Dateline Masthead
Contra Costa County Office of EducationMarch 2012
In this issue
8th Annual Young Children's Issues Forum
2012 Contra Costa County Teacher Recruitment Fair
Best Practices in Teaching Leadership BTSA Saturday Seminar Series
Contra Costa County Science & Engineering Fair
Call for Judges: County Science & Engineering Fair
Transitional Kindergarten Curriculum Publishers' Open House
Law School Mock Trial Looking for High School Jurors
Special Olympics
Supervisor Glover's Contra Costa County Youth Summit
The 2012 Doug Prouty Classroom Grant Program
The Warren W. Eukel Teacher Trust Fund
The Synopsys Outreach Foundation Grants
Earn It! Keep It! Save It!
A New East County CalSTRS Member Service Center.Seminar
3rd Annual First Amendment Cartoon Contest
Google Science Fair
Fight the Bite Poster Contest
Visuals and Voices Contest
KidsGardening.com
Quick Links
Join Our Mailing List
Welcome to Dateline!
 
Greetings!

 

Welcome to the March 2012 issue of Dateline.  This informative newsletter is for all those in Contra Costa County who work in education.  Please tell your fellow teachers and administrators, as well as your friends who would be interested to join our mailing list (click here, or the link button at the left column).

Professional Development / Opportunities

8th Annual Young Children's Issues Forum

This year's theme: Speak Out for Children: Educate and Advocate.  The purpose of this annual presentation is to provide a forum for discussion among legislators, local officials, and the community regarding current children's issues.

Date and location: March 24, 9:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.; Willow Pass Community Center, Concord

For info: Contact Ruth Fernandez at (925) 942-3413 or review the event's Web page

Fee: Free

2012 Contra Costa County Single Subject and Specialty* 
Teacher Job Fair
Discover a number of Contra Costa County teaching positions that will be available in the next school year.  Along with the CCCOE, representatives from seven county school districts will be recruiting for open positions for Single Subject and Specialty* Teachers (*Special Education, Math, Science, and Bilingual).  Some interviews will be held on site.

Date and location: March 24, 9:00 a.m.-12:00 noon; Pittsburg High School (gym), Pittsburg

For info: Call (925) 942-3387 or visit the Job Fair's website: you can also download the Job Fair's poster, to distribute and post

Fee: Free

Best Practices in Teaching Leadership BTSA Saturday Seminar Series

This seminar series provides a broad range of opportunities for professional educators to learn research-based techniques and strategies from local and national professionals.  Keynote and breakout sessions cover a variety of topics and grade levels, and provide practical and purposeful tools for both general and special educators to improve teaching practices.  Networking opportunities with educators from other schools and districts are another key benefit.  The program meets BTSA Induction professional development requirement. Graduate academic credit or continuing education units may also be earned. 

Dates and location: March 24 and May 5; Saint Mary's College, Moraga

For info: Contact Lydia Wiley at (925)-631-8124, or visit their website

Fee: $60 for individual sessions

Upcoming Events / Field Trips

Contra Costa County Science & Engineering Fair

The 2012 Contra Costa County Science & Engineering Fair welcomes all to attend and view numerous projects submitted this year by county middle- and high-school students.  Attendees can observe the presentations and experiments up close, as well as talk to the students who entered them.

Date and location: March 17; 10:30-11:30 a.m.; Los Medanos College, (Science Building), Pittsburg

For info: Contact Liz Ritchie at (925) 684-4995 or visit the Science & Engineering Fair's website

Fee: Free

Call for Judges: County Science & Engineering Fair

The organizers of the Contra Costa County Science and Engineering Fair are looking for volunteer judges.  There are more than 250 projects entered in the categories of biological, behavioral, environmental, engineering, math and computer science, and physics/astronomy. Judges will view and score the projects, and then interview and score the young student scientists.  

Date and location: March 16; 7:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.; Los Medanos College, (Science Building), Pittsburg

For info: Contact Liz Ritchie at (925) 684-4995 or visit the Science & Engineering Fair's judging Web page

Transitional Kindergarten Curriculum Publishers' Open House

The CCCOE is offering a wonderful opportunity for teachers, curriculum directors, and other education administrators to examine transitional kindergarten materials from various publishers at their upcoming open house. 

Date and location: March 13; 11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.; CCCOE, Pleasant Hill

For info: Contact Laura Griffin at (925) 942-5358

Fee: Free

Law School Mock Trial Looking for High School Jurors 

U.C. Berkeley School of Law's criminal practice instructors are looking for high school students (16-18) to volunteer as jurors for a full-day mock murder trial.  Produced by the Contra Costa County Public Defender Robin Lipetzky, this is a tremendous opportunity for students who are on their school's Mock Trial team or just interested in the criminal justice system.

Date and location: April 21, 9:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.; Bray Courthouse, Martinez

For info: Contact Robin Lipetzky, at (925) 335-8035

Special Olympics

Special Olympics offers numerous organized athletic activities for students with special needs.  A program is now being offered through a partnership between  Special Olympics Northern California and Contra Costa County Office of Education.  As a result of this program, there will be opportunities for special education teachers and their students to be able to participate in several different sports activities during the school year.  This partnership allows the entire program to be offered at no expense to the students, teachers, or participating schools.

For info: Contact Sherri Roberti at (925) 837-6007, ext. 128

Supervisor Glover's Contra Costa County Youth Summit

Each year, the Youth Summit unites sixth- through twelfth-grade youth with local dignitaries, youth mentors, and community leaders for a day of career preparedness, self-awareness, and entertainment.  The annual event is a community effort to build healthy attributes such as self-esteem, honesty, and integrity. Their goal is to assist our students in constructing the foundation they need to succeed by equipping them with assets that will enhance their personal and social standards. The interactive workshops provided at the Summit will increase life skills, assist with career development, and provide a venue for healthy and appropriate activities that reduce the risk of undesirable behavior.

Date and Location: March 31, 8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.; Los Medanos College

For info: Contact Paul Adler at (925) 427-8138 or visit their website
Fee: Free  
Grants / Scholarships
The 2012 Doug Prouty Classroom Grant Program

East Bay Computer Using Educators (EBCUE)  is proud to announce the 2012 Doug Prouty Classroom Grant Program.  Doug Prouty was an active member of EBCUE, CUE, and a believer that technology could be a source of motivation, excitement, and engagement in the classroom. In that spirit, the Doug Prouty Classroom Grant Program seeks to fund K-12 classroom teachers who want to implement creative, innovative, and student-centered uses of technology that support student achievement in the core curriculum-English/language arts, math, history/social science, and science. The grant seeks to fund specific, curriculum-based activities/projects that a classroom teacher wishes to implement in his/her classroom.  To receive a $1,500 grant, you must be an EBCUE member. 

For info: To learn more about this grant opportunity, visit their website

Deadline: March 10

The Warren W. Eukel Teacher Trust Fund

The Warren W. Eukel Teacher Trust Fund annually distributes three separate $10,000 grants to outstanding teachers.  The Trust will select nominees who exhibit extraordinary commitment of personal time and energy on behalf of their students.  Teachers can self-nominate, or be nominated by an administrator, colleague, or student.  The award may be used in any manner the recipient wishes.

For info: Contact Peggy Toovey at (925) 945-0200 or visit their website

Deadline: April 30

The Synopsys Outreach Foundation Grants

The non-profit Synopsys Outreach Foundation is awarding 10 grants to California K-8 teachers in the amount of $2,000 each to help them undertake class or school-wide projects intended to have a positive and measurable impact on the environment. 

For infovisit their website for details

Deadline: April 16 

Resources / Contests

Earn It! Keep It! Save It! (EKS)

All across Contra Costa County, IRS certified volunteer tax preparers help individuals and families claim their maximum tax refund through two programs: the EKS Contra Costa Campaign and AARP's Tax-Aide -- and it's absolutely free.  You may also qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), which could mean a refund of up to $5,751.  EKS Contra Costa serves individuals and families who earned less than $50,000 in 2011; Tax-Aide serves low and moderate income taxpayers of any age (income limit not specified) with special attention to seniors 60-plus.

For info: Dial 2-1-1 or visit their website

Fee: Free 

A New East County CalSTRS Member Service Center

The CalSTRS Member Service Center is happy to announce that in order to better serve our educators who live and work in the East Bay, CalSTRS has opened a satellite counseling site in Brentwood.  They will be offering both individual and group counseling sessions.  (CalSTRS counseling appointments will also continue to be offered at the Contra Costa County Office of Education, Pleasant Hill.) 

Dates and location: Tuesdays; at the Joseph A. Ovick School, 120 Middlefield Ct., Brentwood.  

For info: CalSTRS Appointments (for either locations) may be scheduled online or by calling (800) 228-5453  

3rd Annual First Amendment Cartoon Contest

Join the Judiciary of California and Constitutional Rights Foundation in celebrating the Bill of Rights with the Third Annual First Amendment Cartoon Contest.  The contest is open to K-12 students nationwide.  Six winners will each receive a $50 gift certificate.  In addition, up to five entries will receive honorable mentions.  Winners and honorable mentions will be announced on Law Day, May 1, 2012.

For info: Visit their website and/or download the contest flyer 

Deadline: March 18

Google Science Fair

The Google Science Fair (GSF) is a global competition that any student, aged 13-18, from around the world is eligible to enter.  Students can enter as individuals or as teams of up to three, submission will be made online.  The competition will culminate in a "once in a lifetime" celebratory event at Google headquarters, in California, in July 2012, where finalists will compete for internships, scholarships, and prizes in front of a panel of celebrity scientist judges including Nobel Laureates, tech visionaries, and household names.

For info: To sign up for fun and free resource kits for your classroom or school, visit their website

Deadline: April 1

Fee: Free 

Fight the Bite Poster Contest

Through this national contest, students, grades 5-6, across the country are encouraged to help others learn ways to protect against tick and mosquito bites and the diseases they can transmit. State-contest-winning students, one from each grade, will earn a $50 prize, and will then be eligible for the national grand prize of $1,000.

For info: Contact contest administrator at (800) 789-3300 or visit the event's website

Deadline: April 18 

Visuals and Voices Contest
KidsGardening.com

KidsGardening.com is a website that has plenty ideas about plants and gardens, teacher resources, and grant opportunities.  

CCCOE Logo

Published by the Contra Costa County Office of Education Communications Office
77 Santa Barbara Road, Pleasant Hill, California 94523
Joseph A. Ovick, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools
Editor: Peggy Marshburn; Writer/Layout: Jonathan Lance, (925) 942-3429;
Diane Morrell, Designer; June Stephens, Web Developer 
 
Dateline is distributed during the school year to all public schools in the county by the Communications Office. Information must be received by the first of the preceding month. Publication does not signify the Contra Costa County Office of Education endorses the event or program mentioned.

Sincerely,

Jonathan Lance
CCCOE