Program Successes Heard at School Board Meeting; NJROTC will Compete in National Finals

Six students from the group of Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps will travel to Washington D.C. later this month to participate in the Cyber Patriot National Finals. It's the first time a group from the school has taken part in national finals, said Commander Mike Ernst, one of the instructors. The board approved a field trip at its meeting March 16.

In other school news, the recently approved digital photography program at Ramona High School has become popular. It's taught by Tim Hall through the Regional Occupational Program. It started in February and has 134 students enrolled. Hall was formerly a paginator and photographer at the Ramona Sentinel newspaper.

Hall and two of his students were at the board meeting to make a presentation to the trustees. Several of the students have their work on display at the district office.

“Students understand how photography can be part of their daily lives,” Hall explained.

Other art from classes at Ramona High School, Montecito High School, Mountain Valley Academy and Olive Peirce Middle School currently is on display at the district office as part of Arts Education Month.

Mount Woodson Elementary School Principal Theresa Grace discussed how her school is integrating technology in Social Studies classes at the sixth-grade level. Teacher Leslie Wilson and three of her students shared examples of their projects. Students work in teams to research assigned projects on the Internet. The teams then make presentations to their classmates, showing how they applied various technical skills to their finished projects.

Wilson talked about online programs used for the projects, in particular for a report on Egypt.

“We go on virtual field trips to Egypt,” she said.

Olive Peirce Middle School Principal Linda Solis showed the certificate of recognition from the state Department of Education in partnership with the California Middle Grades Alliance. Board members Rodger Dohm and Dawn Perfect received the award last month in Sacramento.

Assistant Superintendent Cathy Pierce, in charge of education services, reported on the preparations for college entrance examinations for students in eighth, 10^th and 12^th grades. The board unanimously approved funding for the testing programs.

A new elective course, Career Technical Exploration, will be offered at Ramona High School. It will consist of four components with students rotating between automotive, first responder, culinary arts and digital photography classes. Pierce explained that it will allow students to sample key concepts and activities offered in each subject while learning practical life skills. The board gave its unanimous approval.

Unanimous approval also was given to the second interim report on the financial status of the district. Assistant Superintendent David Ostermann, in charge of administrative services, said district finances are dependent on state and county budgets, as well as a proposed statewide extension of temporary taxes that may go before the voters in a June election.

“A lot of things can happen,” Ostermann said, adding that the county Department of Education has advised school districts to plan for a possible reduction of $349 per student for the average daily attendance allotment received from the state. For RUSD, that tallies to $2.1 million, Ostermann said.

Ostermann also discussed the cost of utilities and the types of alternative energy that may become available for  the distric’s facilities. He compared current costs with the past five years, and also broke down the costs for each site. The current energy cost district-wide is $1 million annually, according to Ostermann’s report. He suggested an energy audit be conducted by an outside contractor at a cost of $50,000.

The next school board meeting begins at 7 p.m. on April 14 at the Wilson Administration Center, 920 Ninth St.