For Quality of Life in Cupertino

Vote for a Change on Nov 8, 2011

2011-11-03T23:31:00.000-07:00

What do we want for our city? The status quo or a change?

The status quo is represented by Gilbert Wong and Marty Miller. Why Marty Miller because he's a friend of Wong and a fixture of the planning commission. He will side with Wong to do the same thing.

The change is represented by Homer Tong and Rod Sinks. They are the new faces who were not in a commission and could bring a new perspective to the city council.

This is the first time ever that a vice mayor came out strongly against a fellow council member through Tong and Sinks. Mark Santaro came to office as a new face who campaigned for transparency. Now that he's part of the establishment, he prefers to keep the status quo. He is against council member Barry Chang, although he reiterated that he was not against him in his letter to the editor to the Cupertino Courier. He was against Chang because he did not want Chang to have friends in the names of Tong and Sinks who are against the Lehigh cement plant. It seems that he's for the cement plant. By attacking his fellow council member, he got the opposite effect that he wanted. He said that it's a thankless job. So why is he still here? Why doesn't he resign? Because he wants power. He wants to be the Lord Mayor of Cupertino.

We should limit to only one term instead of two terms. Also we should elect directly the mayor and not let the council members take turn to be mayor.

On Nove 8, 2011, vote for Homer Tong and Rod Sinks to send a message to the establishment. It's time for a change.

Vote NO on Measure C because we don't want the visitors to stay in Sunnyvale which has a lower hotel tax.

Here are the results

Percent

Votes

GILBERT WONG

22.36%

3,273

ROD SINKS

20.55%

3,008

MARTY MILLER

18.29%

2,677

HOMER TONG

17.17%

2,514

DONNA AUSTIN

16.06%

2,351

CHRIS ZHANG

5.57%

815

Measure C

Percent

Votes

YES

82.60%

6,472

17.40%

1,363

No vision from the city council candidates

2011-10-14T00:28:00.000-07:00

All the candidates for the November 8, 2011 Cupertino City Council have no vision.

The incumbent mayor and council member Gilbert Wong claims to be a leader with a vision, but what is his vision? He does not show anything new that we don't know. He says he wants to keep a strong Cupertino? What does a strong Cupertino mean? It's just a word that means nothing. So having Apple Campus 2 means that Cupertino is strong? Does that mean that without Wong there's no new Apple headquarters? Let's be honest. Can Cupertino afford to refuse Apple to build its new headquarters? Anyway Wong acted like a child during the presentation of Steve Jobs on June 7, 2011 to the city council. Instead of being professional, he tried to show off that he owned an iPad and that his daughter loved it so much. He wanted an Apple store in Cupertino and that he would bring people to the store. Why not watch Jobs' response and judge by yourself.

Wong wants to continue to lead Cupertino, but why doesn't he take care of the rundown properties that he and his father own in San Jose? Read the article in the Mercury News about the problems with the tenants at http://mytown.mercurynews.com/archives/cambrianresident/20081002/news4.shtml.

In 2007 I supported Wong in spite of the attacks against him. Today I recommend not to re-elect him.

Marty Miller will try for the third time, and maybe it's a charm. The last time he lost to Barry Chang who got the Chinese votes. So this time he hopes to be elected on the bandwagon of Wong with the Chinese votes. His sign is next to Wong's everywhere in the city. He runs as a pro business, but he does not explain how he's going to revitalize the business districts. As a candidate, one can say anything, but once elected everything becomes quiet. Look at all the council members today. What have they done for the business districts? Actions talk louder than words. If Wong is re-elected against my recommendation, Miller can have a good chance of being elected too, but he has a strong contender in Tong, who can get the Chinese votes like Chang did last time.

Homer Tong, a member of the Fremont Union High School District board of trustees, wants to make Cupertino a school town where all the residents participate in the schools' events, sports and activities. He seems to be stuck in the school environment instead of providing a vision of a city that our children want to have fun. Go and ask our children where they go to have fun? Not in Cupertino because there's nothing. As parents, don't we want our children stay closer to home rather than going and have fun far away?

Rod Sinks, Donna Austin and Chris Zhang are the other candidates. Sinks is the High-Tech person who is into green. So he should bring cleantech companies to Cupertino. Austin wants to keep Cupertino the way it is. Zhang, the youngest of the pack, believes that he's running for the school board about wanting to improve the science classes. What's wrong with the science classes at Monta Vista and Lynnbrook? Does he know that Physics Honor at Monta Vista is more difficult than Physics 2A at De Anza college? Anyway what can a city council member do with classes? He has a good idea about offering free WiFi in Cupertino. Steve Jobs said that with the tax revenues from Apple, the city can provide free WiFi. So why wait?

They all talk about Vallco and Mainstreet, but so far we don't see anything happening at all. Vallco has been in a limbo state for the past decades. It doesn't want to die, but doesn't want to succeed either. It changed names back and forth to confuse the people. The fences in front of Sears (corner of Wolfe and Stevens Creek) have become a sore eye and the sorrow state of a mall that our children do not want to frequent. The candidates do not provide any concrete solutions to this problem. About the Mainstreet or downtown, there's no sign that it will become a reality soon. It's not the time to continue to ask the residents whether they want a downtown or not, and what kind of downtown they want. The candidates should ask themselves the following question: Why do people go to Santana Row on Friday nights and weekends?

It's very unfortunate that we have a son in Cupertino that we don't want to promote to attract tourists. He's adored all over the world, but the city doesn't care about him. Yes I'm talking about Steve Jobs. The city should have a theme to honor him with a statue, a street name, a place or a museum. The tourists will come and spend, bringing more revenues to the city coffer. The businesses will benefit tremendously.

Two candidates will be selected. The top three mentioned above will have a chance, but they have to show that they are doers and not talkers. Sinks is the dark horse. So vote on November 8, 2011. Talk to the kids.

Vote NO on Measure C. We don't want more taxes.

Vote for the incumbents for the FUHSD board.

2010-10-25T23:38:00.000-07:00

The people are not happy with the unemployment, foreclosures and slow economic recovery. So they will show their anger On November 2, 2010 when they go to the polls to elect governors, senators, representatives, etc. They will show their displeasure with the current administration. So are we going to see a Republican landslide or just only some discontent votes? It's possible that the Republicans will take over the Senate and Congress.

Although the mood is anti-incumbency, and I concur that we should vote for new people to give their chances at providing new ideas to tackle the current problems, there is an exception in Cupertino regarding the board members of the Fremont Union High School District (FUHSD). Three are up for reelection: Barbara Nunes, Hung Wei and Bill Wilson. Although they made some mistakes for wasting money on the measures, it seems that there are no alternatives. Their opponents are not up to the job. How can a family of three do a better job than the incumbents? Nobody wants a dictatorship on the board. As for the other candidate, he might want to do some volunteer work first by helping at school and participating in the PTA. Bill Wilson was first elected because his wife was President of the PTA. So he got his support base from the beginning through his wife. Hung Wei was appointed because of her involvement with the PTA and community. So being an engineer with a child attending one of the schools in the district does not mean that he has the experience to be a board member.

So vote against the past for the governor and the senate, but vote for the incumbents for the FUHSD board. Do not vote for new taxes.

Once more

2010-04-25T22:25:00.000-07:00

FUHSD keeps on trying and trying to get the parcel passed. Last year it was Measure G with a twist, i.e. continue the current funding of $98/parcel for an unlimited time. It was a blank check that the residents did not like. The board should have known from the start that it would have failed. The board did not do its exercise by surveying the residents first before putting the measure on ballot. Somehow the board did not realize that it cost money to put a measure on ballot. We could have used the money to fund the programs and/or pay for the teachers. Did the board use a consultant? If so the consultant did not do his job. Did he do the poll before recommending the ballot? He earned the money without delivering the results.

Without giving up, the board spends money again for Measure B, this time with a 6 year limit. The board keeps wasting money that could be used for the programs that the measure is intended for. What a waste. The residents must vote by mail before April 28, 2010. That's the problem to get the people to vote because it's by mail. Sometimes people are not used to vote by mail and overlook the deadline. If it was with the primaries or the general elections, there would be a better chance to get the voters out.

Before it's too late, hopefully the residents of Cupertino will vote by April 28, 2010. So what should they do? Vote YES again for those who already did last time and how is it easy to convince those who voted No last time? There's a difference between Measure G and Measure B. This time, the tax is not unlimited time. We've been paying it until now, so 6 more years to go is not that difficult. After 6 years, we'll revisit the issue. Also we can decide on the board when its members are up for reelection. Why did they waste money the first time around?

FUHSD cannot keep on using the specter of cutting programs and laying off teachers to get the people to vote. Nobody likes to be blackmailed and threatened. There are alternatives to solve the problems. It's not that every time there's a problem, tax has to be raised. If AP classes are cut, the students can always take classes at De Anza. Although there's a problem of full classes at De Anza, there's also a possibility for the students to enroll in classes even if they are not their first choices.

So Vote YES for Measure B, but let's talk again in 6 years.

Congratulations to the winners

2009-11-04T00:32:00.000-08:00

The residents of Cupertino have spoken.

The winners of the city council race are the 2 incumbents and Chang.

Here are the results:

Completed Precincts 33 of 33

Percent

Votes

ORRIN MAHONEY

18.11%

3,323

MARK SANTORO

16.06%

2,946

BARRY CHANG

15.88%

2,913

MARTY MILLER

14.90%

2,733

DANIEL NGUYEN

12.56%

2,304

MAHESH NIHALANI

12.11%

2,222

DARCY PAUL

10.39%

1,906

Mahoney did not pull his two friends with him with his reelection. Chang is very close to Santoro. As expected they got the Chinese votes. Although he was associated with Chang and Santoro, Miller could not overcome the incumbency of Mahoney.

The real surprise was Nguyen who came fifth on his own. He was the only one who campaigned hard, having written to the residents and walked the precinct. He knew what it was like to get elected. He will have a better chance next time. Time is in his favor.

Here are the other results.

CUPERTINO SCHOOL DISTRICT

Completed Precincts 85 of 85

Percent

Votes

GARY MCCUE

30.89%

11,333

BEN LIAO

28.49%

10,452

ANJALI KAUSAR

25.78%

9,456

KERN PENG

14.84%

5,445

CUPERTINO SANITARY DISTRICT

Completed Precincts 50 of 50

Percent

Votes

WENDELL (BILL) KERR

33.78%

3,952

STEVE ANDREWS

32.39%

3,789

DON SUN

21.57%

2,524

KEN KLINKOWSKI

12.26%

1,434

MEASURE B - City of Cupertino

Completed Precincts 33 of 33

Percent

Votes

YES

75.48%

5,508

24.52%

1,789

MEASURE G - Fremont Union High School District

Completed Precincts 124 of 124

Percent

Votes

YES

58.90%

14,648

41.10%

10,221

Measure G was defeated because it required two thirds of the total votes. The problem had to do with the unexpired measure. So FUHSD will have to find a way to cut cost and keep the teachers employed.

Vote for Santoro, Miller and Chang

2009-11-01T22:31:00.000-08:00

On November 3, 2009, Cupertino residents will have a chance to select 3 council members. The candidates are current mayor Orin Mahoney, incumbent Mark Santaro, Marty Miller, Barry Chang, Mahesh Nihalani, Darcy Paul and Daniel Nguyen. They all seem to do something good for the city of Cupertino. They want to revitalize Cupertino Square, but have no idea how. This mall has been dead for a long long time. Even with the AMC theaters, there's nothing much to attract customers. They support main street, but when will this become a reality? Check Cupertino Square as an example. They want to keep business in Cupertino, but they don't have any solution. So how are we going to select only 3 of them?

We can see that there are alliances formed. One alliance is the triumvirate Mahoney, Nihalani and Paul. The latter two are hoping that the the current mayor will bring them onboard. This is the bet that they're going to win just by being associated with Mahoney, who takes for granted his reelection.

The other alliance consists of Santaro, Miller and Chang. Although Santaro had a sensitivity issue when he said "No Chinese no dog," he realized that it was a misunderstanding. So he's campaigning hard for his seat now. Miller and Chang are trying for the second time. Maybe it's a charm.

Daniel Nguyen is left in the cold by himself although he's campaigning very hard. He's still young. He will have his chance next time.

Let's face reality. Without the Chinese votes, nobody is going to be elected. So by looking at these 2 alliances, there's a good chance that the Chinese votes will go to the Santoro, Miller and Chang coalition because Santoro's wife is Chinese and Chang is Chinese.

So vote for Santoro, Miller and Chang. They will listen to us as Santoro said that it's the government for the people and by the people. Let's hope that Miller will work hard to get main street a reality. Chang will make sure that we will breath clean and safe air.

Yes on Measure G

2009-10-26T20:55:00.000-07:00

Measure G is an important topic for all the schools in the Fremont High School Union District. The plan is to keep the same parcel tax, which is $98, to help pay to keep teachers in schools and to avoid increased class sizes. By voting Yes, there's no tax increase because the residents of Cupertino, except senior citizen, have been paying this tax until now.

There's one problem that the voters need to be aware of is the fact that with this new measure, there's no expiration date for the tax. So this means that the tax can go on forever as long as the District continues to justify its use. I'm sure the board is not going to repeal it once the funding improves. The other recourse is for the voters to put a ballot measure to do so and it costs money.

Vote Yes with but, we must keep an eye on the spending and budget. When the tax is not needed, it should be repealed.

Congratulations to the class of 2009

2009-06-11T22:16:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to the graduates of Monta Vista, Lynbrrok, Homestead, Cupertino and Fremont.

The following Monta Vista students will immatriculate this fall at the following colleges:

University of Arizona: 3 students
Academy of Art University, CA: 1
Azuza Pacific University, CA: 1
Cal Ply Pomona, CA: 2
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, CA: 9
California Institute of the Arts: 1
California Institute of Technology: 1
California Lutheran University: 1
City College of San Francisco: 1
Claremont McKenna College, CA: 1
Concordia University, CA: 1
CSU Channel Islands: 1
CSU CHico: 3
CSU Long Beach: 1
CSU Sacramento: 1
CSU San Marcos: 1
Cuesta College, CA: 1
De Anza College, CA: 52
Foothill College, CA: 4
Loyola Marymount University, CA: 2
Mission College, CA: 1
Peperdine University, CA: 3
San Diego State University: 2
San Francisco State University: 1
San Jose State University: 24
Santa Clara University: 11
Sonoma State University: 4
St Mary's College, CA: 1
Stanford University: 4
UC Berkeley: 55
UC Davis: 35
UC Irvine: 16
UCLA: 17
UC Merced: 4
UC Riverside: 11
UC San Diego: 38
UC Santa Barbara: 20
UC Santa Cruz: 20
University of the Pacific, CA: 5
USC: 5
Vanguard University of Southern California: 1
West VAlley College, CA: 3
University of Denver: 1
University of New Haven: 1
George Washington University: 1
Howard University: 2
University of Hawaii at Manoa: 1
Northwester University: 3
University of Chicago: 2
Uinversity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: 2
Wheaton College: 1
Indiana University: 1
Purdue University: 3
University of Kansas: 1
Harvard College: 1
Northestearn University: 1
Tufts University: 1
Johns Hopkins University: 2
Maryland Institute College of Art: 3
University of Missouri: 1
Duke University: 1
University of North Dakota: 1
Dartmouth College: 2
Cornell University: 3
Marist College: 1
New York University: 6
Parsons The New School for Design: 1
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute: 2
Rochester Institute of Technology: 1
Syracuse University: 1
Lewis and Clark College: 1
Reed College: 2
Carnegie Mellon University: 3
Swarthmore College: 1
University of Pennsylvania: 3
Brown University: 2
Rhodle Island School of Design: 1
University of South Carolina: 1
BYU: 1
University of Washington: 3
Washington State University: 1

Pressure cooker

2009-04-29T12:14:00.000-07:00

High school students in Monta Vista and Lynbrook are under stress because of the high expections from their parents and also of high pressure to take the most difficult, or shall we call challenging, classes. So by the senior year, the stress level builds up and it bounds to explode, especailly when comes the day that the acceptance/rejections letters arrived. This results in the students getting depressed because they did not get into their chosen colleges. Ultimately some of them tried to commit suicide. Is it right?

Parents need to educate themselves. They cannot live their own dreams. Let their children live their own. Do not put too much pressure on them. Do not make them take classes that they don't want. Do not have too high expections from them. The world does not stop because they don't get into the Ivy League. There are unemployed Harvard graduates like with any other colleges. Instead the parents must explain to their children that the latter must follow their own paths seeking what's best for them and not for their parents. Although the colleges are different, there's no need to aim higher than their abilities. They can go to any college that allows them to fulfill their knowledge and they will do fine in life.

No on Measure B

2009-04-29T11:58:00.000-07:00

The Board of Education of the Cupertino Union School District proposes levying a tax on each parcel within the district. So this means that if the measure is passed by two-thirds of the votes cast, a fee of $125 per property annually for six years beginning July 1, 2009 will be charged, except to owners who are 65 and over. The reason is that the district has a shortfall next year because of the state budget cut.

Every time when there's a budget problem it seems that the only recourse is to raise taxes. We keep raising taxes without considering cutting costs or improving on doing work more efficiently and productively. The state just raised the sales tax to 9.75% here in Santa Clara county from 8.25%. So for the residents of Cupertino, if Measure B passes, there'll be another tax increase. The justification is that we have good schools so we need to retain good teachers. Having good teachers only cannot make the schools good or better than other schools. Everything depends on the students. If they are not into the studies, no good teachers can make the schools better. Why are in the schools in Cupertino good? Because of the parents and students. Without the support of the parents, the students wouldn't be studying hard enough to make the schools look good. The majority of parents graduated from college. They value education. So they foster an environment to allow their children to also value education.

Raising taxes is not the solution. Cutting costs is the solution. If there's a need of funding for music, I'm sure the parents of the children who take music are more than willing to chip in. The parents are very understanding, but don't make the other residents pay.

Vote No on Measure B.

Middle College

2009-02-26T11:54:00.000-08:00

FUHSD, in collaboration with De Anza College, offers a program called Middle College to allows high school sophomores and juniors to study at De Anza college while completing the requirements for high school diploma. They emphasize on the alternative to high school. They say that it's for students who don't like high school. So they invite the current students enrolled in the program to give a speech to the audience. These students talked about failing in high school with a GPA of 1.4 and succeeded in the program. One of them said that he got only 50% in his math class in high school while at De Anza he got 114%. What does that mean? It seems that the instructors and advisors are promoting failed students to apply to the program. That's what every single student speaker bragged about. In high school he or she failed and now he or she is a good standing student ready to transfer to San Jose State or UC San Diego as a junior. When it came time to sign up for the interview, the spots were during class time. Although time slots were shown, the students were not allowed to select the time. They had to sign up in order starting at 9:20AM. When asked about not being able to select the time, the junior class instructor said that it was not allowed. It was for her own convenience and not for the students and their parents' convenience although she knew very well that the parents must be present during the interview. She assumed that the parents had nothing to do, just kicking the air and had to be available any time. So does that really show that these instructors and advisers care about the students and their parents? Why couldn't they schedule after school so that the students don't miss class and that the parents don't have to leave work during working hours? Remember, they stated indirectly that it's for the losers. So missing class is part of being a loser. Successful students don't want to miss class. Also that instructor said that if we were not happy about not being able to select the time, don't sign up. This is a way for her to discourage people to apply. For her it's her way or no other way at all. Take it or leave it. The program is not for serious students. It's for the losers. It's very unfortunate that that instructor had an attitude that did not reflect an image of flexibility and understanding, and of what the program was intended to be.

Congratulations

2008-06-04T13:44:00.000-07:00

On June 3, 2008, the voters have passed Measure B with 66.34% (14,979 votes). This was a victory for our children.

For the State Assembly - District 22 - Dem Primary, the results aree:

Paul Fong 8,473 36%
Dominic Caserta 7,115 30%
Kris Wang 4,123 17%
Anna Song 4,035 17%

The district being democratic, the winner will surely win in November against an unknown Republican.

Vote Yes on Measure B

2008-05-31T17:39:00.000-07:00

Our local high schools Cupertino, Fremont, Homestead, Lynbrook and Monta Vista are underfunded. Although with a limited fund, but with the active participation of the parents,they're doing good, especially Monta Vista and Lynbrook that are ranked high in Newsweek and US News.

We need Measure B to pass so that our schools can be upgraded. The measure will:

Create a technology fund to upgrade classroom computers.

Build new science labs.

Construct new classrooms to avoid overcrowding.

To learn more please visit http://AboutMeasureB.com.

Vote Yes on B.

Monta Vista is ranked 146 by Newsweek

2008-05-30T23:12:00.001-07:00

Monta Vista and Lynbrook are ranked 146 and 360 respectively by Newsweek.

The article can be found at http://www.newsweek.com/id/39380.

In 2007, Monta Vista was also 146 while Lynbrook was ranked 476.

Why Vote for Fong?

2008-05-30T22:40:00.000-07:00

Four candidates are running for the 22nd State Assembly District vacated by Sally Lieber. They are: Paul Fong, Dominic Caserta, Kris Wang and Anna Song. Paul Fong and Kris are Cupertino residents.

To my dismay and surprise, Kris Wang and/or her supporters removed the Paul Fong signs from the lawns of private residences. On top of that they replaced the 2 signs on the lawn of the house of Paul Fong with their own. It looks like they did not know that it was Paul Fong's house. They removed the signs of their opponents in front of 7 Eleven on Bubb and McClellan. So what does that mean? I never thought that Kris Wang used this kind of tactics to try to win at any price. This is not a way to run a campaign. She doesn't deserve to be my representative. I voted for her when she ran for the Cupertino city council. But with this kind of unethical behavior, she does not have my support any more. Her only experience is being mayor of Cupertino in 2007. It was not enough for her to go to Sacramento. She's a newcomer who still needs to learn about politics. Nobody in the Cupertino city council endorses her. Why? Ask them. Ask former Cupertino mayor Sandra James why she endorses Caserta. Ask current Cupertino mayor Dolly Sandoval and former mayor Patrick Kwok why they endorse Fong.

We cannot live like in a farm. If we want Cupertino to be a farm, we could have kept it that way when Cupertino was just full of orchards. We live in a dynamic world with progress and growth. We need a balanced growth. If you read my previous blogs, you all know my positions. Now we have to choose between two major candidates: Fong and Caserta. Fong is resident of Cupertino. He'll serve our interests better than Caserta. He's pro-environment endorsed by the Sierra Club. He's a Trustee of the Foothill De Anza College District. He will serve our 22nd District well.

Vote for the best candidate who represents us better in Sacramento.

And the winner is...

2008-02-06T12:33:00.000-08:00

Mark Santoro, the newcomer who came in third last November. Congratulations and hope that he'll serve the community well.

MARK SANTORO 55.36% 5,642
T.N. HO 36.77% 3,748
CHIHUA WEI 7.87% 802

Another election?

2008-02-04T11:27:00.000-08:00

On February 5, 2008, the citizen of Cupertino will once more have to vote for a representative to the city council to replace thePatrick Kwok who resigned to take up a position with the Santa Clara Valley Water District's board of directors.

So who are the candidates? Mark Santoro who failed to win in November is returning for a second chance. T.N. Ho, a member of the Santa Clara County Board of Education, is a carpetbagger who came to reside in Cupertino two years ago. Chihua Wei, a long time Cupertino resident, has been involved with the community for years.

It seems that all 3 candidates do not disagree much.

With his years of cummunity services, Wei should be given the chance to be on the city council.

Monta Vista, Gold Medal?

2007-12-15T14:46:00.000-08:00

The US News has been famous for ranking colleges. Now they have decided to move to another lucrative market of ranking high schools. Two of the FUHSD made the top 100: Monta Vista #59 and Lynnbrook #73 (http://www.usnews.com/articles/education/high-schools/2007/11/29/gold-medal-schools.html). They got a gold medal. Congratulations.

So what's next? The ultimate news for the nerds. Yes, Monta Vista is now known nationally, or even around the world, for having bright students hacking into its computer system. The Mercury News reported it (http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_7725723?nclick_check=1) asking the readers to vote for punishment. Most voted for suspension, but close behind were expulsion and prosecution. Everything that was reported and said was based on rumors and not facts. The students are bright and not cheaters. If they wanted to get the tests, they would have done it quietly without anybody knowing that they got into the files. They wouldn't have left a message saying that "You were hacked." They were not searching for anything. They all knew that the grades were in Schoolloop. They did it for fun, the thrill of breaking into the sys admin account, and to be able to brag about it. What they did was wrong and illegal. There's a code of conduct they must abide by. They didn't know of the consequences of their action.

The article quoted a student saying in the Schoolloop discussion "We get expelled for hacking/ schools in other places/ get expelled for shooting people." I'm wondering how the reporter got this exact quote without logging in Schooloop as a student because even the parents who, also have an account, could only see the grades and news and not the discussion group. Only the students, administrators and teachers can see the discussion group. Is it hacking? :)

We all know that in this high tech world, kids are very smart in computers. Some are addicted to myspace, to facebook, etc. They are learning everyday and challenge themselves in any way they can. The ultimate challenge is to hack into a computer system. So you can say that they are going for the gold medal to keep the reputation of a gold medal school. The school should thank them for finding the hole now. This proves that the school is not doing its job securing its sytem because even a kid can hack into it. If there's nothing important and confidential stored in the system, why give a fuss about it? There's no need to involve the sheriff and broadcast the news. Keep it quiet and suspend the kids for a few days. Educate them about the code of conduct. The finals are coming. The kids are under a lot of stress right now and they don't want another distraction from the outside world.

This is a good lesson learned for both the students and the school.

Another news worth noting is that a chemistry honors teacher who, was hired this year, is now gone because of his difficulty to explain the concepts of chemistry to the students. The students had been complaining about not learning anything from him. They got more confused after each lecture. They got the raw deal. They come to the finals with bad grades and knowing less than their counterparts who have other teachers. It's unfair to the students. Their grades will suffer because they did not have a proper education, and not because they're lazy and do not study. It's very unfortunate that a gold medal school got something like this.

Hope that we learn from the past and move on.

One kid asks "Is the price of our house going down?" Another says that "now we are a bunch of cheaters, no college will accept us."

Happy Holidays.

And the winners are...

2007-11-07T19:14:00.000-08:00

Kris Wang 4,054 26.52%
Gilbert Wong 2,818 18.44%
Mark Santoro 2,708 17.72%
Barry Chang 2,543 16.64%
Raj Abhyanker 2,274 14.88%
Albert Chu 889 5.82%

As expected Wang and Wong got elected, but they were not given a blank check. As we can see Santoro came in very strong in the third position. It was a good showing for a novice without experience. This also shows that people voted along racial lines.

So what do we go from here?

The citizens of Cupertino liked what Wang did and gave her another term although it was not a landslide. Wong got his chance to prove himself that he's not just pro developer, but understands the need to have a balanced growth. Even though he came in second, he barely made it. He needs to listen to the people who voted for his main opponent, the anti developer Chang, who did a good showing. If we add the votes of Wong and Chang, the total is more than what Wang got. This means that not all the votes for Wong were for Wang. It's also possible that those who voted for Wong did not vote for Wang who could get the votes from those who voted for Abhyanker and Chu. Anyway the people have spoken. They want Wang to counterbalance Wong. They also want a sustained growth.

Congratulations to the winners and let's hope that they work for the people as Santoro wanted to do. So listen to the people.

Vote for the Vision

2007-10-28T22:38:00.000-07:00

On November 6, 2007, the citizens of Cupertino will select two out of six candidates for the city council. They are incumbent and current mayor Kris Wang, Mark Santoro, Gilbert Wong, Raj Abhyanker, Albert Yu and Barry Chang. So there are 4 Chinese Americans, one caucasian, and one Indian American. If the people vote along racial lines, Wang and Santoro will be elected. Why? Because being an incumbent, Wang will have the best chance to get the Chinese American votes while Santoro will get the white votes.

Let's hope that the people will vote based on the competence and service to the community. So who has the most competence? As an incumbent Wang has the lead. Does that mean that Wang will be reelected for sure? It's very probable that she'll serve a second term. Because of that, she doesn't seem to actively campaign. Who's next in line in the domain of competency? Gilbert Wong. With his five years as a Planning Commissioner, he claims to have experience dealing with issues facing our city. So does that mean that the road to the city council must pass through the planning commission? Wong took the pain to personally write a letter to residents of Cupertino. By putting a personal touch to reach to the people, Wong has a good chance to be elected.

How about the others? Chang has experience with the CUSD board. Is it enough for him to run the city? Does his experience dealing with our schools make him the expert in city issues? As for Abhyanker, he seems to be a fighter who likes to be controversial. Instead of trying to compromise and find an adequate solution to a problem, he is willing to go to the Supreme Court to fight the busineses that use only foreign signages (mainly Chinese). Do we want to have a city council member who is willing to divide the residents of Cupertino? How about Santoro? He has only one goal which is to fight the "unjust laws" by pledging to work "for the people." The only candidate who does not campaign at all because we don't see any sign around town is Chu. So we can dismiss him.

So what is the controversy? As viewed by some people, there're two groups: for development and against development. Wong is seen as for development because as Planning Commissioner he voted for the building of condos, etc. But in his statement he wants to maintain the small town character of our city. So what to believe? On the opposite side we have the rest against the condos. What do we want? If we want to keep Cupertino small, why do we allow the businesses to be established in the city? We should get rid of the businesses then. Are we for growth or not? How are we going to have growth while fighting development. How are we going to have a balanced and sustained growth? What do we think of Whole Foods? Do we need such a big store in Cupertino?

The battle now is between Wong and Chang. For sure this will divide the votes of Chinese Americans. Chang is against the condos, but still wants to attract new corporate headquarters. Friends of Chang accuse Wong of serving commercial interests. They ask the people to vote for Wang and Chang. So they use the popularity of Wang to get Chang elected. Wong has a very long list of endorsements including Mike Honda who supports both Chang and Wong. As we vote for two only, does that mean that according to Honda, both Wong and Chang should be elected thus eliminating Wang in the process? Does Honda know something that we don't. So does Honda want to see pro-development Wong fight con-development Chang each other as city council members? That's interesting. All in all, even Honda doesn't understand the politics of Cupertino.

Maybe we should bring back the orchards to Cupertino. This way we can have a quiet life. We don't need coporate headquarters. What for? We don't need condos. We don't need big businesses. We want to live in a rural area. We want the prices of the houses to go down. We don't want more new people to move to Cupertino. What a nice wishful thinking.

Vote for the vision.

Don Mackenzie deserves to be appointed

2007-07-16T05:24:00.000-07:00

When Kathryn Ho resigned from the FUHSD board on June 26, 2007, the board decided to appoint her replacement instead of having a new election. This is a wise decision because as we all expected, FUHSD had to pay about $600,000 to former superintendent Rowley. That's a lot of money wasted by the irresponsible board members Katz, Ho and Tong who voted to fire Rowley. The money could have been used for our children. Instead of using critical thinking to make a decision, they were overcome with emotion and revenge. They never thought of the consequences. Our children paid for their mistakes. Anyway Katz was not reelected. Ho was reelected with a very small margin over Mackenzie.

Why should Don Mackenzie deserve to be appointed to the board? Because the people already voted for him to be number 4 on the list. It's logical that in a democracy, the next person on the list take over the position of the previous person who cannot serve any more. It's like in a beauty contest, there is a first runner up. If the beauty queen relinquishes her throne, the first runner up becomes the new queen. Unfortunately in politics, the system is not set up that way. Nevertheless if we want to uphold the will of the people, it's an acceptable way to choose the next person in line that the people voted for.

Let's give Don Mackenzie a chance to prove himself that he's worthy to be appointed to the board. Other candidates must prove themselves in the ballot boxes first.

Are US News rankings good for students?

2007-06-21T00:41:00.000-07:00

As we all know, the US News publishes the rankings of colleges every year. Potential students and their parents tend to consider the rankings to determine where to attend college after high school. It can also be a real disappointment to students who cannot make to their top choices.

The question for a student is whether Stanford is better than UC Berkeley, for example. Is there's any guarantee that a Harvard graduate becomes more successful in life than a graduate from Pomona? Is private better than state?

Anyway it's very interesting to see how the Presidents of major American colleges decide to do with participating in the US News survey.

====================

Many American colleges balk at U.S. News rankings

From Janine Brady

June 20, 2007
(CNN) -- If presidents of some of the nation's top liberal arts colleges get their way, they will no longer be included in the U.S. News and World Report's influential collegiate ranking system.

At issue is the "reputation survey," a part of the ranking system that is filled out by the presidents of colleges included in the survey.

Presidents from some of the nation's leading private and liberal arts colleges met in Annapolis Tuesday to discuss a possible boycott. Approximately 80 presidents and 71 academic deans of the nation's leading liberal arts colleges attended the annual meeting of the Annapolis Group, an organization made up of 121 private and liberal arts colleges.

Todd Wilson, director of communications for Sarah Lawrence College -- which is among those not participating in the reputation survey -- called it "a collegiate beauty contest that is not a valid basis for judging the quality of education."

While the group did not call for an overall boycott of the rankings system, according to its newly named chair, Kate Will, the majority of members indicated their intent to stop participating in the reputation survey, which produces what she says is "not educationally valid research."

A letter was sent out last May by Lloyd Thacker, executive director of The Education Conservancy, and 12 college presidents to hundreds of their colleagues asking them to "refuse to fill out the U.S. News and World Report reputation survey and refuse to use the rankings in any promotional efforts on behalf of their college or university."

Thacker told CNN that "rankings have reduced students to consumers, education to product, and gaining admission into college a high-priced game that has to be played."

The letter has acquired 22 new signatures since it was sent out May 10, and it received overwhelming support in Annapolis on Tuesday.

The survey conducted by U.S. News and World Report asks college presidents and top academic leaders to rate other colleges they know based on their opinion alone, and their responses then count for 25 percent of the school's ranking.

William Durden, president of Dickinson College -- which was ranked 41st by U.S. News and World Report for liberal arts colleges -- was one of the original presidents to sign the letter. He told CNN that he believes the reputation survey "rewards established patterns only, without any credence for schools who have made improvements over the years."

The chief editor of U.S. News and World Report, Brian Kelly, defended the survey.

"The reputation survey is very standard," he said. "While I recognize that the results are subjective, it is a way for students to get intangibles about colleges."

Kelly estimates that, on average, half a million prospective students read U.S. News and World Report, so not submitting ranking information could hurt the recruiting efforts of colleges, particularly those that are not very well known.

"We are happy the group did not decide to do a blanket boycott," he said, "but if enough officials don't submit surveys about less-known schools, those colleges and universities are likely to fall off the ranking list."

Members of the Annapolis Group agreed that refusal to use the U.S. News and World Report rankings should be accompanied by creation of an alternative way for prospective students to get information about a variety of colleges. They said they will work with other organizations, such as the Council of Independent Colleges and the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, to provide prospective students with comparable information.

Tony Pals, spokesman for the NAICU, has said the association is in the process of making a template of Web-based information collected through focus groups with students and parents on different variables about individual colleges.

While The Annapolis Group consists of only private and liberal arts schools, Will told CNN that public schools are interested in the topic as well. "I don't think there is anyone in higher education who is not thinking about this issue," she said.

Doug Bennett, president of Earlham College -- ranked 65th by U.S. News and World Report for liberal arts colleges -- told CNN that "one ranking number does not represent anything about educational quality."

It is the general consensus of the group that the ranking system causes anxiety in students about getting into a top-ranked school when that might not be the best school for that particular student.

Said Will, "There's a college out there where every student can flourish and grow. Students don't have to go to the wealthiest or top-ranked school to get a good education."

CNN's Caleb Silver contributed to this report.

MVHS Class of 2007

2007-06-15T23:29:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to the class of 2007 of all the schools in the district: Monta Vista, Lynbrook, Cupertino, Homestead and Fremont.

623 students graduated from Monta Vista on June 7, 2007. Here is the list of some of them who will immatriculate in Fall 2007.

Arizona State University: 5 students.
University of Arizona: 1

Art Center College of Design: 2
Brooks Institute of Photography: 1
Cal Poly Pomona: 3
Can Poly San Luis Obispo: 7
Chapman University: 1
Chico State: 6
CSU Long Beach: 3
CSU Northridge: 1
Cuesta College: 1
De Anza College: 31
Humboldt State: 1
Laguna College of Art and Design: 1
Loyola Marymount University: 4
Mills College: 1
Sacramento State: 1
San Diego State: 6
San Francisco State: 3
San Jose City Cosmetology: 1
San Jose STate: 11
Santa Clara University: 6
Sonoma State: 4
St Mary's College: 3
UC Berkeley: 46
UC Davis: 31
UC Irvine: 24
UCLA: 37
UC Merced: 1
UC Riverside: 10
UC San Diego: 48
UC Santa Barbara: 6
UC Santa Cruz: 19
University of Redlands: 1
University of the Pacific: 1
USC: 12
West Valley College: 3
Western Career College: 1
Whittier College: 1

Yale University: 1

Emory University: 1
Georgie Tech University: 1

BYU Hawaii: 1

Northwestern University: 4
University of Illinois: 2

Tulane University: 1

Johns Hopkins University: 1
Maryland College of Art: 1

Harvard College: 2
Babson College: 1
Boston University: 3
MIT: 2
Nichols College: 1
Northeastern University: 1
Smith College: 1
Wellesley College: 2
Williams College: 1

University of Minnesota: 1

University of Missouri: 1

Columbia University: 1
Cornell University: 3
Fashion Institute of Technology: 1
Julliard School: 1
Manhattan School of Music: 1
New YOrk University: 6
Parsons School of Design: 2
University of Rochester: 1
Yeshiva University: 1

Duke University: 1
University of North Carolina: 1

Case Western Reserve University: 1
Miami University: 1
Oberlin College: 1

Oregon State University: 1
University of Oregon: 1
University of Portland: 1
Williamette University: 1

Allegheny University: 1
Bryan Mawr: 1
Carnegie Mellon University: 9
Drexel University: 1
Penn State: 1
Temple University: 1
University of Pennsylvania: 2

Brown University: 1
Rhode Island School of Design: 5

Texas A&M University: 1
Texas Tech: 1
University of Texas: 1

Gongaza University: 2
Uiversity of Washington: 6

University of Toronto: 1

Central Academy of Arts: 1

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology: 1

University of Cambridge, England: 1

REC Suratkal, India: 1

Keio University, Japan: 1

Medical University of Lublin, Poland: 1

Joining the Navy: 1
Traveling to PSain: 1
Taking a year off, living in Malaysia: 1
Building a car: 1
Attending Foothill Theatre Conservatory: 2

Monta Vista ranked 85

2007-05-27T00:16:00.000-07:00

In the May 25 issue of Newsweek, Monta Vista is ranked 85 in the nation.

The complete list of 1200 schools can be found at:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18757087/site/newsweek/

Here are the rankings of

          Monta Vista     Lynbrook    Homestead    Cupertino    Saratoga

2003:         88               91              416                    n/a              153
2005:         57              177              334                  n/a              202
2006:          152          501                  n/a              n/a              217
2007:          85              457              467                  539              180

In 2006, Monta Vista had the highest API score in the Santa Clara county. This year Monta Vista administered over 1900 AP exams.

7 Eleven is ripping off kids

2007-05-16T08:36:00.000-07:00

The 7 Eleven store on the corner of Bubb and McClellan is doing a disservice to the community, especially when it's trying to rip off the kids by either giving not enough change or telling a wrong price. For kids who don't pay attention, they don't count the change. This is unacceptable and something must be done about that. The kids kno bout it, but not all the parents know. Because of this, some kids steal for revenge. So some day the whole situation will hurt the students for stealing because of the dishonesty of the vendor.

Some kids, who have a cell phone with photos and videos, should start recording when they buy as a proof of being ripped off.

Cupertino Students at Monta Vista Make Money

2007-04-02T21:39:00.000-07:00

Recently upon transversing the inner lives of Monta Vista High School Students, I've discovered that some are making serious money. Although it is usually unheard of, one student showed me his arcade website and asked for me to write about it. His site can be found at http://www.theonlyfungames.com.

Although I never heard of an arcade making money. He offered some proof.

(Click here if the image is not clear)

"This was back in June when kids are bored," he offers, explainning that kids tend to be bored and want some form of fun and excitement.

"It doesn't matter if addictinggames.com is monopolizing the arcade games... Every webmaster is still able to get his fair shair." says the young entrepeneur.

The senior goes on to explain that sometimes all he does is watch as users come in play some games, and then leaves. He barely has to do any work.

The big question everyone is asking, How does he make so much money?

I use Myspace and Adsense. he says.

Adsense is a service where relevant ad is placed on your site.
AdSense is an ad serving program run by Google. Website owners can enroll in this program to enable text, image and, more recently, video advertisements on their sites. These ads are administered by Google and generate revenue on either a per-click or per-thousand-impressions basis. Google is also currently beta-testing a cost-per-action based service.

Google utilizes its search technology to serve ads based on website content, the user's geographical location, and other factors. Those wanting to advertise with Google's targeted ad system may sign up through AdWords. AdSense has become a popular method of placing advertising on a website because the ads are less intrusive than most banners, and the content of the ads is often relevant to the website.

(Click here if the image is not clear)

You may sign up below. :) Application takes 2-3 days to approve. Next I'll be talking more about Monta Vista school districts.

We need energetic council members

2007-02-23T00:28:00.000-08:00

Cupertino will soon elect council members. They should listen to the people. The incumbents should remember that the people voted against Measures D and E. So they should respect the voice of the people.

What the incumbents and potential candidates should do is to be more energetic and creative like Deth Im, the candidate for the Kansas city council.

Watch his video.

We need our council members to be like him.

Check out his Website www.vote4deth.com

Stereotyping

2007-01-17T21:26:00.000-08:00

Asian Americans are known for being good in Math and Science, but not in sports.

The students of Monta Vista are changing this stereotyping of Asian Americans.

Click on the Comments to read the article about "The changing face of basketball."

Cupertino School District

2007-01-10T14:34:00.000-08:00

Here are the APIs of the elementary and middle schools.

Elementary Schools

                                 All Students    Asian   White

Faria                         1000

Collins                       943               950          912

Eaton                         955               970          945

Garden Gate             970               974          N/A

Lincoln                      962             986             894

Regnart                      970             982           929

Sedgwick                     876            933            859

Stevens Creek            942             976           920

Meyerholz                  935             961           868

Blue Hills                  982             990           966

John Muir                    901           908           881

De Vargas                    837           881           871

Dilworth                    988           993           N/A

Eishenhower               886          936           858

Montclaire                  971            972           974

Nimitz                         835            887           868

Murdock-Portal          975           979           N/A

Stocklmeir                    932          966           931

West Valley                 926          960              913

McAuliffe                     N/A           N/A           N/A

Middle Schools

Cupertino                       907           945      912

Hyde                               828           864      838

Kennedy                          960           983      912

Miller                             954           977      887

Lawson                          958           979      922

API of Cupertino schools

2007-01-08T21:20:00.000-08:00

FUHSD consists of the following high schools: Monta Vista, Lynbrook, Cupertino, Homestead and Fremont.

The purpose of the Academic Performance Index (API) is to measure the year-over-year growth in academic performance for California schools. The API summarizes a school's standardized test scores into a single number, which ranges from 200 to 1000. The statewide API goal is 800 for all schools; higher numbers generally indicate better performance on the tests.

Monta Vista API:

All students: 916
Asian: 940
White: 874
Average class size: 30
Current expense of education per average daily attendance (ADA): $7042

Homestead API:

All students: 842
Asian: 885
White: 860
Average class size: 31
Current expense of education per average daily attendance (ADA): $7042

Cupertino API:

All students: 812
Asian: 863
White: 782
Average class size: 29
Current expense of education per average daily attendance (ADA): $7042

Fremont API:

All students: 708
Asian: 840
White: 781
Average class size: 30
Current expense of education per average daily attendance (ADA): $7042

Lynbrook API:

All students: 912
Asian: 940
White: 864
Average class size: 30
Current expense of education per average daily attendance (ADA): $7042

Here are the APIs of high schools located near Cupertino.

Mountain View API:

All students: 824
Asian: 913
White: 871
Average class size: 28
Current expense of education per average daily attendance (ADA): $9783

Prospect API:

All students: 708
Asian: 827
White: 759
Average class size: 21
Current expense of education per average daily attendance (ADA): $6746

Saratoga API:

All students: 911
Asian: 955
White: 873
Average class size: 27
Current expense of education per average daily attendance (ADA): $8609

Santa Clara API:

All students: 715
Asian: 777
White: 765
Average class size: 29
Current expense of education per average daily attendance (ADA): $7430

Los Altos API:

All students: 792
Asian: 898
White: 857
Average class size: 28
Current expense of education per average daily attendance (ADA): $9783

Henry M. Gunn API:

All students: 892
Asian: 927
White: 905
Average class size: 26
Current expense of education per average daily attendance (ADA): $11170

Palo Alto API:

All students: 892
Asian: 948
White: 911
Average class size: 29
Current expense of education per average daily attendance (ADA): $11170

How Asian Americans fare?

2007-01-08T01:21:00.000-08:00

Cupertino schools are feeders to the UC system.

A lot of Asian Americans attend Cupertino schools.

The Asian Americans are put on a higher standard than whites when it comes to admission to the Ivy Leagues and top colleges.

Click on Comments below to read the article.

War Zone in Cupertino?

2006-12-31T12:40:00.000-08:00

On 12/29 in the evening Stevens Creek boulevard near the Vallco Fashion Park looked like a war zone. I was driving along Stevens Creek around 8PM and had to spend more than half an hour to move between Tantau and Wolfe because of the sobriety checkpoint. At least 20 police officers were standing there with sheriff cars and trucks and very bright light resembling a war zone. What's going on? They didn't even stop us for the sobriety test. So what's the fuss? It was not New Year's evce. It was not even Christmas's eve. It was a normal regular Friday night. They made Cupertino like under siege. It was only in one direction entering Cupertino. Do we want some kind of police state in Cupertino?

The People Have Spoken

2006-11-08T13:38:00.000-08:00

It's sound and clear. Here are the results:

FUHSD Board

Three seats
100% of precincts

Barbara Nunes (Inc.) 22,397 22.6%
William "Bill" Wilson 18,507 18.7%
Kathryn Ho (Inc.) 17,777 17.9%
Don Mackenzie 17,600 17.7%
Michael Anthony Flores 12,011 12.1%
Avrum "Avie" Katz (Inc.) 10,894 11.0%

Although only one member was replaced, the new board should know that it must serve the interests of the community. It's time to move on and the board must resolve very quickly the hiring of a new superintendent and any settlement with former superintendent Rowley.

Measures D and E

Measure D
Build housing and retail at Vallco mall.
100% of precincts
Yes 4,493 35.0%
No 8,362 65.0%

Measure E
Build housing, shopping and park in east Cupertino.
100% of precincts
Yes 4,676 36.4%
No 8,087 62.9%

The results prove that the residents of Cupertino are not ready for the city council to not listen to them. They are elected to serve the interests of the residents and not the developpers.

Vote For The Future Of Our Children

2006-11-01T09:34:00.000-08:00

On November 7, 2006, we will perform our civic duties. We're bombarded with fliers and ads. We all get confused. We are irritated by the constant phone messages. By the time we get to select what's best for our children, we don't know what to do. So we need to be focused and give importance to the issues facing Cupertino.

Fremont Union High School District Board

Three incumbents are for reelection. Two of them, Avie Katz and Kathryn Ho, voted to fire former Superintendent Stephen Rowley. Barbara Nunes did not and preferred a new approach to deal with the situation. Three challengers are vying for the 3 seats, but only two of them are active: Bill Wilson and Don Mackenzie. What's at stake? What are the ramifications of terminating Rowley?

During the town hall meeting on October 25, 2006, in response to the question about money that the district would lose regarding the firing of Rowley, Katz said that nobody knew. He also added that Rowley might not get a dime. Ho did not answer the question. Both of them reiterated that they would do the same thing again. Katz even added that Monta Vista teacher Krieger resigned because of the high cost of living here. This had nothing to do with his applying for a Guidance Resource teacher.

What did we get out of these responses? With a company, there's a golden parachute for a CEO. Although there's no golden parachute with the school district, there's a contract , and Rowley still has 2 more years to go. So did Katz say that the district stopped paying the salary? I don't believe so. Even though Rowley is no longer working, he's still entitled to be paid $221,587/year for the remaining 20 months of his contract (which expires on June 30, 2008). On top of that if there's no settlement, Rowley is going to sue. So how much money will we lose? We can start counting with the hiring of a law firm by the district to investigate the event leading to the dismissal of Rowley and resignation of Krieger. The report won't be available before the election. When Rowley files a lawsuit, the district will have to pay for the lawyers. We could have used the money for our schools and teachers instead of wasting it with the lawyers. Also make note that the acting superintendent is performing 2 jobs. She's overworked. How about the morale of the district staff?

"Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely." There should be a term limit to the FUHSD board. When a member stays for too long, he or she forgets that he or she works for the community. He or she feels that he or she is so powerful that he or she forgets what he or she is doing without thinking of the consequences. A divisive board is not good for the district and will not be able to attract a good superintendent (will he or she be fired too?). We need a new leadership and vision for the district.

The new board must show a fiscal responsibilty to give the best bucks for the programs, teachers and students.

We need to retain and recruit the best teachers, so they need to have good salaries to live in this area (instead of wasting money with lawsuits).
We need to have more AP classes and introduce IB classes. During the orientation at Monta Vista, an assistant principal said that there was no need to take an AP class. Then 2 weeks ago a four-year planning guide for high school & college form was distributed to freshmen. It states that "to be competitvely eligible, students should take more than the required amount of courses, include several Honors and Advanced Placement (AP) courses, need a higher GPA, higher SAT 1 or ACT w/writing and SAT II scores, and have more involvement in on and off campus activities." So on one hand, the assistant principal said no need for AP classes, and on the other hand the school says otherwise. This confuses the students. According to college admission counselors, AP classes are needed for sure. They all look at solid courses (Math, Science, English, Social studies, and modern languages). An A in an easy class (such as woodworking) will not help.
We need to have smaller classes for modern languages. The students need practice. Although there are no language labs, we can use the new technology of iPod. The teachers can create podcasting lessons that the students can listen with their iPods.
We need more counselors to help the students, not only with their problems, but also with the college application process. Imagine that they have to write letters of recommendation for all the seniors. They are overworked. With more counselors, they have more time to help guide the students in filling out the applications even reading the essays.
Our schools are now the feeders to the CSU and UC College Systems. With more resources, staff and classes, they should also be feeders to the Ivy League (increase in acceptance).
Are the career centers good enough to help the students find volunteer positions and internships? We need to establish/increase the programs to connect with the companies and organizations so that all the students can easily get volunteer work and/or internship.
Our schools are overcrowded. We need to add more classrooms and teachers to accommodate our increasing student population.

The list goes on and on, but this is only a start for the new board with a new leadership and vision to consider.

Measures D and E

If the issue of overcrowded schools is resolved, there's no problem with Measures D and E. Unfortunately, by building more condos, it's certain that families with school children will move to Cupertino. Why? Because of the good reputation of the schools. Don't think that the condos are for firt time buyers without children. The prices are too high for them to come to Cupertino.

Cupertino does not have a downtown. So will Measures D and E create this downtown that we all wanted? Why is there a need to have condos while retail stores are good enough to create a semblance of a downtown. If the developers can get good brand names to anchor, the people will come.

The argument for the measures is that they bring more money to our schools. So are they saying that without the condos, the retail spaces wouldn't bring money to our schools?

Why don't we look at the current projects. Condos are being built all over Cupertino, near Vallco, on I280 and South De Anza, and across from the library. Don't we have enough of the them? How about the future development of the space on I85 and De Anza Boulevard? This belongs to San Jose, but the children will go to the school district. We are stuck with it.

We want growth, but sustained. Solve the overcrowded schools first. Condos can come afterwards.

Vote with your conscience by keeping in mind the future of our children.

For more information, please visit:

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/living/education/15348683.htm

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/living/education/15240720.htm

http://www.community-newspapers.com/archives/sunnyvalesun/20060719/news2.shtml

http://www.community-newspapers.com/archives/sunnyvalesun/20060913/news7.shtml

http://rss.topix.net/forum/city/cupertino-ca/TNTR06MDA9236OV6R

http://cbs5.com/education/local_story_235222551.html

http://svcn.com/cupertino_courier/letters_opinions2.shtml

http://www.cupertinocares.org

The Parks at Monta Vista?

2006-02-23T13:09:00.000-08:00

The title is misleading. It's not about parks and affordable housing. It's about multimillion-dollar business. It's real pure greed and money. Nothing to do with helping the community and school district. So will the $2 million donation to the school by the developers help Monta Vista build new facilities and hire new teachers for the new students? What can be done with that money?

OK this is about the proposed plan to demolish 175,000 square feet of industrial buildings and construct 94 single-family residential units and recreational areas on Bubb Road and Imperial (a portion of Results Way Corporate Park).

The hearing date will be on February 27, 2006 at 5PM at the Council Chamber, Community Hall, 10350 Torre Ave.

Don't say that there won't be new students enrolling at Lincoln, Kennedy and Monta Vista. The people, who are willing to buy a small house for a million dollar, are not coming just for the sake of living in Cupertino. They want to move here for the schools. If they don't have children, they can buy a big mansion somewhere else. So the argument that there's no impact on the schools is without merit.

Look at today. Monta Vista has no room for intratransfer of students for the coming 2006-2007 school year. In 5 years from now, how do we know if Monta Vista is still overcrowded unless the district gets more funding to build more classrooms?

The question is not residential vs industrial. The question is not about more parks and no parks. The question is not about more affordable housing. Those, who are pro, want to use the sensitive issue of affordable housing to hide the real issue, which is traffic and overcrowded classrooms. Taylor Woodrow Homes don't care about that. They come, make their money and go. They don't live and go to school here. For sure we want nice parks and affordable housing for teachers, librarians, firefighters, etc., but address the real issue first. There's no need to rush to keep developing when there's some available land.

At least the residents of Cupertino have some input in this issue. Look at what the city of San Jose is planning to do with the mall on De Anza Blvd and Hwy 85. The location is in Cupertino but the address is part of San Jose. So Cupertino residents have no say in the city of San Jose's plan to allow the developers to build condominiums. Again we come back to the same issue. The kids, who'll live in these condos, will go to Monta Vista. And we can't do anything about it.

I hope that the Cupertino council members will make the right choice for all residents of Cupertino.

Free Wi-Fi?

2006-02-23T13:07:00.000-08:00

It looks like Metrofi's business model to get people to pay $20/mo has
failed. So by switching to a new model of free access but with banner
ads on the browser, it hopes to get enough customers to be profitable.
It doesn't have to spend money on marketing any more trying to get
customers. Also it doesn't need to do any billing thus saving money
right there. Will it survive? It depends on how local businesses agree
to spend ads money on this new model.

How about for consumers? FreeWiFi has been in existence for a long time
in Seattle, Spokane, New York, etc. In those cities, it's really free
without ads. Here in Cupertino, there's no free lunch with MetroFi. The
consumers will have to see if the ads are not annoying or if they're
not spywares. Also we need to ask if MetroFi is going to collect any
information from the users so that it can specifically target its ads.
So although it's tempting to have free WiFi access, I still believe
that it should not belong to residential areas. It should stay in
commercial areas only.

New White Flight?

2005-11-28T01:02:00.000-08:00

"The New White Flight" is a divisive article published by the Wall Street Journal on November 19, 2005.

Why do we have to differentiate between races, pitting whites against Asians? Is it a stereotype that Asian kids are hard working making the caucasian kids look bad? We're very blessed to live in a very diversified community. America is made of immigrants from all over the world. It's this melting pot that makes America what it is today with its diverse cultures.

As parents, we all want to see our kids do better than us. There is nothing wrong for our kids to challenge themselves and seek knowledge. Regardless of races, all kids want the same things: good education, good values, and eventually good jobs. So is it wrong to study hard so that they can be admitted to good colleges? These colleges don't just look for grades and SAT scores. They want balanced kids.

If we look closely, Asian kids participate in extracurricular activities such as swimming, tennis, soccer, etc. They are in band and orchestra. They enjoy singing in the choir. They are well balanced. They learn how to manage time to study and have fun. White kids can do the same.

Why didn't the author of the article interview the 2 students at Monta Vista who were recipients of the Optimist award on November 17, 2005?

My wife's caucasian friend has a son at Bellermine right now. She told us that she would not have sent her son to Bellermine if she lived in Cupertino because Monta Vista is a very good school.

Some former residents of Cupertino moved out because they not could refuse offers on their houses.

It is a real disservice from a prestigious newspaper like the Wall Street Journal to divide the community because of academic excellence from the Asian kids. It's unfortunate that the author is a Chinese-American.

The real question that should be asked is the following:

What do we want our kids to be? a football player, a basketball player, a doctor, a lawyer, an engineer, an architect, a politician, a nurse, a banker, a teacher, etc.?

We have our choices. So to reach that goal, what should we do?

Don't blame the kids because they're hungry and have ambitions. Don't blame the parents because they support their kids.

Please read the interesting opinion of Thomas Sowell regarding the WSJ piece at http://www.jewishworldreview.com/cols/sowell112505.asp.

Please read the article at http://modelminority.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1061

No Business for MetroFi

2005-05-18T17:51:00.000-07:00

Today the Cupertino Courier published a story on the "Transmitters are popping up on some utility poles" (http://www.svcn.com/archives/cupertinocourier/20050518/cu-coverstrip.shtml). In the same issue, MetroFi, the company that installed the transmitters, placed a 1/4 page ad. How about that? This is good business for the Courier. Also today, I got a promotional card from MetroFi. So the company is going high gear trying to get business from the residents of Cupertino.

Please do not do business with MetroFi. Please let your neighbors know.

According to the contract, when the company is out of business, it has to remove all the transmitters. So we want to make sure that it has no business with us.
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Transmitters on Light Poles

2005-05-02T17:56:00.000-07:00

When getting out of the house, check if it's in your frontyard.

We all came to live in Cupertino because of the schools (Monta Vista is ranked 57th in the nation by Newsweek 5/16/05) and quality of life.

Surprise! One day, transmitters also known as repeaters sprang up on the light poles without any notification from the city to the affected residents. The city of Cupertino said that there was a public meeting on granting the right to MetroFi to install these transmitters for wireless access to the Internet. It did not know where these transmitters would be. Also it did not have any say on the health issue regarding the Radio Frequency Radiation (RFR) as it's under the jurisdiction of the FCC.

What we don't understand is that no resident was notified of the installation of the transmitters. Although the city had no idea where the transmitters were going to be, it had a master plan identifying the infrastructure, traffic lights, light poles, etc. for the company to use. In its master plan, the city condoned the installation of the transmitters in residential areas, in high schools and churches, etc. So this is to show that the city doesn't care about the citizens of Cupertino.

As there's no concrete evidence one way or the other of real health hazard with the RFR, we should at least take in consideration the health impact on our children in the future. Today we don't know. In 30 or 50 years from now, it's possible that the children who are the most exposed to RFR might develop health problems. Why don't we prevent it from happening?

What's the need to have the transmitters in residential areas and especially right across from schools such as Kennedy Middle School (one is at the corner of Bubb and Holly Oak). The city should allow the use of transmitters in commercial areas only.

People have DSL and cable modem that they can subscribe to. They don't need wireless access from home at a lower bandwidth.

So what's the solution? According to the city, we're screwed. We can't do anything.

According to us, yes, we can do something if we are all united. We don't need to support the business of MetroFi by not subscribing to its services. So DO NOT DO BUSINESS with MetroFi.

For a long shot, we should write to our senators and congressmen regarding the issue of the health hazard associated with the RFR.

If you drive along Bubb Rd, you'll see the transmitters on light poles near the corners of Monravio, Terrace, Edward, Holly Oak and Presidio. Along S. Stelling Rd, they're near Waterford, Oak Meadow, Hillview Bible Chapel, Huntridge (what an irony after PCS Sprint failed) all the way down to Homestead, and inside on Squirewood.

It's time to FIGHT BACK!

(Please click on Comments to read the city's response).

Next time when you walk in the streets of Cupertino, look up!