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Second Budget Forum: April 19 at 5:30
In response to the community interest in State and District budget issues, a second Budget Forum with Jonathan Kaplan of the California Budget Project and Deputy Superintendent Javetta Cleveland has been arranged for April 19th. Attending the forum will help you to understand the state of California's budget, how it is affecting education, and more specifically the impact expected on the BUSD budget over the next two years.
April 19th, 5:30 - 7pm
Location: BUSD Council Chambers, 2134 MLK Jr. Way
With a shortage of revenue at the state level, no more jobs bill funding for next year, and increasing costs due to inflation, BUSD is facing a projected shortfall of $3 to $4.8 million dollars in the coming fiscal year.
The March 29th Budget Forum is now available for viewing online. It includes discussion of possible cost saving and budget cutting strategies that are under consideration.
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B-Tech Commended in WASC Accreditation Report | Sheila Quintana, Principal of B-TECH, was commended by WASC Visiting Committee for her leadership.
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Berkeley Technology Academy, "B-Tech", worked as a community-focused collaborative team to meet the requirements of WASC (Western Accreditation of Schools and Colleges) for the Spring 2012 Limited Term Visit. Citing improvements in effective direct instruction in their rigorous core classes, an increase in the use of technology, and Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) using data to drive instruction, the WASC committee gave B-Tech ten (10) commendations and one recommendation ( WASC Report in PDF here). Many new support systems have been implemented to support students academically and to help them overcome challenges. The recommendation, which was at the request of the B-Tech WASC/Leadership Team, allows B-Tech to update the 2010 Expected Schoolwide Learning Results (ESLRs) to reflect their current school-wide improvements.
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Annual Peforming Arts Festival: A Community Affair
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BUSD Performing Arts Showcase 2012 featured student musicians from Berkeley's elementary, middle and high schools. The appreciative crowd experienced why Berkeley voters continue to fund music instruction in the schools through Measure A of 2006 - Berkeley Schools Excellence Program (BSEP).
Enjoy Video Samplers One through Ten of the individual groups that performed and share them with your students. Whether you're looking at what is to come for your beginning music student, or looking back at where your high school musician was just a few years ago; you will again be in awe of our youth and their creative pursuits. |
Parent Liaison Program Approved by the Board 
After several community meetings and considerations over the restructuring of the district's parent outreach program to a school centered model of family engagement, the School Board voted to approve the parent liaison program model as a two year pilot program that includes funding based on specific need criteria for six half time parent liaisons at Emerson, Malcolm X, John Muir, LeConte, BAM, and Thousand Oaks. (Rosa Parks, BHS, and Cragmont currently fund parent liaisons through site based resources.)
The next steps will be for the District to begin the hiring process for the positions needed to implement the new parent liaison program. The focus of the staff's work will be to: ensure schools are welcoming to all families, provide targeted outreach to families of students who are not showing grade level proficiency, and bring diverse parent voices into leadership roles at the school. An outline of the model presented at the Board meeting is available in PDF here.
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Work Continues on Evaluating Services for English Learners The work of the Two Way Immersion Task Force has spanned most of this school year and culminated in a report of findings and recommendations that is posted here. The School Board received the report at the April 11th meeting. The English Learner (EL) Working Group is currently evaluating the District's programs and services for English Learners, including the TWI and bilingual programs, and is expected to complete this phase of work in May. Both the work of the TWI Task Force and the EL Working Group will inform any programmatic and/or location changes that will be considered by the Superintendent and the School Board.
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Ces ár Ch ávez's Grandson Visits Cragmont 
By Ely Amador, 1st Grade TWI teacher
Cesár Chávez's grandson, Anthony Chávez, visited Cragmont School on March 28th. In honor of his grandfather's birthday, Mr. Chávez led two assemblies, one for Kindergarten and 1st grade classes and a second one for the older grades. He showed photographs and spoke about growing up in the Central Valley with his grandfather. Even though he was only seven years old when his grandfather died, Anthony has many fond memories of him.
You can read the rest of Ms. Amador's account here.
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Upcoming School Board Meetings
April 25th at 7:30
Location: 2134 MLK Jr. Way
Agendas posted 72 hours prior on this webpage.
Superintendent's Budget Advisory Committee
April 17th & 24th from 5:30 - 7:30pm
Location: BUSD Oregon Street Conference Room: 1720 Oregon St.
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