Class Notes

One student took six AP classes this year; another was on the varsity basketball team all four years of high school, another was a cheerleader and mock trial star, yet another was a tennis prodigy and two others were in a movie-making club. Hats off to these students for staying on top of the studies ... AND getting their noses out of the books once in awhile.

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Hats off to Mr. Ray at Hillsdale High School; Ray was this year's recipient of the Elinore Bloomfield Award for Excellence in teaching the arts, presented by City Arts of San Mateo.

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Norman Estrada beat out 38 candidates to become the new principal at Menlo-Atherton High School. Estrada has more than 20 years experience in public school education. He has held the positions of assistant principal and principal at both the middle school and high school levels and has also taught Spanish for more than 10 years.

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Nesbit Elementary School is in Belmont celebrating its 50th birthday this Friday. An ice cream social will be complete with a mock trial, 1950s style. Party-goers will also be treated to a video presentation of the school from the 1950s and "then and now" posters. Belmont Mayor George Metropulos - a former Nesbit student - will help celebrate.

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Choices, choices. That's what parents in San Mateo County could get more as two charter high schools fight for their right to exist. Organizers at Foster City High will officially present their petition to the San Mateo Union High School Board of Trustees tomorrow night.

So far, the board members have been cautiously tight-lipped about their opinion.

Meanwhile, the San Mateo County Board of Education is set to announce its decision on granting the embattled Aurora High School in San Carlos a charter next week.

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Is your eighth-grade child struggling in school? More than two years behind in reading skills? Enroll him or her in the Compass Program this summer in the Sequoia Union High School District. The program runs from June 28 to July 23, from 8 a.m. to noon. Interested parties should call 369-1411, ext. 2560 or 2561 or visit

http://www.seq.org/dept/alteducation/compass.

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Losing a friend can be tough - especially when that friend is one of the best teachers you've ever had. At Hillsdale High School, sources say valedictorian and student body president Elizabeth McKenna's been a rock during the school's mourning of teacher Chris Alfama. McKenna - who delivered an eloquent graduation speech last week - is going off to Harvard this fall. From all the stories we've heard of Alfama in the past weeks, it sounds like he would've been proud of her and the entire class of 2004.

Class Notes is a weekly column in the Daily Journal dedicated to school news. It is compiled by education reporter Yunmi Choi. have something you'd like to add? Call 344-5300, ext. 109 or e-mail, yunmi@smdailyjournal.com