Forever Forestville - October 2011
Fall
was ushered in on a beautiful Saturday afternoon as the town came together at
the Forestville
Town Social and Business Expo. Great folksy tunes rode the winds as many of you meandered through the
booths that featured a great variety of products and services.
Healthy
Habits, Garden Sanctuaries, Forestville Design Landscaping, and Pacific
Landscapes all drummed up business contacts and made new friends. There was a
beautiful table of pottery by Heide Keeble, and Judy Evans and Associates showcased Ironwood Carvings by
their late friend H.C. Smith of Oregon, which I thought was a wonderful tribute
that highlights the type of love and loyalty we cherish here in Forestville.
Every
year I try to purchase a little something from a vendor, and this year I chose
two wonderful organic lip balms from Elk Feather Herbs.
Though my time at the event was cut short by a horrible allergy attack
compliments of the dry breeze, it seemed as if a lot of people were enjoying
the beautiful fall day and I hope the Chamber of Commerce will continue to make
this wonderful annual event happen for our community!
Also featured at the Expo was the Forestville Youth Park
Sidewalk Sale. The FYP is having a fundraiser selling
personalized sidewalk bricks/pavers. They are 12 X 12 with 3 lines and 16
spaces on each line. The
tax-deductible donation for each paver is $125.00. Sixty pavers have already been installed on the sidewalk in
front of the new playground and they look fantastic. The project requires 220
pavers to be purchased, so don’t delay! You can order a paver order form by
going to www.ForestvilleYouthPark.org or call the coordinators, Margaret Kotta at
887-7346 or Karen Shaver at 887-9191.
887-7346 or Karen Shaver at 887-9191.
School News
The
school year is up and running and our students are busy with academics and a
wide variety of extracurricular activities.
As
many of you may have read, both schools received disappointing news that they
have been identified as a Year 1 Program Improvement (PI) school under the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB)
Act of 2001. NCLB requires the state and district to review annually the
academic progress of federally funded Title I schools and to identify schools
in need of improvement.
These
schools are identified as PI schools after two consecutive years of not making
adequate yearly progress (AYP). Though both schools met and exceeded many of
the requirements set forth by NCLB, they both did not meet the requirements for
certain subgroups. And though this news is disheartening and can cause concern
among parents, both schools are working hard to identify and remediate the
problem areas and are confident in the quality of education that is being
provided to the students of our community. Standardized testing is only one
facet of the educational picture and sadly, in my opinion, the only one that
seems to get spotlighted.
On a happy note, the Forestville Education
Foundation has received an “Artist in the Schools “ Grant
from the California Arts Council for the 2011-2012 school year. FEF will support the K-3rd visual arts
project at Forestville School that provides hands-on art experience based on
California Visual Arts standards with artist Deborah Padrick.
Students are exposed to art history, cultural arts and art vocabulary
while using various art mediums.
The El Molino Leadership class has been working to revamp their program to
better serve the school community. They began restructuring the traditional
student officer government system to include different committees that will
work with various campus subgroups such as community service/campus action,
student activities/athletics, fundraising, and other areas to better enhance
the programs and allow for more widespread opportunities for student
involvement.
And don’t miss an opportunity to support the El Molino Music
Department at a car wash at Carr’s Drive-in on October 8th
from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Labels: COMMUNITIES
