This news is just outrageous! Now immigrant adults are getting a free public school education at the expense of the taxpayer. I wonder how many of these are illegal aliens. But of course there will be no data on that. I am going to do some more research into this issue. This article is the first I've heard about my tax dollars being spent to educate adults. I know I did not vote to allow this to happen.
Posted on Mon, Sep. 26, 2005
`I take life more seriously' By Larry Slonaker Mercury News
700 OLDER STUDENTS EDUCATED AT TWO SAN JOSE CHARTER SCHOOLS
San Juana Moreno is 44. She's also a student at a San Jose charter high school.
Some people think she is too old to be receiving a free, publicly funded education -- especially at a time when school districts throughout California are complaining they don't have the money to educate even the traditional range of students.
But she says her age actually enhances her learning. ``I take life more seriously than younger people,'' said Moreno, who attends Escuela Popular charter school.
Moreno is one of almost 700 students over the age of 19 attending two San Jose charter schools. Statewide, the number of older students in charters has grown to an astonishing number -- nearly 10,000 over the age of 29. The age of some of these students -- late 20s, 30s, even their 40s -- has aroused concerns that the charters are bringing in students and state money far beyond their intended scope.
``We just don't think it's a correct appropriation'' of school funds, said Adonai Mack, a charter school specialist with the California Department of Education.
Charter schools, first authorized in California in the early 1990s, were designed to create schools that have greater flexibility and fewer regulations than traditional schools. For every high school student, a charter school usually receives about $5,500 from the state.
Almost all of California's traditional high schools take students only up to age 18 or 19. Assemblywoman Lois Wolk, D-Vacaville, introduced a bill this summer putting added accountability on charter schools, including a CDE request to cap student ages at 29.
But the question arose of whether even that age is too high. The age-cap language was removed from the bill to give interested parties time to resolve that question, and the issue is expected to be reintroduced next year.
``It was never really the intent'' of the charter program to serve students that old, said Lisa Ramer of Wolk's office. ``To use our scarce K-12 resources'' for adults is ``not a good use of funds.''
But charter school advocates argue the funds are well-spent. ``They're doing great work in dropout recovery,'' said Gary Larson of the California Charter Schools Association. ``A lot of these programs have the potential of catching those students and getting them back on track.''
The San Jose Conservation Corps charter, which has about 120 students over 19, combines an academic program with vocational training. If the students can become working members of society, says school chief Robert Hennessy, everyone benefits. ``The bigger cost would be if these kids go to prison. That would cost the taxpayers a lot more.''
He complains proposals like the age cap take away charters' ability to innovate. ``Let charter schools be charter schools,'' he said. ``That's why we were created.''
Like Hennessy's school, Escuela Popular is heavily Latino. The school has two programs, one for students under age 19, one for those over. About 98 percent of the over-19 students are still learning English, said Executive Director Patricia Reguerin. ``We have students who otherwise just would not attend school.''
She discounts the alternatives. Community colleges, she says, are ``very expensive,'' and adult learning centers have long waiting lists.
Escuela Popular also operates an elementary school charter, and many of its adult students have children on the elementary school campus.
``Escuela Popular is a family learning center,'' where parents who are students become role models for their children, Reguerin said.
The high school offers morning and evening sessions, and students are expected to attend at least six periods a day. Classes are conducted in cramped quarters at the Center for Training and Career building in East San Jose.
Last week, Susana Luna sat in a stuffy upstairs room for her class on U.S. history. The subject of the day was the French and Indian War of the mid-1700s. On the board were vocabulary words such as ally, cede, militia and revolution. Luna, 34, eagerly volunteered to answer a question on why both France and England were so interested in controlling the Ohio River Valley in that era.
Outside of class, she expressed her interest in learning to speak English better. She has four children in school. ``They asked me questions about their homework, and every day I would say, `I don't know.' '' Now, because her 15-year-old daughter takes some of the same classes at her own school, ``We do our homework together.''
The school's graduation requirements are the same as any East Side Union high school. The district chartered both Escuela Popular and the Conservation Corps.
The latter school graduated 63 students last year. Escuela Popular did not fare as well, with 13 students graduating.
``It's difficult for some to continue'' in school because of child-care and work issues, Reguerin said.
The school's reporting of data, on issues such as test scores and number of qualified teachers, has surfaced as a problem with the administration at East Side. The district sent a letter to the state earlier this year noting some data collection has been insufficient. East Side then worked with the school to set up a series of benchmarks for data collection, said board president J. Manuel Herrera.
``They're progressing,'' he said.
Even Herrera was surprised to hear the school has taken in so many older students. The students, however, seem to take their role completely in stride. ``You're never too old to learn,'' Luna said.
Monday, September 26, 2005
Thursday, September 22, 2005
Amnesty: Why It’s Bad for California Today
by Ginger Urp
Illegal immigration is out of control. Some studies estimate that there are between 12 million and 20 million people here illegally with many more arriving each day. Most Americans who know that illegal immigration is a problem are against amnesty bills. We’ve seen a dramatic increase in immigrant population since the amnesty in 1986. The president wants to implement a guest-worker program (which is really a fancy name for amnesty). Illegal aliens know if they just wait here long enough, they’ll be given citizenship one way or another.
California's nearly 3 million illegal immigrants cost taxpayers nearly $9 billion each year.Let’s look at what that money is being spent on.
California hospitals are in financial trouble, and many have had to close. In 1994, California citizens voted against using tax money to pay for health care for illegal immigrants. An activist judge overturned Prop 187 in 1999. In the last 10 years, 60 emergency rooms in California have been forced to close. Hospitals have had to make cuts in staff and services in order to keep from closing. Hospitals lost $390 million in 2001 in uncompensated care for illegal aliens. That figure could now be around $1.4 billion.
California schools have become some of the worst in the nation since a Supreme Court decision in 1982 gave any child in America a free education. Our schools are becoming overcrowded and unsafe. California spends approximately $7 billion annually on educating illegal aliens and children of illegal aliens grades K-12. Much money is spent on special programs and materials to help these children learn English. 25% of the students in Santa Clara County are enrolled as English learners. Because these children live in poverty, their families receive supplementary state and county services. Gang activity has also increased in districts with high immigrant populations.
Most of the illegal immigrants who come to the United States seeking work, are low skilled workers. Many get paid in cash under the table ultimately driving down wages. The low skilled American worker and teens must now compete with illegal aliens for jobs. The small amount of tax revenue from illegal workers who do pay into the system is not nearly enough to cover the huge bill that has incurred.
Many lawmakers are not protecting the American people and actually want to reward illegal immigrants. California’s own Gil Cedillo pushed to reward illegal aliens with driver’s licenses, opening the door to more services illegal aliens could receive. Representative Mike Honda is a cosponsor of H.R. 2330 which is a massive guest-worker amnesty. This would allow people who have broken our laws by entering the country to get visas with only a $2000 fine and exemption for their immediate family members. Mr. Honda voted several times against using the military to secure the border. He also voted in favor of sanctuary policies which would prohibit law enforcement and public officials from asking about or reporting an individual’s status. Zoe Lofgren is another local representative who wants to reward illegal aliens. Do you know where your rep stands?
by Ginger Urp
Illegal immigration is out of control. Some studies estimate that there are between 12 million and 20 million people here illegally with many more arriving each day. Most Americans who know that illegal immigration is a problem are against amnesty bills. We’ve seen a dramatic increase in immigrant population since the amnesty in 1986. The president wants to implement a guest-worker program (which is really a fancy name for amnesty). Illegal aliens know if they just wait here long enough, they’ll be given citizenship one way or another.
California's nearly 3 million illegal immigrants cost taxpayers nearly $9 billion each year.Let’s look at what that money is being spent on.
California hospitals are in financial trouble, and many have had to close. In 1994, California citizens voted against using tax money to pay for health care for illegal immigrants. An activist judge overturned Prop 187 in 1999. In the last 10 years, 60 emergency rooms in California have been forced to close. Hospitals have had to make cuts in staff and services in order to keep from closing. Hospitals lost $390 million in 2001 in uncompensated care for illegal aliens. That figure could now be around $1.4 billion.
California schools have become some of the worst in the nation since a Supreme Court decision in 1982 gave any child in America a free education. Our schools are becoming overcrowded and unsafe. California spends approximately $7 billion annually on educating illegal aliens and children of illegal aliens grades K-12. Much money is spent on special programs and materials to help these children learn English. 25% of the students in Santa Clara County are enrolled as English learners. Because these children live in poverty, their families receive supplementary state and county services. Gang activity has also increased in districts with high immigrant populations.
Most of the illegal immigrants who come to the United States seeking work, are low skilled workers. Many get paid in cash under the table ultimately driving down wages. The low skilled American worker and teens must now compete with illegal aliens for jobs. The small amount of tax revenue from illegal workers who do pay into the system is not nearly enough to cover the huge bill that has incurred.
Many lawmakers are not protecting the American people and actually want to reward illegal immigrants. California’s own Gil Cedillo pushed to reward illegal aliens with driver’s licenses, opening the door to more services illegal aliens could receive. Representative Mike Honda is a cosponsor of H.R. 2330 which is a massive guest-worker amnesty. This would allow people who have broken our laws by entering the country to get visas with only a $2000 fine and exemption for their immediate family members. Mr. Honda voted several times against using the military to secure the border. He also voted in favor of sanctuary policies which would prohibit law enforcement and public officials from asking about or reporting an individual’s status. Zoe Lofgren is another local representative who wants to reward illegal aliens. Do you know where your rep stands?
Friday, September 16, 2005
Why was this guy in our country????
Posted on Fri, Sep. 16, 2005
Attacker facing felony counts DAY LABORER, 23, WIELDED MACHETE
By Sean Webby San Jose Mercury News
A day laborer shot by a Santa Clara sheriff's deputy Wednesday after attacking three people with a machete in Los Altos Hills will be facing several major felonies when he regains consciousness, officials said Thursday. More than 24 hours after the attacks, sheriff's investigators identified the man as 23-year-old Gerardo Casillas-Rodrigues.
Investigator said he had a previous arrest in San Diego on an immigration violation and has been detained at the border several times. But they have no found no record of a criminal history in the Bay Area or learned where he was living. Thursday, Casillas-Rodrigues remained under sedation after surgery at a local hospital police declined to identify.
Officials also released the identify of the officer who shot the suspect twice in the abdomen and once in the forearm. Sgt. William Tait, 48, who has been on the force for 26 years, will go on a standard administrative leave for a week, pending a departmental review of the shooting. He has no previous record of using deadly force, according to Lt. Luther Pugh of the sheriff's department.
Officers are legally allowed to use deadly force to protect their own lives or someone else's. In this case, the suspect reportedly advanced on Tait with the machete. ``This is certainly a case where the officer employed necessary force to protect himself,'' Pugh said.
The bizarre and bloody spree that began around 10:45 a.m. was sparked by a dispute over pay between the suspect and a co-worker who were on a landscaping job, according to Pugh.
Using a machete he may have found in a neighboring yard, Casillas-Rodrigues allegedly lopped off part of the co-worker's ear, slashed his forearm to the bone and almost severed a finger. Co-workers rushed the victim to a hospital, where he was recovering.
Meanwhile, Casillas-Rodrigues went to a nearby home and attacked an 80-year-old woman, cutting her head and bruising her until her son chased him away with a pellet gun. The widow was treated at a hospital and then released. The attacker then wandered down the street, taking swipes at passersby -- managing to strike at least one woman on the behind. She was not badly injured.
Finally Casillas-Rodrigues was confronted by a phalanx of police, who asked local construction workers to help translate their calls for him to surrender. The man -- described by witnesses as glassy-eyed and seemingly high or drunk -- did not respond, Pugh said. Finally, about 11:15 a.m., police cornered Casillas-Rodrigues, pepper-sprayed him, then shot him three times when he moved toward an officer. Pugh said only Tait fired his weapon.
Dave Tomkins, a deputy district attorney whose job it is to oversee officer-involved shootings, said he did not know what set the man off on his violent spree.
``Normal people who aren't high and not mentally ill normally comply with police,'' Tomkins said. ``Even anti-social types don't take on cops with guns.''
Posted on Fri, Sep. 16, 2005
Attacker facing felony counts DAY LABORER, 23, WIELDED MACHETE
By Sean Webby San Jose Mercury News
A day laborer shot by a Santa Clara sheriff's deputy Wednesday after attacking three people with a machete in Los Altos Hills will be facing several major felonies when he regains consciousness, officials said Thursday. More than 24 hours after the attacks, sheriff's investigators identified the man as 23-year-old Gerardo Casillas-Rodrigues.
Investigator said he had a previous arrest in San Diego on an immigration violation and has been detained at the border several times. But they have no found no record of a criminal history in the Bay Area or learned where he was living. Thursday, Casillas-Rodrigues remained under sedation after surgery at a local hospital police declined to identify.
Officials also released the identify of the officer who shot the suspect twice in the abdomen and once in the forearm. Sgt. William Tait, 48, who has been on the force for 26 years, will go on a standard administrative leave for a week, pending a departmental review of the shooting. He has no previous record of using deadly force, according to Lt. Luther Pugh of the sheriff's department.
Officers are legally allowed to use deadly force to protect their own lives or someone else's. In this case, the suspect reportedly advanced on Tait with the machete. ``This is certainly a case where the officer employed necessary force to protect himself,'' Pugh said.
The bizarre and bloody spree that began around 10:45 a.m. was sparked by a dispute over pay between the suspect and a co-worker who were on a landscaping job, according to Pugh.
Using a machete he may have found in a neighboring yard, Casillas-Rodrigues allegedly lopped off part of the co-worker's ear, slashed his forearm to the bone and almost severed a finger. Co-workers rushed the victim to a hospital, where he was recovering.
Meanwhile, Casillas-Rodrigues went to a nearby home and attacked an 80-year-old woman, cutting her head and bruising her until her son chased him away with a pellet gun. The widow was treated at a hospital and then released. The attacker then wandered down the street, taking swipes at passersby -- managing to strike at least one woman on the behind. She was not badly injured.
Finally Casillas-Rodrigues was confronted by a phalanx of police, who asked local construction workers to help translate their calls for him to surrender. The man -- described by witnesses as glassy-eyed and seemingly high or drunk -- did not respond, Pugh said. Finally, about 11:15 a.m., police cornered Casillas-Rodrigues, pepper-sprayed him, then shot him three times when he moved toward an officer. Pugh said only Tait fired his weapon.
Dave Tomkins, a deputy district attorney whose job it is to oversee officer-involved shootings, said he did not know what set the man off on his violent spree.
``Normal people who aren't high and not mentally ill normally comply with police,'' Tomkins said. ``Even anti-social types don't take on cops with guns.''
Thursday, September 15, 2005
Safeway weekly ad
This week's Safeway ad included "Celebrate Mexican Independence Day". Say What? Since when do we celebrate a day that another country attained their independence? Especially if you consider that Mexico isn't really independent. Millions of people are here illegally, working under the table, sending their earnings back to Mexico. Our country is going bankrupt taking care of these people. American businesses want these people to feel welcomed here so that maybe they'll spend some money at their store. Nob Hill also ran an ad. Albertons surprisingly just called their sale "fiesta days". Forget the ordinary old homegrown Americans. I sent e-mail to both Safeway and Nob Hill. Safeway sent back some ridiculous form letter apologizing for my negative experience with the weekly ads. Whatever.
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