Presented by the East County Business-Education Alliance, the Contra Costa Economic Partnership, and the Antioch Unified School District: “Building a High Performing Community through High Performing Schools” on Tuesday, January 11 from 6:30 pm – 8:45 pm in the Deer Valley High School Theater, 4700 Lone Tree Way.

Free and open to the public, the goal for the forum is to highlight how Antioch Unified is transforming its schools to provide a more rigorous and relevant education, through educational pathways that prepare every student with 21^st century skills for success in college, career, and life.

It will feature Dr. Willard Daggett, a renowned educational leader, who will provide an overview of the components found in some of America’s highest performing and most rapidly improving schools, and a distinguished panel, describing how the community can support school transformation and improved student success.

For more information contact Iris Archuleta, President of Emerald Consulting at either 925-755-9291 or
iris@emeraldconsulting.com. www.emeraldconsulting.com.

Superintendent Don Gill gives oath of office to Gary Hack as his wife Diana holds the Bible.

The two newest school board members, known as Trustees, were given their oaths of office, last Wednesday night and took their seats at the dais, and soon created a new majority with their first major decision of who would become Board President.

Retired teacher and former teacher’s union president Gary Hack, who was the top vote-getter in the November election was given the oath by School District Superintendent Don Gill, with his wife Diana holding the Bible, by his side and mortgage consultant and former Antioch High School staffer Joy Motts was sworn in by Councilwoman Mary Rocha, who is a former school board member. Joy’s brother Kerry held the Bible for her during the ceremony.

Councilwoman Rocha pointed out to the audience that Mott’s mother, also named Joy, who served on the school board in the 1960’s and 70’s, said her daughter would take her place on the board one day.

“I want to thank everybody and my family who had to stand there and tolerate me during the campaign,” Motts stated. “I am truly honored and look forward to the next four years and the challenges ahead.”

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Newly elected Antioch School Board Trustees Gary Hack and Joy Motts will be given their oaths of office, tonight at an earlier than normal board meeting. The meeting will begin at 5 p.m. for the ceremonies followed by a brief reception, according to board President Claire Smith. The board will say farewell to outgoing trustee Teri Lynn Shaw, who was not reelected, last month.

The board will then go into closed session at 5:45 p.m. followed by its regular meeting beginning at 7 pm.

The meetings of the school board are held in the chambers at the district offices, 710 G Street, in historic downtown Rivertown.

To see the meeting agenda, visit www.antioch.k12.ca.us.

AUSD Superintendent Don Gill speaking at a forum entitled "The New Economy: Changing the Way Education Works."

The following are Antioch Unified School District Superintendent Don Gill’s opening remarks at the East County Business/Education Roundtable Luncheon on Friday at Lone Tree Event Center. He discussed the effectiveness of the district’s learning academies, which include Dozier-Libbey Medical High School, Deer Valley Law Academy, Delta Academy for the Performing Arts and the Academy of Engineering and Designing a Green Environment. The deadline to apply for enrollment in an academy is Dec. 10 at the school district office.

If you look at the film “Did You Know,” it’s sort of shocking to realize the extent of energy and resources that are put into education around the world on a global scale. I had a chance to have been not long ago with a group of international educational leaders through a Youth Intervention Network dinner. It was startling to hear from them first-hand the amount of resources, economic and human resources that are invested in education.

They look at education reform on a long-term basis. They are not looking at it as we do with 2-, 3-, 5-year bites of time where our funding is so cyclical and so tumultuous. You look at the sheer number of students in India. 25% of their students are honor students, and they outnumber the entire student population of our country. It’s a little bit startling.

Look at kids today. Go to a restaurant or a movie, watch them interact with technology. You will see kids involved in technology, able to multitask five different ways. Kids learn differently and are learning around the clock. So looking at school as a separate activity that happens at school hours and all of a sudden it stops at the end of the school day, is not a realistic look at education today.

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