Springs sites participated in the annual Great California ShakeOUT! earthquake drill in October, with some students participating virtually from home, reported Sydelle Allington, Safety & Risk Management Technician. The drill reminds staff and students of ways to stay safe during an earthquake.
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Springs’ Renaissance Valley Academy (RVA) science teachers Jim Ardalan, Lynnette Munoz, Jonathan Kunz and Tyrone Berry are formalizing a science department, reported Vice Principal Brian Bailey. Its purpose is to increase student interest in science and to encourage more students to participate in a virtual science fair in January. One RVA student who is doing amazing things in science at the school is junior Guillermo Rubio Beltran (pictured), who created a video highlighting his study of centripetal force in Mr. Ardalan’s physics class.
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Declan Kallberg, 13, an 8th grade student at Springs iShine Student Center, participated in The Living Room Play Workshop, an online offering by The Old Globe Arts Engagement that allows participants to write, direct and produce a play without leaving their homes. He created a play called “Ding Dong” in which his attempts at learning to play the piano are foiled by a barrage of would-be visitors knocking at the door. The first play he wrote, “Dub Thee Fear.”
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Sergio Jandell Tapia-Rodriguez, 7, a 2nd grade student with Springs’ Magnolia Student Center, was introduced to the game of golf through PLAY (Police Leading Active Youth), a free program offered by the Riverside Police Foundation and the Riverside Community Parks Association. Sergio’s mother, Delia Rodriguez, said, “This event is a fun way for kids to try out different sports and get to interact with the police department.”
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Springs senior Madison Hall, 17, has been named a Murrieta Chamber of Commerce High School Student of the Month. Madison was honored for her academic success, which she balances with an acting and music career. She is also the daughter of a U.S. Army veteran, and chose Springs’ Venture Online program because and it has allowed her to remain in a single school when her military family has had to relocate.
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Charlotte Saltz, a 9th grade student in Springs’ Venture Online program, is an up-and-coming tennis star. She trains 20 hours a week, and has begun competing in tournaments again as pandemic restrictions ease. Most recently, she took first in a Newport Beach tournament, and is ranked #67 in the Southern California Tennis Association Junior Girls 14 and under.
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The following commentary is adapted from a speech Kathleen Hermsmeyer delivered at the end of September:
Over the past seven months, the landscape of education has changed dramatically. You could say that we’ve all jumped from the education superhighway to the road less traveled. Many innovative educational ideas have been implemented in a hurry out of necessity. It’s been said that real change takes place in deep crisis. The question at this point is: what’s going to stick around in public education after the pandemic is over?
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Darla Ruiz was recognized as Springs’ Palm Academy Artist of the Month for September for her drawing of a real-life hero at the school’s monthly Palm Pechanga event, reported Principal Shawna Lewis. Additionally, Levi Jove, Kai Jove, Genesis Zazueta and Leland Hodges were named as the Palm Academy Desert Foxes of the Month for exhibiting Springs Graduate Learner Outcomes.
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Springs’ Otay Ranch Academy for the Arts (ORAA) is continuing distance learning as October begins,based on mandates from state health officials, reported Principal Alyssa Branchaud-Warren. School staff is preparing to reopen the campus; they hope they will receive permission to do so later this month. When school does reopen, Mrs. Warren reported, plans are being put into place to reopen at 50% capacity for half days. Changes are taking place on campus to increase safety when students return.
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Armando Villanueva, 16, a senior with Springs’ Renaissance Real World Academy at the Magnolia Student Center, participated in a Fund All Kids Virtual Youth Summit with three other charter school students. Their topic was California SB-98, signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom, which restricts 2020-21 growth by capping funding for charter schools such as Springs. Armando explained, “We talked about the impact SB-98 will have on students all across California. We spoke about our dreams after school, and how we as seniors wanted to ensure that our underclassmen had the same opportunity we had to fulfill those dreams.”
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