Page 8 - Reedley Exponent 8-9-18 E-edition

Jodie Reyna / The Exponent
Students and administrators with the Kings Canyon Unified School District posed for a group photo Aug. 5 in front of the Foot Motion store in the Riverwalk Shopping Center. Community Youth Ministries preselected students to receive 101 pairs of shoes at the event.
Gearing up for fall with a gift Shoe scholarships
Jon Earnest / The Exponent
Leydy Calvillo Garcia, a 2018 graduate of Reedley High School, stood with manager Robert Jimenez of Jimenez Meat Market on July 27. Calvillo Garcia worked as a cashier at the market during the summer as part of KCUSD’s Summer Work Experience Program.
help needy students
By Jodie Reyna
Mid Valley Publishing
Foot Motion is helping students put their best foot forward in the new school year by donating 101 pairs of shoes to the Kings Canyon Unified School District.
Students from Reedley and Orange Cove lined up mid-morning Aug. 5 to pick up their free shoes outside the business located in the Riverwalk Shopping Cen- ter on Manning Avenue. Students were preselected to receive shoe scholarships by Community Youth Ministries, which runs most KCUSD afterschool programs.
“It’s a big help,” said parent Dalia Rubio from Orange Cove. “My job has slowed down so it’s going to be a big help.”
The line wrapped around the building as parents and children anxiously waited for the shoes. Once the store opened, the distribution happened quickly with many school district employees on hand to help, and shoes organized by size and school.
Rubio’s third grade nephew, Evan Es- parza, who attends Sheridan Elementary School in Orange Cove, was a shoe recipi- ent. Rubio’s daughter also received shoes. Evan said he is thankful for the shoes because “my mom doesn’t have enough money to buy shoes.”
Jose Vega, a seventh-grader at Silas Bartsch K-8 School also stood in line
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overwhelmed. But very few first-year teach- ers leave us.
What grade would you give yourself as superintendent after the first year?
I wouldn’t want to give myself a grade. I would just like to think I’m striving to have continuous improvement. I don’t so much grade myself as I look and say “Have I im- proved? Have I made a difference? Have I worked my hardest? Have I supported the many people who depend on me?”
Do you believed you improved in the last year?
Yes, I feel we as a district and all the great people who work for me have made gains this year. That’s apparent in the test scores. That’s apparent in the climate. We’ve been able to take the great foundation that Juan and I laid over the past years and take it to the next level. We’re doing some great things, but you can always get better.
Can you give an example of the district “taking it to the next level?”
The first thing that popped into my mind is the summer learning program. Before this year, summer school was hit and miss. Some schools had it. Some didn’t. Some programs were good. Some were, you know, run to the side. This year we targeted our students who needed it the most and doubled the number attending. We tried a new curriculum and got kids involved with STEM activities.
What was your biggest accomplishment of the first year?
I reached out and tried to be as inclusive as possible. Make everyone feel like they had a voice. I worked with my leadership team to talk to the teachers, talk to the classified em- ployees, continue the great relationships we have with our unions.
Where did you fail to meet your expecta- tions?
We have things we’re working on. We’re focusing on special ed right now. We’re work- ing on doing the best we can for our students with disabilities. We’re also working on im- proving our GATE program and getting our upper-level kids that much more prepared for college. We’re working on our EL (English lan- guage) learners.
Noel Remick said you worked hard to get people to rally behind you. How did you do that?
I don’t think it’s rally behind me. We’re all in the same boat. We all want what’s best for kids. So I don’t take it personal: “Let’s get be- hind John Campbell.” Rather, let’s get behind the idea of doing everything we can for our kids in KCUSD. That’s not a tough sell.
Can you give an example where you were inclusive?
Oh, absolutely. With the teachers union. So many districts have an adversarial relation- ship with their union. It’s how can we hurt them? How can we weaken them? We have a chat with the union every month. We call them and say, “Hey, this is the direction we’re think- ing of taking What do you guys think about
Marco Magana, a student at Silas Bartsch K-8 School, picked up his new shoes at the Foot Motion store as his mother, Yesenia Magana, looked on. Marco was one of 101 Kings Canyon Unified School District students who were selected
to receive a free pair of shoes, which are donated by Foot Motion. Community Youth Ministries gave out shoe schol- arships.
Jodie Reyna / The Exponent
are grateful for the donations,” she said. Parent Veronica Flores said the shoe donation is a blessing. Having six chil- dren, Flores said the shoes came at an ideal time for her son Ulysses Flores, 7, who attends Great Western Elementary School. One mother, Dolores Sandoval, stood in line with her 11-year-old son
from Riverview Elementary School.
“I am glad he is getting a new pair of shoes for school this year,” she said. “It also helps me so I can save for something
else that he needs for school.”
The shoe giveaway is organized
by Sandra Cintora, a teacher at Great Western Elementary School. She said it’s a good way for families to start off the new school year.
At the event, she said “it’s great to see the parents and kids so happy and excited.”
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Once placed, students put in 100 hours of work and receive a stipend from the school district.
Leydy Calvillo Garcia, a 2018 graduate of Reedley High School, was matched with Jimenez Meat Mar- ket in Reedley. She worked there over the summer as a cashier.
“It was a great experi- ence,” Calvillo Garcia said. “I really enjoyed working there.”
Robert Jimenez, manag- er of Jimenez Meat Market, said Calvillo Garcia quickly adapted to her new role.
“She transitioned well into the workplace. It was great to bring her on board,” he said. “It’s nice to see what this program is doing to help kids.”
Gloria Valencia, program administrator, said attrac- tion for the SWEP program grew this year with more business and student partici- pation than ever. Students must first complete a rigor- ous training and application process before being paired with a business. Valencia said students are matched with businesses that share
their career interests. Maria Luna, 2018 Reed-
ley High graduate and Pi- rate Pillar, spent this sum- mer work- ing in the engineering department at the city of Reedley. She will attend Cal Poly in the fall and major in engi- neering. Luna had the opportunity to cre- ate a 10-page city document that will assist homeowners looking to expand their resi-
dence.
Ellen Moore, associate
planner for the city of Reed- ley, said the document was created in response to a new state law. She said the docu- ment makes the law easier for the public to understand.
“Maria is very helpful and bright,” Moore said. “It’s nice to be able to introduce students to how city hall works.”
Valencia said it was a pleasure to see Luna work- ing in her area of expertise.
“If this is what she is ca- pable of as an 18-year-old, I can’t imagine what she will do in the future,” Valencia said.
The Reedley Exponent A8 Thursday, August 9, 2018
Maria Luna
for shoes.
“I feel lucky because not many people
get to have a free pair of shoes,” he said. Since 2012, Foot Motion owner Nassri Jaber has donated back-to-school shoes to KCUSD. This year, students received boxes of Vans. The shoe giveaway has grown from 30 students the first year, to over 100 this year. Store manager Sam Dalia said donating shoes is a way for the
store to give back to the community. “Ninety-nine percent of our custom- ers are from this town, so we try to help
them as much as we can,” he said.
Mary Ann Carousso, assistant su- perintendent for student services for KCUSD, said the school district is excited to partner with Foot Motion each year to
provide students with new shoes.
“The overall expense of getting stu- dents back to school is expensive. Parents
I feel we as a district and all the great people who work for me have made gains this year.
— John Campbell, KCUSD superintendent
it?” They bring us ideas. They did it with the new summer school program. People are much more likely to have buy-in and work for a great program if there’s ownership in it. That happens in almost everything we do now.
Noel says your leadership efforts made the adjustment of having a new superinten- dent a success.
I want to give credit where credit is due. Juan Garza — over the last 15 years — set up a very good system in KCUSD. And I was lucky enough to be his deputy, which really helped make it a seamless transition.
Where have you told yourself you need to improve in the new school year?
I need to get better at letting my people do their jobs rather than try to be involved in every piece that goes on. I don’t want to come across that I’m a micromanager because I’m not. But sometimes when something big and important happens, I’ll be right there in the mix. But as superintendent – as Juan taught me — you have to sit back and let people work on things.
Are you saying you’ve been too hands on?
For lack of a better word, it may be that I need to let my team develop. Let them become experts in areas. Let them make decisions. Sometimes it may be the wrong decisions. But let them make the decisions and allow them to do their job.
What’s the most important thing on your to-do list for the new school year?
The one area the state has pointed out that Kings Canyon Unified is below other districts — and the only area — is that of students with disabilities. I want to make sure they receive the best possible educa- tion. In the department of student services, we’re working on how we work with kids at risk and kids who are on suspension. How we can cut our suspensions and expulsions but maintain good discipline. We’re hiring more social workers, more school psychologists for the socio-emotional area.
Did the state cite what KCUSD needs to improve in special education?
They cite graduation rates of special ed- ucation students. That’s an area we need to focus on.
Noel says the school board has told you that you’re not taking enough time off, that you can’t work 24/7.
Where I’m from, I take that as a compli- ment. They recognize that I’m working hard. I appreciate that. One of the things that makes our district successful is we have a board of education that concentrates on what’s best for kids. You come to our board meetings and you’ll see civility. We don’t always agree. But you’ll see civility. You’ll see people working through things together.
Doug Hoagland is a former editor of The Exponent.
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