During the summer, Saturday nights at the California Living Museum (CALM) have become the place to be. They call it Twilight at CALM and since July 5 every Saturday night it’s been two-and-a-half hours of entertainment and education in a cool environment - both because of the content and the weather. CALM is located at 10500 Alfred Harrell Highway (between Lake Ming and Hart Park) in northeast Bakersfield. "After a long, hot day, a cool breeze blows up from the Kern River making evenings a fantastic time to visit the animals at CALM," said manager Lana Fain. CALM closes after the daytime session at 5 p.m., but when it re-opens from 5:30-8 p.m., it is "Twilight" time at the combination zoo, botanical garden and natural history museum. Part of the fun is a lively, hour-long show by Curator of Animals Don Richardson who introduces visitors to mammals, birds of prey or reptiles, providing visitors with up close and personal experiences with a large variety of animals ranging from tarantulas to baby skunks. Presentations are entertaining, and everyone leaves a little more knowledgeable about the wildlife around them. While it will not transport you to a different dimension, the Central California Children’s Railroad is on track for rides around the zoo with some great panoramas of the river, surrounding hills and vegetation. This is not a kiddie train ride - adults enjoy it as much as children. Tracks run east of the zoo and during the eight minute ride passengers frequently get glimpses of wildlife in their natural habitat. Train tickets are only $1, making it one of the most inexpensive modes of transportation in today’s economy. More

Imagine trying to escape the specter of gang involvement or the hopeless feeling of teen pregnancy, and you may be able to appreciate what a program called JobsPlus is doing for at risk teenage students in Kern County. JobsPlus reaches out to students enrolled in the Kern County Superintendent of Schools’ Court and Community Schools Division, who have previously been expelled or are at serious risk of dropping out. Combined with the education they are receiving in community schools, it is giving them an opportunity to earn and learn what it takes to succeed as an adult. Some of those it is helping are Luis Castro, Ashley Aragon and Richard Flores. Castro, a former gang member had been continuously expelled every year since he was caught selling drugs in eighth grade. Aragon had her hopes of graduating with her class and a bright future shattered by teen pregnancy. Flores faced life after foster care at age 18 without financial support or any tangible job skills. All are enrolled at Community Learning Center Tech where they had to be 30 credits away from graduation, while maintaining good attendance and academic standing to be eligible for JobsPlus. “With JobsPlus we engage students in work-related learning experiences, career awareness and contextual learning opportunities that prepare them for graduation and postsecondary education,” said Career Development Specialist Andrea Parsons. “These days, high school graduation isn’t enough — students have to be prepared to take it to the next level. They are taught résumé writing and interview preparation, job search and knowledge of labor markets skills, and we can even provide them with appropriate clothes for job interviews.” More

Quite a scene seeing 248 Kern County children shopping on July 19 during the Back to School Mervyns' ChildSpree at the California and East Hills Mall Mervyn's stores in Bakersfield. Every year for 16 years Mervyn's has given children who might not otherwise be able to shop for new school clothes an opportunity to do so. Major financial sponsors who contributed matching funds with Mervyn’s were Community Connection for Child Care Foundation, Bakersfield Active 20/30 club, West Bakersfield Rotary Club, Tejon Ranch, CASA and Youth Connections. The Kern County Superintendent of Schools’ Community Connection for Child Care (CCCC) was one of the contributing volunteer agencies, as it has been for many years. Volunteers helped children pick age appropriate clothes during the shopping spree that matched the funds available for spending. Joining with CCCC were Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA), Youth Connections, HEARTS Connection, Bakersfield Police Activities League (PAL), Sheriff's Activities League (SAL) and the Boys and Girls Club. Each child received breakfast provided by McDonald's and a backpack filled with school supplies from Mervyn's and the 20/30 Club. The Bakersfield Fire Department talked with children at the California Avenue store about fire safety and gave them a chance to see fire trucks up close. Something new this year was the First 5 Kern, First 5 California, Kern County Public Health Department and Bakersfield Police Department health fair which included immunizations and dental screenings, car seat safety, growth charts for children and information about the Public Health Departments "fight the bite" campaign which aims to prevent West Nile virus. More

Seven clean fuel burning school buses were rolled out by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office on June 16th to replace higher polluting diesel buses in its fleet. The buses were placed into service immediately following the rollout at the superintendent’s Transportation Services Center located at 705 S. Union Ave. in Bakersfield. These new compressed natural gas (CNG) powered buses were put on display for the first time as the buses they replaced were taken out of service, to be crushed and recycled with the metal being used to make other products. “Our commitment is to replace at least seven buses each year until our student transportation fleet is powered entirely by CNG buses,” said Kern County Superintendent of Schools Larry E. Reider. “Our poor air quality makes far too many children susceptible to asthma and other health issues. This causes many to miss school. And that means they miss out on valuable learning.” Reider expressed appreciation to the Rose Foundation and the local chapter of the Sierra Club whose $340,000 grant paid a significant part of the $1.1 million cost to buy the new buses. He noted school buses always are a significant purchase for any school agency. But CNG buses are more economical to operate than diesel powered. Oil need not be changed as frequently, and CNG is cheaper than diesel fuel. Seated comfortably behind the wheels of two new CNG buses were KCSOS drivers Cynthia Brewster and Veronica McEvoy. Each has been with the office for about two years and has experienced what it is like driving the old diesels versus the new CNGs. More

He may not be as well known as SpongeBob SquarePants, and he certainly does not live in pineapple under the sea. Yet, Captain Carl Abajian of Seal Beach took children at the Claude W. Richardson Child Development Center on an underwater adventure of discovery they never would have experienced watching the popular cartoon show. Capt. Carl and his traveling collection of live southern California seawater invertebrates came to the Richardson Center on June 18 to educate and entertain students in the Infant Development Program. While not a cartoon character, Capt. Carl was entertainingly quirky for the young ones, explaining how he dove deep to the ocean floor to retrieve each of his live display animals. Donning scuba equipment and breathing through a ventilator, he demonstrated how it was done with his arms simulating the breast stroke. Then, with scuba gear off, Capt. Carl reached into one of several picnic chests and pulled out a gelatinous, moving blob known as a sea slug. “See how smooth and soft he is — it is because he eats nothing but seaweed,” the underwater educator explained to the children. Then, he put the slug beneath his nostrils and took a big whiff. “Another thing about sea slugs,” Captain Carl said. “They smell great.” Soon after, the Seal Beach seawater scholar placed several sea slugs in Tupperware containers filled with ocean water and invited the children to touch, feel and even gently hold one in their hands. Richardson aide Karla Escamilla scooped one out of a container so that a curious infant, Devin Lowe, could get a better look. Escamilla scrunched up her nose and mouth at first, unused to the slimy feel of the sea creature. But soon she was laughing at the curious reaction on Lowe’s face. More

What is it that allows super heroes to leap from tall buildings without breaking a nail, stop steaming locomotives with bare hands and hold back avalanches with only their breath? Children, attending the Kern County Museum’s Superhero Science Day Camp from June 9-13, discovered physics, genetics, anatomy and chemistry play roles in the makeup of superhuman crusaders. Given a choice, many of these same children would be environmental superheroes, if they could. Approximately 40 children, ages 5-12, learned there was a bit of science behind all the amazing deeds of their favorite superheroes. Monday, Spiderman was highlighted with the classes actually taught a little bit more about spiders than the man. Before the day was out, they had learned that a spider’s web is known to be a polymer that has enormous energy absorption and strength-bearing properties. No wonder Spidey could tie up the bad guys and swing from building to building. Education Manager Jackie Brouillette even put a small, toy spider made from polymers into a bowl of water, and the stunned campers watched as each day it grew to about five times its normal size. “I think children learn best when they are having fun and don’t realize they are learning,” Brouillette said. She has been coming up with new fun ideas and themes for the museum summer camps for six years now. To prepare for this one, Brouillette said she “watched a lot of the Science Channel and got the idea for the superhero tie-in from that.” She is constantly looking for ideas on Web sites and in books, plus the group of summer camp counselors who help teach many of the classes bring in ideas of their own. The newly finished kitchen in the Lori Brock Children’s Discovery Center is also a source of scientific experiments that often have a tasty outcome for the campers. More

School may be out for summer, but the accolades have not stopped for Columbia Elementary, Downtown Elementary, Stockdale and Thorner schools since being honored by the California Department of Education as ‘Distinguished Schools’ on May 16. On June 4 the Kern County Curriculum Advisory Committee let the four schools know how much their efforts to provide quality education to students was appreciated locally. Each was recognized with a Certificate of Appreciation from the Kern County Superintendent of Schools at the group’s monthly meeting at University Square in Bakersfield. Representing the superintendent, Associate Kern County Superintendent of Schools Christine Frazier presented the school principals and their district superintendents with the awards. She also took the time to compliment each on their commendable service to the students of Kern County. “Thanks so much for representing all of us because you epitomize what we in education in Kern County are striving to achieve,” Frazier said. “Others will look to you as examples of what we can accomplish in all 47 of our county school districts. We thank you for being our messengers.” Downtown and Thorner from the Bakersfield City School District, Columbia representing Fruitvale School District and Stockdale from Panama-Buena Vista Union School District were four of the 342 California public elementary schools honored by CDE. A total of 839 California elementary schools submitted applications and were identified as eligible based on their Academic Performance Index and Adequate Yearly Progress results. Applications underwent an intensive evaluation process conducted by CDE in partnership with the California County Superintendents Educational Services Association, and with the help of many local educators from across the state. More

It is a pretty moving experience when a highly mobile car club can show off both its exquisite talents for restoring cars and its humanity for children who want to be more mobile. During the past six years, the Old Friends of Bakersfield Car Club has donated thousands of dollars to MOVE (Mobility Opportunities Via Education) International, a worldwide program giving hope to children that they might be able to sit, stand, walk and maybe drive a car of their own some day. The latest installment came on June 4, when Old Friends President Gil Edmondson presented a $6,600 check from the car club to MOVE International Executive Director David Schreuder and Kern County Superintendent of Schools Larry E. Reider. That brought the total donated by Old Friends to MOVE in the 2007-08 school year to $26,600. The car club has 25 members who are very proud of driving their beautifully-restored machines, even to the point that they frequently like to display what they have done by holding local car shows. Five years ago, Old Friends learned about MOVE through a member who worked at the Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office. She suggested the children could really be helped by some financial aid to the program. The club held a car show, raised $4,000 and donated it all to MOVE. Many years ago, children with severe disabilities were relegated to a life of bean bags and wheelchairs. Then, a KCSOS special needs teacher named Linda Bidabe devised a curriculum that provided hope, teaching children how to use specially adapted equipment to sit, stand and walk independently. It became so successful that nonprofit MOVE International was the result. More

If you looked from a distance at the California State University, Bakersfield (CSUB), campus, it might have appeared as though it had been transformed into a scene from the "Wizard of Oz" on May 13. Dozens of white t-shirted "munchkins," dotting the landscape, could be seen scurrying in and out of buildings. Once you got closer, it was easy to see these were instead preteen students and across the front of their t-shirts the words "I'm Going to College" were silk-screened. Actually, it was all planned. "I'm Going to College" is an early awareness program in which rural fourth-graders become honorary college students for a day at CSUB. The program is administered by the Southern San Joaquin Valley California Student Opportunity and Access Program (Cal-SOAP) through the Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office with sponsorship from the California Student Aid Commission. After spending the semester in the classroom learning about higher education and college opportunities, 320 fourth-grade students from Maricopa, La Hacienda (California City), Hamilton (Rosamond) and Cuyama (Santa Barbara County) elementary schools traveled to CSUB to experience what it is like to be honorary college students for a day. "There is one constant in all of this - all of the students come from small towns where frequently a high school education is the end of their education," said Cal-SOAP Project Director Alyse Barrios. "Often, the mindset is that finishing high school is all that is expected of them. We introduce them to college to show the endless possibilities a higher education can provide." More

If one were to write a motto to describe Kern County’s Teachers of the Year - Stockdale High health teacher Sloan Holmes and Sunset School music teacher Louis Yuen - it would probably read the same - "Don’t Give Up." Both were selected from a distinguished field of 37 educators in an awards reception on May 6 at the Kern County Museum to represent Kern County in the California Teacher of the Year competition. Carrie Atkin, a preschool special education teacher with the Kern County Superintendent of Schools (KCSOS) Office and Rick Francis, AVID and English teacher at Golden Valley High School were honored as alternates for the award. The California Department of Education (CDE) sponsors the annual California Teacher of the Year program. The county program, sponsored by KCSOS, featured teachers nominated for the award by their schools and districts. A committee of educators and volunteers reviewed all the applications. Recent site visits were made to the top candidates. All 37 nominees received plaques and certificates. Recognizing each of the nominees for their accomplishments, Kern County Superintendent of Schools Larry E. Reider told them, "Education in Kern has many things of which to be proud. To this proud list of accomplishments, we can add our ‘Teachers of the Year’ nominees. They represent the very best of our many fine teachers - those that daily make sure a child learns the skills necessary to succeed in later life." More

Although it is not scored as a team competition, Wallace Middle School from Lake Isabella distinguished itself with four category winners, while Fruitvale Jr. High and Ollivier Middle schools had three category champions of their own among approximately 950 students from 40 schools who competed at the 38th annual Kern County Middle School Mathematics Field Day held at Ridgeview High School in Bakersfield on May 3. The math talent was spread among many with 14 different schools claiming at least one category champion. Sponsored by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools, Westchester Kiwanis Club, Bakersfield Math Council, California Math Council, Kern County Science Foundation American Petroleum Institute-San Joaquin Valley Chapter and Ridgeview High, the competition is a fun day of problem solving games and events. Some have playful names such as "leap frog" and "mad hatter." Still others offer the flavor of athletic competition with names such as "power relay," "circuit training," "individual medley" and "triathlon games." Some of the cheering, during the outside team relay, math solving events, took on the air of a sporting event with one spirited student spectator shouting out, "Three plus two equals five," for no apparent reason. More

It was almost as if a light bulb came on in teacher Kevin Crosby’s head when he saw that Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) was willing to invest $5,000 in schools that could harness energy to educate students. Crosby, who teaches a severely handicapped class for the Kern County Superintendent of Schools at Sunset School in Lamont, came up with the idea of creating a "solar garden and greenhouse" for his students. After lots of research and planning, Crosby applied for a "Bright Ideas Grant" under PG&E’s "Solar Schools" program in September. Word came back from the energy giant on January 2 that Crosby’s idea, "Project Solar Garden," had been selected and that he would be recipient of the maximum grant award of $5,000. Crosby was excited about the news."Project Solar Garden will provide our students with hands-on scientific experiences," Crosby said. "It will definitely help our students who have developmental delays and struggle with basic academic skills. Our students learn the most from visual and kinesthetic activities. If they can see and feel the plants and dig up the soil with their own hands, they can make the connection between how a seed becomes a plant. If they are able to water the plants everyday and monitor their growth, then they will learn the growth cycle of plants." Crosby got even more ideas when PG&E paid for him to go to Sacramento on March 18 to attend a series of workshops on wind power, solar and hydrogen energy. He also received a National Energy Development Project Science of Energy Kit to supplement his classroom curriculum with measurable experiments. More

No one, other than gang members, wants gangs in their schools and communities. Much has been said about the destructive nature of gangs and how the perception of their power influences at risk children. The Kern County Superintendent of Schools is doing more than talking, having just hired Kevin Keyes and Salvador Arias to join the office as Gang Prevention Specialists. Assigned to the School-Community Partnerships program, Keyes, Arias and their boss, Prevention Programs Coordinator Daryl Thiesen, have begun a county-wide program of gang prevention, collaborating with law enforcement, courts, local service agencies, schools, parents and children to bring it about. The program, called Project 180, arose out of Kern County’s gang prevention funding. You probably could not have hired two people with a greater understanding of gangs than Keyes and Arias. They have lived it. Arias, by his own admission, was a gang member. He was beaten up and urinated on as a kindergartner because his brother was in a gang. The beatings continued through third grade, when he decided the only way to protect himself was by joining a gang. It caused him to miss school from which he was expelled in the sixth grade. Arias remembers being chased across a school campus by gang members wielding guns and chains. His house was the target of a drive by shooting. When his best friend was killed in that manner, a convincing school counselor advised the Arias family to quit their jobs and move to save their own lives. More

Awareness was the key word organizers stressed at the Child Abuse Prevention Summit held on April 9 at the Holiday Inn Select in Bakersfield. The free to the public event, sponsored by Kern County Network for Children (KCNC), Kern Child Abuse Prevention Council and Kern County Department of Human Services, attracted approximately 550 local citizens in the fields of child abuse/neglect prevention seeking to enhance their skills and knowledge. One of the most anticipated documents released each year at the Summit is the "Kern County Network for Children Conditions of Children Report Card," an annual "barometer of where the county is in terms of health and well-being of children." KCNC Director Tom Corson said of this year’s report card, "It is a mixed message showing for instance a decline in substantiated reports of child abuse, but there were still approximately 1,700 children needing foster care. The report also shows that poverty, education, health and social development are areas we have to move to the forefront." KCNC Research Analyst Kim Silva, who compiled and wrote the report from information gathered by dozens of government, public and private agencies dealing with children, agreed there were many areas of optimism in the report and areas where work still needs to be done. More

Four Kern County schools that applied for California’s ''Distinguished Schools'' awards were honored in results released April 9by the California Department of Education (CDE). The schools designated "distinguished" are: Downtown Elementary School and Dr. Juliet Thorner School — Bakersfield City School District, Columbia Elementary School — Fruitvale School District, and Stockdale Elementary School — Panama-Buena Vista Union School District. They are four of the 343 California public elementary schools to be honored as ''Distinguished Schools'' May 16 at an awards ceremony at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim. "These four schools are great examples of what can happen when dedicated, hardworking teachers and administrators take the extra steps to make sure their students have the best possible education," said Kern County Superintendent of Schools Larry E. Reider. "We know even more schools in the county will follow the excellent examples Downtown, Thorner, Columbia and Stockdale have set today to join that distinguished list in the years to come." More

March has been filled with educational activities and events for Kern County students and employees who work for the Kern County Superintendent of Schools (KCSOS). Dr. Seuss was on the lips of hundreds of younger students in the county, as they sat in on Read Across America activities, honoring the legendary writer of children’s books with literacy activities throughout the week of March 1-8. KernCorps AmeriCorps Program members, who tutor young children as part of a year in service to their community, had celebrity readers, crafts and many other fun activities for children in Bakersfield, Lamont, and Shafter during the week. Students in KCSOS special needs classes at Centennial Elementary had Kern County Superintendent of Schools Larry E. Reider stop by to read and many other county office employees also read to children at the Claude W. Richardson Child Development Center in Bakersfield. Kern Kiwanians could not have asked for better weather for their annual Take A Kid Fishing Day at Bakersfield’s Hart Park on March 4. Each year the Kern Kiwanis Club, East Bakersfield High Junior Kiwanis Club and the Kern County Parks and Recreation Department, cordon off a small portion of the large pond at the park so that special needs students, attending classes operated by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools, can experience the joys of fishing. More

Two sisters dominated the documentary categories, while East High topped the Senior Division and the Fruitvale School District the Junior Divison, as 25 years of Kern County History Day competition played out on March 8 at Ridgeview High School in Bakersfield. The national theme for this year’s event was “Conflict and Compromise,” and Centennial High’s Sarah Moore certainly demonstrated that in a chapter of American history she took on in her winning documentary, “The Conflict of Nazis in Skokie: A Question of Compromise.” Her documentary detailed a controversial time in American history, when a Jewish lawyer actually defended the First Amendment rights of the National Socialist Party of America (NPSA) to hold a parade in Skokie, Illinois, against the wishes of the town’s largely Jewish population, which included several Holocaust survivor families. “Even though the case was about First Amendment rights and preserving free speech, lawyer David Goldberger was called a ‘self-hating Jew,’” Moore said. “Anyone has the right to free speech, but this was a case about using your own free speech to counter another person’s right to free speech.” More

Olive Drive Elementary School's Hannah Contois put herself into character, picking the right piece of literature and theme, to earn one of the first place awards at the 37th annual Kern County Oral Language Festival held Feb. 23 at Standard School District in Bakersfield. As it turned out, Contois' choice in the 4th-6th grade Serious Solo Interpretation category was kind of a mirror of the way she approaches making decisions in her life. It was about a girl who sacrificed money saved for a graduation dress so her mother could pay to have her brother's broken arm fixed. Last year Contois finished third in the same category, but it did not deter her from trying again this year. “How did I prepare for it,” Contois asked. “I just put myself in the position of the character I portrayed and imagined what it would feel like. As soon as I was her, it all fell into place, and I knew I could do it.” The 192 students in grades 4-8 who competed in the Oral Language Festival came from 21 school districts and 47 schools in Kern County, representing approximately 38,000 of their classmates. Each performance had to be an original interpretation of a literary work. The literature had to be a published work available to all students. More

What motivates 16 engineering businesses, colleges and trade schools to spend most of the day at a Bakersfield museum with hundreds of high school students? The reason for them being there comes down to one word, "need." That was the word most spoken by industry representatives who gathered for Engineering Career Day 2008 on Feb. 21 at the Kern County Museum. Surprisingly, one of the most outspoken about the need for trained engineers in all fields was David Herrera, who is himself an engineering student at Bakersfield College (BC). Herrera was helping out at the BC Engineer's Club table. A large crowd of high school students gathered around as Herrera demonstrated miniature computerized robotic vehicles he designed to perform practical applications in the oilfields. "I wrote a laptop program of actions which guides this unmanned mini-crane through the use of sensors to a specific location to find and pick up a designated target object," Herrera told his audience. " More

Reading about why America's court system exists and learning about it in the classroom is helpful for Kern County high school government students. But on Feb. 13, the doors of an actual courtroom were opened so students could see how a real judge, lawyers and witnesses conduct a trial - putting the whole Constitutional process into an interactive perspective. Called Open Doors to Federal Courts, it has become an annual event for high school seniors in Kern County and is presented by the Kern County Bar Association - Charitable Foundation, Kern County Superintendent of Schools, United States District Court - Eastern District of California, Ben H. and Gladys Arkelian Foundation and Harry and Ethel West Foundation. All of the students are enrolled in government classes, and the program provides an important supplemental link to the curriculum they receive in the classroom. It took place at the Kern County Board of Supervisors' Chambers in Bakersfield, offering more seating capacity for the dozens of students than would have been available in a traditional courtroom. More

Alan Xu, an 8th-grader at Earl Warren Junior High in Bakersfield and son of Chinese immigrants, correctly spelled "martyr" in the Championship Round to win the 30th annual Kern County Spelling Bee held at University Square in Bakersfield on Feb. 7. Xu outlasted Sophia Valdez, a 6th-grader at Ollivier Middle School in Bakersfield, to win. Xu correctly spelled "utterance" and then Valdez missed on "emblazon." Xu won the round but had to correctly spell "martyr" to win the competition. "Waiting for the last word, I thought to myself, 'it better be easy,'" Xu said. "When the pronouncer said 'martyr,' at first I didn't think I knew it, but then I remembered I had seen it before. So I formed the letters in my head and spelled it. This was a really great competition -- much harder than what I went through in regionals. Everyone was a really good speller. I feel very, very lucky to have won." Valdez, who, ironically, also finished second last year as a fifth-grader, hung with Xu through every word, until the end. More

Stockdale High School’s Gatz Nieblas did not have time on Feb. 2 to contemplate who had the best chance of winning the NFL Super Bowl the next day. Not being distracted paid off. Stockdale High School received the Claude W. Richardson perpetual trophy as the overall team winner of the 28th annual Kern County Academic Decathlon held on Feb. 2 at Bakersfield College. Approximately 200 students from 19 high schools participated. The theme for the event nationwide was The Civil War. Nieblas had another name for the Decathlon, “the Intellectual Super Bowl.” Stockdale outscored Bakersfield High, which finished second and Cesar Chavez High from Delano, which finished third. Stockdale will represent Kern County in the California Academic Decathlon scheduled March 7-10 in Sacramento. The state winner advances to the national finals April 30-May 3 in Garden Grove, CA. More

Stockdale High School culminated an undefeated Mock Trial season by emerging as the best among 17 county high school teams who competed in the 2007-08 Kern County Mock Trial Super Saturday championship final in Bakersfield's Kern County Superior Courts of California on Jan. 26. Stockdale went through four preliminary rounds of competition, covering three months, without a loss, finishing with wins over Centennial and then Liberty High in the final to win the championship. Winning the Mock Trial title is not new. Stockdale went into this year's competition having won the past 11 years. Leading the way for Stockdale were Kseniya Astakhova and Katie Denari, who were both named to the county's Honor Court. Astakhova is an attorney for the school's defense and prosecution teams, but began by playing the role of defendant in her freshman year. She was a witness her sophomore year. The past two years she has been in the chair to both defend and prosecute the defendant. After it was all over on Jan. 26, the judge in the final case commended Astakhova for having the tenacity of a bulldog as she relentlessly applied pressure to impeach witness testimony. More

Jan. 19 was a busy one for members of the KernCorps AmeriCorps Program, who planned and participated in a wide variety of activities to celebrate Martin Luther King Junior's birthday in the local communities they serve. Bakersfield KernCorps members started things off with a free-to-the-public "MLK: A Celebration of Unity" multicultural festival at the Boys & Girls Club from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. It featured Folklorico, Hawaiian and Middle Eastern dance exhibitions, displays and children's activities. Many attendees brought new or gently-used coats to contribute to the Boys & Girls Club coat drive for needy families. Delano KernCorps members were also out early from 9 a.m.-12 p.m., joining forces with the Aztecas Football team and Karen Baptist Fellowship, distributing jackets to previously identified, needy families as part of its Keeping It Warm Coat Drive at the Delano Community Connections Center. Lamont KernCorps offered a free-to-the-public Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Celebration at the David Head Center from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. which included various children's activities and featured an appearance by the Kern County Sheriff and Fire departments to talk about children's safety. More

Among the approximately 50 educators who attended the Jan. 8-9 “Understanding Poverty" workshop at The Learning Center in Bakersfield, very few had probably ever thought of living in darkness as a cause for failed learning. According to extensive research by Ruby Payne in her “A Framework for Understanding Poverty," children of poverty spend more time in darkness than their more affluent peers. Payne is a nationally known expert on poverty, and her research was the blueprint for the two day workshop presented by Kathy Estes, safe schools coordinator with the San Bernardino County Office of Education. “Why do children of poverty spend more time in the dark than others," Estes asked the educators. “There are several reasons. If parents have to choose between buying food for their kids or having electricity, they will pick food every time. It’s easier to see entertainment devices with the blinds closed. Closed blinds keep unwanted people from looking in. More

Centennial High School has its sites set on Sacramento where it will represent Kern County at the California "We the People The Citizen and the Constitution" congressional hearings competition from Feb. 6-8. Centennial earned the right by defeating Arvin High in the region four championships held Dec. 4 at California State University, Bakersfield. Centennial and Arvin emerged from a field of 13 Kern County high schools to be crowned congressional district winners. Teams competed in either the 22nd or 20th Congressional Districts with Centennial winning the 22nd District trophy and emerging as the overall champion based on total team score. Arvin was the 20th Congressional District winner. Arvin's loss to Centennial does not necessarily mean it is out of a chance to compete in the state championships. There are 10 regional representatives. In past years, as many as two regions have not sent representatives leaving wild card openings for teams with the best statewide scores among runner-ups. More

They call what happened on Oct. 27 "Independent City" because it is a celebration of learning what life holds for Foster Youth who are suddenly on their own after age 18, when the state no longer provides support. Independent City took place on the campus of Bakersfield College (BC) with dozens of foster youth and pregnant or parenting teens finding out what they can expect as legally defined "adults." Approximately 100 attended the fifth annual event, presented by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools’ Foster Youth Services, Kern County Department of Human Services and BC. More than 30 agency and community vendors participated including the Bakersfield Police Department, Bright House Networks and the Kern Schools Federal Credit Union." This is an outreach event to prepare transition-aged youth (ages 16-18) for life outside of foster care with a real focus on school to career programs," said Foster Youth Services Supervising Case Manager Carrie Bloxom. "This year students had opportunities to receive vocational education instruction, featuring hands-on activities, in the fields of horticulture, medical assisting, manufacturing, computer aided drafting and culinary arts. BC instructors presented courses which are currently part of the curriculum at the college." More

If you are a "star" in education, people want to know about you. While Kern County Superintendent of Schools’ (KCSOS) administrators Pat Alexander and Ken Taylor are not stars in the sense of the bright lights and gossip columns of Hollywood, they have, nonetheless, earned the honor of "Steering Committee Star." Both were honored with the prestigious award on Oct. 15 at the General Membership Meeting of the California County Superintendents Educational Services Association (CCSESA) in San Jose. CCSESA is an organization of the state’s 58 county superintendents of schools that as a group "work collaboratively with school districts to ensure that every student benefits from a quality educational experience, regardless of their circumstances, including students with disabilities, juvenile offenders, students at risk of dropping out or who thrive in alternative classroom settings, or students in high-priority schools." Members and their designated representatives achieve the organization’s mission through roles on various steering committees — Business and Administration, Curriculum and Instruction, Student Programs and Services, Personnel Administrative Services and Technology and Telecommunications. Alexander, KCSOS administrator of instructional services, was honored for her work on the Curriculum and Instruction steering committee and Taylor, KCSOS administrator of student services, for his with Student Programs and Services. More

When it came to celebrating Halloween, the Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office found it was a great way to treat deserving children, raise money for programs and even provide curriculum for at risk students. Getting the early jump on everyone else was the California Living Museum (CALM), which opened its gates for free on Oct. 27 for children ages 3-12 who were dressed in costume. The annual event called Boo at the Zoo, drew approximately 1,600 children and parents who ventured out despite a little rain to enjoy a day of seeing CALM's 200 resident animals and a wildlife presentation, plus games, crafts and the always anticipated treats. CALM even brought the Central California Children's Railroad out from the roundhouse so families could have a pleasurable bonding experience on a scenic trip around the zoo's perimeter for only a dollar. It was doubly exciting for CALM which was able to provide families with a fun and inexpensive outing and at the same time raise funds for its nonprofit operation. More

What do a high school senior, a movie producer and a famous football player all have in common? They have all found ways to keep smoking tobacco out of their lives, and on Nov. 1 shared how they do it with middle and high school students at the 10th American Cancer Society Great American Smokeout Mock News Conference. Held at the Kern County Superintendent of School's (KCSOS) Office in Bakersfield, the event brought together a panel of experts on the harmful effects of tobacco use and dozens of health education, prevention education, journalism and TV production students seeking information for a myriad of related projects. Each year the local cancer society, KCSOS and the Kern County Tobacco Use Prevention Education Program present the event to give students real-world experience. Almost a dozen student-operated video cameras were in strategic positions inside the large conference room where the news conference took place. Two directors sat behind monitors, using electronic switchers to cut back and forth between camera shots. One, working for KCSOS, produced live streaming video for the Internet and the other, a student working with a Liberty High School production class, videotaped the show for a variety of future classroom projects. More

“When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again” may not be stored in the iPods carried by today’s youth, but it was on the minds of approximately 2,000 students from throughout California who descended on Bakersfield’s Rabobank Convention Center on Oct. 17. The occasion was the annual Kern County Academic Decathlon Concert. The song, which has been an inspirational tune in many wars, was one of approximately 29 chosen to depict the styles and characteristics of music performed during the United States Civil War. Students with notebooks and pens at the ready took notes in preparation for the music portion of the Kern County Academic Decathlon competition which will take place Feb. 2 at Bakersfield College. The theme for this year’s decathlon is “The Civil War” and, appropriately enough, students will be quizzed on their knowledge of “The Music of the Civil War Era.” Each year the Kern County Academic Decathlon Association, Kern County Superintendent of Schools and Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra sponsors the concert, the only one of its kind in California, to help students prepare. More

Even though the last corn dog had long been munched, fair fever still persisted on the morning of Oct. 10 at the Claude W. Richardson Child Development Center in Bakersfield. And it did for a very good reason. Children in the Infant Development Program (IDP) at Richardson could not attend the Kern County Fair, held Sept. 19-30. So, staff and parents brought their version of the fair to them. More than a dozen goats, chickens, rabbits, turtles, ponies, pigs, dogs and even a tractor could be found in a comfortable, yet not too spacious, grassy area, located directly behind the IDP classrooms. Reactions from the children ranged from timidly, cautious to total acceptance. One little girl, Emily-Rose Hampton, was so taken by a goat named Sandy, that she had to give it a big hug. Dozens of moms and dads were clicking away on their cameras. Kodak moments existed everywhere you looked. More

Students aspiring to be leaders in their schools and communities met a group that could have an impact on their decisions at the 19th annual Kern County Middle Grades Leadership Conference held on Oct. 5 at Bakersfield College (BC). This year “Heroes Matter” was the theme. Organizers introduced more than 300 fifth through eighth-grade students from 60 schools to 13 local community heroes who were honored for their selfless acts. Among the 13 honored was Tanya Despot, who during her first year as a school nurse for the Kern County Superintendent of Schools (KCSOS) helped save the lives of three people in two separate automobile accidents despite not being on duty at the time. Despot said of her heroic acts, “As a nurse it is my duty. I also know that we have wonderful school nurses throughout the county, and given these situations, they would do the same.” More

Sept. 27 was a pretty warm day by autumn standards in Kern County. Yet, not a frown crossed the faces of dozens of spatula-flipping men and women huddled over hot, smokey barbecue grills or working in tight assembly line formation at picnic tables filed with buns, burgers and condiments at the Kern County Fair in Bakersfield. Despite the fact they were not making a penny for their labor, none seemed to care. It was the annual turnout of the Kern County Sheriff’s Mounted Posse paying tribute to children with special needs by giving them their day at the fair — Special People Day. Just a year ago at this annual free event for the children, posse member Kenny Williams stopped to wipe his brow and utter, “Look what you see out front (the children). It’s all about the children.” He was back again on Sept. 27, flipping hundreds of burgers while enduring the smoke and heat of the barbecue for hours without backing away. More

Endeavour Elementary School student Roman Lara, as a fourth-grader, wondered if he was good enough to win an art contest. So, he used pencil, ink and paint brush to express those feelings in the picture he created that won the Sweepstakes Award at this year’s Kern County Fair Children’s Art Contest. Lara’s painting was the best-of-the best out of 618 works of art entered by students in preschool, special education and grades kindergarten-through-eighth grade. “Winning is astounding,” Lara said. “I can’t describe it. I had no idea that my painting about planning how to draw the winning picture would actually win.” Before becoming one of the youngest ever to win the Sweepstakes Award, Lara had plenty of time to ponder his fate. Entries were received back in May, when he was still a fourth-grader. Each one had to be original in both color and design. More

In 1989, the Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office (KCSOS) thought it had a pretty good idea -- train schools, law enforcement, emergency responders and community providers as a group to keep campuses safe for children. Back then, it was optional but so innovative that Safe Schools became a pilot project for the state of California. Since 1996, Safe School plans have been required for every public school campus by California Education Code 32280-32288. Linda Sargent was the first KCSOS Safe Schools coordinator. Today, she is Safe Schools Consultant for the office and the state. She still presents Safe Schools workshops, such as the one she conducted on Sept. 21 in Bakersfield, as well as related training on crisis response, bully prevention and suicide intervention. There have been big changes since she first started. More

As soon as the doors to the Rabobank Convention Center opened at 6 p.m. on Sept. 11, it was obvious what Kern County's high school students had on their minds -- what to do after graduation. Approximately 6,000 students and parents attended the eighth annual Kern County College Night. Sponsored by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools and Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG & E), it offered free information for high school and community college transfer students and anyone interested in pursuing a higher education. Representatives from 80-100 public and private colleges, universities and trade schools from within and outside California had booths at the event to provide information and answer questions such as: how much does college cost, what college offers the classes I need and what do I do before I enroll? Local high school and college counselors also offered advice. More

Summertime and the living may be easy for some, but, as 18 educators discovered, the work never stops for those who make a living putting food on our tables. Each year the Kern County Farm Bureau, Kern County Agriculture Foundation and the Kern County Superintendent of Schools' (KCSOS) School-to-Career program put together a three-day Teachers Agricultural Seminar, giving educators an idea of the importance of agriculture and providing them with information they can use in the classroom. This year, the seminar's tenth anniversary, it was held from July 30-Aug.1 in Bakersfield and at various agricultural operations around the county. KCSOS Community Learning Center teacher Suzanne Kishimoto said she learned about the seminar purely by accident, while doing research on the Internet. As she toured T & W Dairy on July 30, Kishimoto related how fortunate it was that she came across the information and was able to attend. More

Although the start of school is not until late August for most Kern County students, Community Connection for Child Care (CCCC) Foundation, partnering with Mervyn's Department Stores, gave several needy children an early surprise on July 28. Eighty children who receive CCCC subsidized child care went on a back-to-school ChildSpree at Mervyn's California Avenue store. What is a ChildSpree? Well, it is a free school clothes shopping day for the youngsters who are each given a $100 gift certificate through matching funds provided by CCCC Foundation and Mervyn's. It was the 15th year the foundation and Mervyn's have partnered for the Back-to-School ChildSpree. Doors swung open at 7:30 a.m., long before regular shoppers were admitted, so the children could shop undistracted and free of crowds until 9 a.m. Accompanied by volunteers from the foundation and other sponsoring agencies, the children had lots of choices to choose from including shoes. Mervyn's made the dollars stretch a little further by offering a 15 percent discount on all the purchases. More

Seven new school buses powered by compressed natural gas (CNG) were put into service at the Kern County Superintendent of Schools' (KCSOS) Transportation Services facilities at 705 S. Union Ave., in Bakersfield on July 2. Since CNG burns cleaner than fossil fuels, the buses will aid in the reduction of unhealthy emissions when students are being transported by KCSOS. Kern County Superintendent of Schools Larry E. Reider was on hand when the buses arrived. It was Reider who made the original commitment to convert the entire superintendent of schools' bus fleet from fossil fuels to the cleaner burning CNG. "Everyone has an obligation to do what they can to reduce pollutants into our air. We have far too many children who miss school because they suffer with asthma. What we are doing is a small step in the big picture of reducing harmful emissions. But it's an important step and one that we fully expect others will follow," said Reider. More

Miracles may not be listed on Joey Travolta's resume, but the transformations he helped create for Migrant Education students from June 4-15 in Bakersfield are testimony to what he can achieve. Travolta is the brother of actor John Travolta. He runs a film production company bearing his name and also offers film camps for students who sometimes need a little extra motivation in life. The Kern County Superintendent of Schools' Migrant Education Program heard about his successes with children in a film production setting from the Arts Council of Kern with whom it collaborated to bring Travolta to Bakersfield. It was somewhat astonishing to see Travolta coaxing students for whom English is a second language to not only act but sing in just over a week's time for a production with an American Bandstand kind of theme. More

Ashley Cheney has overcome many challenges in her young life, but one of the toughest resulted in a $1,500 scholarship for the graduating Actis Junior High eighth-grader. Cheney received education in the Kern County Superintendent of Schools (KCSOS) Deaf Education Class at Actis taught by teacher Jolene Berg. Berg came up with an idea that seemed like it would be a hurdle for all of her students and the other hard of hearing students in teacher Antwan Miller's class. The students' task? A chance to win $1,500 by writing and delivering a 4-5 minute speech, appropriately titled "My Biggest Challenge." “Retired KCSOS Audiologist Gaylord Short is a member of the Tehachapi Optimist Club, which is one of seven clubs in Optimist International’s Pacific Southwest District extending from Los Angeles to Hanford and California City,” Berg said.

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Tuesday morning, May 29, featured music, dancing, poetry, mementos and an ice cream social at the Kern County Superintendent of Schools’ Harry E. Blair Learning Center in Bakersfield. It was a ceremony worthy of a graduation, which it was, although two days early. Three students from Blair who would be joining Sequoia Middle School eighth-graders, with whom they share a campus, for commencement exercises on May 31 were receiving congratulations, best wishes and tokens of appreciation from classmates, teachers, staff, parents and relatives. Graduation may have meant a little more to the Blair students, who are all severely disabled and have spent most of their lives in a daily struggle to sit, stand and walk independently. Curriculum for all three does not merely consist of what is printed in a book or written on an erase board.

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After competing for two days with the 969 best grade school student-scientists in California, Norris Middle School eighth-grader Courtney Shipp heard the words she had been waiting to hear. Her entry in the 56h annual California Science Fair held in Los Angeles was the first place winner in the junior division Applied Mechanics and Structures category. Quite a moment. Shipp had waited a year to be in this position, ever since she finished as the runner-up in last year's event. She felt her research on linear velocity had not been enough to reach the top. So, this year Shipp added rotational physics to the mix in her entry, "Maximizing Trajectory of a Trebuchet (medieval catapult for hurling large stones)." And all of a sudden, Shipp found herself center stage at the California Science Center -- a winner, a cash recipient of $250. But all of Shipp's experiments did not prepare her for the science of winning. More

"How Does Advertising Affect Our Decisions?" Thirty fourth, fifth and sixth-graders, picked from approximately 600 Kern County students who had written classroom essays on that topic, made the finals of the annual Bank of America Essay and Speech Contest held on May 8 at University Square in Bakersfield. Discovery Elementary fifth-grader Annie Bardet joined an elite group, as a second-time winner, having won last year as a fourth-grader. Sharing the winner's platform with her were Thorner School fourth-grader Maveric Guzman and St. Francis Parish sixth-grader Alice Verderber. In their essay/speeches, students had to do research and use statistics to support their views. Each was also asked to call upon their own knowledge and experiences to convince judges and audience how well they understood the topic. More

One could not find a student grumbling about math on May 5 at Ridgeview High School. Quite to the contrary many students were offering high praise for the subject. Alicante Avenue School student Chris Leal said he likes math "more than babysitting my sister," and classmate Norma Felix said, "I love math more than drawing, and I love drawing." Mt. View Middle School student Kiara Rodriguez loves math for another reason. "When I go shopping and see I can get 20 percent off a pair of shoes, I want to know how much money that is going to save me. Math is all about shopping," Rodriguez laughed.All of the comments came during the 37th annual Kern County Middle School Mathematics Field Day. It is a yearly, fun day of problem solving games and competitions sponsored by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools, Westchester Kiwanis Club, Bakersfield Math Council, California Math Council, Kern County Science Foundation American Petroleum Institute-San Joaquin Valley Chapter and Ridgeview High. Some events have playful names such as "leap frog" and "mad hatter." Still others offer the flavor of athletic competition with names such as "power relay," "circuit training," "individual medley" and "triathlon games." More

West High School biology instructor Danny Arretche and Desert High School (Edwards Air Force Base) science teacher Debra Lewis were honored May 1 as Kern County's Teachers of the Year for 2007. They will represent Kern County in the California Teacher of the Year competition along with alternate Peggy Dewane-Pope, an English and reading teacher at Stonecreek Junior High. The California Department of Education (CDE) sponsors the annual California Teacher of the Year program. Arretche, Lewis and Dewane-Pope were announced at a reception hosted by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools at the Kern County Museum to honor 39 county teachers who had been nominated for the award by their schools and districts. A committee of educators and volunteers reviewed all the applications. Site visits were made to the top candidates during the last week of April. All 39 nominees received plaques and certificates. More

Eight students from Kern County schools won state honors at the History Day in California competition that concluded April 29 in Long Beach. The annual competition focuses on the national theme "Triumph & Tragedy in History" and brings together those students who have won History Day competitions in their own home counties to challenge for the title of state champion. Kern County students won in five separate categories. Columbia Elementary's Junior Group Performance team of Dylan Gonzales, Madison Olinger and Ricky Sottile won with their dramatic play "Lasting Valor: the Triumphs and Tragedies of Vernon J. Baker" -- based on the only living African American World War II hero to receive the Medal of Honor. More

Approximately 8,000 Kern County elementary and secondary students attended one of the four annual Young People's Concerts held on April 10 and 11 at the Rabobank Convention Center in Bakersfield. The Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of John Farrer and with support from the Kern County Superintendent of Schools presented two 45-minute concerts each day. Prior to the concert, students were introduced to symphony instruments and the distinctive sounds they make by Farrer and members of the orchestra. Verbal sighs, laughs and sounds of amazement could be heard in the audience, as the students learned that the reed used on a clarinet sounds like a bird call when played by itself, the French horn if unwound would stretch 16 feet into the third row of the audience, it takes a big person to play the tuba which weighs approximately 38 pounds and the composer Mendelssohn actually wrote his "A Midsummer Night's Dream" for Shakespeare to use in his play. More

As State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell was urging public schools to observe Labor History Week from April 2-6, some high school students in Kern County had already beaten him to the punch in a competitive way on March 30. Approximately 400 students enrolled in occupational training programs took part in the 10th annual Golden Empire Skills Olympics at the Kern High School District's Regional Occupational Center (ROC) in Bakersfield. Among those putting their best hammer, welding torch, camera and fire hose forward were students learning trades in the Kern County Regional Occupational Program (KCROP) operated by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools.

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Some argue generational gaps cause communication breakdowns, which in turn prevent needed actions from taking place. If that is the case, students in Kern County, known as Leaders in Life, are trying to build bridges to connect the gaps. Their most recent attempt was an annual event headlined as the Leaders in Life Youth Conference. It took place on March 29 in Bakersfield with approximately 400 students of predominately high school age in attendance at the Rabobank Convention Center. What makes the Leaders in Life Youth Conference unique is that it is planned for youth by youth. Kern County students even invite their high school, junior high and middle school peers from Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. More

Winning a ribbon at the 20th annual Kern County Science Fair, held at Bakersfield's Rabobank Convention Center on March 21, meant a lot of digging, exploring previously unchallenged principles and discovering ways of improving life. There were no slam dunk wins for the approximately 600 students in grades 4-12 who entered, although Desert High seniors Keith Hines and Robert Thurman did earn a third place ribbon for showing dominant hand and eye coordination does make a difference in shooting basketball free throws. Subjects around which students used scientific research to prove or disprove hypothesises were creative, bordering on amazing and revolutionary in some cases. Following months of research, each had to put their results on display at the science fair and be able to support their conclusions during tough questioning from panels of scientific professionals doing the judging. Here are some examples of what it took to ribbon. More

Fruitvale Junior High's Junior Group Performance, focusing on the triumph and tragedy of the atomic bomb that ended World War II, was one of the big winners at the 24th annual Kern County History Day competition held March 10 at Ridgeview High School in Bakersfield. Fruitvale's Taylor Sweet, Kasadi Cole, Nick Terrio, Alyssa Shannon and Brandon Louey took on the parts of parents, nurses, Japanese soldiers and even President Harry Truman dramatically depicting how difficult the decision was to drop the A-bomb on Japan -- showing how it saved thousands of lives but also cost thousands. The Fruitvale students joined a select group of winners who earned the right to compete at History Day in California -- April 26-29 in Long Beach. The national competition is June 10-14 at the University of Maryland. Part of the scoring involved being quizzed by a panel of judges to determine how much the students understood the research they undertook. More

When it comes to public speaking, Alicia Mathur, an 8th-grader at Warren Junior High, is on a very select, short list with the Bakersfield Toastmasters' Club. Very few public speakers have ever won the Toastmasters' Henry Greve Speech Contest two consecutive years. Having won the contest the previous year, Mathur backed up her claim as one of the best ever by winning again on March 1 at University Square in Bakersfield. How difficult is it to win back-to-back Greve championships? It is only open to seventh and eighth-graders, which means you only get two shots at winning. And Mathur only began competitive public speaking last year. Just as the other nine contestants had to do, Mathur had to survive challenges at the school, district and regional levels to secure a place in the Greve finals both years. Each student had to write and deliver an original four-and-a-half to seven-minute speech on the contest topic "How will choices you make today shape your future?" More

Credentialed or Intern-Eligible teachers are invited to attend the March 10 Kern County Teacher Job Fair at University Square, 2000 K Street in Bakersfield. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. Interviews will be conducted from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. This is Kern County’s largest gathering of school district recruiters in one location. It is an excellent opportunity for credentialed teachers to see what positions are available and be interviewed by representatives from the many districts recruiting for next year.

Candidates must be fully credentialed or intern-eligible by August and can pre-register online by using the Kern County Teacher Job Fair link on the Kern County Superintendent of Schools Web site, http://www.kern.org. Pre-registration runs through March 8. Credentialed teachers can also register at 8:30 a.m., when they arrive for the job fair on March 10.

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Elijah Johnson, an eighth-grader at Warren Jr. High School in Bakersfield, correctly spelled "bibliogony"in the 16th round to win the 29th annual Kern County Spelling Bee held Feb. 8 at University Square in Bakersfield. Johnson outlasted Sophia Valdez, a fifth-grader at Palla Elementary School in Bakersfield, to win. After Valdez missed on "aranea," Johnson correctly spelled "loquacious" to win the round and then "bibliogony" to win the competition. " I got really nervous, when I heard it was the Championship Round," Johnson said. "It was a total guess on both words. On loquacious, I almost went with 'c-q' before I thought about the word 'eloquent' and that helped me work out the correct spelling. I knew other words that ended in 'g-o-n-y,' so that helped me spell bibliogony, but I thought I had spelled it incorrectly. I looked around, and everyone was clapping. Then, I started smiling." More

Stockdale High School student Laura Stearns led by example winning eight individual category medals, and the rest of the team followed suit to win the Claude W. Richardson perpetual trophy as champions of the Kern County Academic Decathlon for the second consecutive year. Cesar Chavez High from Delano had its best finish ever in the competition, earning second place honors. Bakersfield High was third. The Feb. 3 event held at Bakersfield College featured 17 county high schools, approximately 200 students and was sponsored by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools and Kern County Academic Decathlon Association. Each year, the theme for the nationwide competition changes. This year it was "China and Its Influence on the World." An entire day of testing took place to see which students and which teams had the most knowledge in 10 events, including Art, Economics, Essay, Interview, Language and Literature, Mathematics, Music, Social Science, Speech and Super Quiz. More

When Stockdale High student Katie Denari was only a freshman, a friend talked her into being a part of the school's Mock Trial team. Three years later, she is still a part of it and celebrating her third straight trip to the state finals after Stockdale held off the spirited challenge of Centennial High to win the Kern County Mock Trial Championship on Jan. 27. "As a freshman, I thought it would be really cool, and there wouldn't be a lot of pressure because I would be playing a witness role." Denari said. "But, then one of the student attorneys left the team, and they put me in that role. To be honest I don't think I did very well that first year. But it grew on me. It's an amazing experience, like being a real attorney. It improves your speaking skills. You learn the language of the courtroom and how to act. This was my 19th round as a lawyer. The role gets easier but the pressure is unbelievable. I just want to help the team continue Stockdale's mock trial legacy." More

Hart School's Matthew Cline and David Newton chose the right literature to win at the 36th annual Kern County Oral Language Festival held on Jan. 20 at Standard School District in Bakersfield. As it turns out, their serious literary choice epitomized them. It was about a football player who would not give up. After failing to place in the same competition last year, Cline and Newton tried again this year, and it paid off. "Even if we had not won again, just finding this piece, 'What Happened,' got me more active at school and helped me make new friends I didn't know before," Newton said. "Yes, and it helped me do more things I never knew I could do, like winning this trophy," Cline added. Both students proved to be excellent examples of what hard work and practice can achieve in this annual competition split between students in grades 4-6 and 7-8. More

There were many ways people could spend the Martin Luther King birthday weekend in holiday celebration. Members of the Central Valley Communities for Children AmeriCorps Program, operated by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office in Bakersfield and Delano, spent theirs working to help communities in which they live. Bakersfield AmeriCorps members presented Celebration of a Dream Children's Festival on Jan. 13 from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. at the California Avenue Veterans Hall on East California Ave. The event included a talent show, re-enactment of the "I Have A Dream" speech, children's activities, entertainment and refreshments. Delano AmeriCorps members held a I Have A Dream Day pajama party on Jan. 15 from 1-4 p.m. at the Delano High School cafeteria on Cecil Ave. Participants, wearing comfortable pajamas, brought new or gently used coats or blankets for distribution to needy Delano families. More

Winter may get a bad rap as the "cold and flu" season, but it also seems to spark generosity in the hearts of those who want to make life a little more comfortable for those who need a hand. Volunteers working for the Kern County Superintendent of Schools (KCSOS) have been taking it upon themselves for more winters than most can remember to help out families of those they transport to school with an annual "Food Basket" drive. This year the response was dramatic. "This has been a rough year for the families of students we transport based on the number that were nominated for food baskets by our school bus drivers," said Sarah Tierce, volunteer and administrative secretary for the division of Maintenance, Operations and Transportation Services. "The number was 47 -- more families than have ever been nominated in the past. But, we have been blessed by caring employees, who in addition to the collected food also made cash donations, and we were able to provide all of the families with a turkey and food basket. More

Coaches have been known to inspire their teams with fiery halftime locker room speeches during pressure-packed ball games. But on Dec. 5, Arvin High teacher coach Robert Ruckman saved his best speech for last. His team had just finished a long, mentally-draining day of competing in the regional "We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution" competition at California State University, Bakersfield. The final results announcement was still two hours away. "I am extremely proud of you -- you blew the judges away with everything you knew," Ruckman told his team. "This is the largest We the People district and region in the country. It is harder to win here than anywhere else in the nation. There are no guarantees in life. I can’t guarantee that you won. But you have become better citizens, better members of our community by going through this. You know how to study now. And you will know how to prepare when you go to college." More

Is there a connection between magic and smoking? Magician/educator/motivational speaker Bob Fellows could not make smoking disappear for the more than 100 students who attended the Great American Smokeout Mock News Conference in Bakersfield on Nov. 7. But, using visual tricks to illustrate common sense logic, Fellows did show why students get duped into smoking, and why they sometimes cannot break the habit, ending his presentation by escaping from a straight jacket. "To be balanced, I have a card here that shows you the good things about using tobacco," Fellows said, as he held up a blank card and drew laughter from his student audience. Those attending the event, held in the Kern County Superintendent of Schools' (KCSOS) City Centre, came from junior high and high schools throughout Kern County. This is the ninth year it has been presented by the local chapter of the American Cancer Society, KCSOS and Kern County Tobacco Use Prevention Education Program. It offers students the opportunity to learn more about the dangers of tobacco use and make something positive out of what they learn. More

October 31 is usually the date that brings out all the little, pseudo ghosts and goblins to chase after the not-so-elusive tricks and treats that go along with celebrating Halloween. This year several venues operated by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools jumped the gun with pre-Halloween family activities that attracted droves of people on Oct. 28 and 29. Perhaps the most surprising was the turnout on Oct. 28 for the California Living Museum's (CALM) "Boo at the Zoo." This year, all children dressed in costume were admitted free for a day of fun, games and visits with the animal residents of CALM. Last year, attendance was approximately 500. This year, the number of visitors more than tripled. "We also gave more than 900 rides on the Central California Children's Railroad for $1," said CALM Program Supervisor Lana Fain. "The day was a success beyond our wildest dreams. Children really enjoyed the 'Dum-Dum' pull, ghost darts, monster toss and making their own trick-or-treat bags and puppets. But, of course, the real plus was the opportunity for families to see all our animals on such a beautiful day. More

Imagine going to a symphony concert where the only instruments you recognize are a piano and drums. Instead of putting it on his shoulder, the first chair violinist draws a bow across the instrument he holds vertically that rests on top of his leg. But the instrument is not a violin. It only has two strings and a finger board made out of a coconut shell with snake skin stretched across it. Another orchestra member is blowing into something that looks like a small, wooden replica of the Empire State Building. Welcome to the art of performing ancient Chinese music. Hundreds of high school students across California were welcomed to the art at the annual Academic Decathlon Concert held in Bakersfield's Rabobank Convention Center on Oct. 25. More

Larry E. Reider, Kern County Superintendent of Schools, happily watched as the ceremonial ribbon he was holding was broken by the weight of an oncoming school bus. The date was Oct. 9 and approximately 50 school officials and dignitaries had gathered at the superintendent's transportation facilities on Terrace Way and Union Avenue in Bakersfield to witness the much anticipated event. As the school bus broke the ribbon, it signaled a new era in school bus transportation with the dedication of a compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling facility. Moments before that happened, Reider announced to those in attendance, "The CNG facility we are dedicating today represents a conscious decision to do our small part to improve air quality in Kern County. " More

Stopping at the livestock pens to pet a lamb might seem like a pretty natural reaction at the Kern County Fair. But for Lucero Armijo, it was one of the highlights of his young life. Going in repetitive circles on the carousel ride is something many of us do without much reflection. But Branson Long's face showed surprise and excitement during his wind-tickling maiden voyage aboard a ceramic ostrich. Several who go to the fair see people with badges as there to keep peace. Jayden Lugo received a badge from Kern County Sheriff's Mounted Posse Past Captain Tommy Hays and made a new friend. It all happened on Sept. 28, during the annual Special People Day at the fair. Hays and dozens like him in the nonprofit posse teamed with fair officials and the Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office (KCSOS) to provide special needs students with this day of meaningful experiences. More

Any teacher who has ever been bitten or punched by a student or had to break up a fight would have appreciated the value of attending the Nonviolent Crisis Intervention Training Program presented by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office (KCSOS) on Sept. 8, 15 and 22. Vickie Shufton, special education program specialist with the superintendent's office, presented the three-day workshop attended by more than 30 school teachers, psychologists and administrators from sites throughout the county. Is there a dramatic rise of student violence in the classroom? Not really. Shufton points to a study undertaken by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of Education in 2001. It came after a spate of grisly high school killings, the most infamous of which took place at Columbine High School. The two governmental agencies went back through 250 acts of campus violence over 10 years. Their conclusion was that not one act happened in a classroom where an adult supervised activity was taking place. "It's the unsupervised activities where these actions happen," Shufton said. "Our teacher presence and guidance is the biggest deterrent to student violence." More

It may be an overused and hackneyed expression, but the seventh annual Kern County College Night held on Sept. 12 was a huge success. A major indicator? The 6,000 programs, high school and junior college transfer students and parents received, were gone within the first hour. It was a three-hour affair, taking place from 6-9 p.m. at Bakersfield's Rabobank Convention Center. While final figures are not in yet, attendees were shoulder-to-shoulder in the aisles surrounding the more than 100 booths occupied by representatives from colleges, universities, trade schools and military services. Last year the attendance was more than 6,000. This year there may have been 1,000-to-2,000 more. The annual event, presented by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools (KCSOS) and sponsored by Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG & E), was off to a great start before the doors opened. During a brief 4 p.m. ceremony, PG & E Public Affairs Director Craig Schmidt and Community Relations Manager Perla Rodriguez donated a check for $20,000 to Kern County Superintendent of Schools Larry E. Reider, providing continued support for the event. More

More than 250 employees, alumni, parents and children celebrated the Claude W. Richardson Child Development Center's 20th anniversary Aug. 14. That just about equals the total number of students (275) who first attended the Richardson Center when it opened in 1986. Operated by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools, the center which serves children with disabilities from birth to age 5 and also provides child development, was named shortly after the death of former superintendent of schools Claude Richardson in 1986. Today, more than 700 children attend the Richardson Center throughout the school year, served by about 160 teachers and support staff. More

County office employees went shopping and cleaned out their closets to help our students dress for success when they return to school next month. New and gently used uniforms and other school clothes were delivered last week during an ice cream social. The clothing donations are a part of Project Back to School, a community-wide effort to provide disadvantaged children with school clothing. A gift certificate was given to the staff member who donated the largest amount of clothes -- in this case Julianna Gaines, director in special education. "It's always rewarding to be part of an organization with so many caring and giving employees. Compared to many in our community we are extremely fortunate. It's gratifying to see so many unselfish employees reach out to help others," said Kern County Superintendent of Schools Larry E. Reider. More

Opening the doors at the Claude W. Richardson Child Development Center cafeteria on June 29 was an eye-opening experience for the media who attended. Spread out before them was a scene that included an interlocking plastic balance beam, trampoline, balls, hoops, nets, swings and a listening center machine. Woven into the scene were young children randomly taking advantage of all the play equipment laid out for their use much to the encouragement and delight of parents and teachers. While on the surface it may have appeared as though it was just children having fun, there were two underlying stories that suggest it was much more. The equipment is needed so these special needs children, ages infant to five years, can learn skills many other children perform instinctively. The other part of the story is that if it had not been for a recent donation of more than $9,000 by Bakersfield Breakfast Lions Club the equipment would not have been there for the children to use. More

Earning gold in Maryland might be tougher than panning for it in California. Five students from Fruitvale Junior High in Bakersfield brought back gold medals from the University of Maryland after winning the national championship in the Junior (grades 6-8) Division Gr