Claremont School News

Leo Cervantes felt apprehensive Thursday as he stood in front of 31 Sycamore Elementary School peers, expounding on the Day of the Dead. The sugar skulls and remembrances of the dead, gracing the commemorative altars set up in his great-aunt’s Eleventh Street home, didn’t unnerve him. What worried him was speaking in public. “This is […]

El Roble Intermediate School students looking for an after-school hangout have found refuge in the play yard of the Claremont Presbyterian Children’s Center. For the past few years, the local church has offered a venue for the students, regardless of congregational membership. “It’s mostly about community building,” said Reverend Rocky Supinger. “It’s a place where […]

Claremont High School English teacher Dave Chamberlain just received his 25th request from a junior in need of a recommendation for college applications. Somehow Mr. Chamberlain, who devotes 25 weekends a year to leading the CHS debate team in a vigorous competition schedule, will find a way to squeeze in the paperwork for his college-bound […]

Sixth graders at Sumner Elementary School caught election fever last Friday when state Assembly candidate Chris Holden stopped by for a morning chat.  Mr. Holden, a Pasadena city councilman, is vying for a seat in the 41st Assembly District in the November election against Republican Donna Lowe, who spoke to Sumner students several weeks ago. […]

Don’t give her fantasy. Don’t give her sci-fi. When it comes to reading, Barbara Cheatley, owner of Barbara Cheatley Antiques in Claremont, wants a slice of life. Most often, this reality check comes in the form of biography, her favorite literary genre. Recently, she read Frank and Eleanor: An Extraordinary Marriage, a book by Hazel […]

Local fifth and sixth graders recently got a lesson in how to turn creative ideas into concrete accomplishments when the authors of 2 popular sci-fi/fantasy series, Lisa McMann and Margaret Peterson Haddix, visited Vista Elementary School. Vista librarian Cindy Dewey coordinated the visit with the help of Mrs. Nelson’s Toy and Bookshop, which the authors […]

Sixth graders at Sumner Elementary School got a taste of the political process on Wednesday when Donna Lowe—a Republican candidate for the newly-redistricted 41st Assembly District—stopped by to share her take on state government, running for office and the challenges facing Californians. “I know you’re probably very fidgety and want to get out to the […]

Students stopping by Kristin Robinson’s office are greeted by a drawing of Tinker Bell, which hangs behind the new Sumner Elementary School principal’s desk. Ms. Robinson, who will participate in the Disney sponsored Tinker Bell half-marathon in January—joining a throng running 13 miles in green tutus—has amassed quite a collection of memorabilia commemorating the mischievous […]

Math is a gate-keeper for kids. And for kids from poor neighborhoods, it can be the thing that locks them into a life of poverty.  In 2011, Claremont Graduate University, in partnership with Harvey Mudd College and the Long Beach Unified School District, launched an innovative and ambitious program which gathered up a group of promising […]

On a return trip to his native country of Ghana in 2005, Claremont commissioner Opoku Acheampong found himself rendered speechless by the vast changes to the country he left behind 30 years ago. Most notable was the number of children, many handicapped, crowding the streets, begging for food and money. Many carried makeshift instruments in […]

Feminine. Edgy. Vivid.  These are words that could be used to describe the clothes on offer this year as teen girls and college-bound women prepare to start school. The summer heat has dampened shoppers’ spirits lately, according to Amy Ogilvie, owner of the clothing shop Maple Boutique, located in the Packing House in Claremont’s Village […]

Mystery meat. Ketchup counted as a vegetable. Foods that are processed, frozen and reconstituted until they are barely recognizable.  When school lunches come to mind, the picture isn’t usually pretty. Meals served in the Claremont Unified School District have changed significantly since Rick Cota was hired as director of Nutrition Services in 2009. When he […]

The Claremont High School campus has been busier than usual this summer. Demolition continues on the CHS Theatre, and its renovation should be completed at the end of February. On July 23, Dana Toland, superintendent of PCM Construction, led a tour of the gutted structure for CHS Principal Brett O’Connor, Assistant Principal Steven Patterson and […]

This is not the first time education in the Claremont Unified School District, and in the state at large, has faced an economic crisis. In 1978, Proposition 13, an amendment to the California constitution significantly limiting the property taxes once used to fund education, was enacted with much fanfare. In 1982—with the education budget decimated […]

When 536 students graduated from Claremont High School on Thursday, June 14, it was easy to view those receiving diplomas as a sea of caps and gowns. As any proud parent or loving family member knows, however, each young person participating in the timeworn ritual is very much an individual, with a story all their […]

While high school graduations tend to garner quite a bit of attention, the final days of the elementary school year are often overlooked. Administrators at Claremont’s primary schools, however, do their best in the days leading up to summer vacation to plan exciting activities that reward students for their efforts during the past year. The […]