Did you know Wednesday was World Kindness Day?
The Anaheim Elementary School District did. In celebration, author Lisa Wiehebrink paid a visit to James Madison Elementary School with enough copies of her book, “Love Me Gently,” to give to every district student in transitional kindergarten through second grade.
The book, which was read aloud by Wiehebrink, captures the real-life challenges of adopting a puppy, teaching young readers about unconditional love, compassion and kindness to animals. And to emphasize those themes, Madison Elementary also brought in therapy dogs, courtesy of Pet Partners of Southern California.
We’re told the book donation was supported by The Angels Baseball Foundation and Wiehenbrink’s nonprofit Tails That Teach organization.
And here are some other school-related stories from the week ending Nov. 15:
- Seven Orange County campuses have earned a place among the top 500 of Newsweek magazine’s ranking of America’s Best STEM High Schools. Troy High in the Fullerton Joint Union High School District and Irvine’s University High both cracked the top 100.
- Orange County Superintendent Dr. Al Mijares was among a group of educators and philanthropists honored by the Orange County Hispanic Education Endowment Fund for helping increase the number of students on their path to college.
- Saying there’s more work to be done to upgrade facilities and repair aging infrastructure, Anaheim Union High School District officials will ask voters to approve a $398 million bond measure in March.
- The students and staff of Don Juan Avila Elementary School in Aliso Viejo honored family members and loved ones who served in the military during a special Veterans Day ceremony.
- Paying tributing to the Marine Corps’ 244th birthday, about 100 Orange High School Marine Corps JROTC cadets marched through downtown Orange on Friday and attended a luncheon at the Elks Lodge. The Orange County Register published a photo gallery.
- OCDE is launching a social media campaign to raise awareness about the upcoming U.S. Census count for local communities. The department will use its Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts to share one weekly fact about the U.S. Census through the spring, which when Orange County households will be asked to respond.
- The Laguna Beach High School community continues to mourn the loss of a 14-year-old student who died tragically following a car crash on Nov. 6.
The Laguna Beach Police Department plans add a second school resource officer to support local campuses. City staffers say the hire will give Laguna Beach Unified schools the lowest officer-to-student ratio in the county.
- Regardless of how the U.S. Supreme Court rules on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, the University of California says it will continue to offer mental health and legal services for undocumented students.
- Voters’ concerns over unfunded pension costs may have fueled resistance to a pair of school parcel taxes in affluent Marin County, according to a new report that suggests Marin could be a harbinger of shifting attitudes.
- A proposal to increase the number of high school math courses required for CSU admissions has been revised, pushing the potential implementation date back a year to 2027. CSU also says it would exempt students who attend schools with inadequate course offerings.
- New research suggests girls start out on equal footing with boys when it comes to math. Reported in the journal “Science of Learning,” the study of more than 100 children from ages 3 to 10 found indistinguishable patterns of brain activity in boys and girls who engaged in basic math tasks.
This is the part where we encourage you to keep up with local education news stories by bookmarking the OCDE Newsroom, subscribing for emailed updates or following us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.