Monthly Archives: August 2011
The Berkeley Wire: 08.31.11
Former Cal football player accused of pimping [SF Examiner]
Gordon Liu expected to be confirmed to state Supreme Court [LA times]
Oxford Elementary now a “Program Improvement” school [Daily Cal]
Landscape architect Peter Walker helps design national 9/11 memorial [SF Chronicle]
UC Berkeley students buy stuff in August, throw it away in May [East Bay Express]
School district on way to building baseball field on Derby [Daily Cal]
Local theater highlights [East Bay Express]
CEO of Berkeley-based XOMA resigns after push to go commercial [xconomy]
Photo: Broken Symmetry by DHParks/Berkeleyside Flickr pool
Berkeley schools show overall improvement in API results
Berkeley schools overall showed slight improvement in California’s Academic Performance Index (API) results, which are based on the state’s Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) program.
Berkeley Unified School District’s API increased to 790 from 784, still below the state target of 800 out of a possible 1,000. Out of the 16 Berkeley schools calculated in the index, 12 surpassed the 800 mark and four were below, including both high schools.
“I was pleased that our APIs went up some,” … Continue reading »
Laid-off Bayer workers still fighting for their jobs
When 414 workers at Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals vote on a new contract on today, Anita Holloway won’t be among them.
Holloway worked in janitorial services at Bayer Healthcare on Dwight Way for three years, earning $22.65 an hour. Then in August 2010, she and 28 other union members were laid off, with the faint promise of being rehired when times got better.
Many of those workers decided to take severance and separate themselves from the company. But Holloway didn’t … Continue reading »
Muslim community celebrates end of Ramadan
The Berkeley Muslim community gathered in San Pablo Park today to celebrate Eid Al-Fitr which marks the end of Ramadan. During the month of Ramadan, Muslims fast every day from sunrise to sunset. Citizen reporter Jim Emerson, who lives across the street from he park, took the photo above at around 11:30am today.
“Biggest tire slashing” incident in South Berkeley today
Update, 09.01.11, 8:55pm: As of 8:45 p.m. today, the City of Berkeley Police Department has made no arrests for the vandalism of tires in South Berkeley. The investigation is continuing and officers are pursuing some potentially viable leads. The total documented count of vehicles that had tires damaged is now 74 (61 in Berkeley, 13 in Oakland).
……………
South Berkeley residents in the area of California, Russell, King and Julia Streets woke up today to a rude shock, as more than … Continue reading »
Berkeley Folk Dancers celebrate 70 years
The Berkeley Folk Dancers are celebrating 70 years of folk dance instruction this year. “International dance lets you try many different styles and experience many different cultures,” says folk dancer Marian Snyder. “At Berkeley Folk Dancers, you can do a Greek line dance, a Scottish set dance, Czech polka, an Argentine tango, an American square dance, or an Israeli hora. We do dances from more than 40 countries and regions.”
It’s a way to promote fitness in a fun way through dance, Snyder adds. Berkeley Folk Dancers … Continue reading »
Where in Berkeley?
Know where this is? Take a guess and let us know in the Comments.
Update, 8:45am: Twenty minutes after this picture was posted, reader berkeleyhigh1999 submitted the correct answer. The image is part of a mural painted on the north side of the apartment building at University and Fourth Street. Address is 2020 Fourth St. Congratulations, berkeleyhigh1999, on being this week’s winner!
Photo: Neil Mishalov.
The Berkeley Wire: 08.30.11
A former Chez Panisse pastry chef on the birthday weekend [David Lebovitz]
Berkeley home sales helped by the university [On the Block]
Realm charter school opens [Daily Cal]
Berkeley Historical Society highlights Consumer Cooperative [Patch]
Highlights from UC’s fall performance calendar [UCB News]
Community raises money for Berkeley High custodian [Mercury News]
Photo: Berkeley Lab, by 2812 photography/Berkeleyside Flickr pool.
School year opens in Berkeley with over 9,000 students
Today was the first day of school for over 9,000 students in the Berkeley Unified School District.
“From my sense, it was a very calm start to the year,” said Superintendant Bill Huyett. “It was really, ‘Let’s get going. We’re ready to go.’”
Huyett visited six of Berkeley’s schools today. He said he usually tries to visit all the schools by the end of the first week.
Berkeleysider Rachel Anderson sent in the photo (right) of Huyett at Rosa Parks … Continue reading »
Violent and property crimes decline in Berkeley
Violent crime in Berkeley declined by 4% in the first half of 2011, while property crime declined by 16%, according to statistics released Tuesday by the Berkeley Police Department.
The statistics are based on preliminary data from the FBI Uniform Crime Statistics for 2010 and the beginning of 2011.
“While violent crime is of paramount concern, the City of Berkeley Police Department has increased its efforts in dealing with the significant level of property crime in the City,” the … Continue reading »
