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Boxholder Rancho Santa Fe CA 92067
SECTION B
ECRWSS
Volume 31 Number 13
Providing The Ranch with Three Decades of Quality Journalism
PRESORTED STANDARD U.S. POSTAGE PAID RSF, CA PERMIT 26
Dec. 15, 2011
Later start day for RSF School proposed BY KAREN BILLING Rancho Santa Fe School District trustee Todd Frank would like to explore the possibility of starting every day at 9:15 a.m., as the school does every Monday, instead of at 8 a.m., which he said can be difficult for his family. RSF School District has one of the longest school days in the county with a schedule of 8 a.m. to 3 p.m, compared to neighboring Del Mar Union School District, which runs 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., and the Solana Beach School District, where the times vary by school (for example, Solana Santa Fe is 8:35 a.m, to 2:38 p.m., Solana Pacific in Carmel Valley is 8:45 a.m. to 2:53 p.m.). Frank said a school day
Kindergartner Elijah Montes uses the SMART Board in Lauren Stevenson’s classroom. Photo/Lauren Stevenson
SMART Boards a hit with students and teachers at RSF School BY KAREN BILLING The Rancho Santa Fe School District is seeing a good return on its $350,000 investment of putting SMART Boards in every classroom at R. Roger Rowe School, according to Assistant Superintendent Cindy Schaub. The interactive digital whiteboard, operated by touch, is basically a giant computer screen in the front of the classroom, allowing teachers to write in digital ink, save work and create a more fun, engaging curriculum, according to Schaub. “When we undertook this massive installation of SMART Boards it was a leap of faith,” Schaub said. “It was up to the teachers to make it powerful.” Schaub said they didn’t want them to become a “glorified white board” or just a lectern that teachers worked from. She has been pleased that in their first year, even the teachers who were most hesitant to use the new technology have come around and are using their SMART Boards to enliven their classrooms. At the Dec. 8 Rancho Santa Fe School board meeting, Schaub brought in a couple of teachers who are taking full advantage of the new technology. During Joy Freismuth’s morning routine in her first grade class, students are “coming up constantly” to be a part of the lesson. Classroom attendance or turning in homework is done by students dragging the snowflake with their name on it into the air on the board (Freismuth changes the themes monthly). They fill in what day it is and can press a link to sign along with a song about the days of the week. They graph the weather and count money by dragging it out of a piggy bank graphic and marking down how much See BOARDS, page 30
TIS THE SEASON — The holidays are in full swing in RSF with a number of festive events taking place. (Above) Annie, Katherine Jane, Finn-Erik, Anders, and Lars Mellander enjoy Santa’s recent visit to the RSF Golf Club. (Right) The RSF Library held its 21st Annual Christmas Tea event where guests also decorated trees, wreaths and more. For additional photos from these and other events, see inside. Photos/Jon Clark
See START, page 30
Del Mar moves forward with creation of More information on rules development vision for fairgrounds needed from state, fair board says BY CLAIRE HARLIN BY JOE TASH The Del Mar Fair Board is asking state officials to provide more information about the rules regarding buy-backs of employee leave, in the wake of a state audit that said such buybacks for fairgrounds employees were improper. At its monthly meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 13, the board voted unanimously to send a letter to Ron Shackleford, audit chief for the California Department of Food and Agriculture, the agency that is-
sued the audit report last month. The report noted that the district allowed management and rank-and-file workers to cash out nearly $600,000 worth of leave time between 2005 and the beginning of 2011, which it said was a violation of state personnel rules. The state-owned fairgrounds is operated by the 22nd District Agricultural Association, which in turn is overseen by a board of directors whose members are ap-
EDITOR@DELMARTIMES.NET Stressing the importance of both public participation and the input of regional stakeholders, the Del Mar City Council voted on Dec. 12 to move forward with the drafting of amendments to the city’s long-term community plans, which would outline goals and development parameters for the Del Mar Fairgrounds. The city’s Master Plan includes little about the future of the fairgrounds, as regional or city control of the stateowned asset was considered unlikely when it was last revised in the 1970s. But if Del Mar pursues its own Local Coastal Program Amendment (LCPA) and the California Coastal Commission (CCC) — the final authority on development projects — approves it, then the LCPA would become the standard used by the CCC in its review process. The set of amendments will also include modifications to the city’s zoning code.
See STATE page 30
Happy Holidays from
See VISION, page 22
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