New Look & Tools for District Website
The Berkeley Unified School District website has been refreshed and retooled to better serve you. We are still in the midst of improving our site but could not wait to share the new digital tools we now have in place. For starters, we've added a spot for videos and photos, automatic Google translation for visitors preferring a language other than English, a district Google calendar, easier navigation, and improved content.  A few of the links are still in the process of migrating to their new home - thanks for your patience! We are committed to keeping you informed by keeping the website up to date. You will find a feedback button on the homepage - so let us know what you like and how you want to use it. |
West Campus Progress Update
The West Campus modernization project at Bonar St. and University Avenue is nearing the end of the first construction phase. BUSD's Central Administration Office will move into what use to be known as classroom Building 'C' on Bonar Street at the end of December.
In an effort to update the neighborhood and greater Berkeley community about the next phases of the modernization project, a community meeting is being held on Tuesday, October 18, 2011 at 6:30 p.m. in the West Campus Gym.
An outline of the three phases of projects and the notes from the community meeting this past July are available on our West Campus webpage.
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Teachers and Staff Learn Too!
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Monday, October 10th is the district-wide Staff Development Day - so no school for students.
Part of ensuring an excellent education for our students means giving teachers and staff time to hone their craft and learn from each other.
Examples of workshop content that teachers and instructional staff will be attending include: strategic activities to improve reading accuracy; using student data to plan literacy instruction; teaching fractions in grades 4-8; using students' historical experiences to facilitate learning; integrating science and technology; and many other specialized workshops for teachers of special education, art, dance, and music.
Administrative and non-instructional staff will attend specialized workshops in new versions of Word, Excel and other software, technology, and safety.
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BSEP Planning & Oversight (P&O) Committee Watches Tax Dollars
 Since 1986, Berkeley school children have been the beneficiaries of a special local property tax known as BSEP, the Berkeley Schools Excellence Program.
Most recently approved by nearly 80% of Berkeley voters in 2006, BSEP provides over $23 million each year to our schools for a wide variety of specified programs.
Each K-8 School Governance Council and the BHS BSEP Committee select their school's P&O representative(s) in October each year. Parents interested in serving on the P&O Committee should contact their principal and/or SGC Chair right away. What does the Planning & Oversight Committee do?
Parent representatives from each school that form the membership of this committee meet regularly to: - Review the implementation of the many aspects of the BSEP Measure, ranging from Class Size Reduction to Music & Libraries, from Technology to Professional Development for Teachers, and much more;
- Ensure that BSEP funds are spent in compliance with the Measure;
- Make annual recommendations to the School Board for the use of BSEP dollars.
The first meeting of the 2011-12 P&O Committee is on Tuesday, November 1 at 7:00 pm at Malcolm X Elementary. For more information on BSEP and the Planning & Oversight Committee, click here. |
