Learn more about the Eddy Awards and enter your nominations here.

Educators, parents, students and community members will stand together to bring attention to the plight of public school funding in California. In just the past two years, $17 billion has been cut from K-12 schools and our colleges & universities. More than 16,000 teachers have lost their jobs.

Parents, community members, students, teachers, elected officials must stand together to demand smart policy and financial reforms that support strong neighborhood schools.  Slashing school budgets disproportionately at the local level places the greatest impact squarely on the classroom.  The cost? A generation of young learners. There is no question that California needs to get its financial house in order, but it cannot do so on the backs of our youngest, our most vulnerable and our greatest hope for the future.

We hope you will join us in sending a message to Sacramento.

More information:

Stand Up for Schools Protect our Students California Teachers Association

The Second Annual Young Performers Showcase features a variety of talented local performing artists: This extravaganza of fabulous young singers, dancers, musicians and jugglers is guaranteed to astonish and delight.

Performers include singer/songwriter Tess Dunn, rising star rock trio Almost Chaos, singer and dancers Camille Castro and her sisters, the Musicscool All-Stars featuring James Durbin, the Harbor High Cheerleaders, Luis Sanchez & DSR Breakdancers jugglers Noah and Robin, the Dancenter Hip Hop Crew, singer Alysha Antonino, and a special performance by Grammy Award nominee Tammi Brown backed by local favorites ROMP. A “50/50” Raffle and Silent Auction will also benefit school music programs.  Emcee for the evening will be Sven Davis from Planet Cruz Comedy Hour.

This fundraiser was initiated by Cruzville Productions, a group of Santa Cruz business professionals and made possible by the Santa Cruz Education Foundation. The goal is to supplement the lack of adequate funding for music programs in state and local schools. Studies confirm that childrens’ involvement with music and performance in school can have a profound impact on academic performance, self-esteem, concentration, self-expression and overall connectedness to school.

The 4 Goals of the Young Performers Showcase are:

• To provide additional funds in support of music programs and needs in the Santa Cruz City Schools.
• To provide education for the public as to the benefits of music education and experiences for children in the schools.
• To provide an opportunity for local, young, talented performing artists in the Santa Cruz area to perform in front of a large audience in a concert hall setting.
• To present a concert of high-quality family entertainment to the Santa Cruz community.

Showtime:  7:30 pm, March 20^th at the Rio Theatre, 1205 Soquel Ave.

Tickets: Students $8 / Adults $20 / Gold Circle $40; available at Streetlight Records and online and at the Rio Theatre Box Office (night of show only).

Download the poster here.

Stay tuned for more information about this exciting event that includes many of our talented students.

Santa Cruz High Mock Trial team with Presiding Judge Paul Marigonda

State finals take place in San Jose,  March 19-21, 2010.

Healthy School Meals: Mission {Nearly} Accomplished

After years of advocacy and collaborative work led by Santa Cruz City Schools trustee Cynthia Hawthorne and the district Wellness committee, students in all of the district’s elementary,

Food Services Manager & Chef, Jamie Smith

middle school and high schools will have access to healthy scratch-cooked meals beginning Tuesday. Under the guidance of chef turned Food Services manager Jamie Smith, cafeteria staff will be serving up home-cooked hot and cold entrees; the result of a policy shift driven by the community and delivered by the Wellness Committee. Elementary students will see the much anticipated return of salad bars and vegetarian options daily. Pasta, burritos, sandwiches and pizza offer kid-pleasing yet healthy choices. Meals are packed with “stealth-health” goodness, like low fat yogurt, whole grains and local produce, inspired by national school food reform guidelines like those from the Institute of Health.

Families can see what’s cooking on the Food Service department’s new website.  Staff indicates that middle school and high school menus will also be available to students and their families in the coming weeks. The website, powered by the School Nutrition Network, also provides a one-stop location to pay for meals online, view news from Jamie Smith and access general information about nutrition and fitness.

Now that kids will be eating freshly prepared healthy meals, the next challenge will be to ensure that all hungry kids have access to the tasty new offerings and for the district to take steps toward the long-held goal of offering universal breakfast in the classroom. Second Harvest Food Bank has recently joined the movement to bring healthy food and universal meals to County students, kicking off with a leadership luncheon on February 5th.  Video highlights may be found here.

Let’s Move

In December, the district’s Wellness Committee turned its vision and energy to increasing physical activity and fitness for all students.  A revealing presentation by parent and research expert Rebecca London, showed that our students’ fitness improves as they enter high school, but with distinct discrepancies by school. Data also show significant relationships between increased student achievement and physical fitness. Using the successful model that brought healthy food to our schools, the Wellness Committee has plans to engage community partners to bring focus and funds to this issue.

Just last week, First Lady Michelle Obama introduced “Let’s Move”, a nationwide effort to address childhood obesity. Linking the departments of Education, Agriculture and Health and Human Services, she aims to lead a coordinated movement that will end childhood obesity within a single generation. Enlisting parents, schools and communities, the goal is to provide access to healthy food, support for parents to offer healthy choices and increased opportunities for physical activity.  The Department of Health and Human Services has pledged $1 billion to the program and the USDA will channel $10 billion over ten years into the National School Lunch Program.

Stay tuned to more news about how Santa Cruz City Schools continues to address the link between student achievement and student health.

A recent gathering of school food reform leaders including Congressman Sam Farr and author Janet Poppendieck was hosted by a number of community organizations, including the Santa Cruz Education Foundation.  Highlights from the event can be viewed here:

Fixing School Lunch (video)

Global music group Libana will conduct a sing along workshop and perform a concert to benefit the Branciforte Small Schools Campus programs.  Libana is an women’s group that raises intercultural understanding through multicultural musical forms.

Thursday, February 18, 7:00 p.m., BSSC, 840 N. Branciforte Ave. $20 Adults/$10 Teens

Singing Ourselves Home – Community Singing Workshop for Men, Women, Teens with Susan Robbins & Marytha Paffrath.

Friday, February 19, 7:00, First Congregational Church, 900 High Street. Adults: $16 Advance/$20 Door; Students: $8/$10.

30th Anniversary Concert performance

Purchase tickets here.