Week Without Walls, Mr. Sutton

Mr. Sutton's "Careers in sports" for Week Without Walls 2009 at LPS - College Park.

Not all students will play professional sports, but that does not mean they won't work in professional sports; whether that is for a team, league, or an advertising or marketing agency that promotes a specific team. The opportunities are endless, but the competition to get into the field is steep.

This week was about the "product" (real world experience) and each student:
1) Researched a real job in sports and what is required in terms of qualifications.
2) Created a poster board with a road map indicating the individual steps necessary to obtaining the job. Students completed their high school planner on www.csumentor.edu and determined exactly which classes they need to complete in order to get into college. They also identified which colleges offer their needed degrees/majors and potential internships for their college years that will help them gain experience and a competitive edge.
3) Created a professional resume written for the specific job they researched.
4) Wrote a cover letter to the company hiring for the position they are pursuing.
5) And most importantly, students learned how to network and the importance of building contacts and relationships with professionals.
6) Developed their own business cards with their skills and contact information to pass out while networking.

Note: Three students have established contact with personnel at the Oakland Raiders office due to this class and are pursuing summer jobs and internships with the Raiders. Best of luck to them!

The Rules About Hats During Class, Manuel Perez

People have many excuses for not taking their hats during class time, but one of the most famous one is that they didn’t do their hair that morning. Well having a hat head is not as bad as having Mr. Sutton’s helmet head. Another lame excuse is that it is getting cold now a days. Wow, how can hats make you not be cold when they don’t even cover your ears, well that’s if you wear them like I do. Well there are hats with ear muffs. Like Josue Alvarado that bought the black one with white outlines. It’s funny that I say that they’re lame excuses when I myself use those excuses. Now what’s with these rules about wearing hats in leadership public schools college park. Mr. Reed says that there are different rules depending in what class you wear a hat in. Like for example, different teachers have different rules about wearing hats in their class. He also says that hats should already be off when you come in the building.

The Different LPS Schools, Lashanna Pegues

As everybody knows there are different Leadership Public Schools in California. There is a L.P.S. college park, there is a L.P.S. Richmond, there is a L.P.S. San Jose, and there is also a L.P.S. Hayward. L.P.S. focuses on academics and they make sure that all students that attend to those schools make it into college. So to have four schools in four different locations is a good thing. It will make sure that students in four different locations will at least graduate high schools because so many students are high school drop outs. I’m pretty sure that administration is hoping that they can do their best for the students. The L.P.S. schools are charter schools that are very determined to their students and I believe that most people that good there will have a good future.

Spring Break, genaro Moreno

Spring break, also known as March break, Study Week or Reading Week in some parts of Canada, is a week long recess from studying in early spring at universities and schools in the Unite States.

In the United States, spring break may range from the middle of March to later days in April, but many schools are out for at least one of the weeks in March. Some schools call this "March break" when it is a middle week in March. Other schools call it "spring recess." Many institutions in the United States coincide their spring break with Easter and Passover.

In New York most students have spring break in April. Spring break is good for students because students relax and also the students can be with their family more time. Different schools have spring break different weeks. Here at LPS College Park we have spring break the 13 of April we have one week off.

Also this break is not just for students this is also for teachers too so they can organize their work and also they can be with their family more time relive their stress from school and also when we come back to school we come with a lot of energy to finish all our work we missing or something that you need to finish.

The Fitness Class, Sandra Ruvalcaba

What is a fitness class? A fitness class is places were people work their body to get a better structure. At L.P.S College Park there is a class that helps girl with their body figure. Miss Teresa Ruvalcaba is in this fitness class because she wants to work on her feminine figure. This
class occurs in room 124(Multi-Purpose room) on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Miss Ruvalcaba informed us that 10 young ladies attend this class after school. From this fitness class, the ladies that attend expect to get a well developed body with stronger muscles. "All of the girls in the class get along really well. We are all so committed to our goal. “We share their supplies and help each other out," said Teresa Ruvalcaba. The fitness ladies will do whatever it takes to achieve their goals. Some of the exercises that the girls practice are: push-UPS and seat-UPS. The girls commented on the class being really hard, and it is also two hours long. But, they still love to stay. "In order to achieve our main goal, we have to be on a special diet and focus on the exercises so we can get the results we want," confessed Miss Ruvalcaba. The hardest activity the girls have had to do is run ten times up and down the stairs. The exercise was worth it. The girls are rarely absent to the class. It will be a long process in order to have a great body, so think twice and make sure that you are committed before you try it!

Stupid Rules

Don’t you just hate whenever a school changes our principle. Not just that but making all these stupid and unfair rules. I’ve heard a whole bunch of complaints from a bunch of people saying they live too far and they can’t help coming to school late. We have people living all the way next to Bayfair mall. Now you tell me if these stupid rules aren’t unfair. People get made fun of now and days because of their hair now this is because students take their hats off because of their fear of “demerits”. Now students will have to go to therapy when they are older because of demerits and whose fault is that, the new principles. Get too many demerits and you get a call home to your parents. Then when the kids go home they unexpectedly get a whooping and they’re officially grounded for two months so now tell me if this isn’t an unfair rule.

We Are Missing the Oink, Manuel Perez

I was watching animal planet last week and I noticed that dogs are trained not to crap where they live. I thought that humans would be smarter than dogs but Leadership Public Schools-College Park proved me wrong. It appears that Leadership Public Schools-College Park students are like pigs living on their own poo. Students make this school worse and worse with tagging, urinating on floors in bathrooms, and last but not least stuffing the desks with trash. I have seen molded leftovers fall out while cleaning, that’s disgusting man!

Dirtiness in school affects me by making me not concentrate. That makes me loose some major education. What kind of people can concentrate when u sniff up some evaporated urine? What would you do if you stick your hand in your desk and you touch a molded sandwich? Now instead of feeling fresh I feel rotten from the inside and the outside. I don’t know why rats haven’t come in our school, or have they? Rats would be happy living here because it like being at the dumpster. My nose is irritated by this disgusting smells! When ever I put my hand under the desk I feel like I’m putting my hand in the toilet. The only thing we are missing in this school is the huge and loud oink.

Tiffany White’s Visit for Career Day, Brittanie Williams

Leadership public schools invited a lot of people who worked for different interesting things for career day. One of the people they invited was a young lady by the name of Tiffany White. She went to Hayward University and studied the major of psychology Tiffany works for the George P. Scotlan Youth and Family Center because she wanted to work with children in Oakland, CA, where she’s from. Her job there is the director of Counseling Services. Ms. White works 40-45 hrs a week. She works with kids that are at crisis mode. The psychology background helped her understand more about her patients behavioral issues. She says what is most difficult about her job is she gives too much of herself. She feels that when she talks to her patients she tells them more about her than they need to know. She also said that she loves her job and can not imagine doing anything else. If there are any youth out there who feel you need to talk to her you can contact her at:
(510) 832-4544
Email: tiffwhite01@yahoo.com

Landscaping on Career Day, adler xiloj

Career day was on a Friday March 20th, 15 presenters came to LPS College park School. The reason for this day is to show all students different careers. Landscaping is a very important and hard job. Landscaping includes planting, irrigation, and concrete masonry. This job is hard because it requires some intelligence and to be strong. Not anybody can do this. Last week on Career day, Joshua a landscaper gave our school information about Landscaping and all its benefits. Joshua is young and earns a lot of money in this job. He believes that there is a lot of landscaping job that has to be done because many people don’t want to do things with their hands. Out of all of the other careers he was my favorite for a couple of reasons. My first reason is because he said and showed me many true things. One important phrase that I remember and admire is “great freedom equals great responsibility.” Joshua has faced many difficulties but he believes you should never quit. Joshua talked about the people on the corners waiting for somebody to take them to work. I agree with him, all of those people have all the skills to any job but because they don’t speak English they can’t get a good paying job. Joshua talked about how this job has many benefits to it. For example, how his company only plants organic plants. These plants come out with better taste than the non organic plants. Joshua’s favorite thing is when people compliment him for his delicious vegetables and fruits. To him planting organic plants is the best way to stay healthy and strong.

Oakland and the Hyphy Movement, Lashanna PeguesD

Oakland California is a city that has numerous names most of them are not good but one thing that Oakland is famous for is the “Hyphy Movement”. Hyphy is when a group of people teens or young adults are together and dance bay area dance; crump and “gig”. the hyphy movement is when it starts to go global. There are songs that are played such as: “tell me when to go “, “cup cake no fillin’” or “im shinin’” most likely sung by underground artist. Artist like E-40(that has gone mainstream) “the trunk boys” and “the pack” all are artist that contribute to the songs in the hyphy movement. All theses songs and artist have gone globe due to the hyphy movement. Teens in Oakland said that they are happy to be from the town that the hyphy movement has originated and glad to rep where they’re from when there out side of Oakland even though the bad history that outsiders have heard. So even though Oakland isn’t the best city in California the youth are glad to be from here as should the rest of the citizens because Oakland isn’t as bad as people say it is. I’ve been living in Oakland for fourteen years and not a single run in with danger. So for those outsiders next time you come to Oakland ask somebody.

College Park's New Year's Resolution, Jasmine Eubanks

In 2003 Leadership Public School -- College Park opened its doors as a small school, but now it's 2009 and a lot has changed for example, we have a new principal and new rules and procedures. We are excited that we have survived previous years and teachers and administrators.

We welcome new years -- the opportunity to turn a new leaf and grow towards adulthood. But, 2009 is a tough year for us to adapt to. Many students feel as if "a lot is being thrown at us this year." I am confident that we will adjust to the new leadership and thrive academically. After all, we survived at least eight years of schooling thus far.

A new year to Briana Williams means “a new number, not so much a new beginning because you can’t start over something that is already done. That is impossible. It’s a fresher start to change and do better.”

Not all students welcome or thrive with change. Ninth grader Danielle Straughton explained that a new year to her means she is going to stop caring about what others say. She is going to be herself and not change a thing. This is what New Year's resolutions are all about -- improving ourselves and our lives.

Roxana Hurtado's New Year’s resolution with regards to school and her future is “to pass the Cahsee, so I won’t have to take it over again.” Her resolution is different than others', because she is a 10th grader, but the grade doesn’t always determine the resolution.

The students feel that the new administration, which took effect in late December had a New Year's resolution too -- which was to throw a bunch of new rules at us. We are not sure if these rules will help or hurt our school, but what we do know is that 2010 will give us a clearer view of 2009.

Girl Attacked By a Dog, Genaro Moreno

Fort Worth, Texas -- A 3-year-old girl died after being attacked by her neighbor's Rottweiler. The neighbor said Friday the 17-year-old dog attacked the toddler after she climbed through a hole in the fence of her backyard and into an enclosure with the animal. The dog's owner turned the pet over to the city and was cooperating with authorities, said Keane Menifee, manager of the city's Animal Care and Control Division.

Menifee told the Fort Worth Star Telegram the animal's vaccinations were not current, and that the dog will likely be euthanised. This is a problem for the neighborhood because a lot of attacks by a dog were happened in this days and this need to stop like this girl who was kill by a dog.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)


Response:
There are stray dogs in East Oakland. People who have dogs need to have their dogs under control and away from the people outside in the streets. There are laws and fines that can be assigned if residents do not obey the law. This is a big problem in East Oakland, but we feel powerless to stop dog attacks. A fellow student, ninth grader Cameron Williams, was attacked and bitten in his face by a dog, which was off leash on a public street. Nothing will change until dog owners start acting responsibly.

Presidential Inauguration, Lasanna Pegues

This year is one of the most important years for America. It is the month that Barack Obama will finally be titled President of the United States. This is the first time that America has voted an African American president.

Students at College Park are excited to be led by an African American president. Yelling and screaming came from all classes when the news informed us that on January 22,2009 a black will take office. There were many Barack Obama skeptics. They are entitled to their opinion, but I for one am happy to see that a America has had enough trust in a African American to lead us. I am excited to see what President Obama will do while in office.

Everybody Has Secrets, Geraldine Ramirez

Victoria has her Secrets (excuse the pun Victoria Secrets) so do we. Students at LPS -- College Park have a lot of secrets, as do all people. This came to life for the students who attended the play, “Secrets,” on December 1st, 2008 on the Castlemont campus.

The play was about how teenagers have a lot of secrets that affect their lives. Eddy was playing a roll of a teenage boy who was going out with a lot of girls. Also, he was having a lot of sex with girls without protection, this caused Eddy to become HIV positive.

Juana Reyes, grade nine, said, “I’m going to check myself!” This is something everybody in the world has to do because this it's their life. HIV is something that every teenager must watch out for if he or she is sexual active.

Teen should not feel embarrassed for having HIV. This disease will not make you weak it’s going to make you stronger and love life more.

One of my family members has HIV and I’m very proud of him because he doesn’t give up on life. He tries and tries to be better each day and I thank God for letting him live.

Teens don’t feel bad, if you know you have HIV tell someone because we only have one life and think about the people that love you. Secrets are only yours and you have to realize that your life is more important than everything else. Your happiness and health should not be your private secret.

The Youth Uprising, Brittanie Williams

The Youth Uprising is a youth center where younger people, ranging in age from 13 to 24, can discover and polish their talents. The center is located on MacArthur at 87th Street in Oakland. The goal of the center is to help students and youth stay off the streets and to find a career or realize what they want to be in life.

You can discover who you are at Youth Uprising. The center offers activities, such as theater, music production, dance classes, and much more. These activities serve allow youth to entertain themselves rather than find themselves in violent situations in the neighborhood.

The most favorite activities at Youth Uprising are raping & singing, dancing, and recently the center started a drama class. The music studio is state-of-the-art.

Youth that attend these activities are improving their opportunities in the future. The alternative in neighborhood results in jail and death for an alarming number of local youth. The activities would get you further in life to be successful.

If you are interested in learning more about Youth Uprising, you can visit the center at:

Youth UpRising
8711 MacArthur Blvd.
Oakland, California 94605
Phone: 510-777-9909
Fax: 510-777-9949
http://youthuprising.org/center.htm

A New Year. A New Hope, Sandra Ruvalcaba

This year is one of the most important years for America. Even though January just past, it's still fresh in our minds and is one of the most important months of 2009. It is the month that President Barack Obama became the first African American president.

College Park students were excited to see an African American president, because the students are minorities themselves. President Obama represents an opportunity for minorities to have a voice in America.

There was yelling and screaming coming from all classes when the news released the information that on January 22,2009 a black will take office. There were many comments said against Barack Obama, but those were not agreed with by the students.

As a Latina, I am happy to see that a America has had enough trust in a African American become the president. I am excited to see what he does while in the White House.

The Switch, Lashanna Pegues

Here at College Park we have a newspaper and blog staffs. Over the past couple of months half of the class worked on the newspaper and the other half worked on the school blog. Newspaper writing does not allow opinion -- it's all about the facts -- but bloggers can be more personal with the reader. It's a completely different way of writing and all the journalists need to adapt to this.

Bloggers write their feelings. Newspaper journalists write the facts. This is what we had to adapt to when we returned from winter. As journalists in the midst of this "switch" we have to come leave our “comfort zone” and write to you in a new way.

Journalism is tough.

Food Celebration at LPS

Photographer: Jasmine Eubanks





"Food brings people together and can make a whole community into one person,” stated 12th grader Michelle Banks. Students dressed up for this special potluck, which was hosted in Mr. Day’s Block 3 class. The goal was to celebrate the diversity at College Park. “Different people from different backgrounds all gather together in room103 and brought a special dish to share with other,” said Stacy Wilson, a parent.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re black, white, mexican or even chinese, because you always welcome in my community,” continued Wilson. The bottom line is most people like to eat and each culture has different dishes to represent who they are. Food is a great way to celebrate each other.

“Since the day you are born until the day you die food is always going to bring you together,” said Mr. Day.


By: Geraldine Ramirez