Podcasts about sweetwater union high school district

The FBI detained Alexander Paffendorf on Tuesday. He was allegedly plotting a mass shooting with the Wisconsin school shooter Natalie Rupnow. Then, a controversial provision in next year's defense budget will strip coverage for gender-affirming care for military family members under the age of 18. Plus, Sweetwater Union High School District moves forward with new cuts to the schedule at Chula Vista High. Students, parents and teachers are worried those changes will hurt the school's arts program.

Chula Vista is appealing a ruling on its police department's controversial drone program to the state supreme court. The case stems from a journalist's request for footage captured by surveillance drones. In other news, there's a growing movement to make family-size apartments easier to build with a simple change to the building code. Plus, the Sweetwater Union High School District is taking voter registration directly to its students.

Dr. Moisés Aguirre is the Superintendent of Sweetwater Union High School District, the largest secondary school district in California. In this episode we discuss AI's influence on education, the nuances of leading a diverse school district, partnerships, humility, and self-care. Dr. Aguirre shares not only his insights but also his personal experiences, emphasizing the importance of staying grounded and humble no matter the height of success. We glance into the future, discussing the innovative programs the district is developing to prepare students for college and career. With a blend of personal anecdotes and expert opinions, this episode will make you question, ponder, and most importantly, learn. Learn more about Dr. AguirreConnect with Dr. Sciarretta on X

Dr. Richard Vernon Moore is currently the Assistant Superintendent of Educational Equity and Support Services at Sweetwater Union High School District, California's second-largest secondary school district located in San Diego County. Dr. Moore has a long history of administrative roles in K-12 education and discusses how this journey has informed his perspective on resolving conflict, his definition of equity, the role of student discipline measures including suspension and expulsion, and much more.Learn more about Dr. Moore in this San Diego Union-Tribune article.Connect with Dr. Sciarretta on Twitter.

Jennifer Rodriguez of the San Diego County Office of Education is joined by three of the San Diego County Teachers of the Year to discuss their amazing feats in the classroom. Aimee McCoy of Mesa Verde Middle School in the Poway Unified School District, Juanita Nunez of the San Diego School District and Melissa Rains of Castle Park Middle School in the Sweetwater Union High School District, chat about their passionate commitment to their students and profession. Cox Communications annual produces a one-hour television show celebrating the Teachers of the Year, which is sponsored by San Diego County Credit Union.

In this episode, we talk to Dr. Daniel Winters, Director of EdTech & Research/Evaluation for Sweetwater Union High School District. During this interview, we talk about the importance of creating boundaries, health, and how teachers can continue to serve from a place of having a "full cup." Be sure to not only take a listen but also engage in some practicalities of this episode as well. Enjoy! Host: Chris Garcia @chrisgarcia03 Guest: Dr. Daniel Winters @dfwinters Social Media: @InnovativePedag --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/innovativepedag/support

At 18 years old, our youngest guest-to-date, she shares an amazing story of getting to know her core self and then just “going for it.” From feeling restless and unfulfilled as a Sophomore, she talks about her journey of self-discovery and steps forward with “I just started doing things that I was definitely afraid of.” Brenna’s “I know myself and love when I can pour myself into something that I can believe in”, will inspire women of any age to fully claim their powerful, influential selves!Brenna Pangelinan just graduated from Eastlake High School, Chula Vista, CA with a cumulative GPA of 4.64. After a six month intensive interview process, she was selected by the Governor as the sole student representative on the California State Board of Education for 2019-20. As a voting member, she served with eight women and one man on the highest policy-making board for California public K-12 education.Prior to this appointment, Brenna served as a Board Member for Sweetwater Union High School District, Chula Vista, CA. She was Chair of the President’s Council for the Associated Student Body (ASB) of Eastlake High School and Leader of the ASB Athletics Commission. Also she was President of her HS Nothing but Nets club, raising dollars to send insecticide treated beds to malaria endemic countries, and in that role was a United Nations Foundation Campaign Champions Council Member. She regularly met with Congressional and Senate members advocating for federal support of global health legislation.Brenna is an accomplished athlete in swimming and was varsity captain for the water polo team where she was named All Mesa League 1st Team, and varsity defensive player of the year. In 2017 and 2019 she was part of the Mesa League Division II CIF Semifinalist Varsity Swim Team. She was honored as Freshman Swimmer of the Year, and a California State High School Championship Qualifier in the 200 Freestyle Relay. In 2017 she was part of a team of six that completed the 21 mile Catalina Channel Relay in the ocean. Brenna was accepted at Brown University, Providence, RI beginning her freshman year in January 2021 (start delay due to COVID pandemic).

Demonstrators gathered Saturday at La Mesa City Hall to demand justice for women of color as the city set temporary restrictions in a two-block downtown zone. And, the Marine Corps says eight troops are presumed dead after their landing craft sank off the Southern California coast during a training exercise. Plus, School starts this week online for the Sweetwater Union High School District. Also, we have a full length interview with Metropolitan Transit System's first woman CEO, Sharon Cooney.

A proposal to beef up San Diego's civilian oversight of the police is headed for the November ballot. Also on KPBS’ San Diego News Matters podcast: An audit into the finances of Sweetwater Union High School District found evidence of mismanagement and fraud, baseball is back and more local news you need.

A state fiscal agency found “significant evidence” that current and former employees with the Sweetwater Union High School District may have committed fraud, misappropriation of funds or other illegal practices, according to the results of a long-awaited audit report announced Monday night by the San Diego County superintendent of schools.The report also found violations of board policy, education and government code, and securities laws, San Diego County Superintendent Paul Gothold said.Sweetwater Superintendent Karen Janney and district finance staff violated their fiduciary duties, the report found. District staff intentionally misrepresented the district's finances and left out and delayed information when presenting the district's finances to the school board and to bond market participants, the report said.Some financial staff referenced in the report are no longer with the district, including the chief financial officer. Janney has led the district since 2015.

Jess Kearney, Union-Tribune deputy sports editor, is joined by Joe Heinz, new CIF San Diego Section Commissioner, to talk about Heinz’s mentors who preceded him in the Commissioner’s office and at the Sweetwater Union High School District. Kearney and Heinz chat about his career as an athlete and athletic director, along with challenges Heinz will face in the COVID-19 era.

The San Diego County Office of Education will order an audit of the Sweetwater Union High School District to find out whether the district committed financial fraud or misappropriation of funds. The county office announced the action less than an hour after state officials gave a scathing report on the district's financial management at a special board meeting Monday night. The officials said the district has for years misrepresented its finances and spent more money than it has. https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/education/sd-me-sweetwater-financial-crisis-20181217-story.html

Tech jobs abound. Our education system isn't churning out enough students with computer science training to meet the voracious demand for high-skilled tech workers. But schools in San Diego are trying to catch up. Locally, only 10 percent of San Diego County high schools offered computer science courses as recently as 2011. This year, closer to 40 percent of high schools here have computer science curriculum. Behind that jump in numbers are educators like Art Lopez, a computer science teacher at Sweetwater High School and a curriculum specialist for the Sweetwater Union High School District. In the podcast, hosts Scott Lewis and Laura Kohn talk to Lopez about local and state efforts to get computer science education to more — and more diverse — students. Seven years ago, a student asked Lopez why La Jolla High had computer science courses and Sweetwater High didn't. Meanwhile, the number of jobs requiring tech skills was exploding. “We wanted to change that landscape," he said. He wasn't alone in his effort. In 2015, the San Diego Supercomputer Center at UC San Diego was awarded a three-year, $1 million National Science Foundation grant to help Sweetwater and two other local school districts develop and sustain up-to-date computer science courses. Now, more than 1,000 Sweetwater students are enrolled in computer science courses. Lopez's work, though, is far from done. He said he's continuously working to get more girls interested in tech, and he'd eventually like to see computer science education offered to kids starting in kindergarten. Currently, he's a member of  the Computer Science Standards Advisory Committee, a group appointed by the State Board of Education that's working to get all California schools on the same page when it comes to computer science mandates. "I think that computing and computer science is just as important for kids to learn as it is for them to learn how to read, write and do math," he said. "They're going to use these devices all the time." What’s Working TechHire: In collaboration with the city, the San Diego Workforce Partnership is leading TechHire San Diego, a program that pairs people who are underrepresented in the tech field with local tech jobs. Employers in the region can get a paid intern at no cost to them. Number of the Week 10 percent: That's the percent of students in the world who have gone through Code.org's "Hour of Code" program giving kids a taste of computer science education.

Tech jobs abound. Our education system isn't churning out enough students with computer science training to meet the voracious demand for high-skilled tech workers. But schools in San Diego are trying to catch up. Locally, only 10 percent of San Diego County high schools offered computer science courses as recently as 2011. This year, closer to 40 percent of high schools here have computer science curriculum. Behind that jump in numbers are educators like Art Lopez, a computer science teacher at Sweetwater High School and a curriculum specialist for the Sweetwater Union High School District. In the podcast, hosts Scott Lewis and Laura Kohn talk to Lopez about local and state efforts to get computer science education to more — and more diverse — students. Seven years ago, a student asked Lopez why La Jolla High had computer science courses and Sweetwater High didn't. Meanwhile, the number of jobs requiring tech skills was exploding. “We wanted to change that landscape," he said. He wasn't alone in his effort. In 2015, the San Diego Supercomputer Center at UC San Diego was awarded a three-year, $1 million National Science Foundation grant to help Sweetwater and two other local school districts develop and sustain up-to-date computer science courses. Now, more than 1,000 Sweetwater students are enrolled in computer science courses. Lopez's work, though, is far from done. He said he's continuously working to get more girls interested in tech, and he'd eventually like to see computer science education offered to kids starting in kindergarten. Currently, he's a member of  the Computer Science Standards Advisory Committee, a group appointed by the State Board of Education that's working to get all California schools on the same page when it comes to computer science mandates. "I think that computing and computer science is just as important for kids to learn as it is for them to learn how to read, write and do math," he said. "They're going to use these devices all the time." What's Working TechHire: In collaboration with the city, the San Diego Workforce Partnership is leading TechHire San Diego, a program that pairs people who are underrepresented in the tech field with local tech jobs. Employers in the region can get a paid intern at no cost to them. Number of the Week 10 percent: That's the percent of students in the world who have gone through Code.org's "Hour of Code" program giving kids a taste of computer science education. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“The culture of the district was basically based on retaliation, intimidation. Those are the two words that I can think of,” said former Sweetwater school board member Bertha Lopez. Exactly six years have passed since Sweetwater schools superintendent Jesus Gandara was terminated at 2 a.m. on June 21, 2011 following seven hours of closed door meetings. A raucous crowd of 500 people gathered in a high school gymnasium the evening before to attend the Sweetwater Union High School District board meeting, many to demand better from their school district leaders. Some hoped Gandara's departure would close a dark chapter in the district's history dominated by stories of malfeasance. But what was supposed to be the end was only the beginning of the end for leaders of California's largest secondary public school district, which spans from the city of San Diego to the U.S.-Mexico border. An investigation of Gandara's activities, as well as the Sweetwater school board and contractors by the San Diego County District Attorney's Office would last a few years and end in various criminal charges, including felony bribery and conspiracy. A couple Sweetwater leaders landed behind bars. Much has been written about the DA's case, the outcome and the troubling decision-making that occurred on Gandara's watch. But there is a story behind all those stories that has yet to be told, about the six individuals who set the whole thing in motion by demanding accountability from their local school leaders and going to the district attorney for help. “I felt like if we didn't do it, nobody else would, and these folks would continue to get away with crimes,” said parent Stewart Payne. “The public has more power than they think that they do,” said parent Maty Adato. “Did I think justice was served? No. Not only no, but hell no,” said grandparent Kathleen Cheers. Payne, Adato and Cheers were part of a group of mostly parents and concerned community members who spent years faithfully attending public school board meetings, scouring documents and sounding the alarm when students were shortchanged by district leaders. To mark the six-year anniversary of Gandara's termination, we put together a special podcast to allow them to share their story, their motivations, challenges and the sacrifices made along the way. They also have advice for others who want to see change at their local government agency. Read the full transcript of the podcast interviews here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“The culture of the district was basically based on retaliation, intimidation. Those are the two words that I can think of,” said former Sweetwater school board member Bertha Lopez. Exactly six years have passed since Sweetwater schools superintendent Jesus Gandara was terminated at 2 a.m. on June 21, 2011 following seven hours of closed door meetings. A raucous crowd of 500 people gathered in a high school gymnasium the evening before to attend the Sweetwater Union High School District board meeting, many to demand better from their school district leaders. Some hoped Gandara’s departure would close a dark chapter in the district’s history dominated by stories of malfeasance. But what was supposed to be the end was only the beginning of the end for leaders of California’s largest secondary public school district, which spans from the city of San Diego to the U.S.-Mexico border. An investigation of Gandara’s activities, as well as the Sweetwater school board and contractors by the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office would last a few years and end in various criminal charges, including felony bribery and conspiracy. A couple Sweetwater leaders landed behind bars. Much has been written about the DA’s case, the outcome and the troubling decision-making that occurred on Gandara’s watch. But there is a story behind all those stories that has yet to be told, about the six individuals who set the whole thing in motion by demanding accountability from their local school leaders and going to the district attorney for help. “I felt like if we didn't do it, nobody else would, and these folks would continue to get away with crimes,” said parent Stewart Payne. “The public has more power than they think that they do,” said parent Maty Adato. “Did I think justice was served? No. Not only no, but hell no,” said grandparent Kathleen Cheers. Payne, Adato and Cheers were part of a group of mostly parents and concerned community members who spent years faithfully attending public school board meetings, scouring documents and sounding the alarm when students were shortchanged by district leaders. To mark the six-year anniversary of Gandara’s termination, we put together a special podcast to allow them to share their story, their motivations, challenges and the sacrifices made along the way. They also have advice for others who want to see change at their local government agency. Read the full transcript of the podcast interviews here.

The Sweetwater Union High School District is the largest secondary school district in the state. A few years ago, the district decided to move its schools onto the same calendar system. On this week's podcast, Karen Janney, superintendent of the Sweetwater Union High School District, joins co-hosts Scott Lewis and Laura Kohn to talk about how she helped develop the district's common calendar and the impact the change has had on families. “Before 2007, we had families on up to three different schedules. So they could be at an elementary school district on one calendar, at a middle school on another calendar and at a high school on another calendar,” Janney said. “It just wasn't good for families.” Families faced challenges with calendar misalignments such as planning for varied bus schedules, attempting to transfer students to schools to make up credits and trying to plan summer vacations. “A lot of time the older siblings take care of the younger siblings and if they're on two different calendars, it makes it even that much tougher for families,” Janney said. But under the common calendar system, the district provides students with an aligned school schedule and about six weeks of summer vacation. Got thoughts, opinions or experiences with this? Call 619-354-1085 and leave your name, neighborhood and story so we can play the voicemail on future episodes. Number of the Week Two-thirds: According to a 2007 study by Johns Hopkins University, two-thirds of the ninth-grade reading achievement gap can be attributed to summer learning loss; the other third comes from gaps that arise in early childhood. What's Working Diamond Educational Excellence Partnership, sponsored by the Jacobs Center for Neighborhood Innovation, has worked with San Diego Unified to put in place a summer enrichment program for rising second and third graders that has been successful in sustaining and building reading skills for more than 90 percent of participants, according to an evaluation by UCSD. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Sweetwater Union High School District is the largest secondary school district in the state. A few years ago, the district decided to move its schools onto the same calendar system. On this week’s podcast, Karen Janney, superintendent of the Sweetwater Union High School District, joins co-hosts Scott Lewis and Laura Kohn to talk about how she helped develop the district’s common calendar and the impact the change has had on families. “Before 2007, we had families on up to three different schedules. So they could be at an elementary school district on one calendar, at a middle school on another calendar and at a high school on another calendar,” Janney said. “It just wasn’t good for families.” Families faced challenges with calendar misalignments such as planning for varied bus schedules, attempting to transfer students to schools to make up credits and trying to plan summer vacations. “A lot of time the older siblings take care of the younger siblings and if they’re on two different calendars, it makes it even that much tougher for families,” Janney said. But under the common calendar system, the district provides students with an aligned school schedule and about six weeks of summer vacation. Got thoughts, opinions or experiences with this? Call 619-354-1085 and leave your name, neighborhood and story so we can play the voicemail on future episodes. Number of the Week Two-thirds: According to a 2007 study by Johns Hopkins University, two-thirds of the ninth-grade reading achievement gap can be attributed to summer learning loss; the other third comes from gaps that arise in early childhood. What’s Working Diamond Educational Excellence Partnership, sponsored by the Jacobs Center for Neighborhood Innovation, has worked with San Diego Unified to put in place a summer enrichment program for rising second and third graders that has been successful in sustaining and building reading skills for more than 90 percent of participants, according to an evaluation by UCSD.

STEAM requires partnership and input from varied perspectives. Laura Kohn of the Education Synergy Alliance calls on leaders in industry, education, and arts to share their experiences in building support for STEAM. Ed Hidalgo of Qualcomm, Suzette Lovely of the Carlsbad Unified School District, Roman Del Rosario of the Sweetwater Union High School District, Ed Abeyta of UC San Diego Extension and Dalouge Smith of the San Diego Youth Symphony discuss their work with Kohn at the 2015 STEAMConnect Ascend Conference. Series: "STEAM Channel" [Science] [Arts and Music] [Education] [Show ID: 29434]

STEAM requires partnership and input from varied perspectives. Laura Kohn of the Education Synergy Alliance calls on leaders in industry, education, and arts to share their experiences in building support for STEAM. Ed Hidalgo of Qualcomm, Suzette Lovely of the Carlsbad Unified School District, Roman Del Rosario of the Sweetwater Union High School District, Ed Abeyta of UC San Diego Extension and Dalouge Smith of the San Diego Youth Symphony discuss their work with Kohn at the 2015 STEAMConnect Ascend Conference. Series: "STEAM: Adding Arts to STEM Education" [Science] [Arts and Music] [Education] [Show ID: 29434]

STEAM requires partnership and input from varied perspectives. Laura Kohn of the Education Synergy Alliance calls on leaders in industry, education, and arts to share their experiences in building support for STEAM. Ed Hidalgo of Qualcomm, Suzette Lovely of the Carlsbad Unified School District, Roman Del Rosario of the Sweetwater Union High School District, Ed Abeyta of UC San Diego Extension and Dalouge Smith of the San Diego Youth Symphony discuss their work with Kohn at the 2015 STEAMConnect Ascend Conference. Series: "STEAM: Adding Arts to STEM Education" [Science] [Arts and Music] [Education] [Show ID: 29434]

STEAM requires partnership and input from varied perspectives. Laura Kohn of the Education Synergy Alliance calls on leaders in industry, education, and arts to share their experiences in building support for STEAM. Ed Hidalgo of Qualcomm, Suzette Lovely of the Carlsbad Unified School District, Roman Del Rosario of the Sweetwater Union High School District, Ed Abeyta of UC San Diego Extension and Dalouge Smith of the San Diego Youth Symphony discuss their work with Kohn at the 2015 STEAMConnect Ascend Conference. Series: "STEAM Channel" [Science] [Arts and Music] [Education] [Show ID: 29434]