Las Virgenes undergoes changes

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers SCHOOL GETS A NEW LOOK—Celebrating the opening of the new, two-story math building at Calabasas High School are math department chair Robin Midiri, with scissors; new Principal C.J. Foss, left of Midiri; and members of the school staff during a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Monday. Students returned to school on Wednesday.

Classes in the Las Virgenes Unified School District opened yesterday with several new principals on board and big changes to some  campuses.

 

Lindero Canyon Middle School in Agoura Hills began receiving a facelift over the summer, part of a three-phase modernization plan that went into effect after Yerba Buena Elementary School moved to its new campus off Reyes Adobe Road last year. The two schools had been sharing a campus.

The school was relocated to buildings in the old Yerba Buena site, from the north to the south side of the campus, said Don Blake of Team Concept Development Services. A student drop-off and bus area were installed closer to Rainbow Drive, Blake said, and the administration is temporarily operating out of a new portable building. Pending design by the Division of the State Architect, several old buildings will be demolished to make room for new construction, Blake said. The administration building will be remodeled, along with three existing classrooms. A two-story library and a two-story science building will also be constructed this year.

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers STUDIES—Sumac Elementary School fifth-grader Max Eggleston finds out which class he'll be in. His mother, Sheri Donovan, helps.

"We look forward to the modernization of our campus so that the physical buildings can mirror the heart within," said Principal Ron Kaiser in a letter to parents.

The $32-million project is "on track" and will be completed by 2011, Blake said.

"The Lindero Project is really the conclusion of the Yerba Buena Project," said Superintendent Donald Zimring. "One of the primary reasons for moving Yerba Buena to its own site was to allow us to expand and improve Lindero to the standards our kids deserve. Funded by Measure G, this project is another example of our community's commitment to quality education for our kids."

Community Learning Center

The Las Virgenes Community Learning Center, an alternative program for kindergarten-through-eighth-grade students that opened on the A.E. Wright Middle School campus in Calabasas last year, was moved to Sumac Elementary School in Agoura Hills over the summer.

"We are just about all moved in, with a few touch-ups here and there," said Jeff Lough, director of the program.

The school will begin the year with 84 kindergarten-through-fifth-grade students on campus and between 10 and 15 students in a program called Home School Partnership.

"We are all excited to be incorporating more art, music, poetry, storytelling and movement into all of our core curriculum," Lough said. "We will continue to emphasize project-based, experiential learning as well as outdoor education and community outreach into our school program."

First-through-fifth-grade students will receive daily instruction in Spanish as part of the school's world studies focus, Lough said.

The school's new Singapore math curriculum will cover 10 to 12 math concepts, versus the typical 30 topics students tackle in traditional textbooks.

"The program emphasizes mastery of concepts backwards and forwards instead of memorizing procedures as typical texts emphasize," Lough said.

Indian Hills High School

Indian Hills High School moved from its longtime Calabasas campus to Agoura High School.

Citing the need to generate more revenue, the Las Virgenes Unified School District leased the Indian Hills campus to New Village Academy of Calabasas.

Indian Hills will operate as a "school within a school," said Blake, with its own counselors, health clerk and other support services. Larry Misel will serve as principal of both Agoura and Indian Hills high schools.

Agoura High School greeted students with a new, two-story math/special education building.

Principal changes

Calabasas High School welcomed C.J. Foss as its new principal, replacing Vince Jantz, who held the post last year.

The school celebrated the completion of their new, two-story math building with a ribbon-cutting on Monday.

Round Meadow Elementary School in Hidden Hills is now headed by Principal Tom Spence. Jessica Kiernan has taken the top spot at Willow Elementary School in Agoura Hills, and A.E. Wright Middle School in Calabasas is now being led by Principal Kimmarie Taylor.

Performing Arts Center

 

The design and budget for the two performing arts centers planned at both Agoura and Calabasas high schools will be approved at the Sept. 9 school board meeting, said Blake.

The performing arts centers will be designed and constructed simultaneously.

The design will be sent to the Department of State Architects in spring 2009 and is expected to take approximately nine months for approval, Blake said.

Construction of the centers will take about 18 months and should be open by 2011.

Enrollment, budget

"I'm excited about the opening of school," said board President Cindy Iser.

Two teachers who had been laid off during the panic of the state budget cuts were hired back, she said. And, while there was a "slight drop" in enrollment (about 60 students), it was far less than the district had anticipated.

"We definitely dodged some bullets with this budget," board member Dave Moorman said.