[BHS etree] BUSD: Board Updates March 25, 2009

[bhs at idiom.com]

BERKELEY UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARD UPDATES
BUSD Board Updates provides highlights of Board Meetings and other Board
activities
Note: Board Packets & associated documents are available at the BUSD Web
Site (www.berkeley.k12.ca.us) and all Berkeley public libraries

Below are excerpts relevant to Berkeley High School from the Berkeley
Unified School District Board of Education Meeting, March 25, 2009:

Superintendent's Comments:

In his comments to the Board, Superintendent Huyett responded to the public
comment from Susan Silber, Educational Coordinator for Safe Routes to
Schools. Noting that Berkeley's Safe Routes to Schools Committee has a
representative from all but two of our schools, Superintendent Huyett said
he was excited about all of the educational resources that SRTS brings for
students and parents. He is looking forward to Silber's meeting with his
Cabinet next week, and advised the community that they could look forward to
an interesting presentation to the Board on April 15th. Superintendent
Huyett also remarked on a recent article in the East Bay Express concerning
grading practices at Berkeley High School. Noting that the article was
poorly researched, he said that nonetheless it raised questions about
grading at the small schools at BHS, so he directed the Director of
Curriculum and Instruction to work with BHS to look at their grading policy.
He noted that it is important to look at this with a recognition that all
programs are not necessarily going to grade in the same way, and there
should be some room for flexibility and different philosophies ("value
added" grading as opposed to grading that is based on meeting a single
rubric or scale). Note: The Express has been vague about when they will be
able to print Berkeley High's formal response from acting principal Maggie
Heredia-Peltz, so she has decided to post it on the BHS E-tree, so that
students, parents and staff can see her rebuttal in a timelier fashion. 

Action Item
3.1-A Summer School Plan for 2009
The Board approved the summer school program for 2009. The program targets
the needs of Special Education students and students not meeting grade level
standards. Many schools offer alternative interventions to summer school
such as after school classes at the middle school level and night classes at
Berkeley High. ** 


==========================================

Mark A. Coplan
Public Information Officer, BUSD
510-644-6320 Cell: 510-472-3811
Mark_Coplan at berkeley.k12.ca.us
Berkeley Unified School District
2134 Martin Luther King Jr. Way
Berkeley, Ca 94704-1180