6 EDCAL February 4, 2019
Students get scholarships to
study abroad during summer
Four Lynwood High School students
will experience Japanese tea ceremonies
in Tokyo, taste paella in Alicante, Spain,
and learn German while traveling through
Berlin after earning Global Navigator
Scholarships that will allow them to study
abroad this summer.
Junior Melanie Pacheco will venture to
Spain, juniors Crystal Cervantes and Daniel
Perez will visit Germany and freshman
Alicia Norberto will spend time in Japan
during four-week trips in June and July
that immerse the students in language and
culture.
“I have never really traveled outside
of the state, so it’s a good opportunity to
see the world and broaden my horizon,”
Pacheco said. “I also want to improve my
Spanish, and I know that their Spanish dif-
fers from what I speak so I’m interested to
see the differences.”
Each LUSD student will be joined
on their travels by approximately 40 high
school students from around the U.S. The
participants will receive 60 hours of lan-
guage instruction while spending time with
a host family to share meals and learn local
customs. Students will also receive college
credit. The Global Navigator program is run
by the Council on International Exchange,
a nonprofit organization promoting
international education. The LUSD stu-
dents applied for the program by writing
essays that shared their personal stories
and expressed their desire to travel abroad.
Applicants must demonstrate leadership,
and in some cases, must be at a compe-
tent level of foreign language – the trip to
Alicante requires students to speak Spanish
at all times.
The program offers 18 destinations to
choose from.
“In history, I learned about the Berlin
Wall, and Germany looks like such a beau-
tiful country to visit,” Perez said. “I like the
language as well. I’m looking forward to
meeting people from all over the world and
sharing experiences with them.”
Cervantes said she has not traveled much
beyond Lynwood and has her heart set
on tasting the chocolate and cheese in
Germany. She and Perez both study in
Lynwood High’s biomedical pathway pro-
gram and spend free time volunteering at
St. Francis Medical Center.
Norberto is fascinated with Japanese
culture, from anime to sushi and kimonos.
CHARTERS However, the opinion concludes that
charter schools that are chartered by the
State Board of Education are not subject
to grand jury review. This is because the
State Board of Education is considered a
state agency and not a local public entity
for purposes of section 933.6. While these
charter schools’ books and records would
not be subject to grand jury proceedings,
they would still be subject to audit by the
California State Auditor.
Continued from page 2
tion are subject to review during grand jury
proceedings in accordance with California
Penal Code section 933.6. The attorney
general opinion concludes that “any non-
profit corporation established by or oper-
ated on behalf of a public entity” which
includes any charter school chartered by a
local school district or county board of edu-
cation, is subject to section 933.6.
Lynwood High School students Alicia Norberto, Daniel Perez, Melanie Pacheco and Crystal Cervantes (left to
right) were awarded Global Navigator Scholarships that will allow them to study abroad this summer.
She has dreams of one day becoming an
international architect and is motivated to
learn Japanese.
“Giving our students the opportunity
to travel the world will be a life-changing
experience for them,” said Lynwood USD
Superintendent Gudiel Crosthwaite. “This
will open their eyes to the possibilities that
exist beyond their community and continue
to fuel their ambition.”
The students were encouraged to pursue the Global Navigator program by coun-
selors and educators who observed their
capacity for foreign language and appetite
for personal growth.
“Congratulations to these four students
who were rewarded for fearlessly exploring
success and new experiences,” said LUSD
Board President Gary Hardie Jr. “Their
travels will help broaden the scope of their
peers and inspire their own pursuits.”
Takeaways ed charter schools. Moving forward, char-
ter schools should independently conform
their policies and practices to the attorney
general’s guidance that these laws apply to
them. Additionally, an authorizing school
district or county board of education should
evaluate, and amend if necessary, its policies
and procedures to ensure its charter schools’
compliance with these laws as part of the
authorizer’s oversight responsibilities.
In summary, the attorney general’s
long-awaited opinion states definitively that
public integrity laws applicable to other
local educational agencies are also applica-
ble to charter schools. While attorney gen-
eral opinions are advisory, and not binding,
they provide guidance and insight as to how
a court could interpret various issues, and
therefore are given great deference.
As a result, this opinion will likely prompt
stricter adherence by charter schools with
laws from which some have argued exempt-
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