SCCOE Strategic Plan    

The Mission of the Santa Cruz County Office of Education is

to provide quality educational leadership, programs, services, and support

to the children, school

districts, and the diverse community

that makes up Santa

Cruz County.

By Noel Smith, Aptos Times

The newly appointed five-member board of the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence (CCEE) promises to be one of the most powerful and influential bodies directing education standards in this, the most populous state in our nation. With the shift to the Common Core curriculum, all the old testing programs and standards are being replaced, and the CCEE is being tasked with helping schools throughout the state meet their newly mandated education goals.

On Friday, September 5, 2014, The Santa Cruz County Office of Education and the Keeping Kids in School Task Force held a press conference on the steps of Superior Court to promote Attendance Awareness Month. The event highlighted the solidarity among all school districts and community agencies in reducing excessive absenteeism in schools in our county during the 2014-15 school year.

Despite the Internet-induced gloom that hangs over the publishing industry, in 10, 20, 30 years from now, there will still be a rich and diverse literary establishment to serve readers worldwide. And in that hazy future, a disproportionate number of the writers creating the literature of tomorrow may have spent their formative years in Santa Cruz County. At least that's the implicit promise of the Young Writers Program (YWP), a project of the local literary organization Santa Cruz Writes and the Santa Cruz County Office of Education.

As the shift to Common Core State Standards (CCSS) moved into high gear, the County Office Curriculum and Instruction Department took the lead in ensuring that English learners would not be left behind. Trainings for administrators, classroom teachers and instructional coaches to raise the awareness of and support implementation of the new California English Language Development Standards have been a priority.

Students in Santa Cruz County Alternative Education's SOS and Ponderosa programs describe their experience and the impact Alternative Education has had on their lives.

For 25 years the Write-Start Backpack Project has been providing homeless and low-income students with new backpacks and school supplies to start the new school year. Since its inception in 1989, the Write-Start Backpack Project has provided over 26,300 backpacks to Santa Cruz County students. On August 2, 2014 the "Stuff the Bus" event collected 426 backpacks and a variety of school supplies. Volunteers from United Way, Target and Bay Federal Bank helped stuff backpacks and then stuff the school bus with all the collected donations. Our goal this year is to collect 1,000 backpacks.

After being shuttered for six years, Shoreline Middle School's woodshop has re-opened with a free summer program, thanks to a $20,000 donation from Live Oak residents Bill and Brigid Simpkins. Bandsaws buzzed and sawdust filled the air this summer, as 63 Shoreline students built shelves, flower boxes and stools. Melissa Martinez, 12, said she joined the program to learn to use her hands. "Maybe I've hammered a nail once or twice, but it's my first time using a planer, building things," she said. "It's like real-life Legos."

Digital NEST, which stands for Nurturing Entrepreneurial Skills with Technology, received $45,000 to develop a strategic plan to develop a center in Watsonville to prepare young people to be technology leaders. El Pajaro Community Development Corp. received $33,000 for its new kitchen incubator to help people interested in culinary arts learn about health regulations, marketing and management of a food business. Santa Cruz Community Health Centers, which opened a new family clinic in Live Oak, received $42,000 to expand access to health care for low-income residents. These are three of the 32 projects funded by Community Foundation Santa Cruz County in community development, education, health and human services.

The Santa Cruz County Office of Education, in collaboration with Arts Council of Santa Cruz County, celebrated the fourth annual Summer Arts Institute. 32 local teachers from K-8 grades along with SPECTRA teaching artists participated in a week long training offered by highly experienced professional VAPA (visual arts and performing arts) instructors. Participants explored and created visual arts, theater, and music while learning how to integrate the arts into classroom curriculum to support the Common Core.  

Watch a video created by the Pajaro Valley Arts Council (PVAC) about public art projects in Watsonville, entitled What You See, Who We Are, exploring identity and stereotypes.

Migrant Head Start and the Santa Cruz County Office of Education are once again providing free child care for local farmworker families with children younger than 5 years old through October. Throughout Watsonville, there are 90 homes and eight classrooms, providing child care for more than 860 children. The Watsonville providers offer 12 hours of child care, from 6 a.m to 6 p.m, five days a week for children of farmworkers. The program currently has 30 child care openings.

Over 80 Cabrillo Advancement Program (CAP) students proudly wore t-shirts with the words "Got Career" inscribed on them. This year marks the seventh year that the Regional Occupational Program (ROP) and Cabrillo College have collaborated to bring hands on Career Technical Education (CTE) classwork to students attending the four-day Career Academy. Students were engaged in Medical Technology, Culinary Arts and Sports Occupations, with an additional support class of Career and College Counseling. Co-directed by Elizabeth Dominguez of CAP and Karen Lemon, Middle School Outreach Coordinator for the Santa Cruz County Office of Education, students had four fun-filled and educational days to explore career pathways.