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From the El Cerrito Patch:
Essays Win Scholarships for Two El Cerrito High Seniors
Based on an essay competition, two El Cerrito High students received scholarships from the Chamber of Commerce Wednesday. West County schools superintendent Bruce Harter also spoke at the chamber luncheon.
Two El Cerrito High School seniors, Adriana Valdez and Brian Seegers, were awarded scholarships from the El Cerrito Chamber of Commerce, May 16, 2012. Top photo (from left) Mayor Bill Jones, Adriana, her parents Jose Valdez and Maria Lopez, and schools Superintendent Bruce Harter. Bottom photo has Seegers next to Jones and his mother, Sue Yeazel, next to Harter
El Cerrito Mayor Bill Jones did the honors Wednesday at the Mira VistaGolf and Country Club, handing over checks to the two El Cerrito High School seniors whose essays won the annual Chamber of Commerce scholarship competition. The winners of the $500 scholarships – made possible by the chamber's annual "Taste of El Cerrito" fundraiser – were Brian Seegers of Kensington and Adriana Valdez of
El Cerrito.
On the same luncheon program, the superintendent of the West Contra Costa Unified School District, Bruce Harter, delivered an update on local public schools, reporting that enrollment has increased and naming the benefits of Measure K, a parcel tax measure for the schools on the June 5 ballot. Valdez plans to attend UC Berkeley and major in environmental science. She's been active in the Upward Bound program and in the Interact Club at El Cerrito High. Seegers, who intends to attend the University of Wisconsin at Madison, said he's interested in engineering and business. An Eagle Scout, he also participated on the school mountain-bike team and marching band. Last year, he was a delegate at California Boys State. Last year's winners
were Amy Chou and Rebecca Phuong. Harter's update included much of the information he has provided previously, including at his appearances at El Cerrito City Council meetings. He said enrollment has increased this year, reaching 29,400, and said he expected it to remain stable and grow a bit over the next decade. He also said the district plans to rid itself of a 21-year-old burden by paying off a state loan on May 29, freeing up $1.4 million a year in debt payments and liberating the district from its state trustee and state oversight. He also stressed the toll taken by the $40 million in budget cuts forced on the district in recent years and reiterated the potential support that could be received from Measure K, the June 5 ballot measure that would extend and increase the parcel tax for West County schools. The funding from
the measure would improve class sizes, restore art and music programs and protect core academic programs and college-bound services and programs, he said. |
