Bear Valley Unified School District Teachers and Staff Attend Southern Region Student Wellness Conference

Big Bear, CA, August 24, 2012, – As a supplement to their continuing education process, Bear Valley Unified School District teachers and administrative staff attended the Southern Region Student Wellness Conference in Indian Wells, CA, this past July.  The District was invited by Kathy Estes, Coordinator for the Coordinated School Health Programs for the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools and, thanks to grant money available, 35 employees, consisting of mostly teachers, were able to attend with free registration, along with hotel and two meals a day provided at no charge during the week long conference.  All BVUSD teachers were invited to attend the Southern Region Student Wellness Conference which focused on positive behavior interventions and support systems, behavioral and physical health of students and current school culture in a continued effort to develop the potential of every student.  Much of the conference focused on issues related to kids in poverty and, as our District indicates with 71% of the student population in Big Bear qualifying for free and reduced lunch programs, there is much to be learned in our community on understanding the struggles for some of our students and knowing how to have an effective intervention to achieve optimum results.  As Kurt Madden, Superintendent of BVUSD tells Kbear, the conference gave the attendees a chance to open their eyes and hearts to the work in front of us.  His hope is to train all school personnel who come into contact with kids from teachers to custodians, campus security to front office staff.  Additionally, Madden is grateful to Kathy Estes for allowing our District to take advantage of this grant opportunity giving teachers and staff a basis to build on and put into action in our schools.