Opinion
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- Written by: Becky Salato
Most folks say they want to live in a functioning society, but they sometimes forget this means we must depend on each other. We each have a role to play.
Along with parents and families, schools’ have a responsibility to teach children the skills they need to become self-supporting adults. As life gets more complex, so does the challenge of educating our youth.
When people cannot read, they struggle to fill out job applications. When they cannot do basic arithmetic, they struggle to manage their personal finances. When they cannot think critically, they struggle to make good decisions.
At Konocti Unified, we offer an educational experience that builds the academic, social, and emotional capabilities to help our students navigate the world around them.
From the time students enter kindergarten, we provide pathways so students will have options open to them after high school.
The requirements to graduate from Lower Lake High School are structured to ensure that students are exposed to a wide variety of subjects and skills.
As we plan classes and programs, we ask ourselves what our students need from us to grow into their potential, and what our community needs from our students to regenerate a healthy, thriving community.
We offer college-prep classes in traditional disciplines like math, language arts, science and social studies.
We also offer Career Technical Education, or CTE, classes to let students explore their interests and to give them a launch pad to pursue certain fields after high school (whether they start with college, technical training, or go directly into the workforce).
Most of the businesses in Lake County are owned and operated by local people who have had to learn new skills on the job. To adjust to an ever-changing work environment, people don’t just need to master a fixed set of skills; they need to know how to learn new skills.
That is what a high school diploma and/or a college degree often represent — the ability to learn and the determination to see something through to the end.
I am especially proud of our growing CTE program. With our community partners, we are providing students with essential skills and the knowledge they need to pursue their interests.
Last year, more than 50 students completed a full CTE pathway, and this year, almost 80 students are on track to do so (an increase of 65%). Last year, we offered seven pathways; now we offer eleven.
The pathways include ornamental horticulture/floral design, animal science, child development, food service/hospitality, welding/materials joining, structural repair and finishing, design/visual/media arts, patient care, emergency response (EMT) and beginning in fall 2024, TK-12 Education.
Some of these programs wouldn’t be possible without our community partners. For example, our new emergency services pathway is team-taught with a high school teacher and a firefighter (Fire Chief William Sapeta or Battalion Chief Marc Hill). When students complete this pathway, they are ready to take the emergency medical technician, or EMT, certification test so they can work alongside paramedics as first responders.
Our new education pathway will address the nationwide teacher shortage right here at home. Students who complete this pathway can apply for positions as paraprofessionals in our district when they graduate from high school.
They can remain in that position, or they can work as paraprofessionals during college while they earn their bachelor’s degree. Then, they can come and work as teachers for us while they complete their teaching credential.
We also have a childhood development pathway that prepares students to work with young children, ideally providing more qualified staff for preschools and transitional kindergarten classrooms.
Our public safety pathway helps fill another shortage in our community: that of law enforcement. Once students complete this pathway, they can apply to any number of agencies to finish their law enforcement education, whether they choose police, highway patrol, sheriff, or corrections.
To fill the pipeline of people qualified to work in agriculture, we offer ornamental horticulture, floral design and animal science. These courses open the door to many fields of study, from crop science to animal husbandry and more.
Our food service/hospitality pathway has introduced the world of culinary endeavors to many students. Whether they choose to become chefs or simply cook amazing meals for friends and family, this program offers many rewards.
Sometimes CTE classes help students get summer jobs making excellent wages. I recently learned that one of our seniors was hired as a welder last summer at $45/hour.
Along those lines, we are working with the Lake County Economic Development Corp. to identify local employers interested in hiring our students for work-based learning opportunities as part of our Structural Repair and Finishing Pathway (automotive).
Our goal is to prepare students for college and eventually, for them to become our community’s next generation of workers. All CTE pathway courses satisfy college entry (“A-G”) requirements for California’s public universities. Some courses even offer dual enrollment so students get high school and college credit at the same time.
When students at Carle recently asked about the value of a high school diploma, they were encouraged to figure it out–in terms of dollars and sense. Their research determined that the difference in earnings with a high school diploma versus without one would amount to about $600,000 over their lifetime. That’s a lot!
We are so fortunate to work hand-in-hand with our community partners. Thanks for supporting our schools. We’ll continue to do our best to prepare our students to be the workers you need in the years to come.
Becky Salato is superintendent of the Konocti Unified School District.
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- Written by: Marie Garceau
St. Patrick’s Day in 2024 is not celebrated for the same reasons it once was, as times change, and holidays take on different meanings.
While some still see it as a family-centric Catholic celebration or a break from Lent-related restrictions, the day primarily focuses on parties, rowdy parades, green beer, bar specials, and heavy drinking.
Sounds fun, right? There are undoubtedly good times had by all who take part, but if you want to stay sober and avoid alcohol, it can pose a challenge. What seems like harmless fun quickly turns into days, months, or years of sobriety down the drain.
Suppose someone is in recovery from alcoholism, choosing a healthy lifestyle, or recently decided to give up alcohol for whatever reason; the temptation of St. Patrick’s Day celebrations is tough to avoid. In any social setting this time of year, there is lively music, good food, and lots to drink.
While it is only one day a year, it can quickly derail any progress on sobriety. Fortunately, there are practical approaches you can take to stay sober and reap the benefits of St. Patrick’s Day sobriety.
Initially, the best benefit of sobriety on St. Patrick’s Day is avoiding impaired driving and not becoming another statistic. In California, alcohol-impaired driving remains one of the biggest threats to public safety. According to a 2021 report, alcohol-involved crashes increased by 16% from 2020 to 2021. If you choose to celebrate, do not drink and drive, and plan ahead.
Staying sober means knowing what to do; consider some pointers.
Remind yourself why you are sober, and don’t do it alone. You can still have fun and celebrate but do it with other sober people. Everyone has their reasons why they stopped drinking; remind yourself of those reasons and hold yourself accountable.
Know your triggers; it doesn’t matter if you are a recovering addict or have removed alcohol from your life. Be cautious around possible triggers that pose a challenge. Most people in this situation choose to skip the bar and find something fun to do or go to a sober celebration.
Keep a non-alcoholic drink or mocktail in your hand. People will not bother you to ask if you want a drink if you already have something to sip on, like a mocktail. This also leads to planning how to say no. You will encounter social pressure if you go to a bar on St. Patrick’s Day. It’s unavoidable. It’s wise to practice ways to refuse alcohol.
Finally, if all else fails, take a walk outside if you feel overwhelmed. The most straightforward solutions are usually the best. Remove yourself from any situation you know will lead to relapse. This is also why it’s essential to be with a sober friend or loved one; there is accountability and someone to lean on.
Marie Garceau has been working in the field of substance use and addiction recovery for over a decade. She works at DRS and primarily focuses on reaching out to the community and spreading awareness.
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- Written by: Dr. Nicki Thomas
You may be surprised to learn that when our youngest students miss just two days of school per month for any reason — excused or unexcused — they can become third-graders who can’t make the transition from learning to read to reading to learn; sixth-graders who cannot keep up in core classes, and high school students who do not graduate.
Missing ten percent of school, which equates to about 18 days for the whole school year, is called “chronic absenteeism” and children living in poverty are more than twice as likely to be chronically absent. This is especially harmful in kindergarten through third grade when students are building fundamental language and math skills.
Even when students are absent because of something important like a medical appointment or family emergency, they still miss out on the teacher’s lesson and social time with their peers. Studies show it takes three days for students to catch up for every one day they miss.
Here’s why. When students miss a day of school, they not only miss that day’s lesson, they also struggle to keep up when they return to the classroom because lessons build on each other. If they missed yesterday, today’s lesson will be harder. They don’t like feeling behind, so they disengage. When school goes from being fun to confusing, from being easy to hard, many students stop trying.
The best thing parents can do is to get their children to school every single day. This means scheduling appointments after school when possible. It means planning family trips to coincide with school holidays. It means only keeping students home for illness when they have one of these three symptoms: a fever higher than 100 degrees; diarrhea or vomiting during the previous 24 hours; or eyes that look pink and/or crusty.
I understand the desire to keep kids home from school when they have the sniffles, to wrap them up in a cozy blanket and feed them chicken noodle soup. But allowing them to skip school just a couple of days a month can significantly affect their success at school.
When you get your child to school every day, it sends a message: that showing up every day is important. And these good habits can last a lifetime.
Some people think I am worried about attendance because of the drop in funding that occurs when students are absent. It’s true — I do care about funding, but only because of what funding allows us to do for our students. More funding means we can hire more teachers, which reduces class sizes. Smaller class sizes allow each child to receive more individual attention from their teacher.
Chronic absenteeism impacts more than academics. At school, students learn to navigate complex social interactions with peers, they develop respectful relationships with caring adults, and they explore extracurricular interests like athletics, art, and music. They also get a roof over their heads, a free meal, and a safe space to be themselves.
Unfortunately, students whose families are struggling financially are a lot more likely to be absent because of factors out of their control, such as unstable housing, unreliable transportation and a lack of access to health care.
If you are having trouble getting your child to school every day, talk to their teacher. We’ll do what we can to connect you with more resources — other families who could help out, district support, or assistance from community organizations.
Education is the path to success and having students in school every day is the path to a great education.
Dr. Nicki Thomas is superintendent for the Kelseyville Unified School District in Kelseyville, California.
- Details
- Written by: Teresa Frankovich, M.D.
If you have children age 6 or younger, your health care provider should be talking with you at every well-child visit about the possibility that your child has been exposed to lead. This is important because exposure to lead can cause a wide range of health problems, including irreversible brain damage, especially in young, developing brains. There is no known “safe” level of lead exposure.
Since most children have no symptoms while they are being exposed, the best way to prevent lead poisoning is to know how kids may be exposed and to have your child screened by answering questions and/or getting tested for lead exposure. Testing is recommended at 1 and 2 years of age and is usually done with a quick finger poke at your child’s well-care visit.
For children in publicly funded programs like Medi-Cal and the Women, Infants and Children Supplemental Food Program, or WIC, testing at 1 and 2 years of age is required. For these children, catch-up testing must be done (up to the age of 6 years) if not done at 2 years of age.
Many of us have heard about older (pre-1978) homes being a source of exposure due to the lead-based paints widely used prior to that time. Fortunately, lead-based paints were banned for continued home use in the U.S. in 1978 but can still be found in older homes.
As this paint cracks and peels over time, lead-containing dust and paint chips can find their way onto the hands and then into the mouths of crawling infants and climbing toddlers. Lead may also be found in soil, particularly around older homes and industrial sites and in water that flows
through older pipes containing lead.
Until fairly recently, parents were advised primarily about these potential lead sources. In recent years, we have been finding lead in many more unexpected places.
These days, the items we all eat, drink and use every day (such as pottery, cookware, herbal medicine and makeup), come from all over the world. As countries have varying customs and regulations regarding food and product safety, the potential for lead exposure has grown.
For example, the contaminated apple cinnamon fruit pouches mentioned above were made in Ecuador and sold under various brand names in the United States. The source of contamination is suspected to be the added cinnamon. Similarly, in parts of South Asia, the beautiful golden yellow spice called turmeric has long been used in traditional medicines and in food. In that part of the world, the turmeric roots are often treated with a lead compound to make the color even brighter. This may be one reason that South Asia has some of the highest rates of lead poisoning in the world.
So, parents, the bad news is that lead exposure in children is a big health concern. The good news is that many exposures can be avoided, and testing for lead early can prevent ongoing and higher levels of exposure. Some helpful tips to prevent lead exposure in your home are:
• Be careful and consider the source of spices, medications, cosmetics and items such as cookware and tableware that you bring into your home.
• Think about the age of your home and whether it is likely to have lead paint.
• Talk with your child’s doctor about lead exposure and preventing exposure.
• Visit the California Department of Public Health Lead Prevention Homepage for facts on how you can keep your child safe from lead poisoning.
Dr. Teresa Frankovich is an associate medical director at Partnership HealthPlan of California. Partnership is a community-based, safety-net health plan that contracts with the state to administer Medi-Cal benefits. Partnership provides quality care to over 900,000 Medi-Cal members. Starting in Solano County in 1994, Partnership now serves 24 Northern California counties – Butte, Colusa, Del Norte, Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Marin, Mendocino, Modoc, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Solano, Sonoma, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Yolo, and Yuba. Learn more at PartnershipHP.org.
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