More than 120,000 people in the Sacramento community do not know where their next meal will be coming from, says Eileen Thomas, Executive Director at River City Food Bank. The Sacramento Hunger Coalition aims to remedy this situation, and they will be presenting the inaugural Hunger Action Week from May 20th to May 24th. The organization will hold an event on each day of the week to bring attention to the hunger issues on local and statewide levels. Monday, May 20th River City Food Bank will host a Senior Hunger Panel at their facility from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Senior hunger experts will discuss the food insecurity crisis for senior citizens in California. Tuesday, May 21st The Sacra

A C.K. McClatchy High School debate team has won the national Tournament of Champions, becoming the first team ever from a California public high school to win the nation’s top high school debate competition. McClatchy seniors John Spurlock and Keenan Harris took first place in the policy debate division at the University of Kentucky tournament. In the 42-year history of the Tournament of Champions, no team from a California public high school has ever won. (In 2003, a team from College Preparatory School, a private high school in Oakland, took top honors.) McClatchy Debate Coach Seth Blackmon compares winning the Tournament of Champions to winning the Super Bowl or the NCAA Basketball f

The Serna Center was packed for nearly six hours Thursday night and into the wee hours of Friday, as parents, kids, teachers and supporters waited to hear the outcome of the board’s controversial school closure plan. And at nearly 1 a.m., they found out what many figured was already coming – a 4-3 vote to shutter seven Sacramento City Unified School District elementary schools. The schools that will be closed are: Fruit Ridge, Washington, C.P. Huntington, Joseph Bonnheim, Mary Hopkins, and Clayton B. Wire. Three other schools slated for closure – James Marshall, Susan B. Anthony and Bret Harte – were removed from the list early Thursday. "There's nothing like watching a done deal happen

While Washington Elementary School is the smallest school in the district, you wouldn't know it by the amount of impassioned community members that spoke up Wednesday night to oppose a plan to shut its doors.  Hundreds of parents, teachers, students and education supporters criticized the Sacramento City Unified School District's plan, calling it unfair and a direct blow to a school that's primarily comprised of low-income, minority students. Tears were shed by several students and parents, who say many parents don't have cars and would be hard hit if their children have to go out of the area.  "You can't put a price tag on fracturing communities like this move would do," said Pennie Tay

For those wanting to opine about Washington Elementary School's potential closure, Wednesday night is the time, and the Midtown public school is the place. As the decision to close 11 Sacramento schools draws near, parents, educators and students have rallied to keep the schools open, calling the Sacramento City Unified School District's plan short-sighted. The plan was announced in mid-January and, if approved, will save the district $10 million over a four-year period. Washington School's closure would represent about $1.1 million of that total over the same time period, according to the Sacramento City Unified School District.  Superintendent Jonathan Raymond has deemed the plan "rig

Henry Molina from John F. Kennedy High School, in the Sacramento City Unified School District, is the winner of the Sacramento County Poetry Out Loud competition for 2013. He finished first from a field of 15 during the Sacramento County finals, held Thursday, February 7, at Rosemont High School in Sacramento. Henry earned the right to represent Sacramento County in the State Finals, March 25-26 in Sacramento. Carinn Candelaria, from Pleasant Grove High School in the Elk Grove Unified School District, is the Sacramento County runner-up. California's overall winner will receive $200 and an expenses-paid trip to compete in the National Finals in Washington, D.C., held April 28-30, 2013. A

One of Midtown's last remaining primary schools is on the chopping block for closure, along with 10 other sites in the Sacramento City Unified School District. The school – Washington Elementary School at 520 18th Street – is between the Mansion Flats and New Era Park neighborhoods, and was built in the 1950s. It was nearly closed in 2009, amid a budget crisis, and has the capacity to serve 580 students. Enrollment for the current year is 222 – or 38 percent its potential – making it one of the least populated elementary schools district-wide.  "We're in a real difficult position here," said Area 1 Board Member Jay Hansen, who was only recently appointed to his position. "Every community

During his recent bus tour across America, U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan met with a group of mayors and superintendents in Sacramento and noted during comments that they (USDOE) had "dropped the ball" when it came to family engagement. This could have been a seminal moment for Mr. Duncan to shine the light on the Parent/Teacher Home Visit Project. Started in Sacramento over a dozen years ago, the program was developed to improve relationships and communication between schools and families in an effort to end the cycle of teachers and parents blaming each other for a lack of student success. A partnership between Sacramento City Unified School District, Sacramento City Teachers Asso

A.M. Winn Elementary School Principal Michael Kast bends down on one knee to loosely knot a yard of silky fabric around the neck of Tyler Reynolds, 6. Instantly, Tyler is transformed. No longer just an ordinary kindergartener, he is now a superhero, with the cape to prove it. He runs out the open door of the freshly painted classroom into a small play area, where he leaps – in a single bound – atop a tree stump. Tyler’s transformation isn’t the only one planned at A.M. Winn. With the opening of a new Waldorf-inspired kindergarten this fall, the A.M. Winn community intends to bring a decidedly different educational model to the school, one based on Sacramento City Unified School District

A middle school teacher from the Sacramento City Unified School District and an elementary school teacher from the Robla School District are the Sacramento County Teachers of the Year 2013, the Sacramento County Office of Education (SCOE) announced August 15 at a county-wide teacher recognition dinner. Jennifer Ellerman teaches 7th Grade Language Arts at California Middle School, in the Sacramento City Unified School District, and Bob Crongeyer teaches 5th – 6th grade GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) at Taylor Street School in the Robla School District, North Sacramento. The two were selected from 15 Sacramento area teachers to represent the county in the California Teachers of the Ye

Adult ESL learners and their children came out in droves to rally for Sacramento City Unified School District to reinstate funding for the ESL program at Fremont Adult School in Sacramento. Seventy people waved signs and cheered outside the school district office on 47th Avenue on Thursday. Countless cars honked and showed their support. Student Juan Navarrete said in a letter to the school board, “I learned a lot as you see. Now I can write, read, speak. Also I completed my GED and some computer programs, but the more important thing is that I can help my kids with homework. Incredibly, their grades have gone up in school. They have dreams, hopes, they have a future.” Teacher Marge Mato

Administrators at John F. Kennedy High School organized a mega fieldtrip this week: They brought every freshman student – all 500 – on a college campus tour. The JFK ninth graders visited Sacramento City College on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings. While college visits are not uncommon for Sacramento City Unified School District high school students, this is the first time a large campus has ensured that every member of a class gets to see a college in action before graduation. “We want every student to know that they can go to college if they choose,” said JFK Principal Chad Sweitzer. “No matter what academic achievement level or income level you’re at, there are opportunities open to you

Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson unveiled the preview of his Strategic Plan for Gang Prevention (SPGP) this past Monday morning in the Hearing room of the Historic City Hall. “I am committed to a paradigm shift away from only enforcement and incarceration with more emphasis put toward prevention and intervention,” stated Johnson during his opening remarks. “There is a lot of frustration in the community,” stated Johnson as he referenced the recent community meeting in the Del Paso Heights neighborhood in response to the recent death of Tyrone Smith. Smith died in the custody of the Sacramento Police Department in the aftermath of the shooting of a Twin Rivers officer after a routine traff

Gang violence took what officials described as a drastic drop since July 2010, attributing the drop to Mayor Kevin Johnson’s gang-prevention programs initiated in June of 2010 and again after last December’s fatal barbershop shooting. Since implementing some of the measures, Lt. Bill Champion of the Sacramento Police Department said that the results have been effective. The number of gang-related firearm assaults has dropped by 60 percent, and the overall rate fell by 39 percent. In addition, there has been a 75 percent drop in homicide rates, and a 100 percent drop in non-fatal shootings. Community leaders gathered at City Hall Monday morning to discuss the mayor’s plan. Speakers, inc

Mayor Kevin Johnson announced Tuesday at his weekly press conference that the Third Grade Reading Campaign to bring up Sacramento’s standard reading level will kick off Wednesday with a community resource fair and a press conference. Sacramento County third grade reading proficiency rates are well below California standards, according to Stand Up, a nonprofit education program that is a featured initiative of Johnson. Statewide, 44 percent of third graders are reading at grade level, while Sacramento County is at 37 percent, based on the 2011 education statistics. “When we think about Sacramento, our literacy rates are not what they need to be. We have far too many of our children that a

School superintendents from across the state convened on the west steps of the Capitol on Monday to urge lawmakers to get tax extensions on the ballot in a June special election, which they said is necessary to avoid a $4.6 billion reduction in public school funding. Sacramento City Unified Superintendent Johnathan Raymond  said time has run out and that legislators need to get the tax extensions put on the ballot this week, since county clerks need 88 days to prepare for an election. “We are here because we represent children in California, and that, I think, is a point getting missed in our message,” said Raymond. “I look right in front of me and I see two yellow school buses. We all

Elementary school Principal Robert Sullivan will be taking over Rosa Parks Middle School to help turn it around after it was added to a list of schools needing improvement last week. According to the district office, Sullivan began with SCUSD at age 17, when he landed a job as a custodian at Tahoe Elementary School to help pay for college, eventually working his way up to instructional aide and then teacher. He was an assistant principal at John Still K-8 School until taking over as principal at John Sloat seven years ago. Under Sullivan’s tenure at John Sloat, student test scores have risen dramatically. The school improved its state-measured Academic Performance Index (API) base from 6

  By fall, Sacramento's Susan B. Anthony Elementary School may be the first public school in California and the second nationwide to implement a Hmong/English dual-language program. The only thing that may prevent such a program from taking off is a lack of interest among parents and students, so Lee Yang, Sacramento City Unified School District administrator of elementary curriculum and professional development has reached out to Hmong elders and clan leaders about appealing to the Hmong community. “We can have the program, but if there are no kids, you can't really have it, right?” Yang said. “We are expecting there will be interested folks out there because this is not only designed

The Sacramento City Unified School District board unanimously voted to balance the district's projected “worst-case” budget shortfall of $22.35 million by eliminating financial support for sports, drama, yearbook, newspaper, marching band, cheerleading and speech and debate. The proposal is to eliminate “extra pay for extra-duty stipends,” uniform replacements funds, athletic trainer funds and co-curricular transportation funds for a savings of $1.26 million, according to the district. Board members also voted to reduce the district’s counseling staff by 37 percent, eliminating one assistant principal position at each high school and raising K-3 class sizes at two grade levels. The boa

Sacramento City Unified School District is getting some national help to renovate and make some of its more than 80 campuses more eco-friendly. A full-time sustainability officer will help schools meet LEED standards as part of a program through the U.S. Green Building Council, said Rachel Gutter, director of the Center for Green Schools, which is based in Washington, D.C. “(We) were impressed by your community’s enormous undertaking to become the greenest region in the country,” Gutter said, adding that beginning districtwide sustainability measures takes a large amount of time and money. The Green Schools Fellowship Program aims to help improve school sites to make them more environme