Dr. John Bayless, superintendent of Cabrillo Unified School District, is retiring in the fall.  The board will begin its search in the summer and Bayless says that it should be complete by early fall.

You can download from Coastsider the superintendent’s letter and the letter from the school board describing his accomplishments over his decade of service at CUSD, including implementation of state standards, strategic plan, remodeling and building at all district schools and a record number of new grants.

NOTE: This opinion piece by Barry Parr appeared in Wednesday’s Review. You can read the full story on the Review’s site.

They say real life is a lot like high school.

The current scuffle over the playing fields at Half Moon Bay High certainly has all the elements of high school: jocks vs. nerds, cliques, bullying, and lots of folks who haven’t done their homework.

To bring you up to date, the high school received a generous donation to refurbish its playing fields from an anonymous millionaire whose identity everyone knows. Of course, this generosity brought the community together in a single-minded sense of gratitude and good fellowship. Sort of like a vaguely worded bequest to a beloved beagle would be received by the heirs of the decedent.

The school district - the paint peeling on the groundbreaking sign at its decrepit middle school with no actual ground having been broken - set about gilding the high school’s fields. Literally next door to this undertaking, the neighbors petitioned the district to consider the quiet enjoyment of their homes in its renovations and to keep to the project it outlined in its Coastal Development Permit. When the district ignored them, they took their petition to the city, which had issued the permit. They’re still waiting for the city to call them back.

Read the rest at the Half Moon Bay Review

The Cabrillo Education Foundation (formerly Back to Basics) is launching a new fundraising program designed to bring its endowment to one million dollars by December. 

Every dollar pledged before the end of August will be matched with money from a $220,000 fund contributed by the foundation’s board of directors, David and Mary Butler, Cindy Labuda, Christine and Lenny Mendonca, Patti and Jay Warshauer of Main Street Goldworks and some anonymous donors.

By the end of 2008 the Foundation hopes to reach its original target of two million dollars. Once that goal is achieved, the foundation will begin releasing funds to the schools. 

The San Mateo County Resource Conservation District is sponsoring an interested student to participate for free this summer in the annual Range and Natural Resources Camp at Elkus Ranch south of Half Moon Bay.

Students 15-18 years old can experience the science and management of natural resources through classroom and field activities led by university faculty and resource management professionals. They will learn about career and college opportunities too, and this will look great on a college application.  It is likely that they will be able to get a letter of recommendation from the RCD for college as well. Topics and activities will include:

• Riparian Watershed Management


• Rangeland Management


• Wildlife Management


• Field Projects


• Forestry


• Recreation


• Private & Public Lands


• Urban Encroachment


• Team Project Planning Competition

You can download the flyer and brochure for the program from Coastsider. Please see the attached materials for reference, or interested students may contact me directly by email () or by phone (650.712.7765). if you’re interested, email or call today. The brochure shows a deadline of Monday, May 14.

I’m a parent of a child in the Spanish Immersion Program waitlist and we’d like to get the community’s support in urging the district to open a 3rd kindergarten class. This is a very important program in our school district and we feel strongly that it should be expanded for the coming years to meet the growing demands of our community.

In the past the school district has made the 3rd kindergarten class available if there was a need for it. They then reverted back to the 2 kindergarten classes when the demand wasn’t there. This fluctuating number of classes has proven to be difficult for the school district to maintain proper staffing. We are asking the school district to commit to increasing the number of kindergarten classes to 3 classes from here on out. There is a demand for the program which will sustain the 3 classes moving forward if the community sees the dedication of the school district to the program.

This year, there are more than enough kids on the waitlist to create a 3rd kindergarten. Why are they not creating a 3rd class?  As it is, there’s a great number of siblings that automatically make it into the kindergarten classes which then further decreases the chances of new families making it into Immersion. There were only 8 spots available for English speakers (even less for native Spanish speakers), that’s not very encouraging for the increasing number of families who want to get into the program in the future.

Join us at the school board meeting May 10 to support the 3rd kindergarten class.

Mitone Griffiths

CLICK link for copy of Mitone’s letter to the CUSD board

The Coastside Mothers’ Club is holding its 13th annual preschool open house hosting eight Coastside preschools from Half Moon Bay to Montara.  The preschools will be open for tours on Saturday, April 21, 2007 from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm. 

This preschool open house is a great opportunity for interested families to meet directors and teachers, discuss curriculum, daily schedules, and other program information, pick up enrollment forms and inquire about waiting lists. 

The event is open to the public, free of charge, as a community service to all Coastside residents.  Children are welcome, no RSVP is required. 

CLICK for a list of open houses.

The College of San Mateo will open its first full satellite campus at Shoreline Station in Half Moon Bay, reports the County Times.

The new facility will be geared toward a wide variety of groups, from high school students getting a head start on college to adult learners looking for some vocational training or simply an interesting class to take, according to Galatolo. The college will also expand the English and computer-literacy classes it currently offers to Spanish-speaking residents at the Moonridge housing complex in town.

CUSD will hold a final mandatory meeting for all incoming kindergarten parents interested in the Spanish Immersion program on April 10.  This is a last chance for parents to sign up for the fall of the 2007-08 school year.

Deadline for registration is April 13. If there are enough sign ups, there is a very good chance that a third incoming kindergarten class will be added in the fall.

If you’re Interested in learning more about the CUSD Spanish immersion program at Hatch Elementary School, the meeting for parents of incoming kindergarten students will be Tuesday, April 10 at 6:30 pm Hatch School room B-1.

For more information call Denise Phillips at 728-1912.