Foothills Sentry - January 2024

Foothills Sentry Page 10 January 2024 You can STOP THE SPREAD of the GOLD SPOTTED OAK BORER. People are a primary source of the spread of this invasive insect. Don’t move firewood. Buy it where you burn it. Contact Mike Boeck at rockdad@cox.net. Information at ucanr.edu/sites/gsobinfo Skyview School community faces new challenge By Andie Mills Despite robust protests from parents, students and teachers, it appears that the Skyview School may be divided and moved, per the OC Department of Education (OCDE). Skyview, formerly known as Project Hope, is a K-8 school that serves children experiencing homelessness or who have suf- fered trauma and prefer a smaller school setting. Classes are small in size, run 50 weeks per year, and include many “normal” childhood experiences, such as outings and holiday events, that are not re- ceived at home. The students also have access to an onsite pantry with food, clothing and hygiene supplies. The Skyview community, cre- ated in 1989, is close-knit, as teachers, families and students work together to help the students overcome trauma, food and home insecurities. The Skyview School is also supported by many com- munity groups. The dictum from OCDE would split the elementary students from the middle school students, and move the elementary students to a public elementary school campus. Those students would be separat- ed from their older siblings, many of whom are responsible for their before- and after-school care. There are real concerns as to how the young students would fare in a public school setting, as many have experienced immense trauma, are on a slower academic pace, are often pulled from class for services or visits with social services personnel. Skyview kids sometimes show up without shoes. How would peers, in a regular school setting, react? Would Skyview students be shunned for taking food and clothing home, or speaking about their shelter or motel? Would they be ostracized at lunch and recess? Skyview works to help students increase their attendance, and pre- pare to successfully re-integrate into a public school setting. But parents and teachers alike op- pose plopping the students into a typical school setting before they are ready, when they are already experiencing unstable housing, food insecurity, and poor academ- ic performance. Such an abrupt change would undo the progress from the smaller, calmer environ- ment at Skyview. The OCDE plan calls for mid- dle school students to stay at their current location, but be joined by students mandated to a program for delinquent behavior. Skyview parents are deeply concerned that their children would be threat- ened or influenced by those par- ticipants. Their students, they say, have enough to overcome, with- out the added influence of that population. During its 34 years, a number of nonprofit and philanthropic organizations have worked with Skyview to provide food, carni- vals, barbecues, warm blankets and more for its students. With the students split to two campuses, staff worries, would nonprofit aid continue? And, more importantly, would students “fall through the cracks” without the support of the community that is Skyview? Orange Unified Public Schools Foundation donated $4,000 to the El Modena High Boys and Girls Soccer Program. In exchange, the soccer program put on a soccer camp for local middle school students. The Foundation works to make an impact in the community, in addition to simply donating funds. SANTIAGO CHARTER MIDDLE SCHOOL - A Tuition-Free 7th & 8th Grade Public School With A Private School Approach - Santiago is Nationally and Locally Recognized as an Exceptional Middle School! Santiago welcomes students from throughout Southern California! NOW ACCEPTING ENROLLMENT FOR THE 2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR! Call 714-997-6366 for Information! Santiago students can engage in: Over 26 different electives including Wood Shop, Culinary Arts, eSports, Drum Line, Digital Photography, Business Entrepreneurship, Aviation & many more Annual international travel opportunities Rigorous academic courses including College Board-Approved Pre-AP Courses The Santiago Conservatory of the Arts: Music, Art and Musical Theater More after-school sports opportunities than any other local middle school FREE after-school extended learning day until 6pm Check Out Santiago’s California Dashboard: