Education

Go behind the scenes with Producer Angela Shelley, Associate Producer Anne Lilburn and Editor Michael Bloecher as they discuss the making of “The Lunch Lady,” California Connected’s story on Ann Cooper, a lunch lady who’s leading a revolution against typical school food.

Whole wheat pizza, organic foods, and salad bars don’t sound like typical school lunch options, but that’s what’s being served in one Bay Area school district.

Students at Balboa High School talk about the popular new “Grab ‘N Go” breakfast program.

Youth sports in California are hurting. Umpires and referees are in short supply, resulting in postponed and cancelled games, abbreviated seasons and the loss of some sports altogether. What does the future hold for youth sports if there aren’t enough people to officiate?

Meet Maria, “the mom”, and Vanessa, “the daughter”, who’ve managed to survive sharing a home and a single computer to graduate together from one of California’s top universities.

Proposition 82 proposes free pre-school for every 4 year old in California.

Los Angeles Times reporter Duke Helfand takes a closer look at the state’s controversial dropout rate by following the diverging paths of 15 high school students from Birmingham High School.

The Hoover Institution’s Eric Hanushek argues that smaller classrooms are not nearly as effective as excellent — and better-paid — teachers, while noting that Sacramento has too much power over local schools.

Former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich discusses the unequal future of California if current economic and educational trends continue.

Proposition 74 would lengthen the trial period for state teachers from two to five years while making it easier for them to be fired — after two consecutive negative evaluations. One group, literally, has a front row seat on the issue — California students.

Tom Campbell, State Director of Finance, and, Robin Swanson, spokesperson for the Alliance for a Better California, vocal advocates for and against Proposition 76, respectively, state their arguments — and a few surprises — for the record.

In a recurring feature, we ask a group of high school students to pick apart and take a stand on the proposed funding changes laid out by Prop. 76, the Governor’s hand-picked constitutional amendment initiative.

The humorist confronts the myriad of options and anxieties facing a mother whose daughter is about to enter… kindergarten.

California’s system of funding schools is based on a set of bizarre outdated formulas that result in serious, calcified inequities: some schools receive around $4,000 a student, and other schools receive more than $8,000 a student.

Outside of the classroom, individual teachers are seldom seen or heard. We interview three award-winning California educators to get their take on the state of their profession.

Our second annual meeting with former California Governors Brown, Deukmejian, Wilson and Davis yields a candid and vigorous discussion.

There’s more to this often cited figure than meets the eye at first glance.

What percentage of California’s K-12 students are learning English in the classroom?

Controversial and effective: two words that describe Alan Bersin, former San Diego Schools Superintendent and Gov. Schwarzenegger’s pick to be the next California State Secretary for Education.

The second part of our interview with Gov. Schwarzenegger, focusing on education and his plans to transform California’s education system.

What was the Master Plan for Higher Education and how has it changed since its design in 1960?

A provocative and emotional documentary explores the lives of teen-agers sentenced as adults to life in prison.

The unlikely story of one of America’s most presitigious colleges: an all-male school/ranch east of the Sierra Nevada.

Actor John Amos explains how he uses sailing to mentor kids.

Every year, one teacher out of nearly 310,000 is chosen to be California’s nominee for National Teacher of the Year. Meet this year’s candidate.

Two filmmakers team up with high school students to make a “real” drug prevention movie about crystal meth.

A pilot program allows DUI offenders to be tried at high school assemblies.

Guess which occupations will have the largest job growth in the next 10 years. The answers will surprise you.

An online discussion of the state’s economic outlook featuring Jack Kyser and Stephen Levy.

An after-school program that puts teens to work on the world’s most advanced science projects.

Teen counseling gets a radical make-over for the year 2003 at SF’s Balboa High School.

Michael Schenker on CalTech’s nerd-proof hazing.

Quietly, California’s community colleges train the state’s work force — and must now rally against severe budget cuts.

Find out how Youth Radio has been successful at educating hundreds of teens and entertaining millions of adult listeners.

Walk the halls and attend classes alongside the students of “Our School,” taking stock of the school’s renewed efforts to improve both literacy and parental involvement.

Cris Franco spoofs affirmative action.

Oakland High School teacher Paul August keeps a list of students who will never return to his classroom — because they have been killed in violent crimes. Find out how his students cope with their grim reality.

The honeymoon may be over for Mt. Vernon’s new principal but the fun and frustration of reforming a struggling middle school is far from over. A new look at the reality of educational reform.

No longer limited to treating playground scrapes and bruises, school nurses are often the sole health care providers for thousands of children. But will budget cuts remove this frontline of public safety?

Mount Vernon must make drastic changes to correct those problems over the next school year or the district could face costly sanctions.

A unique school in Stockton and the federal mandate that promises every child an education.

Mount Vernon Middle School in Los Angeles is one of ten public schools within the Los Angeles Unified School District that has drawn the state’s attention because students have failed to reach mandated benchmarks on the tests over the past four years.

Mount Vernon Middle School in Los Angeles is one of ten public schools within the Los Angeles Unified School District that has drawn the state’s attention because students have failed to reach mandated benchmarks on the tests over the past four years.

Mount Vernon Middle School in Los Angeles is one of ten public schools within the Los Angeles Unified School District that has drawn the state’s attention because students have failed to reach mandated benchmarks on the tests over the past four years.