“Creating opportunities for our students to be successful while removing barriers of failure.”
Raider Friday Update

“Where we expect success and nothing less"

John Grennan, Christian Gillian, Sam Kochel – Academic Enrichment Field Trip
A week after visiting Cal State Northridge, Channel Islands’ Academic Enrichment students took a field trip to UCLA on Tuesday, Nov. 3. The group of 62 juniors and seniors received an admissions presentation in Pauley Pavilion before breaking up into three groups for a campus tour.
They were told that UCLA is the most applied to university in the country; last year, the school received 55,000 applications (about 12,000 were accepted). We also learned that the first internet message was sent from UCLA (to Stanford) but that only two letters made it through. Students appreciated the interesting architecture and beautiful grounds, which have been the site of many movies including “Legally Blonde” and “Old School.”
During the visit, we spotted former Raiders and current Bruins Armi Agor and Kevin Medina. Academic Enrichment teachers Christian Gillian and John Grennan and UCLA alumnus Sam Kochel accompanied the students. Mr. Gillian’s’ seniors continue to work on their college applications in preparation for the UC/CSU deadline of Nov. 30.

Picture 1: CI juniors Alejandra Nunnery, Olivia Khoury and Brandy Stevenson watch the UCLA men's basketball team practice in Pauley Pavilion.

Picture 2: CI seniors Cristie Barragan, Jea Carungcong and Monica Orozco relax near the Bruin sculpture.

Jenna Bernard – Red Ribbon Week & Peer Resource
What a successful Red Ribbon Week we have had so far! I want to thank all of you who sported our "Natural High" signs this week or posted posters in your room. I heard a student say, "I've seen that sign everywhere today"!!! That's the point!
Our activities for Today and Tomorrow are our biggest and most fun.. and I wanted to make sure you got a head's up about them....
Today's theme is "Beat the Habit" and since marijuana seems to be the most commonly used drug on our campus we are going to literally BEAT the "habit" with a homemade piñata!
Tomorrow will be our grand finale "Stick to Your Natural High" and once again we are taking this quite literally and "sticking" Molly Fitch and Virgil Cardenas to the wall!!! (With duct tape!) Tape will be sold in 1yd strips for $2 and all proceeds will go to help rebuild our sister school in Uganda. Come out and join us for what looks to be a super fun time for all, ok except maybe Molly and Virg.... Hope to see you all there!

Shannon Klemann – Marine Science Academy Field Trip to Anacapa Island (Frenchy’s Cove)
Ten students from the Marine Science Academy, led by Mrs. Klemann, enjoyed an activity-filled day doing scientific protocols for organism sampling on the backside of Anacapa Island, known as Frenchy’s Cove. It was one of the clearest days of the year. Students were able to see at least 50 feet down into the water. Students enjoyed seeing varieties of fish and the beautiful Macrocystis kelp forests. While on the island, students used quadrat sampling to survey the intertidal organisms using random numbers along a transect line. Some of the highlights of the the intertidal zone included an octopus, three Sea Hares, and a large cancer crab. An amazing bonus for the students was being surrounded by about 500 common dolphins. The dolphins were just below the bow and because the water was so clear, every mark and scar on their bodies was visible!

Lauri Markson coaches Debaters at Oaks Christian last Saturday
Are you the affirmative or the negative? Is that a contention or a refutation? What are your claims, warrants, and data? Whatever the lexicon used in debate tournaments, try these Parliamentary debate topics on for size: Round 1: Competition is overemphasized in the United States. Round 2: This house would use taxation to regulate behavior. Round 3: Crime Pays. Well, these were the three topics our novice debaters, Vannesa Lara (senior) and Samantha Cardenas (freshman) had to wrangle their heads around at the Novice Debate Tournament on Hallowe’en Day at Oaks Christian High School. Channel Islands High School was the only school in our district to compete with the likes of Chaminade, Cleveland, Sherman Oaks, Taft, and Foothill High Schools. Two other seniors, Airalee Rivera and Karen Salas won superior certificates in the Public Forum Debate where they had to prepare for both the affirmative and the negative sides in this topic: In times of conflict, the U. N. should concentrate on issues of poverty over issues related to the environment. Markson listened in on several debates and saw tremendous debating style and growth from all four of our contenders. The students had a very good time representing Channel Islands High School at the all day affair.

“Creating opportunities for our students to be successful while removing barriers of failure.”
Raider Friday Update

“Where we expect success and nothing less"

Christine Biddison – Regional Cuisine
The Regional Cuisine class carved pumpkins! They will be on display at lunch only today in the faculty cafeteria. Teachers, if you have time, please stop by and vote for your favorite! These pumpkins will then be cooked down and made into Pumpkin pie and Pumpkin Bread! Thanks for your support! Christie Biddison.

Activities Director- Brett Zielsdorf - Homecoming
ASB put on another spectacular Homecoming Rally on Friday October 23rd. The theme was "Alice in Wonderland". The gym was packed beyond capacity with students and alumni anticipating the grand show as the band filled the air with spirited renditions of “Sons of Westwood" and "CIHS". The gym was transformed into a virtual wonderland with massive posters depicting scenes from the Disney film hanging from every wall. Dance lights flashed, spotlighting the crowd and deco. The Court-in-Box was a giant 25' tall tree designed by ASB Pub Kim Gundayao, with a hole in the bottom for the court to come out, and the Royal Stage was decked in full regalia, including giant playing cards of the King and Queen.
The varsity football team got things going, marching through the tunnel of squad members in the "Hoorah" and the crowd burst into a thunderous ovation. The screaming and cheering and chanting did not stop the entire rally, with the class of 2010 being the loudest! Between squad performances, including the debut of this year's Short Flags and Coed, the court was announced one by one. Freshman Prince and Princess: Paul Vasquez and Johanna Ayala; Sophomore Prince and Princess: Daniel Pantoja and Jackie Nembhard; Junior Prince and Princess: Nico Amon and Giselle Mauricio; Sr. Prince and Princess: Louis Ybarra and Jea Caruncong; King and Queen: Salvador "Chava" Orozco and Crystal Luna. The court song was sung by Kimberly Edrada and Chelsy Cunanan. The event was a great success and captured the spirit of CI! Many compliments were given by the Alumni. The rally was followed by the Alumni Luncheon in the ASB room which was attended by over 50 alumni. Homecoming Commissioners Amy Cardenas, Elida Salazar and Lisa Vuong did a fabulous job coordinating the event.

Terrie Romines - CSF
CSF will be having a costume contest on Friday, October 30, 2009 at lunch in Room 19. The Geometry Honors presented their Construction projects today. The class had to create a construction problem for their classmates to solve. The theme for the Construction project was Star Trek.

John Grennan, Christian Gillian
Sixty-six Academic Enrichment students visited Cal State Northridge on Monday, Oct. 26, accompanied by teachers Christian Gillian and John Grennan as well as College and Career Center coordinator Susan Yslas. The juniors and seniors were split up into three groups for a tour of campus, which included visits to the student union, library, sports center and various academic buildings. Next, the students received a presentation on CSUN facts, the admissions process and financial aid. After that, students were on their own for lunch and a chance to further explore the campus. Another highlight was seeing five CIHS and Academic Enrichment alumni who are now freshmen at CSUN: Christina Arenas, Nancy Calderon, Leonela Flores, Victor Martinez and Karen Tran. Mr. Gillian’s seniors are currently working on their college applications and personal statements. Some student’s thoughts/highlights on the CSUN visit:

“It was bigger than I thought.” (We were told the campus is about the size of Six Flags and Disneyland combined.)
“I like the architecture.”
“There were a lot of people (36,000 attend) and majors (66).”
“The people were nice.”
“The library was really nice; I like the robot that gets books.”
“I liked exploring the campus. You get a feeling of what it’s like in college.”
“The food (Burger King, Subway, etc.).”
“Learning about the academic requirements.”
“I liked the ethnic diversity.”
“The campus was pretty – there were a lot of trees.”

Math Department
Gabby Chavarin from the Math department and her husband are proud parents of a baby girl, Misty May. She was born on October 21st at 2:25pm. She weighed 7lbs, 5 oz and measured 22 in. We are both doing well. Welcome Baby Raider Misty May.

Drama Department - Lauri Markson
AUDITIONS for Drama Club's production of Moliere's "TARTUFFE" will be held in Room 91 on Wednesday, November 4! During this Wednesday's Drama Club Meeting, students read with much gusto and enthusiasm the first act of this 1564 French farce. The small troupe of students is keen to audition and get started on a rehearsal schedule that will take Channel Islands Thespians to the heights of Othello and Ernest as the last two years have proved. Ms. Lauri Markson expects the show to be a great success with gorgeously outrageous costumes, French accents, and a moral that will reveal why Tartuffe is quite a guy!!! Looking forward to sell-out performances - performance schedule to be announced.

Carri Jimenez

On Saturday, October 10, 2009, Channel Islands High School Cheerleaders volunteered at the 5th annual CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates, for children) 5K walk/run that was held at Oxnard College Park. The purpose of the event was to help raise awareness and funds of the CASA program, whose purpose is to recruit, screen, train, and monitor local volunteers to provide mentoring and advocacy services to foster youth.

The cheerleaders helped kick off the event by cheering on the walk/run participants at the beginning of the race, and continued supporting them until the participants passed the finish line. The cheerleaders also helped with any other needs of the race, including passing out water, and helping the CASA staff increase awareness of youth advocacy program. CIHS cheer Captain Brianna Wileman, junior, was also given an opportunity to speak in front of the crowd on behalf of the CIHS cheerleading program and expressed their willingness and gladness to help with this event. This is one of the ways the CIHS cheerleaders not only support school athletic programs, but also community programs too!

Staff Development Day
Last Wednesday, October 21, CIHS had Professional Development Day. Our Principal, Bijou Beltran, sent the following message to us all:
Thank you for your hard work and dedication in preparing for and delivering a great presentation. As I visited room after room, there was great energy and enthusiasm pouring out of each room. It was great to see ALL of our dedicated professionals working together and learning together. I want to thank you for all of your time and energy you devoted to making each of your presentations the best!! I’ve received several emails congratulating you on a job well done. I just wanted to thank you as well. Also, Janie, thank you for making all of the arrangements for Milano’s; I do believe despite the slight wait, it was well worth it

Again, thank you to everyone for making Wednesday’s Professional Development Day a meaningful day. I am looking forward to the great things to come as we continue to learn and work together, creating a true Professional Learning Community.

Staff on Staff Development Day:

Sarah Mutuku: The presentation went on very well. The participants were all positive and took time to personally reflect and share with one another on the issues discussed. Many of us had a better understanding of our individual communication styles, strengths and weaknesses, yet all styles contribute towards TEAM building the team.

Gustavo Gonzalez: It was a great learning experience working on the presentations for our Staff Development Day. In the process of working together I acquired a better understanding of the material that we had to present. Both Sarah Mutuku and I share with each other our own interpretation of the material that we had to present and how the creation of a Professional Learning Community at CIHS will benefit our school. We were able to get to know the people in our group better at a personal level and as professionals. Teaching strategies were share. For example, Ms Mutuku showed how she uses Power Point presentations in her classes.

Our Raider Band is offering samples of Medium Roast (Monday morning) and French Roast (Tuesday morning). Just bring your favorite mug to the staff cafeteria... Coffee, Tea, Cocoa, and Cookie Mix will be available through any band member for two more days. This fundraiser will help us pay for new uniform hats! Let’s support our Band.