August 16, 2007

MAPPING OUT THE NEWS

1 Korea is on the curriculum: Parents and teachers answered questions during a recent three-day seminar as a way for Irvine teachers and South Korean families to better understand each other for the sake of public education. The Korea Summer Institute was a collaborative effort among the Irvine Public Schools Foundation, Irvine Korean Parents Association (all parents are South Korean), and Fullerton International Resources for Students and Teachers at Cal State Fullerton. In the workshop at Bethel Korean Church that ended last Thursday, 20 Irvine teachers learned about Korean history, culture and education – from North and South – with guest speakers and cultural performances. For more, go to www.irvineworldnews.com/ schools.

2 Video: Wrecking ball does the job: Last week the wielder of a 4,000-pound wrecking ball got a chance to knock down an old El Toro base building. Building No. 37 1, a barracks, will stand three stories tall no longer. To watch the video, go to www.ocregister.com/greatpark.

3 High-tech campus opening on old helicopter base: A new community college campus on the old Tustin Marine helicopter base will open its doors to students on Monday, offering what college officials call revolutionary, high-tech educational programs. South Orange County Community College District, which includes Irvine Valley and Saddleback colleges, has built five buildings on a 68-acre site for its Advanced Technology & Education Park. The college will teach courses in optics and photonics, design model-making and prototyping, and information security.

4 Teen attacked with paintballs: A 1 7-year-old boy was shot multiple times with paintballs Monday night in a driveby attack as he was walking on Dakota near Washington in West Irvine, police said. The victim told police that three people in a late ’90s four-door Dodge fired at him with a paintball gun and drove off. The teen suffered red marks and bruising on his arms and chest, police said. Anyone with information is asked to call police detectives at 949-724-7000.

5 Jewish Olympics played in Irvine: There was a parade of international athletes, a cheering crowd, and even a torchlighting. But where Olympic opening ceremonies can be solemn and staid, the ceremony that kicked off the 25th JCC Maccabi Games on Sunday was light and energetic, buoyed by more than 3,000 competitors, all Jewish teens between the ages of 12 and 16. They paraded around the floor of the Honda Center waving flags and banners, bouncing beach balls and even doing back flips as 9,000 spectators cheered them on. The Olympicstyle athletic competition made its Orange County debut this year. It is modeled after the World Maccabiah Games in Israel, held every four years for elite Jewish athletes.

6 Public meeting on Uni stadium: A public meeting to solicit opinions, views and concerns on the proposed stadium at University High School is scheduled from 6 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 2 1, at the high school theater, 477 1 Campus Drive. The proposed stadium would be constructed on the school’s football field and athletic track on the north side of the campus. The proposed project includes bleacher seating for 3,600 spectators, field lights, a public address system and other amenities. Information collected at the meeting will be used to finalize the scope of the project’s environmental impact report.

7 City to look at making water park, camp, theater Great: The City Council Tuesday decided to look into bringing a water park, amphitheater and day camp into the future Great Park. And those possibly will be the Wild Rivers, Camp James and Verizon Wireless Amphitheater when their leases expire on Irvine Co. land near the Irvine Spectrum. While Councilwoman Christina Shea asked her colleagues at Tuesday’s meeting to ask staff to begin negotiating with all three companies for possibly coming to the Great Park, the council unanimously approved a substitute motion by Larry Agran. His proposal asks staff to continue studying the possibilities of a water park, amphitheater and day camp in the park while inviting all three to submit plans for their attractions to the Great Park Corp.

8 Redhots win again in swim championship: The Irvine Swim League concluded its 23rd season with its annual championship meet at the William Woollett Aquatics Center in Heritage Park on Saturday. The Colony Redhots took the ultimate team prize for the fourth year in a row. Twenty-four swim league records were also set at the competition. For more, go online to www.irvineworldnews.com/sports.