Ecole Bilingue de Berkeley is home to a second generation of young students
Alumni sign up their children for school that caters to both French-speaking children and those starting to learn the language.
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Schools
Top Stories
Despite the surge, Berkeley Unified plans to stay open with bolstered testing
The district has ramped up its testing and plans to provide 19,000 rapid tests weekly to all students.
Sponsored
Bayhill High student shares how the school made him happier and successful
Private school in North Berkeley helps students with dyslexia, ADHD and other learning disabilities thrive.
Coronavirus
Student, staff absences rise at Berkeley schools amid omicron surge
Committed to keeping schools open, the district is ramping up testing and passed a booster-or-test policy that take effect Feb. 25.
Berkeley kids return to school amid omicron surge
As of Monday afternoon, at least 227 students and staff have tested positive as the Berkeley school district ramps up testing, anticipates new isolation rules.
Vaccinated Berkeley students were 6 times less likely to get COVID-19 this fall, district data show
The data mirror statewide trends showing lower rates of infection in vaccinated people.
In brief
Almost half of Berkeley kids 5-11 have gotten COVID-19 vaccine, city says
About 3,000 Berkeley 5- to 11-year-olds — 48.5% of the age group — were partially vaccinated as of Thursday.
Eager parents flock to Berkeley Unified COVID-19 vaccine clinic
The event was intended for families in harder-to-reach communities, but elementary parents from across Berkeley shared the event’s registration link.
Sexual harassment
Buffy Wicks considers legal changes to prevent educator sexual misconduct from getting ‘swept under the rug’
Prompted by Berkeleyside’s investigation into sexual misconduct allegations against a Berkeley High teacher, Wicks is considering changes to the California Public Records Act and Education Code.
In 2nd lawsuit, another student accuses Berkeley High chemistry teacher of sexual assault
The suit argues that the Berkeley school district’s inaction reveals a pattern of protecting “predators over students.”
Berkeley High knew for 15 years of allegations chemistry teacher sexually harassed students
After years of sexual misconduct complaints, the school district signed a gag order allowing Matthew Bissell to quietly resign.
Berkeley Unified sheds light on plans to improve Title IX office
Changes are coming to the district’s sexual harm reporting process, the result of mounting community pressure to better protect survivors.
Education Equity
Berkeley mandated ethnic studies 30 years ahead of California. Now the district’s going a step further.
In 1990, Berkeley High became one of the first schools in the nation to require ethnic studies. With the state following suit earlier this month, BUSD plans to expand ethnic studies to all grade levels.
Berkeley debates multiple plans to desegregate its middle schools
Community members are invited to voice their opinions in a series of town halls. Students won’t see changes until 2023.
Berkeley High scraps plan to change fall bell schedule
The school district will revert to the long-standing six-period day. Future changes are still on the table.
‘Every waking minute’: The Berkeley educators who went above and beyond this year
Five Berkeley educators nominated by parents and principals for their perseverance and commitment to kids during the pandemic.
Long reads
She tried to reform Berkeley Unified’s Title IX office. After 6 months of frustration, she quit.
Mardi Walters resigned as Title IX coordinator in February 2020 after trying to fix how the Berkeley school district handles sexual misconduct. Now she’s speaking publicly for the first time about why she left.
‘Lobster claws’ test questions land Crowden School principal in hot water
Teachers are quitting and parents are pulling their kids from a private Berkeley music school after the principal was fired in connection with a fill-in-the-blank vocabulary test involving crustacean jokes.
A haunting photo led this yearbook teacher to uncover alleged sexual assaults at Berkeley High
Last March, Genevieve Mage saw a 2003 yearbook photo of her colleague Matthew Bissell inappropriately hugging a 17-year-old student. She couldn’t let it go.
UC Berkeley
UC Berkeley revokes recognition of 3 fraternities due to hazing activities
Chi Phi and Theta Delta Chi have lost their official status until 2026 and Sigma Alpha Epsilon has lost its status until 2029.
UC Berkeley’s David Card wins 2021 Nobel Prize in economics
David Card, a labor economist and professor of economics at UC Berkeley, has won the 2021 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences.
The end of the 1960s? Regents vote to put housing in People’s Park.
About 1,100 students will be housed in two buildings in the long-contested park.
As UC makes room for more Californians, can it afford to lose out-of-state students?
Out-of-state UC students are having a bad year. The Legislature made plans to have the UC enroll fewer of them to make way for more in-state students. Meanwhile, tuition is going up $8,000 for future out-of-state students.
Related stories
A year’s trash in a tiny jar: Berkeley’s zero-waste classroom is almost there
Jacqueline Omania’s fifth-grade students have been spreading the zero-waste gospel to everyone in their lives, from kindergarteners to parents to politicians.
From dance competitions to drunk kids: A history of Rally Day at Berkeley High
The day meant to celebrate school spirit at Berkeley High was not always full of the bottle-throwing and partying for which it’s now known.
Parents, staff lean toward 3-zone option for middle school enrollment, survey shows
The school board will consider the data next November when voting on whether to leave in place the current two-zone enrollment policy or replace it with a new policy.
