Thread: 2011 marked by budget cuts, court cases, top students

By FERMIN LEAL / THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Published: Dec. 23, 2011
Updated: Dec. 25, 2011 12:01 a.m.


Orange County's public schools' continued struggle with ongoing budget cuts again dominated the news over the past year. Meanwhile, the passage of the state's Dream Act, historic court rulings involving tuition for illegal immigrants and the First Amendment battle between a student and his teacher also grabbed headlines.


Additionally, news of students that inspire and schools that continuously achieve contributed to an eventful 2011 in education. Here is a look back at the county's top stories for 2011.



Los Alamitos School Board member Karen Russell joined nearly 200 other Orange County education supporters at a large rally in Los Angeles' Pershing Square to protest ongoing cuts to education in this May photo. A total of five rallies were planned across the state at the same time.


January - April

For the fourth time in five years, Westminster High wins on Feb. 11 the Orange County Academic Decathlon, beating out Trabuco Hills High and Valencia High. Westminster eventually finishes 11th in the state championship.


On Feb. 15, O.C. civil rights pioneer Sylvia Mendez is awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama at a White House ceremony. The president selects Mendez for the award for her tireless work over the past few decades of speaking to students about the history and importance of the 1947 Mendez v. Westminster case.


Mendez was a child when her parents sued over having to send their children to the "Mexican" school. The case ended segregation in state public schools.


Fullerton's Troy High School continues its string of impressive victories by taking first place for the 16th consecutive time at the California State Science Olympiad April 9. Besides its consecutive state championships, the school had won three of the last five national titles. But Troy eventually loses to Ohio's Solon High in the national competition in May.

May - August

Dozens of coaches at 29 O.C. high schools are accused in May of secretly receiving kickbacks of cash and gifts when they placed orders for uniforms and other sporting goods a Laguna Hills athletic supply company. Lapes Athletic Team Sales, now defunct, maintained secret records under the name "Slush Account" and may have illegally disbursed upward of $700,000 to participants of the elaborate scheme, according to a PBS report.


Three school districts – Capistrano Unified, Saddleback Valley Unified and Irvine Unified – launch internal investigations into the matter. San Clemente High head football Coach Eric Patton, who is later ousted from his job, funneled thousands of dollars of school money through Lapes over the past decade, evading scrutiny over how the public funds were spent, according to interviews and financial documents obtained by The Register.


Hundreds of teachers across O.C. participate in a series of weeklong rallies and other events throughout the state May 9-13 dubbed "State of Emergency." The rallies are organized by the California Teachers Association, lobbying against further cuts to schools.


Locally, events include rallies in Fullerton on, and a "grade in" at the Brea and Westminster malls. Local teachers also travel to downtown Los Angeles for a rally that draws more than 4,000 people from across the region.

Former Capistrano Unified Superintendent James Fleming says in early June that he stands by his decision to create records of the district's parent critics, but is "horrified" and "heartsick" over the political chaos and personal suffering the so-called "enemies" lists left in their wake.


Fleming, 68, was criminally indicted over the lists, and spent four years fighting felony charges before the case was finally dismissed in May; his sole co-defendant, an assistant superintendent, was exonerated by an appellate court May 31, effectively ending the case.


Illegal immigrants who graduate from California high schools can receive in-state tuition breaks from state public colleges and universities after the U.S. Supreme Court on June 6 rejects a challenge to the policy.


The justices refused to review last year's California Supreme Court ruling that upheld a state law giving California high school graduates reduced tuition at state schools, regardless of their immigration status.


On June 17, The Register names "10 Graduates Who Will Change the World," a selection of top students with have extraordinary track records – they've published scientific research papers, provided humanitarian relief around the globe, advocated nationally for critical causes, and led and inspired countless peers to serve and give back.


A team of register editors, writers and other education officials conclude the students are the future humanitarians and scientists and philosophers and global leaders who will make our world a better place.


O.C. school districts announce in August they will eliminate 524 jobs for the 2011-12 school year as they slash a combined $95 million from budgets. Some districts also plan to increase class sizes, while programs and services will be scaled back in other districts. At least 10 of Orange County's 28 districts will shave up to five days from the teaching year.


In the spring, districts had anticipated cutting up to 1,500 jobs, but an improvement over projected state revenues allowed officials to scale back cuts.

On Aug. 19, a federal appeals court tosses out a lower court's ruling that Capistrano Valley High School teacher James Corbett violated a student's constitutional rights by making comments disparaging to religion, saying Corbett could not have known he might be breaking the law.


The ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals says laws regarding what a teacher can and cannot say about religion are insufficiently clear to indicate whether Corbett violated the First Amendment's Establishment Clause, which courts have interpreted as prohibiting government officials from displaying religious hostility.


On Aug. 31, new figures show three out of five O.C. schools fall short of federal No Child Left Behind testing targets in 2011 – the largest number ever. The reason: Scores are climbing steadily on state standardized tests, but not fast enough to keep up with annual increases in federal testing targets.


In contrast, 87 percent of local schools and 33 percent of state schools reach improvement targets under the state's Academic Performance Index, a collection of state tests that serves as California's primary indicator of academic success.


Continued Below...

September - December

Four local schools are awarded National Blue Ribbon on Sept. 15. The prize, based primarily on test scores, is the most prestigious for individual campuses across the country.


The local winners are Charles Emery Elementary in Buena Park, Ethan B. Allen Elementary in Fountain Valley, and Muir Fundamental and Thorpe Fundamental, both in Santa Ana.


On Sept, 23, Obama announces that states can apply for waivers to opt out of the much-maligned No Child Left Behind accountability system if they agree to implement reforms that include tying teacher and principal evaluations to student test scores, enacting standards to prepare students for college and careers, and adopting national common education standards.


The waiver would allow more than 200 local schools to escape costly federal sanctions, but state officials say it's unlikely California will apply for the waiver because it would cost more than $2 billion to implement the president's reforms.


State education officials say on Oct. 4 that two Orange County high schools that issued color-coded identification cards to students this year based on their standardized test scores is violating the students' privacy and the unlawful practice should be curtailed.

Kennedy High in La Palma and Cypress High were requiring students to carry school ID cards in one of three colors based on their performance on the California Standards Tests – black, gold or white – plus a spiral-bound homework planner with a cover of a matching color. The black card, which is the highest level, and the gold card give students a range of special campus privileges and discounts, while the white card gives students no privileges and forces them to stand in a separate cafeteria lunch line.


The campuses eventually eliminated the program, but students were allowed to keep their color-coded IDs and planners.
On Oct. 8, Jerry Brown signs into law California's version of the Dream Act. Assembly Bill 131 will provide access to state financial aid to illegal immigrants who have graduated from California high schools.


The governor had previously signed AB 130, which will provide access to private financial aid to immigrants. Supporters said the state's DREAM Act will give an educational opportunity to all deserving students, while opponents said it's unfair to reward illegal immigrants with college aid while other services and resources for all college students are cut. Both AB 130 and 131 go into effect January 2013.


Teachers in Newport-Mesa Unified School District issue a vote of no confidence against embattled Superintendent Jeffrey Hubbard on Nov. 3. About 91 percent of teachers that responded to a referendum believe Hubbard's ongoing legal issues have hampered his ability to lead the 21,000-student district.

Weeks earlier, Hubbard was indicted by a Los Angeles grand jury on a charge of misappropriating public funds during his last job, in Beverly Hills. The new charge was added to two prior felony counts alleging Hubbard illegally gave a $20,000 bonus to another Beverly Hills female co-worker, Karen Christiansen, and raised her car allowance by $350 a month without board approval.


Chanting "Agitate! Occupy! Take back UCI!" in unison, about 400 students, faculty and other workers staged a noisy, expletive-laced rally Nov. 9 at UC Irvine to rail against steep tuition increases and what they see as a failure of the University of California to maintain an affordable public education system.


The hour-long rally, inspired by the "Occupy Wall Street" movement, took place in an expansive outdoor quad opposite the campus' Aldrich Hall administration building. UC undergraduate tuition rose by 18 percent this year, to $12,192 annually.


More than 100 Cal State University Fullerton students – angered by yet another tuition hike and by university trustees they say don't serve students' best interests – demonstrate Nov. 15 at the campus quad. Cal State University trustees the next day in Long Beach and voted on a 9 percent fee hike for the system's 23 campuses. That meant an additional $498 for undergraduate students, bringing the annual tuition to $5,970 starting next fall.


On Nov. 21, Northwood High graduate and Irvine resident Stephanie Lin, 21, wins a prestigious Rhodes Scholarship, one of 33 recipients in the nation. Lin, a senior at MIT, will study medical anthropology and global health science. She hopes to eventually combine her passions of helping the underprivileged with scientific research by becoming an infectious disease physician and epidemiologist, advising governments on effective health care strategies.


The Register releases the 2012 ranking of O.C. public schools beginning with the elementary ranking Nov. 20. Allen Elementary in Fountain Valley earns the top spot among elementary schools. South Lake Middle School in Irvine ranks as the best middle school, while Oxford Academy in Cypress wins the title as best high school for the fourth time in the last five years.


Contact the writer: 714-704-3773 or fleal@ocregister.com

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