STAR Honor Roll Recognition
On November 6th, Wesley Gaines School along with Hollydale and Lincoln Schools were recognized as Honor Roll Schools by the California Business for Education Excellence Foundation in conjunction with Just for the Kids – California.
The Principals from these three sites were invited to a full day of events at the Intercontinental Hotel in Century City. For the evening’s banquet, Dr. Verdugo, Superintendent, Ms. Sonya Cuellar, PUSD Board Member, and Dr. Myrna Morales, Reading First Director joined the Principals for this outstanding recognition. Each of the Principals received an Honor Roll 2007 Certificate and a large vinyl banner exclaiming their site as an Honor Roll recipient. We welcome you to Wesley Gaines School and view our banner so proudly displayed out on the front gate.
Wesley Gaines, Abraham Lincoln and Hollydale Schools were selected by the California Business for Education Excellence (CBEE) Foundation and Just for the Kids – California (JFTK-CA) as three of 570 public schools in California to receive the title of 2007 Honor Roll school. Schools receiving the distinction from California’s business community have demonstrated consistent high student academic achievement and have made significant progress toward closing achievement gaps among all their
Garcia and Hansen
Reelected
Newly reelected Paramount Unified School District Board of Education members Linda Garcia and Vivian Hansen were given the Oath of Office by Superintendent David Verdugo at the December 11 Statutory meeting. President Hansen has been on the Board for more than 20 years. Mrs. Hansen serves as the Director of the Norwalk/La Mirada Chamber of Commerce and she is involved in many city organizations. Her husband, Councilmember Dr. Tom Hansen, graduated from Paramount High School and their three children attended Paramount Schools.
Trustee Linda Garcia was originally elected to the Paramount Unified School District Board of Education in 1999 and currently serves past president. Linda is a native of Paramount and her three children are graduates and her grandson currently attends his neighborhood school at Emmanuel Preschool.
students. The CBEE Foundation/JFTKCA Honor Roll is made up of two different awards, the STAR Schools Award (127 schools) and Scholar Schools Award (443 schools).
Wesley Gaines, as a CBEE Star School, is a school site with a significant population of socio-economically disadvantaged students that has shown a significant increase in grade-level proficiency over four years for all subgroups.
Abraham Lincoln and Hollydale Schools are schools that are showing
significant levels of academic achievement, but do not have a significant socio-economically disadvantaged student population.
Honor Roll schools are being recognized because they are on track to meet the goal of 100% grade-level proficiency by the 2013/2014 school year as required by federal law.
Mrs. Stevens, Principal at Gaines states, “Our teachers are committed to striving toward academic excellence and to working diligently to ensure the focus
is on student academic achievement and reaching grade-level proficiency. We hold all of our students no matter what their background the same high standards because we believe they can all reach grade-level proficiency.”
An impressive API score of 796 was attained by Gaines’ students on the 2007 STAR Test.
Outgoing President Honored
Linda Stevens Principal Gaines School
J ANUARY 2008
Senator Allen Lowenthal, Representative from Congresswoman Linda Sanchez’s office Daisy Pizana, Board President Vivian Hansen, Mayor Peggy Lemons, Superintendent David Verdugo and Board of Education members congratulated outgoing President Linda Garcia on her successful year as President of the Board of Education.
PHS Grad Shares Career
Risks and Consequences was the Open Court theme for the fourth grader’s guest speaker at Zamboni School. Martin Castro, a former Orange Avenue student, and a 2005 graduate of Paramount High School was the featured speaker for Ms. Mendez and Ms. Shearer’s classes. Mr. Castro now serves as a United States Forest Service Firefighter.
Mr. Castro shared with the students details about his training and the duties he performs. The students enjoyed a
slideshow of pictures taken of Mr. Castro and his company taken during the two-week firefight in the Santa Barbara Wildfire.
The students were able to hear about and see some real-life connections to their risk and consequences theme. It was exciting and encouraging to see one of our own former students return to serve as a model of success.
Ms. Shearer and Ms. Mendez Teachers – Zamboni School
Special Education Parent Meetings
The Paramount Unified School District Special Education Department kicked off their first Paramount Education meeting with great success on October 11 at Lincoln School. The Special Education Team discussed “Organizational Skills” with parents of students in kindergarten through eighth grade. Parents and the team discussed how these skills can help children in school and at home. Parents discussed their student’s successes and challenges with organization. The team was able to provide examples of strategies and support as well as provide individual contacts with parents after the meeting. Our next meetings will be at Lincoln School on January 17, 1008, for parents with students in grades kindergarten through eighth and Paramount High School on January 24, 2008 for parents with students in grades 9 through 12.
Kim Cole, Director Special Education – Early Childhood Education
Kindergarten/ First Grade Oral Health Requirement
Effective January 1st, 2007, all Kindergarteners or 1st graders new to public schools, are required to have a dental check up before the end of the school year. That means that if you have a child in Kindergarten or First Grade this year, they must get a dental checkup by June 19, 2008. Your child’s school will have a form that you take to the dentist. After the check-up, the dentist signs the form and you return it to the school office. This is very important
because many children have cavities that are not detected, but that cause infection or tooth pain. Students who are in pain have a difficult time concentrating in school. Please call your school if you need more information. Insurance information and assistance can also be provided by your school office.
Terri Dorow Director Student Services
Young Entrepreneurs at Paramount Park
The spirit of entrepreneurship came alive at Paramount Park School! During the second unit in Open Court, “Dollar and Sense”, students were introduced to the concept of establishing a business. The goal of the business unit is to teach students the concepts of marketing, cost, income, profit, and volume. The students developed an idea into a realistic business plan. With the learning goals in mind, the students from Mrs. Baltierrez’ 4th grade class created a business plan to raise money towards a spring field trip to Riley’s farm. Under the direction of the teacher, the students conducted marketing research and discovered that students are hungry after recess and they do not always bring snacks from home. Based on their research, they decided to sell lemonade and rice crispy treats. According to Luis Reyes, “We choose to sell lemonade because we knew that we would make a big profit. Most of us have lemonade trees at home, so we knew we didn’t have to buy them. Right there that told us that our expenses would be less. The weather also helped us make a decision about our product. We knew that customers would want to drink something cold on hot days.
Our decision to sell lemonade was easy because we kept our expenses low and our profits high!”
The students voted on the name “Sweet and Sour Surprises”. With their well-developed plan in hand, students were given permission to sell for two weeks during their scheduled lunchtime. The students demonstrated teamwork from the start. They worked together on the business plan, research, advertising and they collaborated with parent volunteers to help their plan become a reality. Jesus Sanchez summed up his experience by saying, “Our customers really loved the lemonade. They kept buying it! I enjoyed watching everyone stand in line to buy it. I knew when the line was long, our customers were happy!”
After two weeks of hard work, the students were extremely proud of their efforts. They not only raised enough money for their field trip, they also made extra money to donate to St. Jude’s Research Hospital.
Pat West Returns Home with Visit to Paramount High School
Pat West, one of Paramount’s favorite sons, recently returned to town to share his experience and professional history with a visit to Mr. O’Donnell’s senior government class. Mr. West, the former City Manager of Paramount, detailed the story of Paramount’s comeback and his role as the new City Manager of Long Beach. His passion for public service and his desire to encourage young people to consider a career in local government was evident and appreciated.
“Challenging, difficult, and a great opportunity” were just a few of the words Mr. West used to describe his new job. He encouraged students to look to a career in government because it is a place you can become “innovative and help solve problems.” Mr. West re -
minded students that no city manager succeeds without a supportive and engaged city council.
Mr. West shared with the students a very vivid account of the challenges Paramount has overcome during the last fifteen years. The progress and history of the city was detailed. He credited many in the community with helping make Paramount all that it can be. Today Paramount is seen as a model for how a community can work together to come up with solutions to complex problems. No doubt, Mr. West played a key role in making this happen and we look for a repeat performance in Long Beach.
Mr. O’Donnell Social Studies Teacher
Maria Baltierrez Teachera Paramount Park School
Zamboni Wildcats Sleep With The Beasts
Lions and tigers and “Night Owls,” oh my! October was an exciting month for Zamboni fourth and fifth grade students. Fifty-six students joined teachers, staff and parents to participate in The San Diego Wild Animal Park’s Night Owl Program. The overnight program provides students in grades 3-6 an opportunity to sleep near the animals – so close that you can hear their snores and roars!
Students arrived at the Wild Animal Park and were loaded onto trams for a journey into Africa. Giraffes, rhinos and ostriches roamed freely for the students to see. After, students were taken to camp to settle into their tents and were treated to a delicious bar-be-que dinner.
After dinner, the students rotated between two stations: a conservation craft center and an up-close meeting with some animal ambassadors, an owl and an alligator.
Of course, no campout is com-
plete without s’mores and a campfire. The campfire entertainment included magic, Homer Simpson impersonations and a chance for students to play their own version of Fear Factor by eating a real bug.
In the morning, campers fueled up with pancakes and set out on an incredible hike through the Wild Animal Park. Students were face to face with lions and met a two week old baby elephant. After the hike, student groups continued their experience by roaming the park and encountering many other exciting animals.
“I loved being so close to the rhinos,” said Jesse Sandoval. Joshua Mendoza liked “sleeping in the tents by the animals.” Whether it was the fun of camping out or being so close to the animals, this was an exciting experience for all.
Lisa Kirk Math Coach Zamboni School
2008 Board of Education Meetings
Board of Education meetings are held on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month at 6 p.m. in the Boardroom of the District Office, 15110 California Avenue, Paramount.
January 8, 2008
January 22, 2008
February 12, 2008
February 26, 2008
March 11, 2008
March 25, 2008
April 8, 2008
April 22, 2008
May 13, 2008
May 27, 2008
June 10, 2008
June 24, 2008
July 8, 2008
August 19, 2008
September 9, 2008
September 23, 2008
October 14, 2008
October 28, 2008
November 18, 2008
December 9, 2008
Superintendent’s Message: Happy New Year
On behalf of the Paramount Unified School District Board of Education, please accept our best wishes for the New Year. This is the time when many of us take stock of our past, while we also plan for the future.
Our School District is constantly assessing its history and heritage while moving forward to better prepare and educate the students we serve. We are committed to working together to build on our successes and embrace the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead in 2008 and beyond.
Thank you to all the dedicated teachers, staff and administrators that everyday demonstrate a spirit of unity and focus that benefits our
children.
A special thank you to our hard working students who believe in and work towards a bright future.
Best wishes for a Happy New Year, May God Bless you.
David J. Verdugo, Ed.D. Superintendent
Freshman Pirates Reach Out to the Community
The Paramount High School West Campus Leadership students organized a successful canned food drive for those who couldn’t afford to have a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner. The students successfully collected over 20 boxes filled with canned goods and managed to also collect $200 in cash. The money was used to purchase Stater Bros. gift cards to help receiving families purchase additionally needed items to enjoy their Thanksgiving holiday.
The canned food drive was held for one week. Students were encouraged to bring canned foods and other non-perishables to their first period teachers to be collected. The Associated Student Body held a variety of activities during their lunch. In order to be included in the activities students had to bring one canned food of any kind as admission.
The heart warming moment of the whole Thanksgiving sensation was when two Paramount-West Campus teachers,
Ms. Catalan and Mr. Almada, along with their students, decorated ten lovely gift baskets that were to be delivered along with the boxes of canned goods to local Paramount families. These families were so shocked and over whelmed with joy that some broke down to tears. Thanks to West Campus’ students and faculty, ten Paramount families had the opportunity to enjoy a delicious Thanksgiving dinner. With anticipation, we hope next year’s drive will have the same or even more success. Inspired by their thrilling accomplishments, the Leadership students are hoping for the same triumph with this year’s Holiday Food and Toy Drive. The City of Paramount, along with its residents, is grateful to have West Campus and their hard working students in our community.
Miguel Iniesta Student
PHS-West
Paramount High School Field Stadium
Groundbreaking Ceremony
