TUSD saves over $260,000 through special education programs

Over the years students at Turlock Unified School District have been using special education services provided by the Stanislaus County Office of Education because the district didn't have enough students to create their own program.

Patriotism on Parade

The sound of "God Bless America" echoed through the streets of Denair on Monday as hundreds of people walked eighth grader Cody Alicea to school while bringing a tidal wave of red, white and blue to the small Central Valley community.

CSU asks state to offset tuition increase

The California State University Board of Trustees on Wednesday adopted a 2011-2012 budget which calls for an additional $379 million in state general fund support – including a request for the state to spend $121.5 million to "buy out" a 10 percent tuition increase also approved Wednesday.

Roselawn High teacher works way up from custodial job

Jose Garcia worked his way up from bathroom stalls to classrooms to help students better understand the complexities of math as a new teacher at Roselawn Continuation High School.

Turlock Christian takes writing essays to a new level for students

Teachers are hustling to grade dozens of essays in a timely manner, students anxiously wait for their corrected essay and in the end the corrections are too late. By the time most teachers are able to give students their corrected essay, students already forgot what they wrote about.

Pitman student adjusts to American life all the way from England

She might mistakenly call the bathroom the loo or pronounce pasta the British way, but one thing that Rosalind Kingsley Hurst has learned the most from her big move is how to work with people.

Julien students take a close look at school garden

Slimy worms, sticky monkey plants and sugar leaves are just some of the things that Julien Elementary School students have been growing all year and on Friday they were able to celebrate all their hard work and take a closer look at their plants during their 12th annual Garden Celebration.

Walnut families learn, create together at Georgia O’Keefe art night

One way to learn about an artist is to try to recreate some of their artwork; copy their techniques and see firsthand how they created some of their famous pieces.

Students get pumped up for Harvest Bowl

Rally towels, spirit shirts and positive attitudes are what Pitman High School and Turlock High School students are bringing to the crosstown football game - named the Harvest Bowl - on Friday.

TUSD schools spread drug free awareness through Red Ribbon Week

Back in 1985, Drug Enforcement Administration Agent Enrique "Kiki" Camarena was kidnapped, tortured and murdered because of his efforts to end illegal drug operations.

EDUCATION: A STICKY SITUATION

Students at Sacred Heart School were rewarded for their fundraising efforts with a special assembly on Friday. Students who sold the most for the school fundraiser helped tape their principal to the wall of the multipurpose room. The duct tape held, and she was stuck about 1 foot off the ground, where she was pied in the face by a Sacred Heart teacher.

County spelling bee contest starts buzzing in November

Students from all over the county are starting to practice their I before E except after C's to gear up for the Stanislaus County Spelling Championship next week.

Target donates money to Turlock schools

With education being shortchanged in the recent down-economic years, funding has become a major problem at many local schools. Some businesses are stepping in to fill the gap left by an ever-shrinking budget, including Target's Take Charge of Education program.

‘I can’ new mentality at Lloyd G. Cunningham

In giant letters on a white board in Al Silveira's office the words "I can't" are crossed out. That message seems to be the whole mentality shift at Lloyd G. Cunningham Elementary School.

Superintendent asks county residents to ‘Choose Civility’

Last spring Stanislaus County Superintendent of Schools Tom Changnon received numerous phone calls from school district administrators asking him to come speak at their local public meetings about the budgetary process. While attending these meetings, the superintendent noticed an alarming trend.

Medeiros student knows the meaning of respect

March Character Counts Profile: Respect Student feature: Kendrick Lacerda Nominated by: Principal Jennifer Yacoub and Assistant Principal Laura Long Kendrick Lacerda, a fourth grader at Sandra Tovar Medeiros Elementary School, is proof there are still children who know the meaning of the word respect. His actions in and out of the classroom were recognized through the Turlock Unified School District's Character Counts program for the trait of respect. Lacerda, who ...

Former track standout earns NCAA postgrad scholarship

CSU Stanislaus alumna and track and field standout Alycia Wagner has received the prestigious NCAA Minority Enhancement Program Postgraduate Scholarship for careers in athletics. Wagner, who was the first CSU Stanislaus student to win the award, will receive a $6,000 scholarship for enrolling in a sports-related academic program as a full-time graduate student in the 2013-14 academic year. "I am so thankful and excited to receive this award," Wagner said. "It is of ...

Superintendent apologizes for early calls

Turlock Unified School District Superintendent Sonny DaMarto issued an apology on Friday for accidentally sending out a robocall to publicize today's Festival on the Green event to the homes of students at 5:45 a.m. The robocall was supposed to go out at 5:45 p.m. "I apologize for the call so early in the morning. It was my fault. Evidently I set the time to be delivered on 'a.m.' instead of 'p.m.' for the ...

Sacred Heart Preschoolers to present 'An Afternoon with Picasso'

Nearly 200 aspiring young models will hit the catwalk today for the 8th annual Sacred Heart Preschool Fashion Show and Tea. The sold out event will house nearly 300 people in the school's gymnasium and feature a light lunch and tea, live and silent auctions and raffle of over 20 items. "This fashion show is one of my favorites," said Debbie Cannella, founder of Sacred Heart Preschool. "Having a fundraiser where children are ...

Turlock High students put their campaigning skills to the test

Parents voice outrage at proposed Denair school board election change

In an effort to save more money for a financially struggling Denair Unified School District, the district's board of trustees considered postponing board elections for one year. This idea was met with disdain by district parents who questioned current board members' competency and their motives for wanting to postpone elections. In a special board meeting held Thursday night, Superintendent Edward Parraz recommended rescheduling the election of governing board members by aligning district elections ...

TUSD prepares for governor's adult school changes

When Governor Jerry Brown released his proposed budget plan for the 2013-14 fiscal year, it included many changes in education funding. One of those changes, that moves adult school funding from K-12 school districts to community colleges, has many schools throughout the state fearing a loss of services to local students. The Turlock Unified School District, which has the largest adult school program in Stanislaus County, fears that if the governor's proposed budget ...

New assistant principal working to make TJHS '800-point school'

The new assistant principal at Turlock Junior High School is a familiar face to many. That's because the district picked longtime Turlock resident Sumeet Singh, a former 8th grade history teacher at TJHS. Singh started his new role this week as the assistant principal of curriculum and instruction, working alongside Principal Dave Kline and Assistant Principal of Student Services Tim Norton. "I've barely been working for this position for about a week ...

Read Across America

Students of Cunningham Elementary School were nothing short of ambitious after attending their annual Read Across America assembly, a nod to the nation's largest reading celebration in honor of Dr. Seuss' birthday. The audiences ranged from kindergarteners to sixth grade students, and all were encouraged to dress up as their favorite story book characters in light of the occasion. During the assembly, students were taught about the importance of reading and were encouraged ...

Area students compete in Regional Science Olympiad

Future scientists will put their skills to the test today, as the CSU Stanislaus campus hosts the 27th annual Stanislaus County Regional Science Olympiad. More than 550 students representing 16 middle school and 14 high schools from across Stanislaus County will be participating in a series of events that will begin at 8:30 a.m. and end at 2 p.m. inside the gym. "This is a wonderful event for our junior and high ...

NJROTC student wins big at air rifle competition

Determination and discipline are just two of the traits developed by those who participate in air rifle marksmanship. For Richard Gastelum, a junior ROTC student at Turlock High School, competing in air riffle competitions has also earned him the title of one of the best shooters in the nation. Gastelum was selected as one of the top 15 shooters in the nation, beating out 3,065 competitors, in the 2013 Navy JROTC Service Championship ...

Festival to highlight talents of local students

Over 600 Turlock Unified School District students will be showcasing their musical talents at the Festival on the Green, set for March 9 at Pitman High School. Festival on the Green, hosted by the Turlock Education Foundation and TUSD, is free and open to the public. "Our goal is to provide an opportunity for the community to come together and celebrate music and arts in our community and enjoy our TUSD students," ...

Julien student teaches peers importance of respect

February Character Counts Profile: Respect Student Feature: Decimas Guzman, Julien Elementary School Nominated by: Linda Murphy-Lopes, principal Treating people with dignity and respect can build a foundation for a better tomorrow. Decimas Guzman, a fourth grade student, is well on his way to building that foundation at Julien Elementary School. For his short 9 years of age, Decimas has already embodied the belief of treating others as you would like ...

'Dinosaurs of California' topic of next MAPS public lecture

The Modesto Area Partners in Science will offer a presentation by Richard Hilton on "Dinosaurs of California" at 7:30 p.m. Friday in Forum 110 at Modesto Junior College, 435 College Ave. in Modesto. Professor Richard Hilton will discuss dinosaurs and other fossil Mesozoic reptiles found in California and the people involved in their science. Bones, originally deposited in sediments between 210 and 65 million years ago, have been discovered in the rocks of ...

TUSD restores library positions

The Turlock Unified School District is bringing back at least one victim of the recent budget cuts - library resources. On Tuesday, the TUSD trustees voted to restore hours to current library technicians and create three new positions. The "There's a combination of library technicians who are currently divided into the school sites and many of them work very few hours," said TUSD's Director of Human Resources Jason Maggard. "We wanted to ...