Kevin Nelson, who is appearing at the Hayward Area Historical Society museum to promote his new book, is a product of Hayward. After his parents moved here when he was 3 years old, he went to East Avenue Elementary School, Bret Harte Jr. High and Hayward High.

“I still have a lot of friends there, and I still blog about it,” said Nelson. 

That blog can be found here. Hayward-related entries include a tribute to a favorite high school teacher, tales stemming from his dishwashing days at Banchero’s, and the Bully of Bret Harte Jr. High.

There’s also a How Well Do You Know Hayward test, which is incredibly tough. Take a look.

THURSDAY MORNING UPDATE: Motion failed 2-to-3 in an overflow meeting that involved a lot of heat, not just from audience members but between board members as well. Here’s our early version of the story, we will have a longer piece in tomorrow’s paper. A motion to approve a modified six-period schedule passed, although the HEA is challenging the validity of that schedule because it wasn’t bargained.

The Hayward Unified School District meeting on Wednesday is sure to produce some feelings of deja vu, as the board is slated to again address the high school block schedule. While the board voted in February to nix the schedule to save money, board member Luis Reynoso changed his mind and is bringing it back.

What do you think about Reynoso’s decision to revisit the issue? Is it a chance for a needed reprieve for a well-liked system, or is it time to accept the change as a budget-cutting casualty and move on?

The Mt. Eden High School Wind Ensemble has returned from its trip to perform at Carnegie Hall in New York City. Director Kevin Cato said it was the band’s “best performance” at the hall, and the first time it was recorded. Listen to it here. And if you want to see more photos from the trip, click here.

The recording includes two pieces written specifically for the Carnegie appearance: “Casus Belli” (a song about the struggles of war, composed by woodwind instructor and Mt. Eden orchestra director Ronnie Cato) and Kevin Cato’s “Train,” which he says is self-explanatory.

The Mt. Eden music program will receive state accolades on May 8, with a resolution presented by Assemblywoman Mary Hayashi and state Sen. Ellen Corbett, honoring the program and the success that has been realized on band and individual levels.

Margarita Lacabe, whose husband is San Leandro school board President Mike Katz-Lacabe, wants sacred music to be removed from elementary school music studies or school programs. We’ve been getting lots of letters and calls. Sound off here.

Calpine announced Thursday that an amended power-purchase agreement with PG&E was approved by the California Public Utilities Commission for the proposed Russell City Energy Center, a 600-megawatt power plant that would be placed near the Hayward shoreline.

That doesn’t mean the plant itself is approved. It has some of the required permits, but the main hurdle remaining is approval from the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, acting as a delegate of the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

The air district previously gave it the go ahead, meaning it didn’t find evidence that the plant would add significant amounts of pollution to the air, but that permit was revoked after a lawsuit on the grounds that BAAQMD did not follow federal guidelines for publicly noticing the permitting process.

The air district is currently reviewing and responding to public comments submitted regarding the permit. No time frame has been given in which a decision will be made.

We will have a larger story on this posted online Friday, running in Saturday’s paper.

A parent apparently frustrated over an incident at Castro Valley High School that involved a lesbian guest speaker somehow managed to get a list of many school parents’ e-mails. The parent sent the following message in an e-mail:
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We’re still collecting information after last night’s Hayward Unified School District budget meeting, which saw class-size reduction programs eliminated to save $2.7 million, and the high school block schedule axed to save $1 million. Here’s our early report on the meeting, expect more details in tomorrow’s paper. Crowd grew very contentious after the vote on the block – “For shame! For shame!” hollered one teacher. Many parents, students and teachers thought the block was saved after the Jan. 28 meeting, only to find it back before the board on Wednesday.

Jack O’Connell, state superintendent of schools, brought up the Hayward Unified School District in his annual State of Education address yesterday. He used the district as an example of how bad things are, financially speaking. Specifically, O’Connell pointed out that the district is considering eliminating the class-size reduction program and cutting 170 positions.

A dubious honor to be singled out, but at least we know he’s paying attention to HUSD. But lest we think we’re special:

“I hear these kind of stories all over the state,” he said. “As painful as these mid-year cuts are, we can expect worse over the next two years.”

The Hayward school board will vote on cuts at its next meeting, Feb. 11.

Many of Melanie Blagburn’s students at San Leandro’s Lincoln High School voted for the first time in last November’s presidential election. Then, they decided to participate in the national online “Letters to Obama Poetry Project.” Check out some of their poems, and a photo of the classroom’s “Obama Wall.”

The Hayward Unified School District will hear recommendations for budget reductions at its meeting at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday in Council Chambers at City Hall, 777 B St., in Hayward. They will vote on the budget at the Feb. 11 meeting.

Meanwhile, a group of teachers released the following music video:

Here’s the explanation, from Andrew Kong Knight, Hayward High art instructor:

Elimination of the high school block system will give students the choice of only six classes per year instead of eight classes. Limiting the classes will eliminate many of the elective classes students enjoy, such as music and art. Many students attend Hayward high schools because of the strong art and music programs. Elimination of elementary instrumental music program will deny students the opportunity to experience music, which has been proven to help students learn in other subjects. The early development programs are essential to strong music programs in middle and high school.

“I produced the video to spread awareness about the Hayward Unified School District’s continued failure to make budget cuts on an administrative level. Every time they’re in a budget squeeze, they never consider cutting the questionable high-salary district positions. Instead, they hurt students and teachers by eliminating music and art classes.”