Season of Diversity Coming to Santa Clarita
The Hart District collaborates with the City of Santa Clarita each year to present “A Season of Diversity,” a series of events and activities that run from October through January, focused on celebrating the rich variety of cultures found in the Santa Clarita Valley. Each year, the City brings outstanding speakers and performers to the community, and several of these take place at Hart District venues. On Oct. 27, Saugus High School will host “From Hate to Hope,” the remarkable story of Tim Zaal, a former neo-Nazi who perpetrated a violent hate crime and years later found himself sharing the same workplace with his former victim. In this presentation, both men come together to talk about their difficult journey toward reconciliation. The program starts at 7 p.m. in the S Lecture Hall on campus and is open to the public free of charge.
Sierra Vista Wears Denim for Cancer Cure
Students, staff, family and friends of Sierra Vista Junior High School hosted a National Denim Day to raise funds for breast cancer research and treatment. Participants donated $5 for the privilege of wearing jeans to school or work during the day and brought in almost $2200 to donate toward finding a cure for breast cancer–up from $1500 last year. A large pink ribbon display on the school’s outdoor stage honored those who have battled the disease. Members of the Sierra Vista Community Service (SiViCS) Club helped promote the event around the school and the neighborhood.
Project Helps Students Relate to Children
Students in the Childcare class offered by the Hart District’s Regional Occupational Program got a chance to see how children learn by taking part in a creative project using empty bottles. Students were told to make “shakers” out of their bottles, using provided materials and their own imaginations. Part of the lesson involved the importance of recycling materials for teachers. Students then took their bottles to their hands-0n childcare sites, where they explained their project to the teachers and observed the reactions of children to their sensory bottles.
Valencia Band, Colorguard Win First Place at West Ranch
The Valencia High School Band and Colorguard brought home a first place trophy from the recent West Ranch High Wildcat Classic, competing against other same-size groups in Division 3A. The 89-member Viking marching unit has designed its show around the Pink Floyd Album, “Dark Side of the Moon.” The group is now focused on upcoming competitions in Simi Valley Oct. 24 and the Bands of America competition Oct. 31. Both band and colorguard earned first place at the recent competition, the band’s first time to earn a first place award since 2006. Mark Judd is Valencia’s director of bands.
Concert to Dedicate West Ranch Auditorium
The Dedication Concert for the theater at West Ranch High School is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 22. The celebration will be hosted by West Ranch drama students and will include performances from the marching band, choir, orchestra, symphonic band and jazz band. The program will include the world premier performance of a jazz selection by composer Gordon Goodwin, commissioned for the event. Also in the spotlight will be a performance of “A Welsh Lullaby” for choir and orchestra arranged and conducted by West Ranch Principal Bob Vincent. Admission is by ticket only.
Bulletin Board Showcases Team Pride
Rio Norte Junior High School interdisciplinary teams show pride in their academic work. Each team chooses a month to decorate a bulletin board in the front office with samples of work from their English, history, science and math classes. There is still a trophy case to display awards in music, art and athletics, but the school is proud to have the opportunity to showcase students’ academic work as well.
Wildcats Wear Denim to Fight Cancer
Wildcats Against Cancer, a student service group at West Ranch High School, wore their favorite jeans and pink and white T-shirts on Lee National Denim Day, one of the largest single-day fundraisers for breast cancer. The West Ranch students joined more than two million people nationwide to make donations to support the women’s cancer programs of the Entertainment Industry Foundation. The organization brings together world-class scientists in a campaign to develop an early detection blood test and to seek less toxic, more effective treatments for breast cancer patients. Wildcats Against Cancer members, supported by West Ranch students and faculty, sold pink ribbons at brunch and lunch and earned $121 for the cause.
La Mesa Celebrates Youth for Human Rights Day
Students at La Mesa Junior High School responded to proclamations by the mayors of Santa Clarita and Los Angeles naming Oct. 1 as Youth for Human Rights Day. In celebration, Youth for Human Rights president and founder, Dr. Mary Shuttleworth, attended an event at La Mesa, where both city proclamations were displayed. Principal Pete Fries was presented with a commendation recognizing his support of human rights education. La Mesa’s ASB students presented the 30 articles from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and screened a special lunchtime film, “The Story of Human Rights.”
Trails Class Celebrates National Public Lands Day
Students from the Basics in Forestry and Trail Construction class offered by the Hart District’s Regional Occupational Program celebrated National Public Lands Day recently with a major clean-up project in Big Tujunga Canyon. Kevin Sarkissian, who coordinates the Hart District program, is planning to add more of the Saturday work projects to his class in the coming semester, to provide more hands-on service to local trails. He has already been up on the local segment of the Pacific Crest Trail assessing damage caused by the recent Station Fire.
AOC Showcases Students’ Artistic Talents
Academy of the Canyons students showed off their artistic talents during the school’s first two-day Celebrating the Arts program. The event was sponsored by the school’s ASB and started with a display of student artwork and poetry in Room 101 on campus. The next day, the event continued with poetry readings and live music by talented students.
Rancho Pico Students Work at Solving ‘Crimes’
Students at Rancho Pico Junior High School are becoming experts in crime scene investigation and improving their observation and writing skills at the same time. Students in the quarter-long Crime Scene Investigation elective class learn how to lift fingerprints, analyze blood drops and sketch a crime scene. They work in a group to collect and analyze evidence and answer their lab book questions. Skills are being developed that allow students to share their thoughts and brainstorm while using deductive reasoning. There is even a Rancho Pico Jail bulletin board where teacher Becky Arnold hangs up pictures of “suspects” in the class when a “crime” is committed.
Bowman Poets Perform at Festival of the Arts
Student poets from Bowman High School took the stage to read some of their own original works for Santa Clarita’s Festival of the Arts. Students took turns reading their individual works for 10 minutes at a time, while crowds of passersby stopped to listen and take notice. On the festival’s final day, the Bowman poets hosted an impromptu open microphone event, inviting anyone to get up and read their poems. The readings drew an enthusiastic crowd of listeners.
‘Snow Angel:’ Mystery With a Message
Saugus High School’s theater arts program is taking drama with a message to the community with a production of “Snow Angel,” a 75-minute youth mystery story complete with blizzard machine. The show’s premiere performance will carry the message of social inclusion to Arroyo Seco Junior High School on Oct. 22, with additional performances for students at Rosedell and Highlands elementary schools later this month. The public is invited to attend performances on Oct. 28 and 29 at Saugus High School. Tickets are $5 at the door.
Arroyo Seco Teacher Honored by Cal Arts
Juliet Fine, an English language development teacher at Arroyo Seco Junior High School, has been recognized by Glenna Avila of the Community Arts Partnership (CAP) at California Institute of the Arts for her untiring work with her English language learner students. Juliet works closely with the CAP program, and the Cal Arts graduate students come to her class weekly to work with her English-learner students on performing arts, theater and improvisation. The Cal Arts students represent a diversity of cultures and backgrounds and serve as excellent role models for the Seco students, many of whom are new to the country. The experience culminates with the junior high students performing on the Cal Arts stage for the college students. Students in the program acquire language skills, self confidence and an early appreciation for the arts and college life.
Demonstration Explains Newton’s Law
What better way to teach Newton’s laws than with an experiment? Saugus High School physics teacher Habir Kaur utilized eggs, toilet paper rolls and a broom to show how inertia is the resistance an object has to a change in its state of matter. “Watching a demonstration always makes it easier to understand the concept,” commented junior Jonathan Deas, who hopes to become an aeronautical engineer.
Bowman Students Explore College Majors
“Who do you want to be?” That was the topic of conversation for Bowman High School students who attended the recent Major Quest program at College of the Canyons. The annual event provides students with the opportunity to speak with teachers and professionals in a variety of fields offering degree and certificate programs at COC. Bowman seniors gathered information and explored careers in such fields as psychology, art, sociology, computer networking, mechanical engineering, nursing and communications.
Rio Norte Artists Showcase Talent in Chalk
A team of student artists from Rio Norte Junior High School displayed their artistic talents at the Santa Clarita Festival of the Arts, recreating two paintings by master artist Sue Steiner on the streets of Old Town Newhall. The chalk art drawings were executed by students Alexandria Florent, Terezie Cernosek, Angel Nguyen, Rebecca Chen, Maliha Ahmad, Hind Hattar, Dahlia Morales, Austin Thompson, Billy Gilbert, Lilly Imamura, Ashley Calle, Megan Schneider, Lauren Rosena, Amanda Braun and Dominic Gonzales.
Golden Valley Artists Win Festival Awards
Students from Golden Valley High School art classes created a masterpiece in chalk at the recent Santa Clarita Festival of the Arts, and two Golden Valley artists brought home top awards in the Canvas Art competition. You Hwa Shin won first place and the People’s Choice award in the art competition, receiving trophies, gift baskets and cash prizes for herself and the classroom. Classmate Huong Phan won third place in the competition. In the chalk art display, a team of Golden Valley artists created an 8 ft. x 12 ft. replica of original artwork by illustrator Larry Moore, who originally created the work for the Make a Wish Foundation. Student artists included Jeremiah Bergman, You Hwa Shin, Michelle Shin, Jessica Soto, Alexis Rauschel, Elyssa Klose, Huong Phan, Adrian Escamilla and Mindy Saylors. Advisors are Phil Lopez and PJ Vernon.
Saugus Art Students Re-create Work of Art
Saugus High School students from Teri Garcia’s AP Studio Art and Art 1, along with Dan Nickels’ Art 2D classes, joined 300 other street painters and artists at the City of Santa Clarita’s Festival of the Arts in Newhall. The night before the festival the students snapped the chalk lines, enabling them to re-create “Cradling Wheat,” a work by painter Thomas Hunt. The piece was specifically chosen by Garcia so that all skill levels could be successful. “This was a tremendous team building activity,” said Garcia. “I am so proud of all the participants.”
Businesses Saluted for Hiring Disabled Workers
Eleven local businesses were saluted by the Mayor’s Committee for Employment of Individuals with Disabilities at the group’s annual employer appreciation luncheon. Many of the companies have provided opportunities for Hart District students through the Career Visions program. Businesses singled out for special recognition included Albertson’s (Canyon Country), CVS Pharmacy (Bouquet and Seco Canyon), Extended Stay, Macaroni Grill, Pacific Lock, Performance Cyclery, Six Flags Magic Mountain, Von’s (stores 2111 and 1669) and Wal-Mart (Copper Hill). A number of other businesses were saluted for both past training opportunities and current hiring practices.
Valencia Street Painters Get Professional Tips
Valencia High School students who participated in the Santa Clarita Festival of the Arts got some extra help from Anne Marie Darrach, a professional street painter and mother of Halley Darrach, an AP Art student at Valencia. Anne Marie helped Valencia’s chalk artists to choose a piece and taught the team more about mixing water with ground pastel and painting in the dark portions of the piece first. She spent three hours working with the students after school, teaching them how to blend and work the lights and darks in last. Approximately 25 students from Valencia’s National Art Honor Society spent two days on the festival art. The group is now planning to do a face painting fundraiser at Valencia’s homecoming game.
