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VOLUME 27 NUMBER 33
DM: Ramp could relieve fair traffic
Aug. 18, 2011
TPHS football ‘Kick Off’ dinner
BY CLAIRE HARLIN Staff Writer The Del Mar City Council could make plans within the next six months for a direct-access ramp from Interstate-5 to the fairgrounds, dependent on securing funding for a traffic and environmental analysis. Such a project would coincide with the already planned widening of I-5 to eight general purpose lanes, plus four managed lanes to accommodate the projected increase in traffic in the North Coast Corridor. “The time crunch is See RAMP, Page 15
How did 9/11 affect you? Most of our readers can vividly recall where they were on Sept. 11, 2001. As the decade anniversary of that world-changing event approaches, we are asking “How did 9/11 impact your life?” We invite you to submit an essay of not more than 300 words for possible publication in this newspaper and online. Entries can be sent to: editor@rsfreview. com. Please include a color photo of yourself, sent as a jpeg attachment. The deadline to submit is Aug. 26 and Sept. 1. ALSO: Is your group hosting any special programs in memory of the upcoming 10th anniversary of See 9-11, page 6
Melissa Brewster, Sophia Alsadek, Scot Brewster and Nina Detrow at the Torrey Pines High School Football program’s first Falcon Football Varsity “Kick Off” dinner held at the home of Sophia and Louay Alsadek. The event was underwritten by a group of parents so that all money will go directly to the football program. See more on page 11. Photo/Jon Clark PHOTO: JON CLARK
Thousands lack proof of whooping cough booster BY MARSHA SUTTON Senior Education Writer As students in the San Dieguito Union High School District prepare to return to school on Aug. 30, a new requirement for admittance has only been met by half the district’s students. Assembly Bill 354, signed into law September 2010, requires all incoming seventh- to 12th-grade students to show proof of having received a whooping cough booster shot (also called Tdap) by the
start of the 2011-2012 school year. Acceptable proof is a copy of immunization records or a note from the student’s doctor. Even though this news has been widely disseminated, only about 5,800 of the district’s approximately 12,000 students have submitted proof to date, said Rick Schmitt, SDUHSD’s associate superintendent of educational services. Although a message from schools notified parSee BOOSTER, Page 15
Plans proceed for new CV middle school BY MARSHA SUTTON Senior Education Writer A San Dieguito Union High School District Facilities task force has recommended that the district exercise its option to purchase land in Pacific Highlands Ranch adjacent to Canyon Crest Academy, for a new middle school, the district’s fifth, to accommodate 1,000 students. District data for the two existing middle schools in the southern half of the district show that, in October 2010, there were 1,469 students enrolled at Carmel Valley Middle School and 704 at Earl Warren Middle School. Preferred capacity is
1,000 at CVMS and 500 at EWMS. This puts the district over preferred capacity by 673 students. Long-range projections indicate that, without a third middle school, CVMS will hit enrollment of 1,675 and EWMS will see 803 students – nearly 1,000 students over capacity. The task force recommendation, based on housing projections showing continued development in Pacific Highlands Ranch and nearby communities, is to begin building the new middle school in four to five years. The initial opening See PLANS, Page 6
Solana Beach alters fee structure for toddler and preschool programs BY MARSHA SUTTON CONTRIBUTOR The Solana Beach School District (SBSD) raised fees for its Child Development Center at its Aug. 11 board meeting, for its toddler and preschool programs. Unchanged is the cost of programs for elementary school-age children, which includes before-school, after-school, minimum-day, holiday and summer care. To remain self-support-
ing, the district must increase CDC fees to counter rising costs, according to the board report, which estimated that the new fees will generate between $101,000 and $194,000 annually in additional income. SBSD superintendent Leslie Fausset said the old system was cumbersome because each family’s bills were calculated individually based on hourly and daily rates and each child’s ir-
regular drop-in hours. “We need to know resources for staffing, and too much flexibility becomes a problem,” Fausset said. “We needed to wipe the slate clean and find a new system that’s simpler.” The new system, she said, standardizes costs and streamlines accounting procedures by changing from a daily to a monthly fee structure, which was determined after comparing fees charged by other competiSee PROGRAMS, Page 6