components for improvement revolve around students becoming more accustomed with how the tests are administered in addition to understanding the new way in which they are being assessed. The tests were taken on the computer this year, which for some was
45.91%
Heritage
83% 34.33%
Liberty
72.12% 23.56%
Freedom
62.01%
6.12% 30.61% 0%
0%
17.19% 20%
40%
60%
a struggle in itself. “I don’t want to understate the importance of these tests, nor give them more credence than they’re due, but you’re looking at a once a
100% Press graphic
year test that is computer adapted,” Volta said. “Not a lot of students have had experience. You have kids for the first time ever taking the test this way. So there’s something to be
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80%
Source: www.caaspp.cde.ca.gov
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English
59.76%
Independence
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Water-Polo Champions
Math
32.14%
California state average
La Paloma
Percentage of local high school students who met or exceeded state standards.
Officials investigating cause of numerous dead fish found in Marsh Creek. Page 4
said about the modality of which it is taken. Over time, more and more students will improve.” see LUHSD page 30
First Five
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Talking, reading and singing are the stepping stones to a child’s success.
Heritage boys’ and girls’ water-polo teams take league championships. Page 21 Calendar................................31 Classifieds.............................27 Cop Logs................................29 Entertainment.....................10 Food........................................11 Health & Beauty..................14 Milestones............................18 Opinion..................................20 Pets.........................................15 Sports.....................................21
Kaiser Honors
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Kaiser Permanente wins top honors for Medicare health plans.