CALIFORNIA SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF, RIVERSIDE
IONS T C E L F E R PAWSITIVE en ilies, Staff, & Fri m a F r fo on ti a News and Inform MARCH/APRIL
ds
2009
Message from Mal After many, many months of intensive research, gathering information, and attending meetings, the WASC process is finally complete. Information gathered through this self-study process was compiled into a report which was then sent to both the WASC and CEASD visiting committees. The committees from both agencies were on-campus from March 2528, during which time they gathered evidence, met with staff, students and parents, and developed a rough draft of their findings to submit to WASC and CEASD Headquarters. The committees ’ recommendation along with the information in CSDR ’ s report will be sent to headquarters to determine the type of accreditation CSDR will receive.
We
should have the final results by July, 2009. This visit was the first time that these particular members of the WASC team had ever worked with another group like CEASD. I ’ m thankful to the WASC team for being so flexible and open-minded in the working arrangements and I am equally thankful to the CEASD committee for providing valuable background information about deaf education to the WASC team. Most people don ’ t realize that both groups received the CSDR report six weeks in advance and spent many hours reading and reviewing Ilik the information contained in the report ( over 230 pages!) Members of these committees put great effort into developing recommendations in how to improve CSDR services. We appreciate these individuals putting their own work on hold to assist
See Mal, page 2
CSDR in meeting its goals.
D r. D av i l a V i s i t s C S D R By Staff Writer On February 2, 2009, Dr. Robert Davila, President of Gallaudet University, came to CSDR for a very special visit. Upon arrival, he met with both High School and Middle School students during two special assemblies to discuss his life journey, which has led to his current leadership role. Following his presentation, students asked him a variety of questions regarding his job and it ’ s many challenges.
See Davila, page 4
PAGE 2
PAWSITIVE REFLECTIONS
Mal (cont’d from page 1)
I ’d
like to thank Janice Smith-
The action plan addresses those areas
As of this printing, we do not have any
Warshaw for taking on the responsibil-
with appropriate tasks and time-lines
additional information about how the
ity of chairing the WASC Leadership
that create a clear map for the Cabinet
State deficit will impact CSDR. While
Team here at CSDR. I also wish to
members to follow in making CSDR a
negotiations continue, however, we
thank the Leadership Team itself for
school of excellence in deaf education.
have received some good news.
We
the many hours of work they put into
We look forward to working with all of you towards that goal.
will
the
preparing for the WASC visit. All of the CSDR staff who attended meetings to provide input, in addition to their regular duties, are to be commended. Others instrumental in the process were CSDR parents, students, and community members.
The process
was a lengthy one, but it has paid off.
be
able
Multi-Activity
to
com plet e
Center
renovations to the Brill
( M AC ) , building, and
CSDR has experienced great success
complete those cottages that were
with the Boys Town Behavior Manage-
started before the budget crisis.
ment Program which was implemented at the beginning of the school year. Our instructional and dormitory staff report seeing quite an improvement in
Regardless of the number of years for
student behavior since the program
which CSDR is accredited, we now
began. I was also recently able to meet
have a detailed action-plan to follow
with some student representatives who
that will guide us on raising student
told me they felt the program resulted in
achievement and providing a safe
better communication and rapport be-
learning environment for our deaf and
tween staff and students. We expect to
hard-of-hearing children.
The self-
see even more positive results as addi-
study has given us insight into not only
tional CSDR staff are trained in these
CSDR ’ s strengths, but also the areas
techniques.
It ’ s hard to believe, but the end of the year is now in sight and within the next two
months
we
will
begin
our
preparations for graduation!
of weakness that we need to improve.
Nutrition Ser vices! By Leh Ota, Director of Dietetics At CSDR a well-balanced nutritious
intake is essential.
when meeting with the Nutrition
meal is prepared daily by Nutrition
While implementing the local wellness
Services
Services for day and residential
policies, Nutrition Services has added a
meeting, students are given new food
students to promote their physical and
salad bar at each meal consisting of a
products provided by the vendor for
mental development growth.
variety of fresh fruits, canned fruits, and
evaluation. The students sample the
In planning the menu, there are require-
vegetables. The meals are prepared at
products and give their acceptance or
ments to follow from the National Child
CSDR using USDA quantity recipes for
non-acceptance.
Nutrition School Lunch Program. The
School Food Service. And the nutrient
representatives share their concern
key areas and nutrients targeted for
value is considered for each recipe.
regarding foods served and Nutrition
emphasis in school meals are calories,
At CSDR, we also have a Student Food
Services follows-up accordingly.
fat, saturated fat, calcium, iron, protein
Council Committee. The students are
and vitamins A and C. Choosing a diet
elected by the principals and dormitory
moderate in sugar and sodium ( salt )
counselors to represent their peers
Supervisors.
At
the
Student
MARCH/APRIL 2009
PAGE 3
O n t h e Ro a d w i t h t h e R a f f l e C a r ! By Staff Writer During January 23-25, the CSDR Raffle
ment of the event ( and generosity of
holstery for inviting us to share their
Car made it’ s debut at the Grand
the crowd ) . Finally, the Inland Mopar
vendor space.
National Roadster Show in Pomona.
Club managed to car-jack a cast mem-
guys. Legendary also donated the inte-
The heavy wind and rain didn ’ t keep
ber from TV’ s
rior for our raffle car, so we were more
the “ Road Warriors ” from attending
autograph the trunk lid of the raffle car!
that happy to showcase our car for
If you haven ’ t seen the fantastic work
them. The club earned a total of $3,930
With cars, vendors, and visitors from
that has been done on this car, go to
at that event.
across the United States jam-packed
the Inland Mopar Car Club website and
into the show, the Inland Mopar Car
take
Club was able to come through for
www.inlandmoparscarclub.com
CSDR once again by selling a record
There isn ’ t a better team to rebuild a
$4,000 worth of tickets! Wow! Consid-
car than Ron Borden and John
ering this was just the first show of the
Wilkiewicz!
season, the raffle car is off to a great
people came pouring out of the build-
start.
ings to see it.
Appearances by TV and screen car
Then the club was off to Bakersfield for
buffs included Henry Winkler ( “ T he
a 3-day race.
Fonz ” ) and Erin Moran ( “ J oanie
thunderstorms, the weather stayed nice
Cunningham ” ) from the Happy Days
Outreach office. For questions please
and there was a good crowd at the
television series added to the excite-
contact Greg Visco, the President of
races. Many thanks to Legendary up-
“ C ”
this 60th Anniversary event!
a
“ O verhaulin ’ ”
look
(
to
http:// ).
When the car started up,
Despite the threat of
What a fun group of
Most recently, the club attended an event in Temecula. This show focused on hot-rods up to the year 1976. Since our raffle car is a 1970 Dodge Swinger, it fit right in. The crowd was huge, the people were friendly, and the club brought in over $1,000 in ticket sales. You too can win this car! Tickets are just $5 and can be purchased from various school organizations and the
Booster
Club,
gmvisco@sprint.blackberry.net
at
PAGE 4
PAWSITIVE REFLECTIONS
Davila (cont’d from page 1)
CSDR Instructional supervisors also had the opportunity to have lunch
A Fun FEAST!
with Dr. Davila. During that time the
By Mary Visco, ECE
topic discussed was “ The Future of
Ian Goldstein of FEAST invited
Deaf Education. ”
us to the special Ian's Pizzeria, and he taught us how to make our individual pizzas. We had so much fun. Ian is one of the best chefs we have ever met!
Re a d A c r o s s A m e r i c a By Elizabeth Foronda, Community Relations Coordinator On March 2, 2009 the Read Across
offered to read two books to Victoria
Elizabeth was an American Sign
America was held all over the United
Elementary School classes.
Language translator, and Ileana was a
States. Riverside Unified School dis-
of Dr. Seuss’
trict decided to honor this event by
crew selected two books written by Dr.
inviting members of the city such as
Seuss. They read “ Green Eggs and
the mayor, councilmen, and business
Ham ” and “ E yes Wide Shut. ” All
representatives to be storytellers for elementary children throughout the city of Riverside. CSDR Outreach was honored to be included in the project! Laurie Pietro, Ileana Dona, and Elizabeth Foronda
In honor
birthday the Outreach
three of the CSDR staff members went to four classrooms: Kindergarten, 2nd grade, 3rd grade, and 4th grade. Laurie
was
a
spoken
Spanish translator The students got the best of all three languages: ASL, English, and Spanish! They enjoyed themselves enormously, and they hoped that Victoria Elementary students enjoyed themselves as well!
English
translator ( from written English ) ,
MARCH/APRIL 2009
PAGE 5
We s t e r n S t at e s B a s ke t b a l l C l a s s i c By Mark Dorsey, WSBC Co-Chair During the month of January CSDR
The real tournament began on Thurs-
race against one another while eating
proudly hosted the 33rd Western States
day and lasted until Saturday evening.
burritos donated by Chipotles.
Basketball Classic and the 26th Western
All of the teams competed against one
thank you to Pole Position and
States Cheerleading Classic.
another in an effort to win the champi-
Chipotles!!!
event was a smashing success and
onship.
All the athletes played
You would not believe what else was
everyone left CSDR feeling like a
remarkably well and most of the games
noted as being a smashing success for
winner.
were exciting and full of action.
the WSBC~WSCC event.
This
We had seven schools in
Our
A big
Our very
attendance from the Western part of the
fans and participants reported that they
own FEAST teacher, Ian Goldstein,
United States.
hadn ’ t been to such an exciting event
provided first class gourmet food for our
CSDR, CSDF, Oregon School for the
in a long time.
referees, coaches, WSBC Staff and
Deaf, Washington School for the Deaf,
As for CSDR, we did very well in the
VIP ’ s.
tournament.
and met the standards of a 5 star
In attendance was
Utah School for the Deaf, Arizona School for the Deaf and Blind, Phoenix
The girls ’
basketball
The food was just excellent
team came in 4 place and the boys ’
restaurant.
basketball team came in 2nd place in a
enough for helping out by lending his
very exciting match on Saturday night.
wonderful skills and the students/staff
and
Another exciting highlight was that our
who worked with him to make this one
cheerleaders had a wonderful time
very own CSDR cheerleading team
of the highlights of the weekend.
during this exciting event. This event
came in first place which is the 7 win
The WSBC-WSCC event would not
began with everyone arriving on
under Coach Hausman ’ s rein.
have been successful if it had not been
Wednesday, January 28,th and an
In addition to this exciting event, our
for the outstanding team work and effort
athletes went to Pole Position in Corona
by everyone involved.
where they were able to ride go-karts
its ’ deepest gratitude and thanks to
and race against one another.
those who helped make this event truly
Day School for the Deaf and Marlton School. The
basketball
players
exciting opening ceremony. Athletes gathered in the gym where everyone got to meet one another and participate in different
competition-based games
using basketballs.
th
th
This
provided a fun-filled atmosphere where students were able to socialize and
memorable!
We can ’ t
thank Ian
CSDR gives
PAGE 6
PAWSITIVE REFLECTIONS
C S D R Re a ch e s O u t t o L o s A n g e l e s Pa r e n t s By Ileana Doña, Interim Family Education Coordinator Many of CSDR ’ s families live in the
pleased to hear Supt. Grossinger
were thrilled when Mal announced a
Los Angeles area and sometimes
explain
Western
unique communication feature they
these families feel left out of the loop
Association of Schools and Colleges
can use to access dorm Supervising
due to the distance and their inability
( W ASC ) accreditation process and
Counselors. Up until this time, it had
to attend events.
its importance to CSDR. One of the
been a tremendous challenge for a
families
more important features of the WASC
Spanish-speaking
gathered at the Greater Los Angeles
process is the benefit our high school
communicate
Advocacy on Deafness ( G LAD )
receives by obtaining a six-year
questions
Office to meet with Superintendent
accreditation when the process is
Supervising Counselors. With the
Grossinger. They were also able to
complete. He also addressed the
unique phone numbers provided, these
get helpful information from Paul
status of construction of the new
parents can now access any of our
Stuessy, staff member at GLAD. He
cottages. Parents understood the
dorm Supervising Counselors with the
presented
impact
and
confidence that there will be accurate,
information on interpreter services
strained state budget was having on
and timely communication. The parent
and resources available to the deaf.
the projects.
workshop in Los Angeles was a long-
These services are important for
meeting
parents to use during medical care
temporarily halted and Mal explained
appreciated by all who attended.
appointments
an
that plans were to resume the
Families are looking forward to the
important event or issue affects the
construction projects as soon as the
next visit from Superintendent Gross-
deaf student or his or her family.
state budget was back on track.
inger and other CSDR representatives.
Parents in attendance were also
Finally, Spanish-speaking parents
If you are interested in attending these
February
14,
But on Saturday, thirteen
parents
and
with
any
valuable
time
the
the
upcoming
weak
economy
At the time of this
construction
had
been
anticipated
of
parent
concerns our
forum,
deaf
and
or
to ask
dorm
greatly
meetings please contact Ileana Dona
A Fun Way to Remember Math By Pat Melvin, Elementary Instructor Students in Ms. Melvin ’ s fourth grade class are learning long division in math class. They are using a fun mnemonic device to help them remember the steps to use in long division to solve the problems.
the students remember the process of how to solve those problems and get their long division problems correct. The chart Ms. Melvin made for them to use looks like this:
The mnemonic they are
using is: Dead Mice Smell Bad. The D
Remembering How to Divide
in Dead stands for Divide. The M in
Dead - Divide ( / )
Mice stands for Multiply.
Mice - Multiply ( x )
The S in
Smells stands for Subtract. The B in Bad
stands
for
Bring
down.
Remembering this funny phrase helps
Smell - Subtract ( - ) Bad - Bring down ( ↓ )
at idona@csdr-cde.ca.gov
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2008
PAGE 7
C S D R S u p e r i n t e n d e n t N a m e d A d m i n i s t r at o r o f t h e Ye a r at C A L - E D C o n fe r e n c e By Cal-Ed Committee (Reprinted from CAL-ED with permission) Mal Grossinger ’ s positive energy and
dents ’
meetings where students
the future by offering more challenging
excitement fills the CSDR campus.
asked him to continue his visits every
courses. All of the above are signs of
Under Mal ’ s leadership, the CSDR
month.
Mal ’ s unselfish devotion of his time,
community is ready to respond to the challenge of providing quality education and training to students, professionals, and parents.
In his third year at the
school, Mal has developed close relationships with the administration, staff and parents in an effort to improve
Mal understands the challenges CSDR faces and has become part of the
Superintendent Mal Grossinger is living
to see how quality programs affect our
proof of a true leader who deserves this
children as they move through the
CAL-ED 2009 Administrative Award.
parent
infant
program
to
the
completion of high school.
create a positive reputation for CSDR
mined to be in tune with what students
within the community.
need, Mal hired curriculum specialist
excellent working relationship with parents and teachers—making everyone feel as though they are part of his team. Mal
increased
the
emphasis
on
communication and professionalism at CSDR.
Approximately
60
staff
members have taken sign language classes and the school has benefited from improved dress codes, greater use of technology, sharing of issues and/or concerns with supervisors, enforcement of a code of ethics, and improved communication with parents. Mal has made it clear that his goal for next year is to recruit more students, from both deaf and hearing families, bettering the increased enrollment that has already begun to happen. Mal has gone into the community to meet with Spanish-speaking families, giving them information about CSDR programs, and how those programs are accessible to them. He has attended resident stud-
and productivity to CSDR.
solution. Mal has made it his business
student achievement. He works hard to Mal has an
and his willingness to provide harmony
Deter-
to help raise academic standards in
PAGE 8
PAWSITIVE REFLECTIONS
P.E. Joins in Red Ribbon Week By Regan Anders, P.E. Teacher It was a busy month for the elementary
about global warming from a Power-
The students noticed that President
students in Physical Education class.
Point presentation.
Students were
Obama is in great shape, healthy, and
Activities included a “ Clean Up Day ”
taught how important it is to work
loves to exercise. Even with his busy
which represented one of the six pillars
toward living GREEN.
schedule, the President of the United
of Character Counts!—Responsibility.
The students also had an opportunity to
States still finds some time to exer-
The students were very serious about cleaning up the trash they found on the CSDR campus. They had just learned
learn about President Barack Obama from a presentation we did in the computer lab.
They watched President
Obama playing basketball with the senators and with some of the US troops in Iraq.
At first, the students
were puzzled about how this related to Physical Education, however, we asked them to look again and see if they could determine how this presentation was related to P.E.
C h e s s To u r n a m e n t By Staff Writer, Middle School The CSDR Middle School Chess
the game becomes an unfolding
Tournament is officially underway!
drama in which we all await to see
With over 60 students participat-
who will become the 2008-2009
ing, the competition this year is
Middle School Chess Champion!
fierce. Students are put to the test
Good Luck!!!
in the 2000 year old game that not only challenges their concentration, critical thinking, problem solving, strategic planning, and creativity, but is also FUN! None of this could be done without the help of the wonderful chess club sponsors and mentors, their best pawns forward, the pressure mounts and
cise. If he can find time to do fitness activities, WE can find time!
PAGE 9
PAWSITIVE REFLECTIONS
Special Olympics Bowling Tournament By Tina Andersen, SN Instructor On the weekend of February 6th
to determine the top score for Riverside
played against each other . No matter
Fremont sent down 24 students to
and the top score for Fremont. We all
how each student and
compete against our 17 students in a
enjoyed Pizza and soda and waited for
did at bowling, we all
Bowling Tournament. When Fremont
the results. Missy Matute from River-
lifetime friends! Each student left with
arrived the fun times began. How great
side was to challenge Charles Abrams
smiling faces and beautiful medals
it was seeing old friends. Everyone
from Fremont. We also had Peter
funded by CSDR Athletics. Oh, and
enjoyed a BBQ dinner together. On
Stecher, our very own Supervising
by the way, Missy did win by a land-
Saturday we arrived at Arlington lanes
Counselor, play against his peer, Mary
slide for students.
about
into
Mesa from Fremont. Susie Tousignant
squeaker to Derek. And Peter, well
teams. Each team played two games
from Riverside and Derek Johnson SRP
Peter needs to continue to practice
9:30
and
separated
counselor made good
Susie lost a
bowling. There's always next year in Fremont.
U n i ve r s i t y I n t e r n s at C S D R By Alyce Berard, Director of Instruction This year, CSDR has had interns
our Middle School received an intern
after school assistance to students
from
from Mc Daniel University in Mary-
including coaching, tutorial and other
land.
In March we will receive our
types of supervision. Many of our past
final intern for the year from National
interns have returned to CSDR as
Technical Institute for the Deaf, in
teachers.
New York.
encourage these types of partnerships
four
different
University
teacher-training programs throughout the United States. In the early fall, two interns were placed in our Elementary department from Cal State
University,
Fresno.
In
Several of our interns
CSDR will continue to
January, another intern joined the
reside in our dormitories for the dura-
with
elementary family from University of
tion of their internship. In exchange,
throughout the United States.
California, San Diego. In February,
they contribute ten or more hours of
Teacher
Training
programs
PAGE 10
PAWSITIVE REFLECTIONS
5th Annual CSDR Movie Night By Yoon Lee, TV Production Instructor Our CTE TV Production class will
This year, we will have three other
be hosting the Fifth Annual CSDR
high
Movie
14th
California School for the Deaf,
at 6:30 pm; 15th
Fremont; Madison High School in
( F riday ) at 6:30 pm; and May
San Diego, and Maryland School
16th
at 6:30 pm,
for the Deaf. Our five judges are:
an
Ed Waterstreet, Linda Bove, CJ
Night
( T hursday )
whic h
on
( Saturday ) inc l u des
May
A war ds
Ceremony with Judges. Warning! These movies are for 13- year-olds and above. Tickets are on sale in Yoon Leeยนs TV classroom, located in the Seeley
Jones,
schools
Bob
participating:
Hiltermann,
and
Michelina Fisher. We are excited about our Annual CSDR Movie Night, and we canยนt wait to see all of the entries.
building next to the library. Please be advised that tickets sold out quickly last year, so make sure that you purchase your tickets early.
K i n d e r g a r t e n C e l eb r at e s D r. S e u s s ! By Karen Shannon, Kindergarten Teacher
Very cute Hortons!
Yummy, green eggs & ham!
The students brought their favorite books to class.
PAGE 11
PAWSITIVE REFLECTIONS
Cheer Team Returns Home Champions By Stacey Hausman, Head Cheer Coach The Riverside Cheer Team competed
The CSDR team consisted of: Marco
them from performing like pros.
against 5 other deaf teams: Texas,
Duarte ( Sr. ) , PuaLei Ramos ( Jr. ) ,
addition, two of our members were
Maryland, Fremont, M.S.S.D., and
Marilyn Rivas
selected to the All-Star team: Marco
Indiana
( S o. ) , Artesia Harris
at
the
Clerc
Classic
( So. ) , Ian Vasquez ( S o. ) , and
Cheerleading Competition on Saturday,
Renee Atkinson ( Fr. ) .
January 18. The team had given up all
members have never been to a deaf
of their free time Wednesday through
competition before, but that did not stop
Friday to practice. In fact, they finished learning their dance Friday night. On Saturday, during competition, Riverside out-shined the competition with two awesome performances. No one could match their enthusiasm!
Their timing
was good, jumps beautiful, stunts successful, and tumbling was more advanced.
We were also the only
school to not fall out of a stunt.
“ M o o ” ch a s G r a c i a s By Tammy Bervel, Elementary Instructor "Moo"chas gracias to all of CSDR from Tammie Bervel' ’ s first grade classroom! With your help, we were able to raise over $400 to buy a cow and other milking animals for a family in Rwanda through the program Heifer International.
Principal Nanci and Lead Teacher Lori showed their "udder" support of the project by reading the story "Click, Clack, Moo"
to
the
entire
elementary
dept. Thanks to all for helping a family in Rwanda.
All 6 team
In
and Marilyn. Congratulations CSDR Cheer!
You have made Riverside
very proud!
PAGE 12
PAWSITIVE REFLECTIONS
A Different Kind of Team By Mitch Kurs, DAB Coach Our best Deaf Academic Bowl ( DAB )
different content areas: Language &
Last fall we competed in the Western
team worked hard to reach the number
Literature, Science, Nature, & Technol-
Academic Bowl League against five
one position this year. We had a sea-
ogy, Pop Culture & Sports, Mathemat-
other schools across the western
soned team of intelligent participants
ics, History & Government, Deaf Stud-
states through video phone.
including
ies, Fine Arts, and Geography.
Ryan Baldiviez
( second
year player ) , Jeremy Warshaw ( first
In February 2009, we participated in
Representing CSDR in the DAB was a
Gallaudet ’ s
huge challenge requiring a significant
against 15 other schools. The compe-
time commitment. The team practiced
tition was located at CSDF.
two times a week during the 45-minute
played matches against some of
lunch breaks. On Thursdays, the teams
these schools, and we won three
competed against CSDR teachers.
games.
Also, DAB team members attended a
strong teams and the competition was
The team was selected after 16 hopeful
weekend retreat with intensive training
very good and challenging.
applicants attempted try-outs.
and a session on speed reading.
year player ) , Richard Iancului ( first year player ) , Nicole Strom ( second year player ) , and Raymart Tinio ( first year player ) . This was a wonderful, supportive and passionate team- they exemplified what a team should be.
The
members selected for this year ’ s team were the top finalist during try-outs as they demonstrated their knowledge and strength in at least two categories of 9
Deaf Academic Bowl We
All of these schools had
Overall, our players have demon-
In addition, we competed against CSDR
strated a fantastic positive attitude
Administrators in front of a cheering
and are extremely motivated. CSDR
audience. We won the event!
is proud of its DAB team.
C S D R S e l e c t e d a s N at i o n a l G r a n t Re c i p i e n t By Staff Writer The National Youth Leadership Council ( N YLC ) recently sent out a request to schools across the United States offering to fund the top 10 plans for youth service events. The request coincides with the 21st Annual Global Youth Service Day, which is a 3-day event that engages youth throughout the world in assisting their communities through volunteer efforts. Schools were to submit detailed plans describing how the students would positively impact their own community.
CSDR submitted a proposal and was
Stay tuned for more information in
selected as one of the service plans
upcoming issues of the school news-
to be funded!
letter.
Even though CSDR was selected, the plans for the event remain top secret until the students reveal the project to the recipient. The CSDR youth group was granted $1,000 to provide this service. The school is very proud of the efforts of these students to make a difference in the life of a deaf person from their community.