CSS Toolkit: Community Involvement
Melinda Johnson, CSS Outreach Consultant/Field Colleague, Foshay Learning Center, CA

California's CSS programs bring in an average of $180,000 in funds and resources to their schools. Specific examples will suggest ways to involve the community, including mentoring programs, and the benefits of developing relationships with local sponsors.

Strand: CSS Toolkit
Grade Level: K–12

Shining Star School–Academic Achievement
Yadhira Bravo, CSS Outreach Consultant, Diamond Elementary School; Dr. Raymond Isola, Principal; Andrea James, CSS Outreach Consultant, Sanchez Elementary School

Shining Star Schools are Comprehensive Student Support schools that scored well in this year's annual peer review and showed significant gains in academic improvement by meeting their API and AYP targets.

These Shining Star Schools present how they used the CSS strategies to make impressive gains in students' academic achievement.

Strand: Best Practices
Grade Level: K–6

Shining Star School–COST
Frances Contreras, Principal; Maria Saiz, CSS Outreach Consultant, Grace Thille Elementary School; Victor Leach, CSS Outreach Consultant, Pennycook Elementary School

Shining Star Schools are Comprehensive Student Support schools that scored well in this year's annual peer review and showed significant gains in academic improvement by meeting their API and AYP targets.

These Shining Star Schools present how they used the CSS strategies to coordinate state and federal programs and personnel services in a collaborative and integrated fashion to meet the needs of their students and their families.

Strand: Best Practices
Grade Level: K–6

Preventing Special Education Through Early Intervention Supplementary Reading
Debra Bradley, Superintendent; Cherisse Baatin, Principal; Gary Klor, Director of Special Education; Kathy Stratton, Resource Specialist, Sausalito Marin City Schools, CA

Preventing Special Education Through Early Intervention describes our district's effort to provide K-2 students with targeted reading intervention based on their assessed needs. We identify the students who may be at risk for reading failure and offer them a supplementary reading program that helps them succeed in their regular education classes. Our panel will provide participants with an overview of our Early Intervention program as well as specific recommendations and suggestions to help them replicate this model.

Strand: NEW!, Best Practices
Grade Level: K–2

Improving Educational Outcomes for Children in Out-of-Home Care: A Collaborative Effort
Dennis Leggett, Ed.D., East Region CWS Educational Liaison, Health and Human Services Agency Child Welfare Services, San Diego COE, CA; Karen Alexander, Homeless & Foster Youth Liaison, LMSV District Office, CA

In San Diego's East County, schools, child welfare, law enforcement, the courts, community collaboratives, and other agencies have collaborated to ensure that all East County children are surrounded by familiar people and places that encourage them to thrive. Efforts have focused on maintaining placement and school stability when child welfare or law enforcement has to intervene to protect a child. East Region's Child Welfare Services and the La Mesa–Spring Valley School District are currently involved with the Casey Family Program-sponsored “Breakthrough Series Collaborative on Improving Educational Continuity and School Stability for Children in Out-of-Home Care.” The presenters will discuss potentially promising strategies for improving practice in their education and child welfare systems that will ultimately support educational continuity and school stability for children in out-of-home care.

Strand: NEW!; Family and Community Collaboration; CASCWA
Grade Level: K–12

Working with English Language Learner Parents: Making a Positive Connection
Laura Guzman, Coordinator; Terry Baron, LRET Division, English Learner & Support Services, San Diego COE, CA

This session will address the specific needs of English learner parents and provide you with practical, proven strategies for making a solid connection with these families. Learn key strategies for supporting ELL parents in staying involved in their child's education. Laura and Terry will provide essential information for you to be aware of as you work with ELL parents and will answer your questions so that you can create a better home and school relationship.

Strand: NEW!; Family and Community Collaboration
Grade Level: K–8

Strategies That Build Rapport and Connections, and Motivate Students to Stay in School
Nancy Blackwell, Founder/Lead Trainer, Longevity of Success, CO

The number one concern of teachers is how to take care of the management aspects of being an instructor so that they can do what they came to do: teach. The skills offered in this program will positively influence the single most powerful leverage point in education: the teacher-student relationship. This workshop will be oriented to practical application and practice.

Strand: Instructional Strategies; VetORC
Grade Level: 9–12

Child Abuse Identification and Reporting
Craig Pierini, Education Programs Assistant, Foster Youth Services Program, CA

This presentation will include both identification of child abuse and neglect, along with reporting requirements of mandated reporters. In part, the information will clarify the reporting of child sexual abuse. Participants will be exposed to slides depicting child abuse victims in order to visually identify those incidents that are abusive, accidental, or the result of certain cultural practices. Participants will also be brought up-to-date on the reporting law.

Strand: NEW!, Safety and Violence Prevention; Foster Youth; Juvenile Detention; VetORC
Grade Level: K–12

We're All Doing Time: Reality Is for Those Who Can't Handle Drugs!
Victor La Cerva, MD, Consultant, Speaker & Writer, NM

This workshop explores talking with young people about alcohol and other drugs (AOD) in real ways. It contains an interactive process for clarifying our own values with regard to substance use, an explanation of adverse effects on the growing brain of AOD, information on the new “club drugs,” the stages of drug use, and what messages we most need to effectively communicate to

Strand: Safety and Violence Prevention; VetORC
Grade Level: 6–12

Energizers Galore–A Playshop for the Not-So-Serious
Tim Burns, Educator/Author, Learn for Life, NM

Ready for some full-on fun? Want to move, play, laugh, and learn? Then attend the Energizers Galore workshop. Come ready to move, play, and participate, and leave with activities you can use in any setting. The aim of the workshop is to provide you with activities you can use immediately for the benefit of students and colleagues.

Strand: Instructional Strategies; VetORC
Grade Level: K–12

They're Here, They're Queer, Now What?
Judy Chiasson, Program Coordinator, Office of Human Relations, Diversity, and Equity, LAUSD, CA

Increased visibility of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender individuals and concerns is causing schools to examine their practices in the nexus of legal, cultural, and community perspectives. School personnel often feel unsure of how to proceed. This workshop will examine the legal, ethical, and practical considerations of addressing sexual orientation and gender identity in public school settings.

Strand: NEW!, Best Practices; CASCWA; VetORC
Grade Level: K–12

Data to Reduce the Number of Dropouts
David Kopperud, Education Programs Consultant, CDE: Counseling, Student Support and Service-Learning Office, CA

The California Student Information System has developed unique student identification numbers that are matched with exit codes that identify students in the K-12 public school system who have dropped out of school for multiple reasons. David Kopperud, a consultant from the Califronia Department of Education, will discuss how this statewide database can be used to identfy dropouts and to bring children back to school. He will also discuss the use of the school truancy rates and truancy notifications to keep students in school.

Strand: Best Practices
Grade Level: K–12

So you want to be a Shining Star School....
Karin Smith, Administrator, and Ricardo Padilla, ORC/DPS, New Lexington Elementary School, El Monte City School District, El Monte, CA

How do you go about writing the high quality Year-End Report necessary to earn this honor? This session will provide simple steps to pulling together a high quality report as well as helping you to build a strong picture of your schoolwide Comprehensive Student Support program. It's easy. You can do it!

Strand: CSS Tookit; VetORC
Grade K–12