Tuesday, May 23, 2017

Pacific Grove trustees to fill board vacancy on Thursday

Trustees with the Pacific Grove Unified School District will take a public vote at 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 25, to select the candidate that will fill an existing vacancy.

The candidates were interviewed on May 16. They are: retired educator Cristy Dawson, business owner Stephen Thomas, financial advisor Henry Nigos, retired educator and police officer Joseph Amelio, and public accountant Josey Schenkoske. To find their applications, visit the district's website here.

The appointed trustee will serve the remainder of a term which ends Dec. 2018. An election for the next four-year term will be held November 2018.

*UPDATE: An earlier version of this blog misidentified the occupation of Cristy Dawson.

Monday, May 22, 2017

CSUMB students wins $2,000 film commission's scholarship

Briana Gonzales, a student at the Cinematic Arts and Technology program at California State University, Monterey Bay, was named the 2017 winner of a $2,000 scholarship in the Monterey County Film Commission’s Director Emeritus Richard Tyler Film Student Scholarship Award Program. She is a Seaside resident, originally from Porterville, Calif.

Gonzales is set on pursuing a filmmaking career, and is focused on stop-motion animation which she feels offers opportunities to be creative and innovative. “It is rigorous work, but rewarding when I see my set and characters come to life,” Gonzales said in a statement.

“This award will allow me to invest in equipment and create a more intricate production set and well-constructed characters which would in turn show off my skills to studios and film festivals and help further my career in the art that is stop-motion animation,” Gonzales said.


The Monterey County Film Commission film student scholarship program was created in 2008 to provide financial aid and incentive to students of film as well as beginning filmmakers who reside in Monterey County or those enrolled in a college or university in the county. The fund was established as a permanent endowment with the Community Foundation for Monterey County.

Contributions to the film commission’s Director Emeritus Richard Tyler Film Student Scholarship Award Program were made by the Craig and Paula Tigerman family, in-kind support from the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, and numerous local donors.

Donations are welcomed for next year’s program, according to Jeff Clark, film student scholarship committee chairperson and chair of the board of the Monterey County Film Commission. For more information call 831-646-0910 or email info@filmmonterey.org.



Friday, May 19, 2017

Hartnell to showcase its arts programs during hARTnell Experience

The arts will take center stage from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday, May 21, during the hARTnell Experience in the Visual and Preforming Arts Buildings J and K at 411 Central Avenue in Salinas, CA.

Visitors will have an opportunity to explore visual arts, music, and theatre offering on main campus in a family-friendly event with a multitude of hands-on activities.  Hartnell faculty and students will guide visitors through the various demonstrations as they explore offerings at the college.

Highlights of the hARTnell Experience include the STEM Art Lab with 3D printer, video, and green screen; ceramics and sculpture demonstrations; teachings in piano lessons, recorder and creating a ring-tone; plus judging an audition, writing a scene or taking a backstage tour.

This event is open to the public and no RSVP is necessary. Parking is complimentary on Sundays. For more information, contact Ashton Clarke at aclarke@hartnell.edu.

Monday, May 15, 2017

Mathematics top honor goes to York School student

SALINAS >> Monterey Peninsula private and charter schools are heavily represented among the winners of the 49th annual Mathetics competition, which took place Saturday at Hartnell College.

The day's top honors went to Emma Cushing of The York School as the top scoring student in the advanced calculus exam. The highest scoring advanced calculus team went to students from Santa Catalina Upper school Audrey Bennett, Jayne Oentoro and Chloe Zhao, who received the Robert B. Balles Scholarship.

Students also competed in Common Core Standards Math 5, 6, 7, and 8, Math 1, 2, 3, math analysis/pre-calculus, calculus AB, BC, and statistics AP. Common Core Standards Math blend arithmetic, algebra and trigonometry. Math 1 is generally offered to high school freshman.

Calculus second top scorer was Teyam Birgani of Salinas High School, and third Jeffrey Jiang of Carmel High School. In calculus AB, first place went to Filip Zacek of Carmel High School, second to Henry Loh of Pacific Grove High School, and third to Kevin Barbard of The York School.

In math analysis/pre-calculus, first place went to Oscar Chen of Stevenson School, second place to Tristen Laney of the York School, and third place to Joanna Lin of Santa Catalina Upper School.

Mathletics is a math contest held each May to encourage excellence in math and recognize the achievements of individual students and the schools they represent. First, second, and third place winners in each level received gift cards, gift certificates and an Olympic-sized first, second or third place medal. Nearly 300 upper elementary, middle and high school students from Monterey County public and private schools participated in the event.

The Monterey County Office of Education and California State University, Monterey Bay Mathematics Department sponsor the event. For a complete list of winners, click here.