News Room: Education
November 2012
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
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On Saturday, State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) and Assemblyman Rich Gordon (D-Menlo Park) will jointly host an Education Update to discuss school funding,
K-12 legislation, and the status of the California education system. The update, which is open to the public, will be held from 10 a.m. until noon at the Palo Alto Unified School District board room.
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Monday, November 05, 2012
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On Wednesday, surrounded by four-year-olds in a transitional kindergarten (TK) classroom created by his legislation, State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) will be recognized for his work championing the cause of early childhood education.
At 10 a.m. at Taft Elementary, the nonprofit advocacy group Preschool California will present Simitian with its Early Learning Lifetime Achievement Award.
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August 2012
Monday, August 20, 2012
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Today, as some major Bay Area school districts begin a new school year, the youngest of students are entering a new grade, the first new level in California primary education in over a century—it’s called Transitional Kindergarten.
11th District Senator Joe Simitian was a driving force behind the new grade. He says it benefits the children and the entire educational community.
“Over all the years we have had too many kids who have been held back over the years unnecessarily, too many kids who need remedial help, too many kids who were placed in special education unnecessarily and not only has that been a struggle for them and their families, but it has been a cost to the schools and the public at large,” said Simitian.
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Tuesday, August 14, 2012
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As the school year begins, districts throughout California will begin offering transitional kindergarten (TK) – the first new grade level in the state since 1891. This school year, more than 800 school districts are expected to offer transitional kindergarten, the first year of a two-year kindergarten for children with fall birthdays who will be too young under a new cutoff date to enter regular kindergarten.
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April 2012
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
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State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) will read to a class of fourth-grade students, taught by Holly Harrison and Jessica Tolerba, at Walter Hays Elementary School on Friday morning.
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February 2012
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
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State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) was awarded a “Making a Difference Award” recently from Friends for Youth, a non-profit mentoring organization based in Redwood City. Simitian was recognized as part of the organization’s 13th annual mentoring conference on February 10.
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Wednesday, February 01, 2012
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California's preschool and kindergarten set are targeted to take some of the biggest hits to funding in the state budget proposed by Gov. Jerry Brown. The governor should withdraw his plan before it undercuts the critical years of education for some of California's most vulnerable children.
Almost one-fifth of the $4 billion in state program cuts Brown has proposed would come from early childhood education -- child care, preschool and the new transitional kindergarten scheduled to start in the fall. These programs should be among the state's highest priorities. Children are our most precious resource, and their success paves the way for California's economy to grow and prosper.
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January 2012
Monday, January 23, 2012
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State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) will hold an “Education Update” meeting on Saturday, January 28th, in Palo Alto to discuss this year’s proposed legislation and the budget challenges facing our public schools.
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Monday, January 09, 2012
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Before lawmakers approved the 2010 bill, a major concern was what would happen to children who no longer qualify for kindergarten, particularly those from low-income families that could not easily afford private pre-kindergarten programs. State leaders compromised by providing money for school districts to run the transitional program for those students, said Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto.
"The governor is talking about depriving 125,000 kids a year an opportunity to go to school," Simitian said. "I think it's a non-starter."
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November 2011
Friday, November 04, 2011
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The California Reading Association will honor State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) tonight as its Policymaker of the Year. Simitian is receiving the award for his Kindergarten Readiness Act of 2010 (SB 1381), which requires children to be five years old to start kindergarten and provides an additional year of “Transitional Kindergarten” for children with fall birthdays.
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May 2011
Friday, May 20, 2011
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State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced today that he will hold an “Education Update” meeting on Saturday, June 4th in Palo Alto for school board members, superintendents, teachers, parents, and other education advocates.
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March 2011
Tuesday, March 01, 2011
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Few 4-year-olds are ready for kindergarten.
That was the message delivered Monday by state Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, during a countywide education forum at New Brighton Middle School. More than 300 educators, including preschool and kindergarten teachers, superintendents and school board trustees, packed the auditorium for Simitian’s second annual “Together for Kindergarten.”
Simitian shared with the crowd the impetus for a new law he wrote last year that changed the kindergarten entry age. Kids starting kindergarten must turn 5 by Sept. 1 of the fall they wish to start school. Currently, students can start school if they’ll turn 5 by Dec. 2.
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February 2011
Friday, February 11, 2011
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In an interview with John Fensterwald of the Silicon Valley Education Foundation, Sen. Joe Simitian discusses the state budget, K-12 education and what might happen if Gov. Jerry Brown’s revenue proposals lose in a June election.
Fensterwald writes: “Business leaders on the fence on whether to push Republicans to join Democrats in putting tax extensions on the June ballot should consider what might happen if the measures fail. Democratic Sen. Joe Simitian is telling them they’ll probably face voter-led tax initiatives in November they’ll find far less palatable – an oil severance tax or even a challenge to Proposition 13 that raises property taxes on commercial property; it’s known as a split roll tax”
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Monday, February 07, 2011
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“The governor’s budget actually treats K-12 education pretty well,” State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) told an overflow crowd of 180 school board members, administrators, teachers and education advocates at his annual “Education Update” on Saturday, February 5th. “But ‘pretty well’ is in the context of having been beaten about the head and shoulders the last couple years.”
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Sunday, February 06, 2011
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Sen. Joe Simitian typically has about 90 school administrators, school board members, parents and other educators show up for his semi-annual “Education Updates.” Saturday, Simitian got double that number, as the Palo Alto Democrat warned educators that schools face a $5 billion budget cut if Gov. Jerry Brown’s budget compromise fails.
A budget debacle of that magnitude, Simitian told a roomful of about 180 frustrated and worried educators and parents who attended the meeting in Palo Alto from Santa Clara, San Mateo and Santa Cruz counties, would amount to roughly $800 for each one of California’s approximately 6 million school children in the coming school year.
To close a budget gap estimated at more than $25 billion over the next 18 months, Brown wants to make over $12 billion in spending cuts, and persuade GOP legislators to let the voters decide a $12 billion extension of income and sales taxes and motor vehicle fee increases. If all that happened, public school funding would remain largely intact.
Simitian, a member of the state Senate’s education committee, urged educators and parents to lobby Republican lawmakers who might be willing to support placing the tax and fee extensions on the June ballot, as well as Democrats who might not be willing to support the spending cuts that the governor says California must make before the tax vote.
“If we don’t have a successful effort in June, bleak won’t begin to describe what we’re looking at” in school funding, Simitian said.
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January 2011
Monday, January 24, 2011
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State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced today that he will hold an “Education Update” meeting on Saturday, February 5th, in Palo Alto for school board members, superintendents, teachers, parents, and other education advocates.
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December 2010
Thursday, December 02, 2010
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Lauding the efforts of State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) as an advocate for education, the California School Boards Association has honored him as 2010 “Outstanding Legislator of the Year.”
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November 2010
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
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Two Palo Alto teachers, reading specialist Natalie Bivas and kindergarten teacher Diana Argenti, were honored Nov. 9 for suggesting a bill to State Senator Joe Simitian that would require children to be five years old when they begin kindergarten. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the bill September 30.
In this KQED Radio interview—at the link below—Natalie Bivas and Diana Argenti talk about their experiences in the classroom that led them to propose the bill, and Sen. Simitian describes how they persuaded him to carry it.
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Monday, November 08, 2010
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Columnist Patty Fisher wrote about the two teachers who inspired Sen. Joe Simitian’s bill to raise the age at which children start kindergarten.
We hear a lot about gridlock in Sacramento. We hear that only powerful special interests and highly paid lobbyists have the clout to push legislation through the Capitol maze.
And then every once in a while, we hear about people like Natalie Bivas and Diana Argenti, two Palo Alto elementary school teachers who saw a problem that had baffled the Legislature for two decades, came up with a solution, defied powerful special interests and got a bill passed to fix the problem in just a few months.
Teachers have been complaining for years about California’s Dec. 2 cutoff, one of the latest in the country. But instead of just complaining, Bivas and Argenti wrote letters to elementary school teachers all over the Palo Alto district seeking support to change the cutoff. Armed with signatures from every single teacher, they paid a call to state Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto.
What happened next amazed everyone. The bill passed on the last night of the session, with just a few minutes to spare.
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Monday, November 01, 2010
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State Sen. Joe Simitian is holding a reception November 9 to honor two Palo Alto teachers, Diana Argenti and Natalie Bivas, who inspired him to author Senate Bill 1381, the Kindergarten Readiness Act of 2010, which was signed into law September 30. The reception will be from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.
in the Palo Alto Unified School District Board Room, 25 Churchill Ave., Palo Alto.
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October 2010
Saturday, October 02, 2010
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California will require kids to be 5 years old when they start kindergarten and create a new grade level for pre-K children after Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed legislation aimed at improving student achievement.
The bill approved late Thursday will push up the date by which children must turn 5 to enter kindergarten from Dec. 2 to Sept. 1. The change will be phased in one month at a time over three years starting in fall 2012.
“This is a victory for kids on two fronts,” said state Sen. Simitian, D-Palo Alto, who authored Senate Bill 1381. “We start kids when they’re ready to succeed in school, and for younger children we provide a ‘get ready’ year of instruction as well.” The estimated $700 million saved by delaying kindergarten for roughly 120,000 children annually will be used to pay for “transitional kindergarten,” a new grade level for children with fall birthdays who will be too young to start regular kindergarten.
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Friday, October 01, 2010
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California’s youngest students have been given a better chance to succeed from their first day in school with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s signature yesterday on the Kindergarten Readiness Act of 2010 by State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto). Simitian’s measure requires children to be five years old to start kindergarten, and provides an additional year of “Transitional Kindergarten” for children with fall birthdays.
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September 2010
Friday, September 24, 2010
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Columnist Teryl Zarnow tells how she held her son back a year from entering kindergarten because he was less than 5 when the school year began. She knew she had made the right decision. Over the years, she observed kindergarten as a school volunteer with each of her children. “With three children,” she writes, “I went to kindergarten three times”
“Even then—when kindergarten still had a play kitchen in one corner—it was asking a lot of a 4-year-old. Students spent a week studying the letter ‘A.’ They traced it and glued rice to outline its shape. On Friday, they ate apples.
“Most states require a child to turn 5 by Sept. 1, but California is one of only four states enrolling children younger. This year, after 13 tries, the state Legislature passed a measure to change the cutoff date from Dec. 2 to Sept. 1.
“It’s about time.”
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Wednesday, September 15, 2010
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Kindergarten teacher Robin Gieman calls them “rollers”—children who lie on the carpet and roll around when they should be listening to a lesson.
They’re not misbehaving. They’re just not quite ready for prime-time kindergarten, usually because they are too young. “Those with fall birthdays can just be very wiggly,” the veteran teacher said. “We prefer children who are able to sit and pay attention.”
Two years from now, Gieman may have fewer “rollers” in her class at Nimitz Elementary School in Sunnyvale. If Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signs a bill headed to his desk, the cutoff date for children to be 5 before starting kindergarten will gradually move from the current Dec. 2 to Sept. 1.
“We’re used to thinking of kindergarten as a year kids had to get ready for real school. Now kindergarten is real school,” said the bill’s co-sponsor, Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, a former school board member. Educators have long lobbied for changing the kindergarten cutoff date, but for two decades bills to do that have failed, Simitian noted.
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Monday, September 13, 2010
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An editorial in the San Francisco Chronicle calls on Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to sign Sen. Simitian’s AB 1381, to require children to be 5 when they begin kindergarten.
Fourteen studies reviewed by the Public Policy Institute of California in 2008 led it to conclude that the state need to shift its age of entry for kindergarten. Too many 4 1/2-year-olds were struggling in class - and the effects of starting too early reverberated throughout their schooling.
State Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, had seen the studies. Even more compelling was a petition he received from 289 teachers.
A legislator who is known for turning constituent ideas into state laws decided to give the idea yet another try. His SB1381 would require that entering kindergartners must turn 5 by Sept. 1 - instead of the current Dec. 1.
SB1381 went through the state Senate and Assembly by wide margins, and with bipartisan support. It is backed by a broad array of policy experts and education advocates. It is a rare opportunity to improve our schools while saving money at the same time.
The fate of SB1381 now rests with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. He should sign it into law.
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Tuesday, September 07, 2010
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A bill that would require pupils entering kindergarten to reach 5 by Sept. 1 and that would create another level of instruction for younger children was passed by the Legislature and awaits the governor’s signature.
The bill, SB-1381, which was approved by the Legislature last week, would also provide a year of transitional kindergarten for children with fall birthdays, essentially creating another grade level for an estimated 120,000 4-year-olds.
California is one of only a few states with a kindergarten cutoff date later than Sept. 1, and many educators believe that puts younger children at a disadvantage when entering today’s academically demanding kindergarten classes.
“Today’s kindergarten is not what most of us think of when we remember our own experience decades ago,” said state Sen. Joe Simitian (D- Palo Alto), who wrote the legislation. “It’s a pretty rigorous place these days, and the youngest are struggling to keep up. One thing that caught my attention was a kindergarten report card that had a space for algebra skills, and I thought, ‘OK, this is a lot more challenging.’ Too many kids are just not ready
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Thursday, September 02, 2010
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Thanks to the persistence of some Palo Alto teachers, future kindergartners may be at least three months older than the youngest ones who started school this fall.
A bill introduced by state Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, and approved Tuesday by the Legislature would increase the minimum age of the state’s kindergartners if signed into law by the governor.
“There’s just a mound of research that indicates pretty clearly that when kids start too young, they struggle to keep up and that struggle continues for years and years,” Simitian said Wednesday.
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Wednesday, September 01, 2010
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Aiming to give children a better chance to succeed from their first day in school, the California Legislature has approved Senate Bill 1381, the Kindergarten Readiness Act of 2010 by State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto). The measure increases the minimum age for entering kindergarten from 5 years old by December 2 of the school year to 5 years old by September 1 of the school year. For children born between September 2 and December 2, a new Transitional Kindergarten would be established.
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August 2010
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
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For decades, millions of Californians with children who have fall birthdays have struggled over whether to pack their 4-year-olds off to kindergarten – or hold them back because they might be too young to start school.
This week, California state legislators may be the closest they’ve ever come to making that decision for parents, with room for some exceptions.
A bill by Sen. Joe Simitian, a Palo Alto Democrat, would roll back the date that entering kindergartners must turn 5 from the current Dec. 2 to Sept. 1.
Educators hope the change in the age limit will reduce the number of children in special education and those who are held back, as well as help close the achievement gap that divides affluent and lower-income kids.
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Thursday, August 12, 2010
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Diana Argenti and Natalie Bivas, two teachers who presented a petition to Sen. Simitian urging California to require children to be older when they begin kindergarten, explain in an opinion piece why the Legislature should set the cutoff to start school at age 5 by Sept. 1.
Over the past 10 years, kindergarten has become increasingly academic, though teachers still make time for art, music and play. For some children, it is too much.
They try to keep up, but fall behind right away. They keep lagging their classmates when they are 7 and 10 and 15 - or until they give up.
As teachers, it breaks our hearts, especially when their struggle has such as an obvious cause: They started kindergarten too young. It has an obvious remedy: Require kindergarteners to be 5 by Sept. 1. We’re calling on the Legislature to pass Senate Bill 1381, authored by Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, that will make this overdue change.
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June 2010
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
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Columnist Patty Fisher applauds Sen. Joe Simitian’s bill, SB 1381, to require children to be 5 by Sept. 1 in order to begin kindergarten.
Sen. Joe Simitian’s bill, SB 1381, isn’t a rush job designed to plug a budget hole. It’s a sound proposal to phase in the Sept. 1 start date, eventually saving $700 million a year. Half of that would go toward state-funded preschool for young fives.
It all began as a grass-roots effort by two Palo Alto teachers…The two presented Simitian with nearly 300 signatures from Palo Alto teachers supporting a cutoff change. . . . . Simitian introduced a bill and was surprised when it breezed through the Senate. “Maybe the timing was right,” he said. “The evidence is growing that this is a sensible thing for kids.”
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Monday, June 14, 2010
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Last fall, 24 kindergarten students walked into teacher Keiko Nobusada’s classroom at Oakland’s Thornhill Elementary School, their ages ranging from 4 to 6.
“The developmental levels between a 4-year-old and a 6-year-old are so great,” Nobusada said. “It’s very difficult for that child who turns 5 in November to compete with a child born a year earlier.”
And that’s the crux of a bill in Sacramento that, if approved, would require that a child whose fifth birthday is on or after Sept. 1 wait a year to enter kindergarten.
“Do you really want kids to start school before they’re ready?” asked the bill’s author, state Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto. “The answer to that question is obviously no.”
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Wednesday, June 02, 2010
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Today the State Senate approved legislation by State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) to change the minimum age for children entering kindergarten.
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May 2010
Monday, May 17, 2010
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For better or worse, kindergarten has replaced the cookies, milk and naptime of old with reading lessons and numbers worksheets. It’s hard enough for a 5-year-old to negotiate; teachers complain that those younger than 5 are especially likely to fall behind. That’s why most states have changed their laws, requiring children to have turned 5 close to the start of the school year in order to enter kindergarten. California is one of a dozen that haven’t; here, the cutoff date is Dec. 2.
A bill by state Sen. Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) would do more than remedy the situation. [...]
SB 1381 is a smart and thoughtfully designed bill that deserves swift passage.
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Thursday, May 06, 2010
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Editorial:
For nearly all parents of kindergartners, the start of school is fraught with worry. Will little Jack or Julia make friends? Learn to read? Play well with others? For parents of “young 5s” — kids whose fifth birthday falls between the start of the school year and California’s late cutoff date, Dec. 2 — it’s even more stressful. And with good reason: These children are far less prepared for what has become a rigorous kindergarten curriculum.
State Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, would like to solve this problem and save the state some money, too. [...]
It’s rare that doing the right thing for students also saves the state money. Rather than squabbling over details, lawmakers should seize this opportunity to do both.
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Wednesday, May 05, 2010
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Editorial:
A bill by Bay Area state Sen. Joe Simitian would move the state’s kindergarten cut-off date to Sept. 1, putting it in alignment with most U.S. schools. [...]
In an ideal world, California would have as much as it needs for every program it wants. But the state is in a deep budget hole, forcing deep cuts to all of its programs, including and especially public education. It must embrace compromises such as this one, which saves money and makes an improvement to education. We urge the members of the state senate to stand up against the special interest opposition and support this legislation before its own cut-off date of May 28.
It’s the right thing to do for the future of the children, and the future of California.
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Tuesday, May 04, 2010
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California has one of the latest cutoff dates for kindergartners in the United States. Most states require a child to be 5 years old before entering kindergarten.
The result is that California has about 100,000 4-year-olds in kindergarten. [...]
Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, has introduced Senate Bill 1381, seeking to phase in a new cutoff date over three years. By 2014, all children would have to be 5 on Sept. 1 before entering kindergarten.
The question then becomes, what happens to the kids who would no longer be in kindergarten and who have working parents? Simitian’s bill takes care of that. Half of the $700 million in savings would go toward expanding preschool programs. [...]
This bill provides an opportunity to increase the number of quality preschool slots for California’s 4-year-olds – and to reduce some of the budget strain on public schools. In tough budget times, these kinds of creative solutions will help the state save money, while making investments in the future.
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April 2010
Thursday, April 29, 2010
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Howard and many other local educators support a bill by State Senator Joe Simitian that would phase in earlier kindergarten cutoff dates, shifting the date by which a child turns five from the current Dec. 2.
Starting in 2012, the cutoff would move to Nov. 1, followed by Oct. 1 the next year and finally Sept. 1 in 2014. The bill, SB 1381, was approved by the Senate education committee.
Educators have long sought such a change. [...]
While parents often see the grade level question as an academic or even intelligence issue, Dunton explained that social development, especially what she calls the ability to “self-regulate,” plays just as important a role.
“That is the piece that hugely interferes with overall success in school,” she said.
Karen Richmond, a teacher at Valencia Elementary in Aptos with 17 years of kindergarten experience, agrees and offered examples of the challenges faced by four-year-olds in a kindergarten classroom.
“Four-year-old children often have separation anxiety issues, have not had adequate experience in preschool or a pre-K environment, struggle with fine motor such as holding a pencil and cutting with scissors, sitting still, attending to directions and tasks, sharing, taking turns, not to mention simply not being ready to independently access the academic curriculum presented,” she noted.
When they get frustrated, all the students in the classroom can pay the price, she added.
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Friday, April 16, 2010
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With an ongoing budget crisis in Sacramento, fueled by a weak state economy, it would be nice if a way could be found to reduce state spending on education while actually improving it. Such a goal might appear to be contradictory, but a bill by state Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, shows otherwise.
His SB 1381 would save about $700 million a year because there would be an estimated 100,000 fewer children qualifying to begin school, according to the Legislative Analyst’s Office.
Half of the money saved would go toward preschool programs and the rest toward the general fund, which could be used for other educational purposes. [...]
Most other states require children to be age 5 on or before Sept. 1 to begin kindergarten. It is time for California to institute the same policy to improve academic performance and use scarce education money more effectively.
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Thursday, April 15, 2010
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Fight Crime: Invest in Kids California has named State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) as the recipient of its 2010 Crime Fighter Award. Simitian was singled out for his legislation to benefit youth and public safety.
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Tuesday, April 13, 2010
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In response to Palo Alto teachers’ lobbying efforts last year, state Sen. Joe Simitian is proposing a new law to change age requirements for California kindergartners.
Students now must be 5 years old by Dec. 2 to enter kindergarten, much later than most states’ cutoff dates. Many teachers say the youngest students in their classes are not ready to start kindergarten and consequently fall behind.
Simitian, D-Palo Alto, introduced new legislation to gradually move the cutoff date up to Sept. 1, his office announced in a statement Monday. Senate Bill 1381 would phase in the change over three years, beginning on Nov. 1, 2012.
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Monday, April 12, 2010
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Today State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced legislation to change the minimum age for children entering kindergarten. The proposal, supported by policy experts and education advocates, would boost kindergarten readiness and save an estimated $700 million annually, totaling $9.1 billion over a 13 year period.
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March 2010
Saturday, March 20, 2010
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As California public schools faced a flood of pink slips to some 22,000 teachers and other staff last Monday, one legislative plan to fund public education and save those jobs was drawing support from school officials and education advocates.
A constitutional amendment proposed by State Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, would allow school districts to approve a local parcel tax – a special flat tax levied on properties—with a 55 percent majority rather than the two-thirds majority that is currently required.
“If the state cannot adequately help the local schools, then they have to help themselves,” said Simitian. “This is a tool that will allow local folks to make local choices about the local needs.”
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Thursday, March 11, 2010
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by Joe Simitian
“Jobs, jobs, jobs” was the call from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in his State of the State message. No one heckled. Jobs are a bipartisan aspiration.
Turning it into a bipartisan accomplishment has been more elusive. So it is all the more frustrating when the state fumbles an easy opportunity for more employment - when projects have been designed, money is available, contractors are eager to bid, workers are desperate, and yet all sit and wait for a sluggish bureaucracy.
School district officials up and down the state tell me that they have construction work ready to go. But the plans are stalled at the Division of the State Architect which must approve them. Like many state agencies, the architect’s office has required its employees to take three unpaid furlough days a month - even though when plan-checkers stay home, construction workers remain idle.
The measure of the wait is called “bin time.” Bin time is not how long it takes to review the plans; it’s how long a plan sits before someone even picks it up. At the end of January, bin time was 12 weeks. That’s right, three months. [1]
School districts have the money for new buildings and modernization. Voters in 2006 approved $7.3 billion for K-12 schools statewide, and local bonds add millions more. California’s construction industry certainly needs the work. It shrank by more than 100,000 jobs in 2009. That means that school districts are missing a prime opportunity to capture low-cost bids, giving the taxpayers more for their money.
Delays on school projects are particularly disruptive. For work that must be done when students are gone, a three-month delay can turn into a year if the project isn’t approved in time for the coming summer.
Instead of furloughs, state architect’s office employees ought to be working full time, and even overtime. If applications temporarily flood in, the agency should contract out for additional reviewers if it believes adding permanent staff is not cost-effective.
Getting these projects underway is not just a benefit for school districts. When people go to work and contractors buy supplies, the state receives sales and income taxes.
Unfortunately, a backlog at the state architect’s office is nothing new. Last April, the agency told school districts it was reordering priorities. In June, acknowledging bin times of 12 weeks, the agency announced it would hire 25 additional staff and take other measures to catch up.
It sounded good. Progress was made. It didn’t last.
Long term, the state and the nation need to reinvigorate the private sector to strengthen our economy. But in the short term, we need government to prime the pump. Right now, no mission of the state is more critical than job creation.
Few projects can match school construction as a quick way to put carpenters, masons, electricians and plumbers back to work and to boost orders for lumber, concrete, lights and pipes.
Schools are waiting to provide better classrooms, libraries and playgrounds for their students. Workers are anxious for a regular paycheck. The money is waiting in the bank.
Everyone is waiting on a state that says it wants nothing more than jobs, jobs, jobs, yet the bureaucracy seems in no hurry to reach in and grab the ones sitting in the bin.
State Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, is a member of the Senate Education Committee.
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February 2010
Monday, February 01, 2010
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State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) was recognized today with a 2009 distinguished leadership award by the Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA). The organization recognized Simitian for his work in the legislature dating back to 2001, when he became one of the first legislators to pass design-build laws for public agencies, focusing on K-12 school districts.
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January 2010
Thursday, January 21, 2010
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Simitian, a member of the Senate Education Committee, will provide an in-depth update on K-12 education funding, “Race to the Top”, and legislation pending in Sacramento.
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Friday, January 08, 2010
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Governor Schwarzenegger signed Senate Bill (SB) 2 (in the 5th Extraordinary Session), authored by State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto). Senate Bill X5 2 expands and improves public access to California’s student performance data (CALPADS). The bill passed during a special session focused on enacting legislation to qualify California to compete for up to $700 million in federal “Race to the Top” funding.
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Thursday, January 07, 2010
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State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced today that he will hold an “Education Update” meeting on Saturday, January 23rd in Palo Alto for school board members, superintendents, teachers, parents, and other education advocates.
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December 2009
Thursday, December 31, 2009
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Simitian — well-known for his cell phone driving bills — has another motorist law on the books beginning Friday.
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Friday, December 18, 2009
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The State Legislature approved Senate Bill (SB) X5 2, authored by State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto). The legislation, passed Thursday in a special session focused on education reform, would expand and improve public access to California’s student performance data.
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November 2009
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
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The Santa Clara Unified and Fremont Union school districts failed to pass parcel taxes last week, even though their measures won 60 percent or more of the vote.
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October 2009
Saturday, October 31, 2009
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Today, there will be a legislative hearing on SBx5-2, sponsored by Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, who has been pushing for an effective statewide longitudinal data system for years.
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Tuesday, October 13, 2009
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If there were any doubt, California is back in contention for a piece of President Obama’s $4.35 billion school reform program.
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Monday, October 12, 2009
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Among the most sweeping is a bill by Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, meant to help California better compete for billions in new federal education money.
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Sunday, October 11, 2009
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Today Governor Schwarzenegger signed into law Senate Bill 19, by State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto), which ensures California’s eligibility to compete for $4.35 billion in federal school funding.
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September 2009
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
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State Sen. Joe Simitian met with three top federal education officials in Washington on Tuesday to assure them that a bill awaiting the governor's signature would qualify California for a piece of the $4.3 billion Race to the Top fund.
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Monday, September 28, 2009
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State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) is set to meet with top U.S. Department of Education officials in Washington, D.C. Tuesday regarding California’s “Race to the Top” eligibility; and specifically his legislation, Senate Bill 19, which is on its way to the Governor’s desk for a signature.
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Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Friday, September 11, 2009
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Sacramento- The State Legislature has passed SB 19 by State Senator Joe Simitian, (D-Palo Alto). The measure is designed to put to rest a controversy Simitian describes as “a tempest in a teapot” over California’s eligibility for federal funds for schools.
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July 2009
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
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If Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Republicans lawmakers are going to insist on slashing education funding by refusing to increase taxes, then the least they can do is make it easier for school districts to undo the harm.
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June 2009
Friday, June 26, 2009
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The Scotts Valley Unified School District is one of the latest California school systems to voice support for legislation that would make it easier for communities to enact parcel taxes for schools.
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Monday, June 15, 2009
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Facing multibillion-dollar state funding cuts, school districts across California are asking residents to tax themselves to fund local schools.
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Monday, June 01, 2009
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State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced today that he will hold an “Education Update” meeting on Saturday, June 13 in Palo Alto for school board members, superintendents, teachers, parents, and other education advocates.
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May 2009
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
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At his latest town hall meeting, state Sen. Joe Simitian used a different kind of platform to inform his constituents about what's going on in Sacramento.
In the senate's first-ever online town hall meeting, Simitian's live broadcast from the state capitol on May 13 enabled viewers to follow along and submit questions.
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Tuesday, May 12, 2009
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State Sen. Joe Simitian is taking his town hall meetings to the World Wide Web with the Senate's first-ever live streaming town hall meeting from the state capitol. The senator from the 11th district, which includes Campbell, is inviting his constituents to participate in the online discussion on May 13 from 7 to 8 p.m
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Friday, May 08, 2009
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Sacramento – The California State PTA honored State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) with an Honorary Service Award at its 110th annual convention held last week in San Jose.
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Monday, May 04, 2009
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Sacramento – State Senator Joe Simitian is inviting constituents in the 11th State Senate District to participate in the Senate’s first ever live streaming town hall from the State Capitol. “E-Upd@te With State Senator Joe Simitian” will take place from 7 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, May 13th. All topics will be open for discussion during the one hour event.
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April 2009
Thursday, April 23, 2009
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This past Saturday I was lucky enough to attend the 30th anniversary celebration at Hicklebee’s in San Jose, Calif. [...] Not only were there authors signing books as well as raffles and music, but State Senator Joe Simitian presented Hicklebee’s with the accolade of Small Business of the Year.
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March 2009
Saturday, March 07, 2009
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California has an opportunity to create a model data system that will help pave the way to dramatically improved student outcomes. Enacted last year, Senate Bill 1298 requires the development of an integrated information system that would follow students from preschool all the way through college or into the workplace. A framework for such a system, developed by the consulting firm McKinsey & Company, was recently released to help jump-start the process.
Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, has introduced new legislation that would help implement the system as funding becomes available.
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January 2009
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
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Sacramento - State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced that he will hold an “Education Update” meeting on Saturday, January 24 in Palo Alto for school board members, superintendents, teachers, parents, and other education advocates.
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Thursday, January 01, 2009
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The message is clear today: Put your cell phone down while driving.
Beginning today, text messaging while driving is against the law and carries with it a $20 to $50 fine. The new law, authored by state Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, closes the technology loophole left after the hands-free cell phone law went into effect last year.
The new law is just one of the 834 bills signed into law in 2008 by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. New federal, state and local laws that take effect Jan. 1, 2009 range from the naming of Devil’s Slide tunnel to the second consecutive year of minimum wage increases.
A few of those laws were ideas suggested to state Simitian through his annual “There Oughta Be A Law” contest. Simitian passed 14 bills, including ones that regulate deceptive sweepstakes practices and expands the small business loan program.
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December 2008
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
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Palo Alto – As Californians usher in the New Year, they will find new protections for many including victims of sexual abuse, veterans and seniors. The protections will come from laws that State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) authored and will take effect on January 1, 2009. The following are among the 14 bills that Simitian received signatures on this fall from the Governor.
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September 2008
Monday, September 29, 2008
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Palo Alto – State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced today that Governor Schwarzenegger signed his Senate Bill (SB) 1298, which will create the Education Data and Information Act of 2008, an unprecedented first step towards linking data about K-12 education with databases of dozens of state agencies. Armed with the data from these linked systems, policymakers will be able to make more informed decisions about how to spend the more than $50 billion education budget in California.
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July 2008
Thursday, July 31, 2008
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... In vetoing SB 908, the governor put principle ahead of the facts. He made a political statement and ignored the details of the bill.
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April 2008
Thursday, April 03, 2008
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Sacramento – State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto), author of the bill that established the San Mateo County Child Care Subsidy Pilot Project, announced today that SB 1304, his bill to extend that program for another 5 years, has passed out of the Senate Education Committee on a 6-0 vote. The bill will next go to the Senate Floor for approval.
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February 2008
Thursday, February 14, 2008
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Reading, writing, and... global warming?
A Silicon Valley lawmaker is gaining momentum with a bill that would require "climate change" to be among the science topics that all California public school students are taught.
The measure, by State Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, also would mandate that future science textbooks approved for California public schools include climate change.
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Friday, February 01, 2008
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Sacramento - State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced that he will host an “Education Update” meeting on Thursday, February 7 in Santa Cruz for local school board members, superintendents, teachers, parents, and other education advocates.
Simitian timed this meeting with the recent release of the Governor’s budget proposal. Simitian said, “I’m particularly anxious to hear from folks given these tight budget times and the Governor’s proposal that the state suspend Proposition 98, the voter-approved minimum guarantee for education funding.”
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January 2008
Thursday, January 31, 2008
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Sacramento - The world's warming climate is a prime concern of California's elected officials, international diplomats, venture capitalists, and even Hollywood filmmakers.
"California's students need to understand what's happening and what's causing it," said State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto), announcing passage of his Senate Bill (SB) 908 in the Senate. The bill would require climate change to be included in California schools’ science curriculum and in textbooks for environmental education.
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Tuesday, January 29, 2008
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Using "magic dollars" tucked away in leftover or overbudgeted state education accounts could avoid the need to suspend the Proposition 98 funding guarantees, Sen. Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) told a packed audience of primarily school officials in Palo Alto Saturday.
"Everybody here should be fighting like the devil to tell people, 'Don't Suspend Prop. 98,'" he said.
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Tuesday, January 29, 2008
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Sacramento - The world’s warming climate is a prime concern of California’s elected officials, international diplomats, venture capitalists, and even Hollywood filmmakers.
“California’s students need to understand what’s happening and what’s causing it,” said State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto), announcing that he has proposed his Senate Bill (SB) 908, which would require climate change to be included in California schools’ science curriculum and in textbooks for environmental education. The bill is slated to be voted on by the State Senate tomorrow. If passed, it will move next to the State Assembly.
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Tuesday, January 29, 2008
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California students would learn about climate change if a bill authored by state Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, is adopted and signed into law.
Simitian's bill, SB 908, was approved unanimously by the Senate Education Committee Jan. 16 and goes to the floor of the Senate for a vote on Wednesday. If it passes, it would then go to the Assembly and the governor for signature.
The bill would require California schools to teach about climate change in their science curriculum.
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Sunday, January 27, 2008
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More than 100 parents, educators and school board members packed into the Palo Alto Unified School District Board room Saturday morning to discuss the impact of the state budget crisis on education.
While the event hosted by state Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, was dubbed an "education update," the two-hour conversation turned into a broader discussion that included controversial state propositions and the state vehicle license fee.
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Wednesday, January 23, 2008
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Sacramento - State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced today that he will host a pair of “Education Update” meetings on Saturday, January 26 in Palo Alto and Thursday, February 7 in Santa Cruz for local school board members, superintendents, teachers, parents, and other education advocates.
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Thursday, January 17, 2008
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State budget cuts that school officials said could take $921,000 from Palo Alto's schools will be the subject of a forum hosted by Senator Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, next week.
Simitian will host the public forum about Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposed $4.4 billion reduction in state education funding next Saturday, Jan. 26.
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October 2007
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
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A new law could help California school districts and community colleges save millions of dollars in construction costs by streamlining the way they do a project.
Senate Bill 614, signed into law Friday by Gov. Schwarzenegger, will provide districts another tool to "build projects faster, cheaper and with more flexibility," the legislation's author, state Sen. Joe Simitian, said Monday.
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Friday, October 12, 2007
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Sacramento – State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced today that Governor Schwarzenegger signed his Senate Bill (SB) 614, which would help build schools in California that are completed faster, cost less, and make the best use of tax dollars. SB 614 dramatically expands the number of K-12 schools eligible to use the “design/build” method of construction, and authorizes all community college districts to use design/build.
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August 2007
Monday, August 20, 2007
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Sacramento – State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) received the 2006 “Legislator of the Year” Award today from the California County Superintendents Educational Services Association (CCSESA) at the group’s monthly board meeting.
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May 2007
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
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Sacramento – State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) today expressed “deep concern” about the $366 million missing for low-wealth schools in Governor Schwarzenegger’s May Revision to the 2007-08 budget, which was released yesterday.
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April 2007
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
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Sacramento – State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced today that his Senate Bills 28 and 29, which would protect information in driver’s licenses and sensitive student data by issuing a three-year moratorium on the use of radio frequency identification (RFID) or ‘smart chip’ technology in schools and driver’s licenses, have advanced through the Senate. They will be heard next in the Assembly.
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March 2007
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
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Sacramento - State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) was named "Legislator of the Year" by two education groups recently, the California Association of Student Councils and the Association of Low Wealth Schools. read more ...
February 2007
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
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Sacramento – Senate President pro Tem Don Perata (D-Oakland) announced that he has appointed State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) to three key posts: as Chair of the newly formed Senate Select Committee on Privacy; as a member of the State Allocation Board; and as a member of the State Coastal Conservancy.
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January 2007
Monday, January 29, 2007
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Palo Alto - State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced today that he will host his semi-annual “Education Update” meetings on Saturday, February 10 in Palo Alto and Thursday, February 15 in Santa Cruz for local school board members, superintendents, teachers, parents, and other education advocates.
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Monday, January 22, 2007
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State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) is going ‘back to school.’ He will visit three high schools that serve students in Redwood City, Los Altos and Mountain View. Among his scheduled engagements, Simitian will meet with student leaders at Sequoia High School in Redwood City. At Summit Preparatory Charter High School, he will meet with faculty. Simitian will address students about his privacy legislation at Freestyle Academy, an alternative technology and communications arts school for high school juniors and seniors in the Mountain View-Los Altos School District.
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October 2006
Thursday, October 12, 2006
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The Senate Select Committee on California’s Master Plan for Education, chaired by State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto), will hold an informational hearing in San Jose to discuss California’s charter schools. Simitian has expressed concern over the “increasingly contentious” atmosphere surrounding the charter school application and approval process.
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July 2006
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
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The Senate Select Committee on California’s Master Plan for Education will hold the first in a series of hearings to discuss the state of California’s charter schools.
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May 2006
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
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Sacramento - State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) has been forced to cancel his “Education Update” meeting on Thursday, May 4 in Santa Cruz. Simitian and the rest of the State Senate have been called to a special session to vote on a package of four infrastructure bonds including a $10 billlion education bond.
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April 2006
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
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Sacramento - State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced today that he will host his semi-annual “Education Update” meeting on Thursday, May 4 in Santa Cruz and Saturday, May 6 in Palo Alto for local school board members, superintendents, teachers, parents, and other education advocates.
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March 2006
Monday, March 27, 2006
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Sacramento – State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto), a member of the Senate Budget Subcommittee on Education, today proposed an additional allocation of $500 million from the current year budget to serve as a good-faith down payment on paying back money the state borrowed from schools in 2004-2005. Simitian’s motion was approved today by the Senate Budget Subcommittee on Education by a 2-0 vote with one member abstaining.
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February 2006
Tuesday, February 21, 2006
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Sacramento – State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced today that he has introduced SB 1358 to help low-wealth, under-funded school districts across California.
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January 2006
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
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Palo Alto – State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced that the California State University, Sacramento’s Center for California Studies is currently accepting applications for four prestigious State government fellowship programs: the California Senate Fellows, the Jesse M. Unruh Assembly Fellowship Program, the Executive Fellowship Program, and the Judicial Administration Fellowship Program. The application deadline is February 22, 2006.
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