Ruth Acty taught in Berkeley Unified School District for 50 years, and was a key part of efforts to integrate school staff in the early 1940s.
LeConte Elementary School
Posted inSchools
LeConte Elementary renamed for Sylvia Mendez, desegregation pioneer
The Berkeley School Board voted unanimously Wednesday to rename the school.
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Will Berkeley elementary school be renamed for a civil-rights pioneer?
The School Board could vote as soon as Wednesday to replace LeConte with “Sylvia Mendez” — or something else.
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Seven options on shortlist for LeConte Elementary’s new name
Suggestions for LeConte’s new name include civil-rights icons, Berkeley school figures and a Spanish word. You can vote for your favorite on an unofficial Berkeleyside reader poll!
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Use of weighted vest at Berkeley school raises questions about parental consent
A parent says his kid was punished with a weighted vest. BUSD says it’s a therapeutic tool. How much permission is needed when schools want to address what they see as kids’ needs?
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Berkeley school drops name of ‘outspoken white supremacist’
A descendant of Joseph LeConte’s slaves said she was “sick to her stomach” to see schools named after the conservationist.
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Name of Berkeley’s LeConte Elementary School is on the chopping block
Parents and district staffers say conservationist Joseph LeConte, who preached the “evolutionary” benefits of slavery, is not an appropriate namesake for a school.
Posted inCity, Community, Crime & Safety, Schools
72K people participate in Berkeley’s ‘Great ShakeOut’
The principal did it. The janitor did it. The students did it. At 10:20 a.m. last Thursday, everyone at LeConte Elementary School in Berkeley participated in the Great ShakeOut earthquake drill. They dropped under the nearest table, covered their heads, and held on tight. The purpose of the annual ShakeOut event is to raise awareness of […]
Posted inCommunity, Events, Nosh, Schools
A cow and a calf join school’s morning assembly
The California Dairy Council’s Mobile Dairy Classroom program visited Berkeley’s LeConte Elementary School last week.
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School Board considers name change at LeConte
Berkeley school officials are considering changing the name of Le Conte Elementary after community members raised concerns about its namesake, Joseph Le Conte, a deeply respected UC Berkeley faculty member and a passionate conservationist who helped found the Sierra Club. Le Conte was also, however, a slave owner and staunch supporter of the Confederacy who held views that, […]
Posted inCrime, Crime & Safety, Schools
Area gunfire puts Berkeley’s LeConte school on lockdown
LeConte Elementary School was put on lockdown at 2:15 p.m. today after the Berkeley police responded to an attempted robbery in the school’s neighborhood where a gun was fired. There were no reported injuries to people or property during the incident, and the lockdown at LeConte was lifted at 2:30 p.m. before the end of […]
Posted inSchools
District announces new principals for LeConte, Oxford
New principal appointments have been made for Berkeley’s LeConte and Oxford elementary schools. Elizabeth (“Beth”) Rhine will assume the role of principal at Oxford, replacing Jen Corn, who transferred to Thousand Oaks this summer. Veronica Valerio will join LeConte as its principal after Kathryn Singh, the former principal, announced on July 1 that she would be moving […]