Schools
La Mirada High School Band and Color Guard Fundraiser
La Mirada~You can support the La Mirada High School Band and Color Guard by eating dinner at Cabo Taco Baja Grill Wednesday, November 13th from 4:00-9:00 p.m.
Simply tell your server you are supporting La Mirada High School and 20 percent of your purchase will go back to the program.
Cabo Taco is located at 15924 Rosecrans Avenue in La Mirada, next to the Movie 7.
High School Juniors and Seniors Should Begin College Application Process Now
The 2013-2014 school year is just around the corner for La Mirada High School, and as incoming seniors and juniors, many students will begin to prepare for the challenging college application process that dominates much of their first semester.
Summer is at its end; August is the month of procrastination. Incoming seniors will have heard a great deal about college applications and personal statements, but very few will have even taken the opportunity to even glance at them. It is a daunting task, one that is not easily juggled between other responsibilities such as schoolwork, extracurricular activities, sports, and even work. However, the importance is self-evident.
As August winds down, students should have a general understanding of which colleges and universities they will be applying to, as applications do cost money to submit. Glancing over the applications you will find that, with the exception of the personal statements and any supplemental questions, they are relatively easy to fill out.
Applications for each college and university are available online and submitted electronically: California Community Colleges (cccapply.org), California State Colleges (csumentor.edu), University of California colleges (universityofcalifornia.edu/apply), and the Common Application which is used by most private colleges and universities nationwide (commonapp.org).
Of these, only University of California, or UC, campuses and most private colleges require personal statements. Privates will usually also have supplemental questions that can range from short answers to 500-word essays. This is why it is imperative for students to become familiar now with the applications they intend to fill out and submit.
La Mirada Students Place in Top 100 in World’s Largest Student Rocket Contest
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La Mirada High School Rocketry Club: Front Row: Akash Soma, Justin Gocho, Kevin Lim, Emily De Boer; Back Row: Hassaan Shakeel, Ryan Haro, Evan Klansek, Ricardo Jauregui, Zack Hart, James Gallardo, Fernando Tapia |
After months of preparation, La Mirada High School students compete for national title in AIA’s Team America Rocketry Challenge.
The Plains, VA~Eleven students from La Mirada bested more than 625 teams nationally recently to be picked to be one of the 100 hundred schools nationwide to compete in the 2013 Team America Rocketry Challenge (TARC).
The top 100 finishers advanced to the National Finals recently held on Saturday, May 11 at Great Meadow in The Plains, Va.
La Mirada High’s team received a qualifying score that placed them well within the top 100 teams nationwide, and in the finals, they finished 73rd out of the 100 schools.
They were competing for the national title, $60,000 worth of scholarships and prizes and a chance to participate in NASA’s Student Launch Initiative.
TARC is the world’s largest student rocket contest that aims to inspire students to pursue education and careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).
For months, these amateur rocketeers worked to design, build and perfect model rockets that can safely carry one raw egg up to an exact altitude of 750 feet up in the air and return to the ground within 48-50 seconds – a mere two-second window before incurring penalties.
All seniors represented La Mirada High in this year’s contest: Kurush Dubash, Hassaan Shakeel, Emily De Boer, Justin Gocho, Evan Klansek, Fernando Tapia, Ryan Haro, Zach Hart, Kevin Lim, Ricardo Jauregui, and Akash Soma.
School Board May Decide to Close Dulles
District Staff Recommends Closure of School
Norwalk~The Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District Board members are meeting tonight at 6:30 p.m. and will vote on whether or not to keep Dulles Elementary School in La Mirada open.
At the January 7th meeting, district staff reported that Dulles is currently operating at 50 percent capacity (237 students). The school has nine teachers and three of the nine have combination classes (two grades, one class).
Five Dulles parents spoke at the meeting in support of keeping the school open.
The district is expected to save at least $366,000 annually if the school is closed.
The school district is looking to cut costs as the combination of recent budget deficits and declining enrollment are expected to deplete reserve monies in a few years.
Four years ago, the district closed Hargitt and Huerta schools in Norwalk
UPDATE: 01/22/13 8:13p~The Board of Education voted unanimously to keep Dulles open after the district's finance department miraculously provided information at the meeting from the Governors office, they say they received last Wednesday, in which new projections indicate more money to be available. In other words, an hour and a half of my life I will never get back.
School Board May Decide to Close Dulles Elementary
District staff recommends closure of school
Norwalk~The Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District Board members, at its meeting tonight, may decide to close Dulles Elementary School in La Mirada.
At the January 7th meeting, district staff reported that Dulles is operating at 50 percent capacity (237 students). The school has nine teachers and three of the nine have combo classes.
Five Dulles parents spoke at the meeting in support of keeping the school open.
The district is expected to save at least $366,000 annually if the school is closed.
The school district is looking to cut costs as recent deficit budgets are expected to deplete the current surplus in a few years.
Four years ago, the district closed Hargitt and
Escalona Elementary Reaches 907 API: Principal Follows Through on Deal by Kissing Pig
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| Escalona Elementary principal Bonnie Lytle makes good on a deal made three years ago-if her students ever scored over 900 on the state's API report she would kiss a pig. Figures were released last month and the school scored 907. Time to pucker up! Photo Victoria Pflanzer |
Hundreds of Students Squeal in Delight at Ceremony as Principal Keeps Her Word by Smooching Swine
La Mirada ~Escalona Elementary principal Bonnie Lytle made a promise to her students-if the school’s Academic Performance Index (API) ever reached 900, she would kiss a pig.
Although it took three years, Escalona scored a 907 when the figures were released last month-one of the first schools in the district to score over 900.
So, this past Friday Lytle followed through by kissing a pig named Olive- fitting for La Mirada-in front of hundreds of students, parents, and spectators.
The very cold winter-like winds didn’t dampen the spirit of the huge crowd at the after school outdoor celebration called “Pig Party.”
There was a petting zoo, along with booths selling popcorn and candy, and drinks. The Kiwanis Club of La Mirada was also there selling quarter pound hot dogs with the works.
The API is a major component of the Public Schools Accountability Act passed by the California legislature in 1999 and scores range from a low of 200 to a high of 1000. The scores are used as a measurement to monitor a school’s growth.
PTA President Monae Zamott said the kids worked hard, “They have been trying and trying to hit that 900. Each year they have inched a little bit closer, improving their scores all along. She (Lytle) didn’t want the kids to wait for their reward.”
Zamott said that the vow got the kids to study more, and that’s all that really matters, “It was a great challenge and a great motivator for them to study. We can’t wait until she kisses the pig.”
The school had a score of 858 in 2009, climbed to 890 in 2010, and then 907 for 2011.
The scores, compiled from testing done in the previous school year, are released every October.
Many of the students who were tested last year, are partly responsible for the score, but have moved on to Benton, Hutchinson, and other middle schools. They were also invited to the festivities.
Three CIF Home Games in One Week Treat La Mirada Sports Fans
La Mirada High Girls Volleyball Advance to Second Round With Big Win
La Mirada~Big week for La Mirada High Sports at La Mirada. Tomorrow night, THURSDAY at 7pm, girls volleyball enters the 2nd round of the CIF Division 3AA playoffs against Riverside Poly after their 25-17, 24-26, 25-10, 25-17 victory over Beverly Hills yesterday in La Mirada.
La Mirada (8-1) football begins a march to the finals playing in its first round game as the number one seed in the Southeast Division. The Suburban League champion Matadores are riding a six-game wining streak and will play at home as well, FRIDAY at 7:30 pm vs. Arcadia. The Apaches (4-6) who lost to La Mirada last year in the second round 31-28, stumbled a bit down the stretch in the Pacific League, and are losers of their last two.
School Board Approves Donations to La Mirada Schools
Benton Parents donate over $127,000 for Washington D.C. Trip: La Mirada Kiwanis and Rotary Donate Cameras
Norwalk~At a recent meeting, the Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District board formally accepted several donations totalling thousands of dollars to benefit local schools.
Donations to La Mirada schools included:
-$112.88 by Target Take Charge of Education to Los Coyotes Middle School, to be used for material and supplies.
-$2,750 for Lodestone Adventures to provide Los Coyotes students with training activities that promote team building, talent discovery, and leadership.
-$10,000 to send about 50 Los Coyotes students and chaperones to leadership camp at the Alpine Meadows Retreat Center in Angelus Oaks, with funding coming from parent donations and the ASB budget.
-$34,100 to send about 124 Gardenhill Elementary students and chaperones and $23,386 to send about 88 Eastwood Elementary students and chaperones to Thousand Pines Pines Outdoor Science School in Crestline. Gardenhill will be going in March 2013 and Eastwood in February.
-$481.99 to Benton Middle School by Target Take Charge of Education to be used for the student donation fund.
-$350 To Benton by the Benton PTSA to be used for the student donation fund.
-$359.91 to Benton by Big Lots/La Mirada to be used for the student donation fund.
-$152,550 to send about 71 Benton students and chaperones on an "American Heritage Trip" that will send the group through Boston, New York, Washington D.C. and Philadelphia next summer with funding coming from fundraisers ($24,366), the ASB trust budget ($800), and parent donations ($127,383).
-Two Canon Powershot SX40 HS Cameras to Benton Visual and Arts Academy to be used by the photography class, separately donated by the La Mirada Kiwanis and La Mirada Rotary Clubs.
-16 refurbished computers with Microsoft Office site license for each to Escalona Elementary by the Escalona PTSA, to be used for instruction in classrooms.
Overflow Crowd Floods District for 1st Annual College Fair & Expo
Norwalk~Hundreds of students and parents descended on the Norwalk-La Mirada School District headquarters as the school district hosted the 1st Annual NLMUSD College Expo Day 2012 this last Thursday.
The distric
t-the 15th largest in California-welcomed representatives from colleges and universities from all over Southern California and beyond, to interact with students and parents, hand out brochures and other literature containing important information and answer questions they might have.
Each representative had an information table in which parents and students were able to discuss the requirements to attend the college or university.
Also, topical workshops were presented during two session times. In Session 1, Tiana Otabuah (UCI) presented a workshop on “College 101”; Kaplan Test Prep presented “SAT Test Prep”; UCLA presented “Tips on Writing a Personal Statement”; and Cypress College presented a workshop on “Financial Aid”.
During Session 2, Otabuah presented a workshop on “What Juniors Need to Know”; Cerritos College presented “Community College and Transferring”; CSUF presented a workshop on “Early Outreach Program (UOP)”; and Cypress College presented a second workshop on “Financial Aid”.
Representatives from the City of Norwalk, City of La Mirada, PTA, and ROP were also present at the community event to talk about their services.
The occasion featured a welcome greeting from Superintendent Dr. Ruth Perez and a special message
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| Students and parents pack a classroom to listen to a representative from UCLA give tips on writing a personal statement for college. |
from Congresswoman Linda Sanchez.
The idea was born when middle and high school counselors of the school district, at one of their monthly meetings, were discussing ways to revamp a district college handbook. In the past, the district’s high schools and middle schools held their own college information nights. The counselors decided to have an event for all the schools
Soon, the district counselor team of Irene Rifilato (Norwalk High School), David Hallum (La Mirada High School), Candida Hernandez (Los Coyotes Middle School) and Jenny Amaya (Waite Middle School) were chosen by the other counselors to organize the new expo.
El Camino High Students Presented With Scholarship Funds From Kiwanis
El Camino High Seniors Presented With Scholarship Checks From La Mirada Kiwanis
By Tony Aiello
La Mirada~ Two El Camino High School seniors recently were given scholarship awards from the Kiwanis Club of La Mirada.
The students were presented with their gifts at a ceremony on the school campus this past Thursday.
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| left to right, Valerie Mejia, counselor, Rich Trujjillo. Lou Piltz & Tom Thornton (LM Kiwanis Club), $1000 awardee Zayara Silva, Mr. Brown, El Camino High School Principal. photo Kiwanis Club |
La Mirada~La Mirada Kiwanis members Lou Piltz, Tom Thornton, and Rich Trujillo acknowledged the students, and they were joined by El Camino principal Darryl Brown and other local dignitaries including Norwalk-La Mirada School Board member, Darryl Adams.
Located in La Mirada, El Camino is a California State Model Continuation High School.
Students were judged on their merit, grades, school activity; along with their community involvement and accomplishments.
This year’s winners-which included La Mirada high students-received scholarship amounts totally $11,000, with 14 students overall, receiving gifts.
Annually, scholarship amounts are awarded in the amounts of $500 and $1000.
At El Camino, Courtney Morrison and Zaraya Silva each received $1000.
La Mirada High students received their prizes earlier in the week.
For over 30 years, the service club has offered the scholarships. To qualify, students must reside in La Mirada, but can be attending any high school.
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| Courtney Morrison also received $1000. photo Kiwanis Club |
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