Kwok-Sze Wong, Ed.D., ASCA executive director said, “Comprehensive school counseling programs help to increase student achievement and provide a much-needed resource for students, parents, teachers and administrators. School counselors are integral to student success."

School counselors are actively engaged in helping students examine their abilities, strengths, interests and talents; for working in a partnership with parents as they encounter the challenges of raising children in today's world; for focusing on positive ways to enhance students' social/personal, educational and career development; and working with teachers and other educators to provide an educational system where students can realize their potential and set healthy, realistic and optimistic aspirations for themselves. Professional school counselors are certified, experienced educators with a master's degree in guidance and counseling. The combination of their training and experience makes them an integral part of the total educational program.

KCLU’s Lance Orozco has the story.

Click on link to listen to/download story: LGBT Symposium

• Phonemic Awareness and Phonics Instruction
• Text Structures
• Common Core State Standards
• Comprehension Through Active Learning
• Academic Language
• Infusing Lessons with Active Student Participation
• iPod Literacy Technology
• Applying for Grants in Your Classroom

Date: June 21, 2012
Cost: $59.00

The registration fee includes a book share presentation by author, Amada Irma Perez, two workshops of your choice, lunch, and Keynote Presentation by Dr. Elfrieda Hiebert.

Registration deadline is June 1, 2012
Contact Devon Dooley for registration information: ddooley@callutheran.edu

It was only recently that a T-shirt with the message "Allergic to Algebra" was marketed to young girls.

Studies, however, show that girls are just as capable as boys in math and science. Even so, females seem less likely to pursue a career in the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) fields. Experts think the trend could be reversed, and cultural attitudes changed, by encouraging and mentoring girls and educating them about job options.

Brighter Horizons, a half-day conference for fifth- to ninth-graders, will put these strategies into action. The event, open to boys and girls, is organized by local chapters of the American Association of University Women in partnership with the California Lutheran University School of Education and the city of Thousand Oaks. The event will be at the university March 10.

Participants will explore a wide range of careers through hands-on workshops led by women scientists and mathematicians representing areas as diverse as astronomy, accounting and zoology.

"The leaders are not only role models, they also break stereotypes. It's important for girls and boys to see women in these professions," said Betty Nordahl, a chemist turned computer scientist who is chairwoman of the event and a member of the AAUW-Thousand Oaks.

Nordahl said the facilitators have created fun, age-appropriate activities aimed to spark an interest in STEM subjects. This age group is specifically targeted because it is when "students begin to think about career choices and the classes they will need," Nordahl said.

AAUW-Thousand Oaks sponsored its first career day in 1993, and it was limited to girls in the area. West Ventura County AAUW branches held similar events. Their resources were combined in 2000 to present one event open to all students throughout Ventura County. The program, now held biennially, has grown to allow 780 students to register for three workshops chosen from a list of 32.

Students will be able to make asphalt cookies in "Discover Engineering," touch a real brain in "Project Brainstorm," and use technology when "Solving Crime with Forensic Science."

In 2004 and 2006, Samantha Lux, of Thousand Oaks, attended workshops on veterinary science, engineering and physics. The 18-year-old is currently a freshman at Johns Hopkins University majoring in molecular biology.

"I already liked science, but the workshops reinforced my interest and showed me that women can be successful in science careers," she said.

It's been more than a decade since Helen Bui, of Camarillo, was a ninth-grader whose school counselor suggested she sign up for the conference. Now a pharmacist in Oxnard, Bui contacted Brighter Horizons offering to lead a workshop.

"It's my way of saying 'thank you' for steering me toward a career in science," Bui said.

Her session, "Pharmacy — It's Not All About Pills," is part of this year's program.

"I can now teach others what was taught me years ago," she said.

Bui believes that if young people dream big and work hard, they will have better career choices that can lead to financial independence and job satisfaction. And, the world too, would benefit.

"It's the inventors, engineers and scientists who will advance us forward in this century and beyond," she said.

"Integrating the arts into core academic subjects was the focus of a free workshop hosted by the department of teacher education at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks.

More than 100 teachers and student teachers attended the symposium Saturday at the Lundring Events Center.

The purpose was to give educators training on using art, dance, drama and music to teach subjects.

"With the focus on standardized testing, teachers and administrators don't put it as a priority. When it comes down to real application, it doesn't happen, so we're helping to shift that," said Maureen Lorimer, assistant professor and director of master's in education programs at the university. "We need innovators who can think outside the box. We need folks who can come up with new and creative solutions. Arts is a great way to train your brain to think outside the box."

Sandra Velasquez is the art elective teacher at Rio Vista Middle School in El Rio and this year and is teaching sixth-grade math and science and an eighth-grade elective art class.

"Because it's all about the scores, they want you to just work on the standardized tests and core subjects," she said. "Now they're realizing you have to stimulate both sides of the brain, and they're learning that arts draws out dialogue from children and helps improve their reading, writing and critical thinking skills, so it's so exciting to have your craft promoted in the field."

Claudio Lonardo, 26, is studying for his credential at the university and training to teach physical education.

"I want to learn about how to implement art into the classroom. It's a little bit easier for me because art and music combine easily with P.E. so I am finding this very interesting," he said. "I think it's really important for kids to learn art so they can express themselves and be more confident."

Tanya Narasaki, a first-grade teacher and the lead visual arts teacher at Rancho Rosal Elementary School in Camarillo, led a workshop session.

"It is a challenging thing," Narasaki said. "There's actually standards for art, and we usually overlook them or ignore them, so we do have a responsibility to expose our students to the arts."

Alfred Alvarado, who teaches kindergarten at Rio Rosales Elementary School in Oxnard, said the symposium was helpful for developing lesson plans.

"It's very practical work," Alvarado said. "I think it's important to develop the whole child and to bring out the talents in every child and not just in the visual arts but in theatrical arts and musical arts."

Suzanne Schaffer teaches third grade at MATES in Thousand Oaks, a charter elementary school with an emphasis on arts and technology.

"I have two lessons that I am absolutely going to implement," she said. "I am going to change one to fit in with the Chumash, which is what I am teaching right now, integrating art into the social studies curriculum that I am doing, and I am also going to do still- life photography to go along with another unit, so I am incredibly excited."

The symposium was the first event in the Susan Greiser Price Arts Integration Program, which was funded by a $150,000 gift to the university's Graduate School ofEducation.

The event also included a keynote address by Joe Mendoza, director of special populations educational support for the Ventura County Office of Education, and performances by Rio Mesa High School's Folklórico Club and music by Los Cerritos Jazz Band."

Our Educational Leadership program offers the opportunity to learn from outstanding faculty members who have worked as administrators, ensuring that your academic experience is not only rich and engaging, but practical.

One of the unique features of this program is the professional learning community partnerships established with neighboring school districts. The partnerships provide students with:

• Signature assignments that emphasize real-world experiences
• An appreciation of the daily benefits and rewards of leadership
• A concentrated focus on the challenges administrators encounter on a daily basis
• The development of leadership skills required to successfully implement creative solutions to daily challenges
• Experienced mentors that include local school administrators and faculty from throughout the region

For more information please visit: http://www.callutheran.edu/education/orcutt/

For pictures please visit: http://www.facebook.com/CLU.GSOE

Congratulations to Professors Cecelia Travick-Jackson and Beth Anderson Smith who recently presented their research titled “Voices from the Field: A Longitudinal Study of Student Action Research” at the Fall 2011 Conference of the California Council on Teacher Education in San Diego on Oct. 7.

Congratulations to Professor Diana Stephens! She and a co-author published the book Culturally Proficient Collaboration: Use and Misuse of School Counselors (Corwin Press, July 2011). She was selected through a peer-review process to present her co-authored book at the California Association of School Counselors 11th Annual School Counseling Conference in Pomona, Nov. 4-5.

Congrats to Professor Michael McCambridge who received the Best Director Award for his work on the play Grace and Glorie with the Emmanuel Lutheran Actors Theatre Ensemble in North Hollywood. Michael’s wife, Marty McCambridge, was named Best Actress for her portrayal of Grace. The awards were presented at the theater company’s annual awards dinner on Aug. 26.

Congratulations  to Dr. Edlyn Peña. Below is a list of her recently accepted and/or forthcoming publications. The Review of Higher Education and the Journal of College Student Development are Tier 1 scholarly journals. Bravo Edlyn!
• Peña, E.V. (forthcoming, 2012). Faculty development aimed at redressing inequitable educational outcomes: Using inquiry methods for critical consciousness and self-change. Review of Higher Education.
• Peña, E.V. (forthcoming, 2013). Marginalization of published scholarship on students with disabilities in journals of higher education. Journal of College Student Development.
• Peña, E.V. & Polkinghorne, D.E. (forthcoming, November 2011). Evaluating the Equity Scorecard project: The participants' points of view. In E.M. Bensimon & L. E. Malcom (Eds.) Engaging the Campus in Issues of Equity: Implementing the Equity Scorecard in Theory and in Practice. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing.
• Peña, E.V., Harris, F. & Bensimon, E. M. (forthcoming, November 2011). The Equity Scorecard: Chronicling the change process. In E.M. Bensimon & L. E. Malcom (Eds.) Engaging the Campus in Issues of Equity: Implementing the Equity Scorecard in Theory and in Practice. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing.
• Palucki-Blake, L., Peña, E.V. et. al. (forthcoming, November 2011). Faculty learning and reflection from student interviews. In E.M. Bensimon & L. E. Malcom (Eds.) Engaging the Campus in Issues of Equity: Implementing the Equity Scorecard in Theory and in Practice. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing

Congratulations to Professor Lisa Buono who presented a poster session “Thinking Like 21st Century Learners: An Exploration of Blog Use in a Skills-Based Counselor Education Course” at the Association for Counselor Education and Supervision national conference held in Nashville, in October.

Success of local middle schools driving API improvement

Read more at: http://www.toacorn.com/news/2011-09-29/Schools/Success_of_local_middle_schools_driving_API_improv.html

The United States may not be in a recession but is"remarkably close" to one, economist Bill Watkins said Thursday in Oxnard.

"There's been some very disturbing news in the past couple weeks" related to the economy, he said.

He was speaking at California Lutheran University's Graduate School of Education and School of Management's 25th anniversary celebration at its Oxnard campus. The free public event was part of a series of celebrations marking the anniversary.

Watkins, the executive director of CLU's Center for Economic Research and Forecasting, participated in "20 Questions in 20 Minutes on the State of the Economy." Tim Gallagher, president of Gallagher 20/20 Consulting and former publisher of the Ventura County star, asked the questions.

The country could be in a recession because in addition to jobs, productivity has declined in the past three quarters, Watkins said.

Economists are watching the data closely, he said.

"We're remarkably close to (a recession) if we're not," he said.

"It's unfolding slowly, and its probably going to hit in the next 18 months," said Watkins, who added that it could last a long time.

During the next 18 months, the decline of euro and the departure of countries such as Greece and Portugal from the eurozone "will unfortunately cause another financial crisis," he said.

The U.S. and California are poorly prepared to deal with a recession, especially with national unemployment at 9 percent, state joblessness at 12 percent and real estate prices still declining, Watkins said.

"It's just a very difficult time and very unfortunate," he said.

He said increasing legal immigration would help tremendously.

"Immigrants start businesses at a higher rate than American-born. There's more risk-taking. We see foreign students come to (CLU), and they would love to stay. We educate them, and they're the best they have to offer, and then we ship them back home," Watkins said.

A review of business regulations and reduction of the overhead costs for small businesses that could produce jobs would also help, he said. Assembly Bill 32, the "green" jobs initiative, is "killing our economy and California," he said.

"For one thing we're getting it unilaterally. No other state did it. And the result is businesses are leaving," he said.

Watkins said a green economy will not lead the country out of the recession and that health care will continue to be the strongest industry. President Barack Obama's jobs bill falls short because it will continue to run up the debt, and home prices will decline slightly for the next two years, he said.

Watkins also recommended businesses, especially small ones that have been hit hard and are so important for the economy, use this time to prepare for an eventual economic recovery.

"You got to get lean; you got to get mean. You got to be smarter and let the other guy move to Texas," he said.

© 2011 Ventura County Star. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Also, to learn more about the 25th Anniversary, please check out our Silver Anniversary webpage at www.callutheran.edu/25

Professor Diana Stephens, Ph.D. (Education) has been elected president of the Ventura County School Counselors Association. Stephens was interviewed as a guest on the Madeleine Brand Show for KPCC Southern California Public Radio, discussing the complex issues of gender identity and sexual orientation facing middle school students, in response to the on-going trial of an adolescent male following the tragic shooting of a gay student. To hear the full interview, visit http://www.scpr.org/programs/madeleine-brand/2011/07/14/counselor-trains-ventura-teachers-on-talking-to-st/.

Cheryl Burns spent 20 years teaching at Portola School in the Ventura Unified School District, during which she got two master's degrees at California Lutheran University.

"I always liked building individual relationships with students," Burns said. "It helps students move along more quickly. It builds their trust so they feel like they can succeed. It's just always been a real strong part of my teaching."

Burns came to Ventura to attend graduate school at CLU in the 1980s and never left. After Portola, she spent a year as a dean at Hueneme High School. Then Teresa Johnson hired her as an assistant principal at Ventura's adult school.

"When we had an opening here, there was no question in my mind about who would be the best candidate," said Johnson, who is principal at the adult school and was principal at Portola when Burns worked there.

Johnson credited Burns with leading efforts to revamp curriculum at the adult school to make sure the work was as rigorous as at regular high schools. Burns also developed a program to help students who had not yet passed the California High School Exit Exam.

"Cheryl looks at each student as an individual," Johnson said. "She finds the best within them. She takes the best, and she builds on that strength to help them bridge the gap into other areas where maybe they haven't been as successful."

Burns grew up in Montana and always wanted to be a teacher — a goal that was solidified in seventh grade. That's when she had Julie LaCross as a teacher and mentor at Baker High School in Baker, Mont.

"She made a big difference in my life," Burns said. "She was just a heck of a role model for me. She was the one who took me to college campuses."

After high school, Burns went to Eastern Montana College, earning a bachelor's degree with a focus on general and special education.

In 1986, she started teaching at Portola. She liked it from the start.

"It was just so much fun to see the spark when something captured (the students') attention or when they finally got something," she said.

Burns worked in Portola's learning center, helping students who had challenges in regular classrooms. Portola went from being a low-performing school to a nationally recognized Blue Ribbon campus in 2005. "Cheryl was one of the main reasons that happened," Johnson said.

Burns is taking over the principal position at El Camino for Kelsie Sims-Schneider, who is moving to Sunset School as principal.

El Camino, recognized as a model alternative campus, is an independent study school that offers college-prep courses.

It offers students a myriad opportunities, Burns said. Programs work around students' schedules, allowing them to pursue acting, sports and college courses. The campus also gives students access to regular high school activities, including a prom, clubs and internships.

Read more: http://www.vcstar.com/news/2011/aug/07/model-alternative-high-school-in-ventura-gets/#ixzz1USv70PcZ

By Cheri Carlson

ccarlson@vcstar.com 805-437-0260

Editor's note: This is part of a series of stories this summer on new principals at Ventura County public schools.

© 2011 Ventura County Star. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

07-28-2011

The California Reading and Literature Project hosted its inaugural summer literacy workshop for educators titled “ Literacy Empowerment for Universal Access” on June 28 at California Lutheran University.

The seminar offered a variety of workshops related to literacy in K-12 classrooms.

More than 180 educators from Ventura, Kern and Los Angeles counties attended the all-day event.

Dr. John Shefelbine, professor in the Department of Teacher Education at Cal State Sacramento, gave the keynote presentation titled “The Hidden Role of Vocabulary and Background Knowledge in Meeting State Standards.”

CRLP will host another summer literacy workshop next year on June 21. Information about registering for the event will be available next spring at www.callutheran.edu/crlp.

© 2011 The Acorn. http://www.theacorn.com/news/2011-07-28/Schools/Educators_from_three_counties_attend_summer_litera.html

The CCTC takes into consideration such variables as geographic, academic and professional sector representation when choosing members for the COA, in order to best represent California's diverse learning community.

Dr. Erickson will serve on the COA from July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2015.

For a complete list of events and projects, go to http://www.callutheran.edu/fos. For more information, contact the Office for Undergraduate Research at x3795.

"I've been a reporter on and off for 50 years, but I've never brought my family into a story … until Nick," MacNeil said, "because he moves me deeply."

MacNeil and producer Caren Zucker tell the story of Autism Today in a 6-part broadcast series beginning Monday, April 18, 2011 and a robust online component where viewers can join the conversation. Ms. Zucker has produced many stories on autism and is the mother of a 16-year old son with autism.

Monday, April 18 An introduction to Nick and autism as a whole body experience: MacNeil brings viewers along on a visit with his daughter and grandson Nick in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to see how autism affects the whole family, including his 10-year-old sister, Neely. Nick experiences autism not just as a disorder in brain development but also as physical ailments affecting the whole body.

Tuesday, April 19 Autism Prevalence: Why are the numbers of children with autism increasing? At the UC Davis MIND Institute in Sacramento, California, MacNeil sees the wide range of different behaviors that comprise the autism spectrum.

Wednesday, April 20 Autism Causes: The rise in autism numbers has caused a surge in research to find the causes. For the latest thinking, Robert MacNeil speaks with four leading researchers. 

Thursday, April 21 Autism Treatment: Although children with autism see doctors periodically, they go to school everyday. It is the school system that bears most of the burden of treating children with autism because treatment means education. MacNeil visits two schools in New York – a public school in the Bronx teaching 700 children with autism and a charter school created in Manhattan as a model of possibilities in educating children with autism. With only 30 students, it can use one-on-one teacher/student ratios employing intensive Applied Behavioral Analysis – the gold standard treatment for autism.

Monday, April 25 Adults with Autism: Although federal law mandates educational services for children with autism, there are virtually no services when they become adults. MacNeil profiles Zachary Hamrick in Mahwah, New Jersey, about to turn 21. As his family contemplates the uncertain future now facing hundreds of thousands of young people like him, his parents ask themselves, "What will happen when we die?"

Tuesday, April 26 Autism Policy: The NewsHour series ends with a discussion of the public policy issues raised in the series, including the enormous discrepancy in the quality and availability of services for children and future adults in what the federal committee that determines research priorities for autism now calls a "national health emergency" with a panel of experts.

PBS NEWSHOUR will host an online content hub that will offer easy access to video of all the pieces in the series, as well as web-only features that are part of Autism Today, including:

First Look Online: In a brand new online-on-air cross promotion, check the NewsHour's website after each night's broadcast during the week April 18: We'll post the next chapter in the Autism Today series online by 7pm ET.
Autism 101 – A primer on autism, how it's diagnosed, the spectrum of disorders, and available resources. We'll also look at the costs of austim, through the lens of the families profiled in the series and others.
The Story of Donald – A new look at Caren Zucker and John Donvan's profile of the first child diagnosed with autism as reported in The Atlantic.
Live Chat with Experts – Viewers can ask their questions directly to some of the experts and doctors profiled in the broadcast segments via live text chat moderated by PBS NEWSHOUR digital correspondent Hari Sreenivasan.
Ask Robin MacNeil – Hari Sreenivasan will preview the series with Robin MacNeil in a special interview on the Rundown news blog. MacNeil will also answer viewer questions after the series concludes.
Join us on Twitter, YouTube and Facebook: We want to hear how you or those you know are coping with autism. Use the Twitter hashtag #autismtoday to ask questions or join the conversation on the series.

As a mentor for several current and past CLU faculty, Dr. Liberman has also been an active member of the Conejo Valley community for many years.  He is considered the founding father of the field of psychiatric rehabilitation, and has been on the faculty of the UCLA School of Medicine since 1970.

Dr. Liberman has written 18 books and monographs, over 400 articles for professional journals and received awards for his work from the American Psychiatric Association, the Association for Behavior and Cognitive Therapy, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, the National Association for Research on Schizophrenia and Dpression, the Social Security Administration and the National Institutes of Health.  In 2002, he was honored with the Human Rights Award from the World Health Organization of the United Nations.

Ten $1,000 grants will be awarded to K-12 public school libraries in either Santa Barbara or Ventura counties to use in building their library collection.

Submission deadline is 5:00 p.m. PST, March 30, 2011.  The announcement for grant winners will be made by the end of April, 2011.

To apply for a grant, go to www.cybergrants.com/sage/books and use the invitation code: BFS2011.

If you have not submitted a grant in the past, you will need to set up a new account.  Pleaes follow the directions on the site.  For questions contact Martha Zeiher, Manager of Community Relations at SAGE at martha.zeiher@sagepub.com.

Persons are eligible who plan to enter the field of elementary, secondary, or higher education and are enrolled in a credential program or persons who currently hold a valid teaching credential program and are enrolled in a graduate degree-credential program. 

Additional eligibility criteria is included with the application.  Applications must be submitted by March 31, 2011.

Scholarship application 

ADVISOR	PROGRAM	LAST NAME
Lisa Buono	PPS	A - B
	CSP	A - J
Cynthia Jew	PPS	Mc - T
Diana Stephens	PPS	C - Ma
Gail Uellendahl	PPS	V - Z
	CSP	K - Z