Classes

You won't want to miss this special; On May 1 -- National Pole Dance Day -- you can take a pole dancing class in Las Vegas for just $10. Fitting, yes? Or more like fitness. The classes are in what's being called “pole fitness,” and they will be taught at Shine Alternative Fitness , a few miles southwest of the Strip at 6415 S. Tenaya Way. Shape magazine   listed Shine as one of the “ Coolest Fitness Clubs in America .” A variety of classes will be offered to meet various skill levels.

Re "Time to revive 'career tech,'" Column, March 21 I appreciate George Skelton's advocacy of Career Technical Education (CTE), but some of the language he uses perpetuates the widespread misconception that CTE is a fancy term for "shop. " When vocational education morphed into CTE, the point was to address the high level of literacy required for 21st century careers by infusing rigorous academics into the CTE curricula. No longer do students need to opt for academic or vocational; instead, their participation in CTE leaves them prepared for work, UC Berkeley or working their way through UC Berkeley.

Ben Howland officially bid farewell to UCLA during a news conference at Pauley Pavilion on Monday, the day after he was fired as coach of the Bruins. Howland, showing grace, character and some emotion, thanked many people, including UCLA Chancellor Gene Block, Athletic Director Dan Guerrero, and his wife and family. It was the closing act on his 10 seasons in Westwood, a tenure he called "a dream come true. " "I'm excited about the next chapter and excited about coaching again," Howland said.

It's a softer-grained “Master Class” than usual in Long Beach, but just try to look away. Although more muted than some past editions, this adroit International City Theatre revival of Terrence McNally's Tony-winning fantasia on Maria Callas' life and art carries real immediacy and thematic point. We're in 1971, when the semi-retired Callas taught a series of voice classes at Juilliard. This historic event underscores McNally's post-Pirandello mélange of biographical data and fictionalized histrionics.

The romanticized image Los Angeles Opera is promoting for "Cinderella" shows a pretty princess, a pumpkin-shaped carriage and ample fairy dust. Opera, perhaps, for preteens? Fortunately not. The opera is in fact Rossini's "La Cenerentola," and it advances no fairy godmother, no glass slippers, no gold carriage, no pumpkin. There is no magic whatsoever, just satire and class warfare, which might actually be a better come-on for kids. And rats. Big ones. They are a special attraction in the production L.A. Opera unveiled at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion on Saturday night.

The mixed verdicts on the six former Bell City Council members might not have offered the clean sweep many residents had hoped for, but they nevertheless served as a welcome confirmation of what everyone already believed to be true: Appalling wrongs were done to the people of Bell. Officials who were supposed to be public servants in the working-class community took too much of the taxpayers' hard-earned money for themselves and nearly ruined the city in the process. It's true that the defendants were acquitted on some charges, and there is still a possibility that all six might be able to avoid prison.

OAKLAND -- Amid raucous cheers from family members, Oakland's strapped Police Department on Friday welcomed 38 new officers to the force -- marking the first graduating academy class in four years. The ceremony comes as the department's number of sworn officers has plummeted from 809 to 611 over the last four years, a drop that marks the lowest staffing levels in a decade. As in other cities, the reductions came as a result of recession-era hiring freezes combined with attrition.

Where'd you graduate from? Food University . Where's that? Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Possibly that would get you somewhere on the Eater Dating site. Er, maybe not so far in the real world. But if you just want to hang out with prominent food world figures and in the process learn about ingredients, knives and celebrity chefs at this three-day event, even those with less-than-stellar grade point averages can get in. That is, if there's still space left for the event which runs March 27 to 29. "Food University is the collaboration among Caesars Palace, philanthropist and hospitality industry leader Larry Ruvo, Food Network co-founder the ever ebullient Robin Leach and veteran culinary entertainment producer Richard Gore," trumpets a release.

Mood Designer Fabrics, best known as the shopping destination for “Project Runway” contestants in New York, is offering free sewing instruction in the company's bright new L.A. store on La Brea Avenue. The six-class series for beginners will be taught in a sewing studio called the Mood School and will cover basics such as using a machine, reading a pattern, marking and cutting fabric, and assembly. Current class projects include tote and messenger bags, but a spokeswoman said more home decor will be added.

For the first time in recent years, California State University trustees this week will discuss ways to spend additional money rather than cut the budget. On the table: enrolling more students, giving faculty pay raises and increasing online classes. The trustees' spending proposals, unveiled during a conference call with reporters Monday, mark a turnaround for the Cal State system, which has struggled through years of tuition hikes, enrollment freezes and class cuts. The change is largely because of voter-approved Proposition 30, which was supported by Gov. Jerry Brown and temporarily increases sales taxes and income taxes on higher earners to help fund public education.