As the Laguna Beach Unified School District mulls over new learning schedules for the upcoming school years, dozens of concerned parents demonstrated against the 4x4 learning model.
Laguna Beach Local News
Laguna Beach students and parents protest the so-called “4 by 4” scheduled change at Park Avenue and Legion Street on May 21. Photo by Daniel Langhorne
More than 60 Laguna Beach parents and students waived colorful signs and chanted at Park Avenue and Legion Street on Wednesday to protest a proposed academic schedule for the Laguna Beach Unified School District.
Many of the protestors were frustrated with the so-called “4 by 4” model that would enroll students in four courses per semester for the 2021-22 school year, rather than the usual six courses. Students would also need to complete each course in a semester instead of the usual practice of an entire school year.
Laguna Beach Local News
Three Clubs Barefoot Canyon Classic champion team Nick Alexander, Aaron Taub, Brett Bradshaw and Jeff Regal in 2019. Firebrand File Photo
SchoolPower, Laguna Beach’s education foundation, will host the fifth annual Three Clubs Barefoot Canyon Classic & BBQ, at the Ranch at Laguna Beach on May 10. Members of the Laguna Beach community will come together for a day of golf and entertainment to raise funds to enhance the educational experience of students enrolled in the Laguna Beach Unified School District.
This year’s event will feature nine holes of barefoot golf, tequila tasting, wine tasting, a barbecue dinner, live music, silent online auction, and live auction. The silent auction includes Disneyland Park Hopper Passes, a two-night stay at Montage Los Cabos, certificates for local summer camps, and gift cards to favorite local eateries. Whether they attend the event or not, community members can participate in the auction by texting “schoolpower”
It’s been tough for students this year.
With schools closing in March and remaining that way through much of the rest of the calendar year, parents, teachers and students have grappled with what is the best way to learn in the midst of a pandemic and how to bring kids back into classrooms safely.
But, in spite of the obstacles, people have found ways to still celebrate the accomplishments of their children this year.
Here are some of the top stories in education in Orange County in 2020:
Corona del Mar High School was closed, along with all other Newport-Mesa Unified School District campuses, in March. Secondary schools didn’t reopen until November.
Laguna Beach Local News
Chantale McConnell is an instructional assistant at Top of the World Elementary. Photo courtesy of Chantale McConnell
Instructional Assistant Chantale McConnell rose to the challenge of guiding cohorts of up to 20 Kindergarten students through a very unusual year at Top of the World Elementary School.
She still sees little smiles underneath her students’ face masks as they sit behind plexiglass mounted on their desks to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Inevitably, a student will break down and cry for their mom. McConnell is there to help make them feel happy at school.
“The one thing that’s hard for me, because I’m very involved physically with the kids, I’m a big hugger,” she said. “That’s been the hardest thing for me, not being able to hug.”