April 22, 2019
EDCAL 1
Education California | The official newspaper of the Association of California School Administrators
Volume 49 | Number 25 | April 22, 2019
2019 ESS award winners announced
ACSA regions have selected the winners
of the 2019 Every Student Succeeding
Awards.
Students were chosen from each of the
19 ACSA regions and will be honored at
a special luncheon during ACSA’s Lead-
ership Summit this November in San
Francisco. Along with their award, students
will receive a $1,000 stipend.
The students will also be featured in
EdCal and in weekly videos released online
every Tuesday starting in late June. The
Emmy-nominated Every Student Succeed-
ing video series has garnered more than 1.3
million views in the last three years.
“It is an honor to get to know each one
of these students and hear their inspiring
stories,” said ACSA Executive Director
Wes Smith. “They have beat incredible
odds to get to where they are today and we
welcome the opportunity to celebrate their
success.”
ACSA is pleased to announce the win-
ners of the 2019 Every Student Succeeding
Awards:
Region 1: Keanan and Keion Evans,
8th grade, Winship Middle School, Eureka
City Schools.
Region 2: Chloe Blanchette, 11th
grade, Albert Powell Continuation High
School, Yuba City USD.
Region 3: Jelan Gentry, 12th grade, Rio
Americano High School, San Juan USD.
Region 4: Ali Hussain, 12th grade,
Rodriguez High Regional DHH, Solano
COE.
Region 5: Llisel Badajos, 12th grade,
Half Moon Bay High School, Cabrillo
USD.
Region 6: Armando Wright, 12th grade,
Decoto School for Independent Study,
New Haven USD.
Region 7: Keannu Linnell, 12th grade,
Lathrop High School, Manteca USD.
See ESS, page 3
Report:
Principal
turnover
impacts
students
Principals are a key in-school factor as-
sociated with student achievement. When
principals leave, it can disrupt school
progress, increase teacher turnover, and
stall student achievement. A new study
developed by the Learning Policy Institute
and the National Association of Secondary
School Principals reviews existing research
to identify why school leadership matters
and the impacts of principal mobility on
student achievement. The study looks at
the data on principal mobility and ways
that policymakers can improve principal
retention, especially in schools with higher
percentages of students from low-income
families, students of color, and low-per-
forming students where turnover is highest.
The report titled “Understanding and
Addressing Principal Turnover: A Review
of the Research,” was released in March
during the 2019 NASSP Advocacy Con-
ference in Washington, D.C., and is the
first release of an intensive project by the
two organizations to explore the causes of
and solutions to principal attrition.
The report reviews 35 major studies on
principal turnover. It provides guidance to
policymakers, district administrators, and
school stakeholders interested in improving
the stability of school leadership, recom-
mending five key evidence-based strategies
drawn from the research:
• Providing high-quality professional
learning opportunities, both initial prepara-
tion and in-service, in order to give princi-
Principals Summer Institutes.
ACSA’s summer programs provide
opportunities for principals and aspiring
principals to meet in a stimulating and
supportive setting to examine crucial
school reform topics applicable to their
work. The programs offer practitioners
invaluable days of study reflection and
discourse with experts and school lead-
ers, who represent the best through-
out the educational spectrum. There
are two sessions: Principals’ Summer
Institute (designed for current princi-
pals) from June 23-29, and Institute for
New & Aspiring Principals from June
24-28. Registration includes housing
and meals. Register by May 24 to re-
ceive a discount. For more information
or to register, visit www.acsa.org/
summerprograms.
Math Focus Group. The California
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond listens as students from Milor High School in
the Rialto Unified School District show him the school’s garden. Milor was one of 24 schools and local
education agencies chosen by the California Department of Education as a Green Ribbon School.
Green schools receive
top honors from CDE
Whether keeping lunchroom waste
out of the landfill or creating a monarch
butterfly waystation, California schools
are adopting environmentally friendly
practices that make every day Earth Day.
Four local education agencies and 20
schools were recently awarded the Cali-
fornia Green Ribbon Schools Award by
State Superintendent of Public Instruc-
tion Tony Thurmond.
“Congratulations to this year’s hon-
orees,” said Thurmond, who announced
the winners March 27. “California
Green Ribbon Schools engage our
kids to understand and act on behalf of
their environment. From global-sized
problems like climate change to local
challenges like water quality, sustain-
ability education grows the creativity,
critical thinking skills, and environmen-
tal literacy our students need in order to
lead now and into the future.”
The Green Ribbon Schools program
recognizes exemplary achievement in
reducing environ-
mental impact and
costs, improving
health and wellness
Find out how
and providing effec-
the winners
tive environmental
are making
education.
their schools
In addition, four
more green.
schools and one
district were named
“Green Achievers,” the highest honor
in the program, and were nominated to
compete in the national Green Ribbon
Schools recognition program.
The following are the “Green Achiev-
Inside
See GREEN, page 3
Department of Education is recruiting
educators to apply for appointment to a
focus group to inform the content and
guidance in the 2021 Math Framework.
Current K-12 educators are encouraged
to apply. If appointed, the commitment
is for one two-hour meeting in August.
Online applications must be emailed to
[email protected] no later
than 3 p.m. on Wednesday, May 8,
2019.The focus group application and
details on meeting dates and locations
are available on the Math Framework
webpage at www.cde.ca.gov/ci/ma/cf/.
IgnitED Conference. The National
Association of School Superintendents
invites education leaders from across
the nation to join policy experts as
they ignite change during three days
of advocacy centered on educational
equity in the nation’s capital. This is a
unique opportunity for leaders to come
together to network, engage, hear
from experts on legislative issues and
media, and to level up advocacy skills.
The IgnitED conference is Sept. 15-19,
2019 in Washington, D.C. Registration
is $325 for NASS/ACSA members and
$650 for non-members. Discounts are
available for registering by May 31. For
more information or to register, visit
www.acsa.org/ignited
See TURNOVER, page 6
District uses Prop. 56 funds
to combat student vaping
Periodicals
Dated Material
Written by Dan Stepenosky, Superinten-
dent of Schools, Las Virgenes Unified School
District.
We have watched the dramatic increase
in the use of e-cigarettes and vaping devices
across the country, the state and locally. Af-
ter decades of declining tobacco use among
minors, we now see a dramatic increase due
to the variety of new vaping devices, and
the idea that vaping is not harmful, or is
less harmful than cigarettes. The National
Institute of Health reports that 36 percent
of people under the age of 18 have report-
ed using a vaping device in 2018, and that
number is expected to grow much more
in 2019. The percentage of eighth-grade
students who report using a vaping device
has increased from 3.5 percent to 6.1 per-
cent and continues to rise. The percentage
of 10th-grade students has jumped from
8 percent to 16 percent, and 12th-grade
students nationally have reported an even
larger increase, from 11 percent in 2017 to
20.9 percent in 2018.
In an effort to address this new epidem-
See VAPING, page 5