It was a picturesquely sunny day when Del Norte High School held its 132nd annual graduation commencement for the Class of 2025. Families and friends filled the home side of Mike Whalen Field on Friday and then some to see their graduates.
Continue reading Del Norte High School’s 2025 Graduation CeremonyCategory Archives: Youth
DiRT & Glitter to Provide Free Summer Arts Adventure Program to Native and Del Norte Youth and Community
Disclaimer: KFUG & Redwood Voice are actively working with DiRT & Glitter to provide the 10-week sound design course as part of its program.
A press release from DiRT & Glitter:
“Local Environmental Arts Non-profit DiRT & Glitter to Provide Free Summer Arts Adventure Program to Native and Del Norte Youth and Community: Program funded by Yurok Tribe’s Klamath Promise Neighborhood Initiative Strengthens Community Health”
Local environmental arts non-profit DiRT & Glitter is offering free arts adventure programming for native and local Del Norte youth all summer long, thanks to the support of the Yurok Tribe’s Klamath Promise Neighborhood Initiative (KPN).
The organization’s Youth Art and Adventure Program is providing youth and community opportunities to learn new skills, acquire job training, connect with professional arts and adventure experts and experience our local wilderness, all with the aim of strengthening the health of our community.
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Mountain School In Gasquet May Lose A Teacher As DNUSD Grapples With Budget Deficit
Thumbnail photo by Aisling Bludworth
(Updated at 4:42 p.m. Wednesday: Del Norte Unified School District Director of Communication Mike Hawkins offered a clarification regarding class sizes in the district. While class sizes are changing, many are still fairly small, he said.)
Brandiy Dixon’s days teaching third through fifth grades at Mountain School in Gasquet appear to be numbered.
But instead of fighting to keep her job when she appeared before the Del Norte County Unified School District Board of Trustees on Thursday, Dixon said she was concerned about her colleagues, who will now be expected to cover five grade levels each, and her students.
“The maturation gap between a 4 year old and a 9 year old and a 9 year old and a 14 year old is enormous,” she said. “These are formative years where students need targeted academic support, clear routines and peer connections appropriate at their stage of development. This structure risks students feeling overlooked, frustrated or unsupported, especially those who already need scaffolding to succeed.”
Continue reading Mountain School In Gasquet May Lose A Teacher As DNUSD Grapples With Budget Deficit
Del Norte’s School Wellness Guide Prompts Discussion Over Birthday Parties, Cupcakes, and Equity
Thumbnail photo: Fish tacos were on the menu for Del Norte High School students in this file photo from last year. Julie Bjorkstrand, Del Norte Unified School District’s director of nutrition services, presented an updated wellness policy and guide to the DNUSD Board of Trustees last week. | Photo courtesy of Josh Mims
Julie Bjorkstrand’s attempt to clear up confusion surrounding a wellness policy and accompanying guide turned into a plea for community involvement after questions about classroom birthday parties, cupcakes, pizza and other treats persisted.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture requires school districts participating in the National School Lunch and Breakfast programs to adopt a school wellness policy. Such policies are required to include guidelines that set nutrition standards around food and drink sold or provided to students on campus during the school day.
Treats for classroom parties fall into the latter category, said Bjorkstrand, Del Norte Unified School District’s director of Nutrition Services, but it doesn’t mean having to give them up entirely.
Continue reading Del Norte’s School Wellness Guide Prompts Discussion Over Birthday Parties, Cupcakes, and Equity
Free Summer Meals Available for All Children in Brookings-Harbor
A press release from the Brookings-Harbor School District:
The Brookings-Harbor School District will offer free summer meals for all children ages 1 through 18 from Monday, June 9, 2025, through Thursday, July 31, 2025, at the Brookings-Harbor High School Cafeteria, located at 629 Easy Street.
Meals are available Monday through Thursday and must be consumed on site. The cafeteria will be closed on Fridays and Thursday, July 4, in observance of Independence Day. View the Summer Meals Information Page.
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Probation To Partner With County Office of Ed On Substance Abuse Programs For Youth
Two years after receiving nearly $3 million in Prop. 64 grant money, Del Norte’s probation chief will enlist the County Office of Education to help figure out how to use those dollars to benefit local youth.
Del Norte County Chief Probation Officer Lonnie Reyman said he hopes to develop programs centered around youth,substance abuse prevention and early intervention as well as treatment and rehabilitation.
Since the grant dollars come from the Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act approved by California voters in 2016 as Proposition 64, the programs will focus on marijuana, he said.
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Del Norte DHHS Walk for Mental Health Awareness; Board of Supes Proclaim May as Mental Health Awareness Month
It was a peaceful spring morning when staff, clients, and friends of Del Norte Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) walked down Pacific Avenue to the Flynn Center to receive a proclamation for Mental Health Awareness. On May 13, the Del Norte County Board of Supervisors proclaimed May as Mental Health Awareness Month, with the aim to ”raise awareness and understanding of Mental Health and to increase access to Mental Health services by offering hope to those in need.”
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True North Organizing Network, KPN, and DNUSD Host the First Community Science Festival
The Del Norte Unified School District, in partnership with the Klamath Promise Neighborhood (KPN) and True North Organizing Network recently invited the community to discover the wonders of science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) at the very first Community Science Festival, on May 3rd at the Del Norte County Fairgrounds.
Continue reading True North Organizing Network, KPN, and DNUSD Host the First Community Science Festival
Seamless Summer Food Program Announces Locations and Times for Summer 2025
As the school year draws to a close, the Seamless Summer Food Program is gearing up to make sure youth throughout Del Norte still have access to free nutritious meals over summer vacation. The program, which is a collaboration between the Del Norte and Tribal Lands Community Food Council, Wild Rivers Community Foundation, Del Norte Unified School District, and Champions for Change, will provide breakfast and lunch for kids and teens ages 0-18 six days out of the week over a three month period.
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Contract Negotiations Between DNUSD, Teachers Union Commences; Board Approves AI Policy
Thumbnail photo: Members of Del Norte Unified School District’s AI Task Force discuss a draft policy with the Board of Trustees in this April photo. | Photo by Guiming Xiong
Superintendent Jeff Harris was absent. Among the items discussed at Thursday’s Del Norte Unified School District Board of Trustees meeting.
DNTA negotiations begin:
Del Norte Unified School District is not in a position to offer salary increases to teachers during the 2025-26 fiscal year, Superintendent of Business Jeff Napier told trustees.
Napier presented DNUSD’s first proposal for its 2025-26 contract with the Del Norte Teachers Association a little more than two months after a stalemate between the two parties concluded with help from state mediators.
Continue reading Contract Negotiations Between DNUSD, Teachers Union Commences; Board Approves AI Policy