Moorpark Ca Schools

Startled by losses at the polls, backers of multimillion-dollar school bonds in Moorpark and Thousand Oaks on Wednesday pointed to a slew of explanations, including voter complacency and anger at seeing the same measures twice in five months.

Two Moorpark Community High School students were arrested Tuesday in separate incidents for allegedly threatening to blow up their school, marking the fourth and fifth time a county student has been arrested since last week for allegedly threatening violence. Authorities say the arrests underscore their determination to crack down on such threats. "By now, how could [students] not know we are taking this stuff seriously," said Capt. Keith Parks, spokesman for the Sheriff's Department.

Five Moorpark residents vying for an appointment to the Moorpark school board will answer questions from the public at a public forum tonight. Sponsored by a consortium of parents' groups, the forum is aimed at helping the school board decide on a replacement for former board President Sam Nainoa, who resigned this month. Submitting applications for Nainoa's seat before Monday's 5 p.m.

Startled by losses at the polls, backers of multimillion-dollar school bonds in Moorpark and Thousand Oaks on Wednesday pointed to a slew of explanations, including voter complacency and anger at seeing the same measures twice in five months.

Responding to concerns over the questioning of Moorpark students by law enforcement officers, one school board member is suggesting that the city and school district jointly pay the salary of a sheriff's deputy who would function as the department's on-campus interviewer and gang prevention officer. Board member Clint Harper said he hopes the plan would allay concerns by some on the board about the way students are questioned.

Students at Campus Canyon Elementary School in Moorpark jumped rope, ran and shot baskets Friday as part of an event aimed at raising money for the school. About 600 students from kindergarten to third grade participated in the second annual Campus Canyon Cougar Olympics, which last year raised nearly $10,000 to help pay the salaries of an art teacher and a music teacher. Organizers said they will have the final figure for this year's fund-raiser April 2.

The Moorpark High School library has a view of the mountains, rows of study tables and an adjoining room for a computer lab--everything to invite serious students except enough books. With row upon row of empty or half-filled shelves, the library that was intended to be the centerpiece of the hillside campus is instead underused by the students it is meant to serve.

The Moorpark school board is considering a new policy instructing school administrators to advise students of their constitutional rights before allowing sheriff's deputies to question them on campus. But Moorpark's top law enforcement officer warned that school administrators carrying out such a policy could be arrested for interfering with a police investigation.

The Moorpark school board has decided to appoint a new member rather than hold an election to replace board President Sam K. Nainoa, despite parents' threats to force a special election for the vacant seat. The board voted 4 to 0 Tuesday to invite interested residents to apply to serve the year and a half remaining in Nainoa's term. Nainoa resigned Friday, saying that travel requirements for a new job would interfere with his board duties.

Acting on the advice of its attorney, the Moorpark school board has abandoned a plan to notify students of their constitutional rights before allowing sheriff's deputies to question them on campus. The school board late Tuesday decided against including the provision in an updated policy on student questioning and apprehension, said Tom Baldwin, one of two board members who had strongly advocated requiring school administrators to fully inform students of their rights.

Five Moorpark residents seeking an appointment to the Moorpark school board got a taste of the scrutiny of public office Tuesday in a public forum aimed at helping the board select a candidate. After explaining their motivations in applying for the seat vacated by former board President Sam Nainoa, who resigned earlier this month, the candidates fielded questions from parents and residents.

Five Moorpark residents vying for an appointment to the Moorpark school board will answer questions from the public at a public forum tonight. Sponsored by a consortium of parents' groups, the forum is aimed at helping the school board decide on a replacement for former board President Sam Nainoa, who resigned this month. Submitting applications for Nainoa's seat before Monday's 5 p.m.

Moorpark High School senior Tom Niday says he was so tense about a test he took for a nationwide math competition this year that he was shaking by the time he finished the exam. "It was an incredibly difficult test," the 17-year-old said. Despite his nervousness, Tom scored 120 out of 150 possible points on the American High School Mathematics Examination, helping to propel Moorpark High to third place among 133 Southern California schools, both private and public.

A Moorpark High School policy of automatically lowering the grades of students who have five unexcused absences is coming under fire from some school officials. Prompted by the protests of one student's parents, the Moorpark Unified School District board plans to re-examine the district's practice of tying grades to high school attendance. School board member Clint Harper said he disagrees with the policy, which was established by a previous board.

The Moorpark school board has decided to appoint a new member rather than hold an election to replace board President Sam K. Nainoa, despite parents' threats to force a special election for the vacant seat. The board voted 4 to 0 Tuesday to invite interested residents to apply to serve the year and a half remaining in Nainoa's term. Nainoa resigned Friday, saying that travel requirements for a new job would interfere with his board duties.

The Moorpark High School library has a view of the mountains, rows of study tables and an adjoining room for a computer lab--everything to invite serious students except enough books. With row upon row of empty or half-filled shelves, the library that was intended to be the centerpiece of the hillside campus is instead underused by the students it is meant to serve.

A class of Moorpark fifth-graders recently penned messages to President Clinton, but the White House-bound package included more than just letters. The pundits-to-be also voiced their opinions and fears through political cartoons. Most of the Flory Elementary School students' work focused on cleaning up pollution, teacher Darilyn Sisemore said. Some students went a step further, rejecting arguments that jobs are more important than the environment.

After nearly two years of work by a committee of teachers, parents and religious leaders, the Moorpark school board has unanimously adopted a new sex education curriculum that introduces AIDS as a topic for discussion as early as kindergarten. The board is expected to decide on specific instructional materials in June and the curriculum could debut in Moorpark classes next September.

Despite pleas by some Moorpark parents to reduce elementary school busing, most residents want older elementary students to attend different schools than younger children, a new survey shows. The survey, sponsored by the Moorpark Unified School District and presented at a public forum Tuesday night, showed that 63% of Moorpark residents support the existing division of elementary grades.

Contract negotiations have broken down again between the Moorpark Unified School District and its teachers' union, even with the assistance of a state mediator called in since negotiators hit an impasse two months ago, officials said. Teachers began informational picketing outside district schools last week in an attempt to build support among parents, Moorpark Educators Assn. President Guy Aronoff said.