SEE PAGE 2 FOR drop in suspensions and expulsions
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MONDAY, JANUARY 19, 2015 - JANUARY 25, 2015
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Police arrest more men involved in prostitution than prostitutes by Vickie Vértiz State data recently released shows that Orange Country police are arresting less women and more men who are involved in sex work, said the Register. One reason for the change is that some agencies now consider sex workers as “victims of abuse rather than criminals,” said the paper, and are connecting some women with counseling and not jail. County agencies, in 2013, recorded the “fewest female arrests since 2001 and the most male arrests since 2006,” said the paper. However, arrests for women still “eclipsed male arrests,” but the gap was the smallest it has been in ten years. “You will see a trend for more male arrests, because [officers are] going after those who put the girls on the streets,” Anaheim police spokesman Lieutenant Bob Dunn told the Register. “[…] our focus […] countywide is getting […] to those individuals instead of trying to arrest our way out of this problem.” Police have tried every strategy to deter prostitution including cracking down on each component of the sex work economy
least one gunshot wound to his upper body. He was transported to UCI Medical Center by Anaheim Fire & Rescue Paramedics and shortly after arrival, he was pronounced deceased. No other people were injured. Following the death of McMoore, Anaheim Police Homicide Detectives responded to continue the investigation. With the assistance of information
AUHSD Launches Mentoring Program
from numerous witnesses, two suspects were identified. Adam Jay Stone, 28 (01-05-87), of Anaheim and Ransom Lee Cook, 24 (03-25-90), of Westminster were arrested at the Anaheim Police Department. A short time ago, both were booked at the Anaheim Police Department Temporary Detention Facility for Please see page 2
Please see page 2
that 76 percent of the prostitution arrests involved women. That data decreased to 64 percent in 2013, which is a huge decline after very little change in the last ten years. Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas and the Please see page 4
Two Suspects Arrested for Twila Reid Park Homicide On Wednesday, January 07, 2015 at 4:50 P.M., Anaheim Police Officers were called to Twila Reid Park - 3100 West Orange Avenue - to investigate a shooting. Arriving Officers located a male victim, in his late 20’s, near the basketball courts on the north side of the park. The victim, who was later identified as Alexander Raymond McMoore, 29, of Anaheim, was suffering from at
VOLUME 2, NO. 3
Anaheim Union’s corporate- mentoring program launched January 14, matching 45 students with Kaiser Permanente professionals who will provide them with hands-on experience and career guidance. The P21 Community Mentoring Program is the outgrowth of a partnership among the District, the city of Anaheim, business, community, and government leaders. It took hold last spring when some 200 AUHSD students presented more than 5,000 petitions to the Anaheim City Council urging officials to participate. The mentoring initiative followed Anaheim’s designation as the nation’s first Partnership for 21s’ Century Skills, or P21, city. The Partnership for 21s’ Century Skills was founded as a coalition bringing together the business community, education leaders and policymakers to help students prepare for 21s’ Century careers. Student participants selected for the experience are sophomores from Magnolia, Western, and Savanna high schools who currently participate in CSUF’s GEAR UP college-prep program. Many are considered at risk because they come from disadvantaged backgrounds, yet they exhibit leadership potential and a drive to better themselves. Welcoming the participants to the mentoring program were Kaiser Permanente Executive Director Mark Costa, Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait, AUHSD Superintendent Michael B. Matsuda, and Darren Bush, associate vice president for student
- Photo by Michael Gagnon
which includes the sellers, buyers, and organizers, or as the paper called them, pimps. Sex workers are the easiest to find given predominantly male police forces which would have to find female officers to arrest pimps, said the paper. From 2003 and 2012, Orange County saw
SEE PAGE 4 for national award for diversity for california
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Paul Revere Park Opens in South Anaheim New Park Includes a Volleyball Court, Gazebo, Playground Area, Exercise Stations and More Residents in south Anaheim Guinida Lane’s neighborhood took a lesson from history books on the morning of Saturday, Jan 10. ‘Paul Revere’ rode his horse, bell ringing loudly, signaling Paul Revere Park was officially open. Located adjacent to Paul Revere Elementary School, the Paul Revere Park dedication event welcomed hundreds of local residents and friends to Anaheim’s newest park. And the children quickly invaded the playground area! Paul Revere Park was designed with input from local residents. Anaheim’s Community Services staff held meetings to learn which amenities would best serve the neighborhood which previously had limited space for outdoor play. The Park includes a volleyball court, gazebo, playground area, exercise stations, native landscape and plantings, security lights, picnicking facilities and open turf area. Yet the focal point for the Park is a mosaic mural depicting Paul Revere’s midnight ride. The design was developed using drawings created by students from Paul Revere
Elementary School on which animals children imagined Paul Revere came across during his famous ride. “We are pleased to open Paul Revere Park,” said Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait. “Parks provide residents the space to gather, develop healthy habits, and build social connections. I do believe that when people get together, good things can and will happen. Anaheim is committed to investing in all our neighborhoods, and Paul Revere Park demonstrates the good that results when residents and local government work side-by-side.” The City of Anaheim remains committed to its parks program. More than 50 parks – or more than 600 acres – are located within the City’s 50 square miles. To learn more about Anaheim’s parks and other services offered through the Community Services Department, please click here. To see photos from the Paul Revere Park dedication event, please clickhere. For more information on the City of Anaheim, please visit www.anaheim.net.
Mentor Program Continued from page 1
affairs at CSU Fullerton. Keynote speeches about career opportunities in the medical industry were delivered by a Kaiser Permanente physician, Dr. Crispina Chong-Han, and a critical care nurse, Nick Bahner. After pairing up, mentors and mentees will engage in ice-breaking and team-building activities, and take a tour of the facility. Mentors also come from fields such as nutrition and healthcare IT. “We are thrilled that Kaiser Permanente is taking the lead in rolling out our mentoring program,” Superintendent Matsuda said. “It will be an unforgettable experience for everyone involved.” The superintendent also praised Mayor Tom Tait and Council Member Jordan Brandman—a former AUHSD trustee— for recognizing that a well-trained workforce is key to a robust future. The mayor and the council member were part of the task force that laid the groundwork for the program. “They know that the future
economic abilities of the city of Anaheim only go as far as students’ ability to succeed in college, careers, and life,” Matsuda said. Added Mayor Tait, “I applaud Kaiser Permanente for their leadership in helping Anaheim students excel through the opportunity to be mentored by business professionals from their own community. The relationship that mentoring fosters can change the direction of a student’s life and help that student grow, not only as a student, but as a citizen of their community.” Council Member Brandman also stated: “The City of Anaheim and Anaheim Union High School District appreciate Kaiser Permanente’s partnership on this innovative P21 Mentoring Program. We all understand that helping our students thrive in their career and college readiness through informative interaction with working professionals is paramount in building a highlyskilled 21st century workforce.”
Fatal Shooting Continued from page 1
Adam Jay Stone and Ransom Lee Cook (left to right)
murder and are being held on I million dollars bail. While the motive of McMoore’s murder remains under investigation, it is believed he was the intended target. Additionally, initial information indicated the suspects may have fled the scene of the shooting in a red BMW. Homicide Detectives have located a red BMW they believe is related
- Booking Photos
to this case and have seized it as evidence. No other suspects are being sought at this time. Anyone with information in this case is asked to contact Orange County Crime Stoppers at (855) TIP-OCCS, www. occrimestoppers.org, or text OCCS and your tip to CRIMES (274637). You may remain anonymous.
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State California Offers First Partnership Leadership Conference for Arts, Receives Media, and Entertainment are invited to sign ees can share strategies for impleNational upArts,Educators for California’s inaugural menting the new AME standards Media, and Entertainment in classrooms, review high-quality (AME) Institute on curriculum, and share data about Award for April 7–8,Leadership 2015 in San Diego. AME. There will also be a speis a professional learning cial focus on the Career Pathway Diversity This opportunity where teachers, ad- Game Design and Integration. The CDE’s California Partnership Academy (CPA) and the State Bar of California’s collaborative Law and Legal Services Academies received the American Bar Association’s Alexander Award this month for their work to support racial and ethnic diversity in the legal profession. The CDE worked with the State Bar to develop the CPA Law and Legal Services Academy program designed to encourage underrepresented student groups to enter the legal profession, ranging from legal assistants to judges. Another goal is to diversify the legal profession to reflect the population they serve. There are currently 10 such academies statewide. The CDE and the State Bar will accept the award on behalf of the academies this year at a meeting in Houston, Texas. A CPA is a three-year program structured as a schoolwithin-a-school. CPAs integrate academic and career technical education, business partnerships, mentoring, and internships. The program gives students handson, real-world experience that prepares them for college and careers. CPAs are designed for disadvantaged students at-risk of dropping out of school. The program has been very successful with CPA students passing at higher rates that non-CPA students in the High School Exit Exam, graduation rates, and meeting college entrance requirements. The creation of the CPA Law and Legal Services Academies furthers Torlakson’s Career Readiness initiative designed to strengthen career technical education in California.
ministrators, and industry professionals can share strategies on how to better prepare students for careers in AME. Because California is a world leader in the entertainment and creative industries, what students should know to be “career ready” in AME is included in the state’s Career Technical Educational Model Curriculum Standards. There is room for 100 participants in the Institute. Attend-
This program is designed to help students chart the classes they need in high school and postsecondary education to prepare for work in a particular industry. The AME Institute furthers State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson’s Core Reforms Engaging Arts to Educateinitiative to build awareness that teaching the arts is essential to a well-rounded education and supports the state’s economy.
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4 | JANUARY 19, 2015 - JANUARY 25, 2015
Significant Drops in Suspensions and Expulsions for Second Year in a Row State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson today announced a dramatic 20 percent drop in the number of students expelled in 2013-14 and a 15.2 decline in the number of students suspended. This marks the second year in a row of declines in both areas. The new figures come at a time when the California Department of Education (CDE) is working with districts around the state to implement innovative programs that reduce suspensions and expulsions, including some known as “restorative justice.” “These numbers show that the work of the department, districts, teachers, parents, and students around the state is paying off by keeping more students in school and learning,” said Torlakson. “You can have the best facilities, the best teachers, and the best curriculum in the world, but none of that matters if students are not in school. That’s why we have put so much effort into increasing school attendance and reducing expulsions and suspensions and will continue to do so.” Statewide, 49,987 fewer students were suspended in 201314 compared to the year before, down 15.2 percent. The suspension rate is 4.4 percent, down 0.7 of a percentage point from the year before. Similarly, 1,655 fewer students were expelled in 2013-14 compared to the year before, down 20 percent. The expulsion rate remains at 0.1 per-
cent because the overall numbers are relatively small. To reduce the number of expulsions and suspensions, the CDE has taken several steps, including hosting a forum and workshops, and posting Behavioral Intervention Strategies and Supports. In addition, the CDE has worked with several education groups to develop restorative justice programs that promote respect, taking responsibility, and strengthening relationships. Before such programs were implemented, the greatest percentage of students suspended or expelled was for “willful defiance.” For the second year in a row, the highest percentage declines came under this category. Last year, 261 fewer students were expelled for defiance-related offenses, down 47.7 percent from the year before. Another 76,296 fewer students were suspended for defiance-related offenses, down 28.9 percent from the year before. Willful defiance became identified with the problem of high rates of expulsions and suspensions after the CDE reported a high number of minority students were suspended for this cause. Those figures helped spur the passage of Assembly Bill 420, supported by the CDE and sponsored by former Assembly member Roger Dickinson. The bill, signed into law last year, limits suspensions and expulsions for disruptive behav-
ior in certain grades. Suspensions for more serious federal offenses were down by thousands among every student subgroup. However, a disparity remains among African-American students’ rates of suspension, which were relatively unchanged from the year before. AfricanAmerican students are 6.2 percent of total enrollment, but make up 16.4 percent of students suspended, up 0.2 of a percentage point from the year before. White students are 25 percent of total enrollment, but make up 20.6 percent of students suspended, down 0.3 of a percentage point from the year before. Hispanic students are 53.3 percent of total enrollment, but make up 54.7 percent of suspensions, up 0.1 of a percentage point from the year before. This is the second year of declines. Between 2011-12 and 2012-13, the number of expulsions dropped 13.5 percent, while the number of suspensions decreased 10.2 percent.
Data collected through the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CALPADS) enabled the CDE to report detailed data for the third year in a row. Prior to the collection of these data in CALPADS, they were collected differently as aggregate counts, so the 2013-14 data may only be compared to the two prior years and cannot be compared accurately to prior years' suspension and expulsion data. The data presented here were for “unduplicated” counts of students suspended or expelled. This means although a student may have been suspended or expelled more than once, each student was only counted once. The suspension and expulsion data are available on the CDE's DataQuest. Downloadable data files are available at the CDE's Expulsion and Suspension Data Web page. Truancy data are collected through the California Basic Educational Data System Online Reporting Application and are still being tabulated.
Prostitution Arrests Continued from page 2
Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force led by Anaheim police are both leading the effort to switch strategies around decreasing prostitution. In April of 2013, Rackauckas created a unit targeting johns and pimps, while simultaneously briefing police to treat sex workers like potential victims. “Most of times […], she [is] a broken girl who [has] been used and abused by men,” Susan Kang Schroeder told the paper, chief of staff for Rackauckas. Proposition 35 increased penalties for human trafficking and created safeguards for victims and this prompted creation of the unit, said the Register. If they are determined to be trafficking victims, prostitutes are supposed to be protected from prosecution.
The unit has 62 felony convictions, Schroeder told the paper, locking up some pimps for four to six years. Linh Tran, the lead administrator for the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force, said the longtime focus of the county on arresting women was not effective. Hundreds of women were arrested annually but did not generate permanent results in reduction of sex work. Tran added that it was “too soon to say whether the new focus” of the county on arresting men is a more effective crime deterrent, “but at least officers are treating women with more dignity.” Social workers get connected with prostitutes and help them find employment, housing, and drug addiction counseling, said the paper.