Top Rank Schools

EL SEGUNDO

Powell picked for empty school board seat: The seat on the El Segundo Unified school board vacated by the July death of Tammy Tagami-Reeves has been filled by former school board member Chris Powell.

Powell, a longtime El Segundo resident, was chosen by the board to finish out Tagami-Reeves’ term, which expires in November 2011. Tagami-Reeves died of cancer.

Board members chose Powell over 10 other candidates after discussing the matter in public at two board meetings. They ultimately decided against conducting interviews and appointed Powell.

Powell previously served on the board from 1995 until 2007, when he declined to run for re-election to dedicate more time to his family and additional community interests.

A CFO for a large commercial steel contractor, Powell has been named the El Segundo Citizen of the Year and received the El Segundo Chamber of Commerce’s Dave Jones Education Award. He and his wife, Jeanie, are both graduates of El Segundo High School. They have three children.

SOUTH BAY

State API scores to be released Sept. 13: The California Department of Education next week will release data showing how schools fared on the Academic Performance Index, the set of test scores that tend to be the most closely watched in California.

The scores, which will be made public Sept. 13, are based on how students in grades two through 11 perform on the California Standards Test. The API scores range from 200 to 1,000. The statewide goal is for every school to score an 800. Currently, the state average is 754.

The release date was initially scheduled for Aug. 31, but has been postponed twice. On Friday, officials announced that the release was postponed a second time due to an inadvertent scheduling conflict with the Jewish holiday Rosh Hashana.

CARSON

CSUDH music department will host guitar fest: The guitar studies program in the Music Department at California State University, Dominguez Hills, will host the second annual Dominguez Hills Guitar Festival on Saturday and Sunday in the Laser Recital Hall on campus. With musical performances, a master class and roundtable discussion, the event is meant to blend entertainment and academics.

The festival opens Saturday with an 8 p.m. concert by the guitar trio Line Forms Hear performing their classical, jazz and rock-influenced original works. The featured guest will be Julian Coryell, who has recorded with Jewel, Aimee Mann, Dave Brubek, and his father, legendary guitarist Larry Coryell. Tickets will be sold at the door and cost $10 for CSU Dominguez Hills students and $15 for the public.

The festival continues Sunday with a master class from 10 a.m. to noon led by Line Forms Hear members, and a roundtable discussion on “The Music Industry Today” from 1 to 3 p.m. A Student Ensemble Showcase from 4 to 6 p.m. ends the day. All Sunday activities are free.

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CALIFORNIA

State EAP results show some improvement: More and more of California’s 11th-graders are ready for college when it comes to their English proficiency, according to an annual test administered by the California State University system.

But the majority of students taking the college’s Early Assessment Program test for English are still not ready for college, according to a report released Aug. 30.

Of the nearly 380,000 students statewide who took the English exam, about 77,800 – or 21 percent – demonstrated college readiness. That’s a 5 percent increase over 2009 – the biggest jump since the program’s 2006 inception.

In mathematics, 57 percent of the 178,667 who took the test demonstrated full or conditional college readiness.

Created in 2006, the EAP is a voluntary test. In English, 84 percent of the eligible 11th-graders opted to take it; in math, 77 percent.

The goal is to ensure that the state’s college-bound high school seniors are college ready and have mastered the content skills in English and mathematics taught by California’s K-12 teachers.

TORRANCE

Ascension Lutheran celebrating 50 years: Ascension Lutheran School in Torrance is celebrating its 50th anniversary Sunday with a special church service at 11 a.m. immediately followed by a barbecue and picnic. Former teachers and students will be attending. Everyone in the community is invited.

Located at 17910 S. Prairie Ave. in Torrance, the school offers classes for kindergarten through eighth grade. They are accredited by WASC and NLSA and offer small teacher-student ratios. Openings are available for the current school year in kindergarten through sixth grade.

For more information, call 310-371-3531.

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