INSIDE SCOOP
OPINION
MASS MATRICULATING
SPORTS
PAGE 3 BOGART WOULD BALK
PAGE 4 LEFTY DOESN’T SHANK IT
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2007
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Volume 6 Issue 79
Santa Monica Daily Press VIEWERS DIG THE CHICKS SEE PAGE 17
Since 2001: A news odyssey
THE DP IS BURNING ISSUE
Chalk it up to wit
PARENTING
MEALS ON TRAINING WHEELS
BY MELODY HANATANI Daily Press Staff Writer
Healthy Healthy habits habits are are the the lesson lesson of of the the day day STORY STORY PAGE PAGE 12 12
Christine Chang news@smdp.com
CHILLIN’: Students from Roosevelt Elementary School learn to cook, sans heat, in classes organized by The Santa Monica Farmers’ Markets.
Back in the bush leagues BY KEVIN HERRERA Daily Press Staff Writer
CITY HALL The battle over hedge heights continues. Once again, the City Council is expected to tackle an interim law regulating the height of walls, fences and hedges located on private property, an effort that began three years ago when city staff issued letters to hundreds of residents calling on them to cut down bamboo, cypress trees and other plants or face fines up to $25,000 per day. City staff is asking the council to extend the interim ordinance until Jan. 9, 2010, so that more time can be spent refining the law to better address the concerns of residents. If the council does not act, the interim ordinance will expire at the end of March, forcing city staff to hold another series of community meetings before the Planning Commission and the council. The hope is that the interim ordinance can be amended and permanent standards adopted when a new zoning ordinance is drafted,
SMMUSD HDQTRS. A handful of district teachers recently put themselves to the test, and are the richer for it. Five elementary and middle school teachers in the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District recently received the holy grail of teaching credentials — certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS), known as the highest honor that a teacher could possibly receive. The new inductees —Robert Seymour and Stefanie Suffolk, science teachers at Lincoln Middle School; Adam Panish, a social studies teacher at Malibu High School; Ken Harris, a kindergarten and first grade teacher at Point Dume Marine Science School; and Irma Lyons, the principal at Will Rogers Learning Community — will join the 49 other teachers in the district who have successfully undergone the rigorous certification process, a process in which just 40 percent of applicants pass on their first try. All of the newly certified teachers have taught in the school district for more than 15 years except for Panish, who has taught in SMMUSD for 10 years. “The process of going through National Board certification is one of the best professional development opportunities available to teachers in our nation,” said Susan SamargePowell of Educational Services at SMMUSD. “It provides an opportunity for teachers to reflect both internally, and in a very public way about the work they do with their students, schools, families and community.” The NBPTS is a non-profit and non-governmental agency. Several state Boards of Education offers incentives to teachers who are able to add the certification to their name. In North Carolina, all teachers who receive certification receive a
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SEE HEDGES PAGE 6 NEXT STEP: The debate over permissable hedge height limits begins anew.
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