Crowd celebrates charter schools progress

LIVERMORE -- Cars lined the streets, and people walked for blocks Wednesday morning to be a part of the official grand opening of Californias largest charter school.

The 582-student Livermore Valley Charter school opened its doors Aug. 31, but held the official celebration and ribbon-cutting ceremony nearly two months into the school year.

School Principal Mike Hazelhofer spoke, along with school founder Lon Goldstein and Assemblyman Guy Houston, R-Livermore, to the 400 or so attendees who were in a celebratory mood.

Im here really today to congratulate you, said Houston, who admitted he was skeptical at first of the idea of a charter school for Livermore. Its really something you should be very proud of.

Goldstein spoke to the crowd -- mostly parents of students at the school -- and thanked them for their part in helping to create and support the kindgergarten-through-sixth-grade school.

Our vision has finally become a reality, and its because of you that all of this happened, he said.

Parent involvement has been a major part of the school since the beginning, from when the charter petition was initially submitted to the Livermore school district in March 2004 to when it was approved by the California State Board of Education last November.

Parents continue to be significant contributors to the school, working in classrooms and around campus and serving on the many committees that help operate the school.

A number of parents and staff members were thanked with a gift of flowers during the ceremony, including school secretary Janie Morgan, who received a standing ovation.

When you walk down the halls and you see the children, thats what makes it all worth-while," said Morgan, who trans-ferred to the new campus after working at the now-closed Arroyo Mocho Elementary School.

After speeches, students from each grade performed a song for the audience. The students said they are the ones seeing the real benefits of the school.

"It's really fun," fifth-grader Kaley Olsen said of her new school. "I like the teachers."

Olsen and other students said they enjoy the additional subjects the school offers, such as music, art and physical education. All are taught by credentialed specialists.

"It's awesome," said fifth-grader Brendan Ploeger.

Parent Sean Higgins recognized the students' appreciation for the charter school. Because of the high parent and family involvement, many of today's students were there during each step of the way.

"It's their school rather than just going to school," said Higgins, who has a kindergartener and third-grader at the school.

Surveying the crowd and sharing in the celebratory atmosphere, Goldstein said he continues to be impressed by everyone's devotion to the school.

The school plans to expand to seventh and eighth grades over the next two years, and Goldstein even tossed out the possibility for a charter high school. "This is not an experiment," he said. "This is the wave of the future."

Lea Blevins can be reached at lblevins@angnewspapers.com or (925) 416-4819.

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