"Go Portola!" Group Created To Bolster City's Middle School

A new group that is seeking to increase attendance at El Cerrito's Portola Middle School through information and improvements has quickly drawn interest.

As El Cerrito and Kensington public school students approach the upper elementary school years, Portola Middle School becomes a popular topic of discussion. Ultimately, each family will decide whether to send its children to Portola or a private school, or try to get into a middle school in a neighboring district. The numbers can vary greatly from year to year. Nerissa Wu, a Madera Elementary School parent, said many parents like her are committed to the public schools. But, she said, when families start choosing other options for middle school, it can have a snowball effect. As more families decide to transfer out, that seems to prompt more to follow. Conversely, as more of a child’s peer group commit to Portola, the more appealing that …

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Betty Buginas

9:52 am on Saturday, August 6, 2011

Thank you for the update. You guys are moving so fast! El Cerrito and Kensington have an awesome cadre of parents that can make this happen. Please list the meetings on Patch, too, at http://elcerrito.patch.com/events/new , so new people continue to have the opportunity to get involved.   more ›

School Matters

What PTA is really for

The organization was founded and continues to advocate for children in and out of school on a broad range of issues.

After hearing El Cerrito teacher and parent Linda Takimoto rave about them for years, I finally headed to my first state PTA convention in 2009. After making my way through the maze of hallways in the San Jose McEnery Convention Center with  Pamela Gilbert-Snyder of El Cerrito, at the time the president of the Kensington Elementary School PTA, we found the volunteer room.  Across the desk, in charge of all volunteers for the convention, was a familiar face. Janet Abelson is best known to El Cerrito residents for her years in city government in roles such as Earth Day coordinator, planning commissioner, and city council member. But the current mayor and mother of five has an even longer history with the PTA and arguably has had an even …

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