Several Pioneer Valley High School FFA members recently attended the South Coast Region Chapter Officer Leadership Conference where they learned how to motivate and inspire others to reach their goals in life. The two-day event, which was held in Hollister, featured several workshops, keynote speakers, lip sync routines, and a dance. Nearly 300 FFA leaders […]
SHELLY CONE
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Lompoc teacher named Teacher of the Year
Longtime Lompoc High School drama teacher Sarah Barthel was named the 2016 Performing Arts Teacher of the Year for Santa Barbara County. The award is the first of its kind, and was created through a partnership between the Santa Barbara County Education Office and the Santa Barbara Bowl Foundation Education Outreach, which is dedicated to supporting performing arts in […]
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Santa Maria high school students join statewide earthquake drill
Central Coast residents are used to the occasional tiny rumble of an earthquake, or hearing—but not feeling—one that occurs off shore, but sometimes there’s a real heavy shaker, so schools throughout the state got some practice in what to do in the event of a big one. The Santa Maria Joint Union High School District […]
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Terrence Robbins
Fog draped heavy over the Cabrillo High School athletic field recently as senior Terrence Robbins finished a 70-minute run, beating his cross-country teammates by nearly a full lap. Running as a sport didn’t occur to him until junior high school, when his current coach, then-P.E. teacher Peter Anderson, suggested he consider it. “Truthfully, I had […]
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‘We have to live with the fear’: Despite efforts by the Santa Maria ICE office, undocumented immigrants remain afraid of deportation
Editor’s note: The last names of some of the people in this story have been omitted in order to protect their identity. It’s nearly 7 p.m. as Francesca, fresh off of work, pauses to speak about her experience living and working in Santa Maria illegally. Her long black hair is pulled back into a loose […]
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The Santa Maria Joint Union High School District co-hosts annual Opportunities Expo
The Santa Maria Joint Union High School District will co-host the eighth annual Opportunities Expo for students with disabilities and their parents living in Northern Santa Barbara and Southern San Luis Obispo counties on Thursday, Oct. 29. The free event, to be held from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial Community Center, 313 […]
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Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians donate Chromebooks to school
Two classrooms filled with tech-savvy students at College School District’s Santa Ynez Elementary were excited to receive 80 Chromebooks that were donated by the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians on Oct. 6. The donation is a portion of the 11th annual Chumash Charity Golf Classic’s proceeds, which will help satisfy the technology needs at […]
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Santa Maria High School not changing school sport uniforms
Officials at Santa Maria High School have denied rumors that the school’s getting rid of its mascot, Sammy Saint, and changing its football uniforms. Social media was abuzz with alumni concerned about the potential change, and a Change.org petition had collected nearly 1,700 signatures objecting to the rumored modifications. District public information officer Kenny Klein […]
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Mother and daughter from Orcutt raise money for St. Jude
An Orcutt mother-and-daughter team is undertaking a challenging journey to benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. For both members of the Santa Maria Joint Union High School District family, the 13.1 mile St. Jude Memphis Marathon will be personal. “You may see me struggle,’’ said Lori Cook, who works at the Santa Maria Joint Union […]
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Ceremony, scholarship honor students killed in Ventura car wreck June 22
Two fallen Pioneer Valley High School junior varsity basketball players will be memorialized on Saturday, Oct. 3, during a presentation at the school. The school will present the parents of Milinda Parra and Justin Walker, who were killed in a traffic wreck near Ventura on June 22, with their jerseys. A presentation for Parra’s parents […]
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Teachers from Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties get energy education training from Phillilps 66 and NEED
Phillips 66 and the National Energy Education Development Project (NEED) hosted an energy education workshop on Thursday, Sept. 24, for dozens of teachers from Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. At the workshop, a NEED energy education trainer, explained how to use experiments and research and analysis activities to make learning about the science […]
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Dwelling in the past
Maybe the Jedi Mind Trick can fix that
Dwelling on the past has kind of been a thing in our house lately. Most of this centers on how much things have changed—the economy, the educational system, the cost of living—but not all of it. Tired of hearing us reminisce about fond memories, my two oldest sons usually put Ron and me in check […]
