Education
The West Contra Costa Unified School District is expecting to receive more than $1 million to assist English-as-a-second-language instruction for this current school year. The state grant is part of a federal education law, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which allows each state to decide how to utilize federal funding to improve the quality of instruction and advance education equity. California’s draft plan was signed and submitted to the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) by Gov. Jerry Brown last…
Invictus Academy of Richmond is a different kind of charter school, one where students will take double periods of math and English along with communication classes like speech and debate. On September 27, the Contra Costa County Office of Education approved plans to open Invictus, a new public charter school. Invictus, which has been in the works since August 2016, will be open to students from grade 7 to 12 by fall 2018. Gautam Thapar, executive director and lead founder…
Eating rich doesn’t mean spending money on an expensive meal. Anyone can have a nutrition-rich diet of healthy foods. But knowing where to purchase affordable, and locally grown produce is not easy. Food Week, going on now in Richmond, seeks to build a stronger food movement, united by a vision of food that is healthy, affordable and culturally relevant. Events this week provide opportunities to learn how to grow and prepare home-cooked meals, and how to access healthy food at…
WCCUSD charter schools scored higher than district schools in statewide Smarter Balanced test with high percentage of English learners and socioeconomically disadvantaged students as a bill deterring exclusionary admission policies of charter schools awaits approval from the governor.
While many are excited about the new Mandarin dual-immersion program at Serra School, others are concerned about access to existing adult English as a Second Language classes, which were housed in the same location.
Today is the last day to file DACA renewals and some say the West Contra Costa Unified School District’s offer to cover the costs was not communicated effectively to community members in need.
Members of a citizens-oversight committee questioned how the West Contra Costa school district uses bond money to construct or improve school facilities. They raised concerns about the district over-spending its budget and draining funds slated for future projects.
West Contra Costa debates starting school later as a bill for it is rejected in the state senate.