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In this issue...

VOLUME XVII | ISSUE VIIIApril 30, 2015

tongva times times Gabrielino High School

April 30

In a historical move, the NFL welcomes its fi rst female offi cial.See Sports, Page 9

As prom approaches, arguments are made whether the event still has any signifi cance.See Opinions, Page 3

Cartoon Networks Steven Universe boasts skillful artistry and captivating characters.See Entertainment, Page 10

See Vincent Lugo, Page 10

END OF AN ERA After 19 years at Gabrielino, Spanish teacher Linda Steele leaves behind a legacy of kindness and fun.

Taylor Thames|Tongva Times

See CAASPP, Page 10

By Samantha KwokEditor in Chief

When Linda Steele, Spanish teacher, leaves Gabrielino, she will not only be leaving behind the most decorated room in school, but also a legacy of com-passion and unwavering devo-tion to all students. Steele fi rst heard of Gabrielino when she was teaching at Arca-dia High School and was imme-diately interested in joining the new school that had fought so hard to open amidst much op-position. Citing that the qualifi -cations for teaching at the new school were specifi c and diff er-ent, Steele noted that Gabrielino was looking for teachers that loved kids, cared, and wanted to teach in new ways. I thought to myself, Wow, thats the kind of school I want to teach at, Steele stated. I was hired on the spot. Having worked full-time for 50 years, and as a teacher at Ga-brielino for 19, Steele is looking at her retirement in an optimis-tic light, excited for all the op-portunities she will have. I want to have fun for the next couple years. I want to make sure that Im still happy, said Steele. Steele has already planned her next move aft er retiring, plan-ning to spend more time with her four grandchildren in her new home in Castaic. She also intends to spend more time gar-dening, remodeling her home,

Steele retires, bids Gabrielino adis

and having monthly parties. With a new yard spanning two acres, Steele is eager to have her grandchildren spend time at her

home. Its a dream for me. Steele also wants to set up her home as a retreat center for oth-er families which allows them

a place to relax, and also gives Steele a chance to pursue her other passion: cooking. I love to cook. Im a good Ital-ian! stated Steele. In her many years at Gabrielino, Steele has garnered a reputation as very fun-loving, in addition to building strong relationships with much of the staff as well as developing lifelong friendships with her students. Im so excited for her, but we are going to miss her, said Angela Lucio, Spanish teacher. Shes always happy and viva-cious and its nice to have some-one like that. From her Whats Good About Me books, which allow students to write positive and self-affi rm-ing messages to themselvesmessages that many students still keep, noted Steeleto Fabu-lous Friday Faculty Feasts, Steele has always ensured that those around her have a place to relax or talk. Steele is remembered for being an active participant in many of the schools events, in-cluding Wacky Wednesday and Pie-in-the-Face, as well as her passion for teaching Spanish to many students. Shes taught [me] a lot of life skills through her experiences, stated Nicholas Tchan, senior. Tchan will also miss Steeles kind and caring nature. Her own daughter having at-tended Gabrielino, Steele sees herself as a grandma on campus,

By Joanna WongStaff Writer

On May 16, the City of San Ga-briel and Friends of La Laguna (FoLL) will celebrate Vincent Lugo Park's 50th birthday by hosting a playdate. Th e event will take place at the park, spe-cifi cally at the La Laguna play-ground, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. During the celebration, there will be a ribbon cutting, face painting, and balloon artists. In the 1960s, San Gabriel Mu-nicipal Park, renamed Vincent Lugo Park in 1988, was trans-formed from the city's landfi ll into a park. Th e construction was under the supervision of Vincent Lugo, San Gabriel's park supervisor at that time. Th e park included a play area, picnic shelters, a Little League diamond, and a Scout House. In 1965, the last part of the park, the Laguna de San Ga-briel play area was built. Artist Benjamin Dominguez sculpted the "lagoon" of sea creatures, which includes an octopus, sea serpent, and whale. In October 2006, FoLL was formed to pre-serve Dominguez's work and in 2009, La Laguna was listed in the California Register of His-torical Places. Eloy Zarate, board member of FoLL, stated that the La Laguna Playground is special because "it is not only a piece of history, it is an artistic treasure. Th e play-ground is reminiscent of a dif-ferent time in California history and a unique vision for commu-nity parks and children's play." Junior board members Alina Zarate and Ciannah Correa will also show a video displaying the history of the park to fourth and fi ft h graders and invite them to join the fun of celebrating the park's birthday.

Vincent Lugo Park turns 50

By Hattie XuEntertainment Editor

Th is month, juniors at Gabri-elino High School and across California took the California Assessment of Student Perfor-mance and Progress (CAASPP) for the fi rst time. CAASPP mea-sures student aptitude using the new Common Core, which be-gan statewide implementation in 2012, and replaces the California Standards Test (CST). CAASPP is created by the Smarter Bal-anced Assessment Consortium,

CAASPP combines testing and technologyan organization of member states that seeks to standardize testing across the country. Students were tested in Eng-lish and mathematics, and each test consists of two parts: a com-puter-adaptive section that in-volves multiple choice and short answer questions, and a perfor-mance task, which is usually a long-form essay. Th ese questions are measur-ing the ability to think critically and show communication and collaboration, stated assistant principal Jonathan Lyons, who

oversaw CAASPP implementa-tion at Gabrielino. Although students were tested in just two subjects, questions from the test can draw knowl-edge from multiple areas of study. For example, in a practice test administered in March by both Eric Hoenigmann, math teacher, and Philip Zamora, English teacher, the English per-formance task focused on gov-ernment ordinances. Within the [math] depart-ment, weve implemented per-formance tasks and were in the

process of aligning our cur-riculum to Common Core stan-dards, Hoenigmann said. To administer the testing, the San Gabriel Unifi ed District bought over 300 new Chrome-books for use at Gabrielino, uti-lizing money from a one-time technology grant from the state, as well as money from the Local Control and accountability Plan, which is a way for schools to receive state funding. CAASPP is entirely computer-based, and students are equipped with a

See Steele retires, Page 10

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