SCHOOL PLANS SESSION CHANGES PINETREE SET TO HALT YEAR-ROUND CALENDAR.Byline: Eugene Tong Staff Writer CANYON COUNTRY - Pinetree Community School will revert to the Sulphur Springs Sulphur Springs, city (1990 pop. 14,062), seat of Hopkins co., NE Tex., in a farm area; inc. 1859. Vegetables, wheat, rice, and corn are grown, and livestock and dairying are important. There is clay and timber in the area. School District's common calendar, ending more than two decades of year-round schedules at Santa Clarita Valley The Santa Clarita Valley is the valley of the Santa Clara River in Southern California. It stretches through Los Angeles County and Ventura County. Its main population center is the city of Santa Clarita. The valley was part of the 48,612-acre (19,672. schools. As decided by the governing board Noun 1. governing board - a board that manages the affairs of an institution board - a committee having supervisory powers; "the board has seven members" Wednesday, Pinetree's first day of school for the 2004-05 year will be Aug. 12 - the same start date as the rest of the Canyon Country district's campuses. The blended calendar also includes a week of fall break in October, a three-week winter break beginning in December and a two-week spring break in March, with classes ending June 17. ``This is a change, and change can be uncertain,'' school board President Sheldon Wigdor said. ``People could be uncertain about the effects of the change, but this is the appropriate time to bring Pinetree into the district calendar.'' Pinetree School has operated on a year-round calendar since 1980, and was the first local school to adopt the rotating three-months-on, one- month-off schedule to handle rising enrollment. The Newhall School District The Newhall School District is a school district in the Santa Clarita Valley that serves the Valencia and Newhall communities within the city of Santa Clarita, California, as well as the Stevenson Ranch community in unincorporated Los Angeles County. soon followed suit as the region underwent growth. But with the aggressive construction of new schools over the past five years, campus overcrowding overcrowding overcrowding of animal accommodation. Many countries now publish codes of practice which define what the appropriate volumetric allowances should be for each species of animal when they are housed indoors. Breaches of these codes is overcrowding. has subsided. Last year, Newhall abandoned the year-round calendar. At Pinetree, enrollment has stabilized - even declined - in recent years as new home construction now runs along the Antelope Valley Freeway The Antelope Valley Freeway is a freeway in Los Angeles and Kern counties in southern California. It is signed as California State Highway 14 along its length. It connects Greater Los Angeles to the rapidly developing Antelope Valley. , said Kent Frison, assistant superintendent of business services. ``The school population has been decreasing,'' he said. ``There are larger classes in the upper grade levels and smaller incoming kindergarten (classes). Over the years, it has caused the school population to decrease to a point where we can handle them with a blended calendar. ``Right now there are fewer new houses built in the Pinetree area than there are in the Fair Oaks Ranch Fair Oaks Ranch may be:
Pinetree Principal Eddie Fiszer said enrollment has dwindled from more than 1,000 to about 900 this year, and is projected to be roughly 850 for 2004-05. Operating Pinetree on a calendar with the rest of the district would help streamline administration, Frison said. ``When you have two different calendars, trying to provide staff development for teachers that are off-track, it makes it difficult,'' he said. ``You have two different starting times. You have two different orientations.'' The switch will displace some teachers, but district officials have said they will be reassigned to other campuses. Also, the current kindergarten class size of 20 pupils per teacher will be maintained for a year before an increase to 30 per teacher to match other campuses' class sizes. ``I think the biggest transition is the fact that the community has really understood year-round, and has worked around the hectic nature of year-round,'' Fiszer said. But most parents appeared ready to welcome the common calendar. ``I am quite happy that the calendar is changing,'' said Indira Scuderi, Pinetree's PTA PTA or parent-teacher association: see parent education. president. ``Everybody is on the same page. I'm all in favor of it. ``There are parents who would have to make adjustments, and change is always hard. But once the adjustment is done, everybody will be appreciative of being on the same schedule.'' The new schedule should allow pupils to better socialize so·cial·ize v. so·cial·ized, so·cial·iz·ing, so·cial·iz·es v.tr. 1. To place under government or group ownership or control. 2. To make fit for companionship with others; make sociable. with each other, Fiszer said. ``While some families will need to attempt to reschedule re·sched·ule tr.v. re·sched·uled, re·sched·ul·ing, re·sched·ules To schedule again or anew: rescheduled the meeting for the following week; rescheduled the debts of many developing nations. some vacation, the transition is largely positive, to have our students make more friends and being placed in class with everyone here at the same time,'' he said. Eugene Tong, (661) 257-5253 eugene.tong(at)dailynews.com |
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