Category Archives: Benicia High School

COVID-19: Extended deadline, new guidelines for area high school art competition

Rep. Mike Thompson pushes back art competition because of COVID-19

Submissions still being accepted

By VALLEJO TIMES-HERALD, April 8, 2020

Rep. Mike Thompson, California 5th District

Congressman Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena announced this week that he has pushed back the deadline and changed the guidelines for high schoolers to submit artwork as part of his 2020 Fifth Congressional District Art Competition.

These changes reflect the shelter-at-home and social distancing guidance issued by local and state authorities, according to a news release from his office. Students will now have until May 28 to submit their work, which they can do electronically.

“Our incredible local artists continue to create despite the uncertain times we are now facing, which is why I’ve updated the deadline and guidelines for high schoolers to participate in my Congressional Art Competition this year,” Thompson said in a statement. “This will allow students for extra time to submit amid the many changes they are facing with this year’s school calendar and allow them to comply with important public health guidelines…I can’t wait to see our great local art again this year!”

Students who wish to participate must submit a high-quality photograph of their art along with scanned or photographed copies of submission paperwork, which can be found by visiting house.gov/sites/default/files/uploads/documents/2020-Student-Release-Form-Fillable.pdf

Submissions can be emailed to CA05Art@mail.house.gov. This is in place of the usual physical submission.

The winning art piece from the district will be sent to Washington D.C. to hang in the United States Capitol for a year. To be considered for the grand prize, students must follow the official rules, which they can read by visiting www.house.gov/sites/default/files/uploads/documents/2020-Rules-for-Students-and-Teachers.pdf

California’s 5th Congressional District includes the cities of Vallejo and Benicia in Solano County, all of Napa and parts of Contra Costa, Lake, and Sonoma counties.

Benicia teachers and students work together during COVID-19 pandemic to succeed at distance education

The Benicia High School graduating class of 2020 is concerned they will not get to participate in a graduation ceremony. Ideas are in the works for a potential virtual ceremony.

Benicia Herald, by Emma Goularte, April 8, 2020
Emma Goularte is editor of the Benicia Paw and a member of the Benicia High School graduating class of 2020. She is currently working on an internship at the Benicia Herald.
The Benicia High School graduating class of 2020 is concerned they will not get to participate in a graduation ceremony. Ideas are in the works for a potential virtual ceremony.

Last week Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that schools will be physically closed until the end of the school year.

“While schools might be physically closed, class is still in session,” he said. “This agreement is good news for students and parents, and the announcement means that more Calif. kids will have tools to learn at home during this crisis.”

Distance learning was made possible for Benicia schools after the high school and middle school received chromebooks at the beginning of the year to ensure the 1:1 learning ratio. These devices make learning outside the classroom possible with multiple outlets that are being used to continue educating students.

“It’s definitely uncharted territory for us as teachers but luckily for Benicia we have a really fantastic pool of teachers who have done an excellent job adjusting and providing a great variety of activities and enriching learning experiences,” said Benicia High School teacher Kristen Grubbs.

Teachers continue to post assignments and hold office hours online to make the transition between classroom and distance learning seamless as possible.

“I miss my students daily but we live in an age of technology where it is still relatively simple to connect through online classrooms and video chats,” said Bay Christian School teacher Jaime Freisen. “I’m trying my best to accommodate each of them, their various learning levels, and still provide the best education I can remotely.”

Although this has not been an easy adjustment, school time will not be added on to the end of the year going into summer. However, a lot has been lost for graduating seniors – losing milestone events with the fear there will be no graduation.

“It is an awful decision to have to make because the lives of so many students are being disrupted and so many precious senior memories taken away,” said BHS parent and Benicia Planning Commission Chair Kari Birdseye. “However, it is absolutely the right decision to keep our community safe. And our teachers have done a phenomenal job at continuing coursework online. While these times are difficult for all of us, we are saving lives by staying home. And we will all be stronger for it.”

School counselors are reaching out to students to make sure they know how they are feeling is normal and they have someone to talk to.

“I do think it’s the best decision for the wellness of our town and nation, but it really sucks because there were so many things I was looking forward to this year,” said Benicia High School senior Richard Mealey. “My senior prom, grad night, graduation, my senior baseball season, and so much more. It’s a horrible situation, but I think we are handling it the best we can and I think it’s the right thing to be doing.”

This situation has never happened before and it is important to remember that no one has to go through it alone. Benicia High School Principal Brianna Kleinschmidt has reached out to the class of 2020 multiple times in an attempt to provide support for students and to make sure the graduating class gets to enjoy milestone activities.

She ensures that she will do all she can and that a graduation will be held as soon as social gatherings are allowed, but that may look different as well. Word is the administration is sharing ideas on how to hold graduation, with the potential for a virtual ceremony.

“I miss the routine that being in school provides,” said Grubbs. “I miss seeing my students, athletes, and co-workers. I’m sad for the seniors that had their last year cut short and had many senior activities put to the side. However, I feel that situations like we are in now provide us with time to look beyond ourselves, look at our individual priorities, and realize we are all part of a bigger societal entity.”

In high school a lot of students are taking AP classes and at the end of the year students are supposed to take the AP test for that class. When school was first released, many worried about the test and how students could take it if they weren’t present, considering it is a handwritten, hours-long test.

College Board, is “the College Entrance Examination Board to expand access to higher education.” In regular language, College Board offers college prep classes and by taking these classes you can earn college credits by how well you do on the test.

Due to school closures and social distancing, College Board is recreating the test so it can be taken at home. There will be two dates for students to take the tests and the test will only include the material learned in class up until March. Anything students learn online will not be on the test and it will be shortened as much as possible due to some of the material not being taught in school.

During this time colleges are being very understanding because this is uncharted territory and it is a stressful time. Many colleges are reaching out to potential students for 2020 and reassuring them that the fourth quarter of their senior year will not be counted. During this time, the work that is being assigned to students is mandatory, but colleges understand that there are different circumstances for everyone and they don’t want it to count against students.

This situation is stressful, but teachers and administration are doing everything they can to make the transition smooth. Since the school closure, everyone has been very helpful and supportive of students.

“Although distance learning is not ideal, I think Benicia Unified got out in front of the school closure with the launch of Google Classroom for all classes through the district,” said Grubbs. “Benicia Unified has done a great job of communicating with all stakeholders and reiterating that everyone needs to be patient, caring, and safe.”

As a student, it can be hard to keep your focus, but teachers have made changes so nothing has to be done all by yourself. Teachers record themselves doing classwork and offer support by not overwhelming students with piles of work.

“While I wish we could be in the classroom, I prefer this to not completing the school year,” said Friesen. “I can’t imagine this happening when I was young – knowing that one day I was with my friends in school and then we suddenly aren’t together and can’t communicate with the ease of today’s world. I feel like this is the best option we have to survive, maintain control, and excel in a situation that is completely out of our hands.”

We can take this as a time to decompress, try new things and focus on mental health. Even though this situation isn’t great, we can try and make the best out of it by taking care of ourselves.

Emma Goularte is the editor of the Benicia Paw and a member of the Benicia High School graduating class of 2020. She is currently working on an internship at the Benicia Herald.

200 to 400 Benicia High students walk out, demand gun reform

By Roger Straw
[Editor: I received this from a Benicia resident who has been in Benicia longer than me: “…Benicia High School students were victims of gun violence, back in the 80s….A jealous ex-boyfriend came on campus and shot his ex-girlfriend in front of everybody.   The entire town felt the trauma for many months.  The fear and anger are legitimate.” – RS]
#NEVERAGAIN Students cross First Street for rally at Marina Green. (See more pics below.)

About 200 (and up to 400) high school students walked out of Benicia High today, joining a national walkout for gun safety and legislative gun control reforms.  (See more on CNN.  See more on VOX.)

Those whose parents phoned the school in advance were granted an excused absence.  Others were given an unexcused “cut.”

The large contingent marched up Military West, chanting and carrying signs, and accompanied by a Benicia police escort.

Many observers thought they would stop at City Park, but the students continued down Benicia’s main commercial strip, First Street, and gathered near the Carquinez Strait at Marina Green.

There, students created a group poster, registered to vote and cheered for speeches given by their peers.

No one can remember a time in Benicia’s history when students left school in these numbers for a protest.

(See also coverage in the Benicia Herald and the Vallejo Times-Herald].  See more on the national walkout on CNN.  And see more on VOX.)

#NEVERAGAIN Military West with police escort
#NEVERAGAIN arriving at City Park
#NEVERAGAIN Washington House
#NEVERAGAIN At the waterfront – Marina Green

Benicia High School Students – #NEVERAGAIN

Benicia stands with Parkland, Florida following tragic school shooting

North Bay NEVERAGAIN – vigil invitation

Benicia High School students took to the streets and City Park  on Saturday night – and to Twitter, Instagram and Youtube with heartfelt  sorrow and calls for change following the mass shooting at Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.  (Scroll down for video.)

Benicia High students planned an evening vigil for Saturday, Feb. 24.  Students gathered at Benicia High before dark and walked to City Park.  At the Gazebo, they lit candles and honored those who were killed in Parkland.

Planners included Carson Rendell, Enaiya Judkins, Grace French, Meghan Barrett , Chloe Bonini, Karah Fisher, Morgan Bundy, Valentina Quintana, and with media & footage, Chris Weldon & Anders Knutstad.

After the vigil, Chris Weldon wrote:

We had a good turn out with 90% being students. We wore name tags of those who we lost and that are no longer with us. We’ve lost so many in events like Parkland that we ran out of name tags to write names.

We walked from the high school to the gazebo holding signs saying “never again” and wore black. We read stories and such of those who were heros in the tragedy at Stoneman Douglas, we read about each of the victims’ lives and what their plans were, we lost many amazing students and staff in Parkland. All will be missed and were honored. We held candles and had a moment of silence in remembrance of those 17 lives and all lives lost in other mass shootings at schools.

Benicia Students read statements they wrote about the change they would like to see in our country and the steps we as a country need to take. We came together and honored those that we lost and we will continue in the never again movement.

Weldon and Anders Knutstad posted video footage on YouTube:

For more, see Twitter: “North Bay|#NEVERAGAIN – @nbayNEVERAGAIN – Students from North Bay, California working towards ending gun violence. We stand in solidarity with the survivors of MSD.  [Link to national: #NeverAgain“]

And more on Instagram: northbayneveragain “North Bay Never Again –  Students from North Bay, California working towards ending gun violence. We stand in solidarity with the survivors of MSD.  #NeverAgain

From your Benicia Independent Editor:  Never in Benicia, Never Again!  It’s time for our elected leaders to take long overdue action to limit the senseless slaughter.  See more on the BenIndy here.
– R.S.