Newsletter - Archive  Feb 5, 2010

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Rotary of Templeton Newsletter

                                               February 5, 2009         

Club Calendar   Programs   Feb 9 "Camp Roberts"    Wednesday Feb 17 Joint Meeting with Paso Club    Feb 23 County Budget Update   February District Newsletter   District Calendar

Dr. Julian D. Crocker presented our program last meeting. Dr Crocker is the County Superintendent of Schools and he provided an update on our county schools.

Of the 58 counties in the state, SLO County is just about in the middle regarding students enrolled in our public schools with almost 35,000 students enrolled. This marks a bit of a decline primarily due to the high housing costs that make it difficult for young families to live here, and a decline in births over the past 9 years.

Adjusting to a declining enrollment is only one of the challenges facing our county schools. Other challenges include: sustaining progress with reduced resources; providing quality teachers (approx 80% of most school budgets are spent on teachers and other school personnel); and school drop outs.

There are varied reasons given for school drop outs, Dr Crocker sited four: 1) these students aren’t doing well in school, 2) they are bored, 3) they seem to get in with the wrong crowed, not encouragers, and 4) they come from unstructured and unsupportive families. 

He said the best thing that can be done to combat this problem for the future, is for parents to be involved as early as elementary school, to emphasize the importance of their children to attend school and stay in school.

To address the immediate problem, he mentioned that a “committee” or task force is looking at implementing a “daytime curfew” to deal with truancy. Law enforcement personnel would be allowed to check on youths who are out of school when they should be in school and return them to school or to their parents. (Photo submitted by Brent Watson)

Historic Moments -- Rotary's 105th anniversary

During the first Rotary club meeting on 23 February 1905 in Chicago, Paul Harris, Gustavus Loehr, Hiram Shorey, and Silvester Schiele met to talk about their personal experiences. Harris then unfolded his general plan for their club meetings. Read more...

The first four Rotarians: (left to right) Gustavus Loehr, Silvester Schiele, Hiram Shorey, and Paul Harris. Rotary Images (source RI website).