EDUCATION: STAR LAB

First-grade students from Dennis Earl Elementary School in Turlock were able to stare in wonder at constellations inside of a Star Lab Planetarium on Thursday. Earl Elementary borrowed the planetarium from the Stanislaus County Office of Education for a one-day star lab.

Helping Hawks lend a helping hand

A group of about a dozen students from Delhi High School have stepped up to form a new community service club known as "Helping Hawks." The Helping Hawks, named after the school mascot, recently developed into a fully school sponsored club after several students served food at an area homeless shelter.

Donkey ball

Hilmar High School seniors donned their most outrageous outfits and brought their donkeys to school for the annual senior class basketball game. The senior fundraiser game has been held for more than 40 years in a row and helps pay for senior activities including a senior trip. This year the game set an all-time attendance record. The boys won the game, 28-26, thanks a buzzer-beater shot by senior ...

UNIVERSITY: WARRIORS HOMECOMING

California State University, Stanislaus students kicked it old school during the final day of homecoming celebration activities. Due to rain, the homecoming parade went from an outdoor float decorating competition, to an indoor shopping cart decorating contest.

TCHS junior accepted to West Point summer leadership camp

In the Truax family's case the saying "the apple doesn't fall from the tree" rings true.

EDUCATION: YOUNG ARTIST

Pitman High School junior Chole Littrell created a fine piece of art work, which is now displayed in the school office. The mosaic is made of broken pieces of colored glass and cement, carefully constructed to resemble the famous Beatles Abbey Road album cover from 1969. It took Littrell a month to carefully construct the pieces of glass. The young artist plans to pursue art as her major ...

NJROTC: PASS IN REVIEW

Turlock High's Naval Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps received high marks during their Pass in Review ceremony on Tuesday. Capt. Wencesalo gave the Turlock NJROTC 9 out of 10 for performance.

EDUCATION: HONOR BAND

Four students from Pitman High School's band and orchestra were selected to the California All-State Honor Band and Orchestra. Marcelle Winkler, Andrew Grishaw (orchesta), Bryan Rosales and Brandon Crawford are scheduled to perform this weekend in the California All-State Music Education Conference at Saroyan Theater and the Fresno Convention Center. Pitman High Band Director Ruben Modesto said the four practiced almost every day for at least one hour ...

Keyes to Learning Charter students earn accolades, get head start on college

Rachel Segars has been getting a jumpstart on her college career, while earning credits for high school graduation. She took both Intro to Music and Marine Biology through California State University, Dominguez Hills while still in high school. High school senior Danae Johnson was recently accepted to Cal State Stanislaus and will enter with six college units after she took Intro to Art and Intro to Music while still attending high ...

Hilmar students mind their Ps and Qs

There were no elbows on the table or shoveling of food into mouths last Thursday at Hilmar Junior High's annual Etiquette Day event.

Budget committee recommends cuts to schools days, salaries

The Turlock Unified School District's Budget Advisory Committee will recommend the TUSD Board of Trustees cut salaries and reduce the number of days in the school year.

Playing games at Pitman

Who knew playing games such as Warhammer 40,000 or Yu-Gi-Oh could increase adolescent problem solving capabilities, analytical skills and even social skills?

Turlock Junior High extends learning day with after-school program

After-school programming at Turlock Junior High has taken a leap into the technology era with Wii game systems, flat screen televisions and the latest in video gaming technology.

TUSD continues eCademy public forums

Imagine a day when Turlock Unified School District students could have NetBook computers instead of paper textbooks. When the day of lugging around heavy backpacks filled with over-sized textbooks are gone. A day when students can do homework and participate in classroom discussions from practically anywhere they want, whenever they want. Well those days are just months away for TUSD's non-traditional students. <font ...

MJC, Cal State Stanislaus partner in Turlock education center

California State University, Stanislaus and Modesto Junior College announced on Wednesday a partnership which will see MJC offer classes on the CSU Stanislaus campus.

Local students get Ag Edventure

Earl's Cardoso earns Teacher of the Year honors

Dennis Earl Elementary third grade teacher Michelle Cardoso strives to take her students' learning beyond the classroom and into the community. And it's her drive to go beyond the expected that earned Cardoso the title of 2013 Stanislaus County Teacher of the Year for the K-3 grade division. "I truly had no idea that I would be the one to receive the award," said Cardoso. "It definitely was the cherry on top ...

Walnut teacher earns county's top education honors

Jamie Garner, a sixth grade teacher for the Discovery Math Science Program at Walnut Elementary, has long been a treasured educator to her students. Now, Garner's exemplary teaching has also earned her the title of 2013 Stanislaus County Teacher of the Year for the 4th-6th grade division. "It's because of the school that I am in this position," said Garner. "I love teaching here because we are given so many opportunities to do ...

Warrior Day 2013

California State University, Stanislaus students celebrated the end of another year at Warrior Day on Friday. This annual campus party was almost canceled last year due to concerns about alcohol sales and consumption. In 2012, a scaled-down, student-only event was put together at short notice. On Friday, the event was back in full-force - although still sans alcohol. A series of bands played at the outdoor festival and students were able to get ...

CSU Stanislaus interim president may soon become permanent

An open forum was held at California State University, Stanislaus on Monday to discuss the potential permanency of Interim President Joseph Sheley. University students, trustees and department heads evaluated Sheley's performance, pointing out both the good and areas in need of improvement throughout the campus. Much of the university's tribulations over the past few years arose from system-wide budget cuts implemented due to lack of funding statewide. Like many other California universities, CSU ...

More cuts in store for Denair schools

Denair Unified's new interim superintendent didn't pull any punches during Thursday's board of trustees meeting, calling for even more cuts to help fix the district's financial problems. He also, however, rescinded previous teacher lay-offs that didn't "make sense" to him. "The district will get back to where it was," said Interim Superintendent Walt Hanline. "It'll be back. In order to that we're going to have to suck it up and make the cuts." ...

Playground to parking lot

While students across Turlock have been enjoying the warm spring weather during recess and physical education time, students at Julien Elementary have been watching the bulldozing of their playground. The Julien construction plan, which includes the creation of a new parking lot, is a point of contention between a group of parents and Turlock Unified School District administration. In 2006 the district authorized spending $9.9 million for a series of modernization projects, with ...

Sacred Heart students learn the pioneer way

Fourth and fifth graders at Sacred Heart Elementary School will take a step back in time to the pioneer days as part of the Yosemite Environmental Living Program. During an overnight visit at Yosemite on May 20, students will confront the problems of the pioneers by performing tasks such as cooking, blacksmithing, spinning, candle dipping, covered wagon packing, square dancing and craft making - all without electricity. "Through this program students will discover ...

Local dairywoman donates $1 million to UC Merced

When it comes to educational opportunities, Turlock native Margo Souza believes that it is better to give than to receive. The 74-year-old former president and CEO of Turlock's Circle H Dairy Ranch Inc. donated $1 million to UC Merced in an effort to create leadership initiatives for Merced's diverse student population. In April, the school pledged to establish the Margo F. Souza Leadership Center within UC Merced's Office of Student Life. The ...

TUSD prepares for shift in classroom instruction

As public schools across the country transition to the new Common Core Standards, which will change the way math and reading are taught nationwide, the Turlock Unified School District is already adopting the approach by building a foundation for a better tomorrow for its students. On Tuesday, the TUSD trustees were presented an overview of the district's Common Core Transition and Implementation Plan, changing the way students will learn in the classroom. CCS ...

Proposed smoking ban passes at CSU Stanislaus

A proposed mandate to ban smoking passed with 69 percent in California State University, Stanislaus' recent Associated Students Inc. elections. The elections are voluntary, so although it may seem that the mandate passed with flying colors, the ballot may not accurately represent the entire student population. Not everyone chooses to vote for student government. "I didn't even know it was up for a vote," Alicia Sablan (junior, Political Science) said. "I would've ...

Career Fair puts Pitman students on the right path

Pitman High School junior Trevor Knudsen came to the 4th annual Career Fair on Wednesday with pressing questions about his future. Knudsen, along with hundreds of other students, left with a better understanding of what types of jobs and educational opportunities are available thanks to the 25 businesses, colleges and agencies from the Central Valley that attended the event. "I learned about all the different careers and pathways I can take once ...

Passion for music

The piano notes that flow from Neve Foresti's fingers tell the story of a young woman whose passion for life centers around music. At her short 13 years of age, Foresti, a resident of Denair, has achieved musical excellence and will soon put her abilities on display as she will be attending the prestigious Casalmaggiore International Music Festival in Italy. The program will involve intense musical study for three weeks in July, with ...

Running for Boston

Even though Boston is 3,000 miles away, the victims of the recent marathon bombings are in the minds and hearts of the students at Osborn Two-Way Immersion Dual Academy. Over 750 students from Osborn participated in a jog-a-thon on Friday to raise money for the victims of the Boston Marathon bombings. Osborn students raised $3,000 for The One Fund Boston, set up by Boston Mayor Thomas Menino and Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick to ...

Denair students Picnic for Earth

Over 300 students from Denair Elementary celebrated everything 'green' on Tuesday by holding a Picnic for Earth in honor of Earth Day. As part of the "All Hands on Earth" campaign, an organization that is celebrated worldwide, Denair took the pledge to spend the entire month of April learning about the importance of nature and its impact globally. "Picnic for Earth is about coming together to celebrate nature," said Denair Principal Fawn Oliver. ...