The Tustin Unified School District has appointed Dr. Grant Litfin as Director of Secondary Education. He will begin July 1.

Litfin has worked in public education for 11 years. Prior to joining TUSD, he served as principal of Los Alamitos High School in the Los Alamitos Unified School District for three years. He has also been a middle school science/technology teacher, assistant principal and principal in the Torrance Unified School District.

Litfin has a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from St. John’s University, a master’s degree in educational management and school administration from the University of La Verne, and his doctorate in education from the University of Southern California.

While serving as principal of Los Alamitos High School, Litfin expanded technology use at the school, implemented online learning systems in social science, established an athletics partnership with Oakley and increased Advanced Placement (AP) participation and pass rates, earning a national award for the school. He also served on the District’s Educational Technology Committee, traveled to China to establish a sister-school relationship between Los Alamitos and a school in Benbgu, China, and chaired the Los Alamitos Youth Center 60th annual campaign.

Among his other accomplishments, Litfin has received scholar awards and grants in science, math and technology; has established business partnerships in athletics and technology; and won the Outstanding Volunteer Award in 2008 from the Torrance Chamber of Commerce.

He has also presented at leadership and teamwork workshops, served as a CIF trainer in coaching and participated as a member of the NASA Advanced Space Academy for Educators.

Litfin, who is a marathon runner and musician, lives in San Pedro with his wife, Heather, and two children, Gwen and Gavin.

Featured photo

File photo by C.E.H. Wiedel of Los Alamitos High School.

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Friday

Pretzel Logic: A Steely Dan Revue. Show starts at 7:30 p.m.

Saturday

Incendio. World fusion music. Show starts at 7:30 p.m.

Sunday

Brunch featuring DW3 is sold out.

Evening show featuring contemporary guitarist Dave Hill and his band starts at 6:30 p.m.

Spaghettini is located at 3005 Old Ranch Parkway in Seal Beach, just north of the 405 freeway and east of the 605 freeway.

For more information, call Spaghettini at 562-596-2199 or 714-960-6002.

Featured photo

Mark Wilson of Pretzel Logic, courtesy of Pretzel Logic.

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The deadline to register to vote for the June Election is Monday, May 21, 2012.
The deadline to register to vote for the June 5, 2012 Statewide Direct Primary Election is Monday, May 21, 2012.

The Orange County Registrar of Voters has extended its office hours to allow greater flexibility for citizens wishing to register for the June election. Additionally, registered voters may drop off their voted vote-by-mail ballot, pick up a vote-by-mail ballot or vote in the office.

When:

Monday, May 21, 2012

8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Where:

1300 South Grand Avenue, Building C
Santa Ana

How:

Any eligible citizen may register to vote.

Any registered voter in Orange County may vote at the Registrar of Voters office.

Featured photo

Photo of alarm clock from Metro Creative Services.

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Adam Krikorian, Head Coach for the U.S. Olympic Women’s Water Polo Team, today announced the 13 athletes that will compete at the 2012 Olympic Games this summer in London, England at a press conference at the LA84 Foundation in Los Angeles, CA. Featuring seven returners from the 2008 team that won the Silver Medal, and eight athletes overall with Olympic Games experience, the team clinched a berth to the 2012 Olympic Games by winning Gold at the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico.

Led by Team Captain Brenda Villa (Commerce, CA/Stanford/Olympic Club) the U.S. Olympic Women’s Water Polo Team is one of the most successful programs in international water polo history over the last twelve years. The only nation to win an Olympic Medal at every Olympic Games offering women’s water polo, a tally that includes two Silver Medals (2000 and 2008) and a Bronze (2004), the program has also won three World Championships and one World Cup title during that span.

Villa is joined on the team by Heather Petri (Orinda, CA/California/NYAC); both will be the first U.S. women to compete in four Olympic Games in water polo.

Members of 2012 U.S. Olympic Women’s Water Polo Team

Member Name (Hometown/College/Club)

1. Betsey Armstrong – Goalkeeper (Ann Arbor, MI/Michigan/NYAC)*
2. Heather Petri – Attacker (Orinda, CA/California/NYAC)#%*
3. Melissa Seidemann – Defender (Walnut Creek, CA/Stanford/Stanford)
4. Brenda Villa – Attacker (Commerce, CA/Stanford/Olympic Club)#%*
5. Lauren Wenger – All-Around (Long Beach, CA/USC/NYAC)*
6. Maggie Steffens – Defender (Danville, CA/Stanford/Diablo)
7. Courtney Mathewson – Attacker (Anaheim Hills, CA/UCLA/NYAC)
8. Jessica Steffens – Defender (Danville, CA/Stanford/NYAC)*
9. Elsie Windes – Defender (Portland, OR/California/Tualatin Hills WP)*
10. Kelly Rulon – Attacker (San Diego, CA/UCLA/NYAC)%
11. Annika Dries – Center (Laguna Beach, CA/Stanford/SET)
12. Kami Craig – Center (Santa Barbara, CA/USC/Santa Barbara WPF)*
13. Tumua Anae – Goalkeeper (Newport Beach, CA/USC/SOCAL)

#2000 Olympian
%2004 Olympian
*2008 Olympian

(Emphasis added.)

The U.S. Olympic Women’s Water Polo Team will open competition at the 2012 Olympic Games against Hungary on July 30. That is followed by a match against Spain on August 1, and China on August 3, to close out preliminary play in Group A. The quarterfinals are set for August 5, followed by the semifinals on August 7, and the medal round on August 9.

For more information on the team, including individual bio information visit USAWaterPolo.org by clicking here.

About USA Water Polo

USA Water Polo, Inc. is the national governing body for water polo in America, overseeing our United States Olympic program as well as 20 different championship events annually, such as Junior Olympics and Masters National Championships. With more than 40,000 members, USAWP is also the sanctioning authority for more than 500 Member Clubs and more than 400 tournaments nationwide. USAWP is committed to the development of the sport nationwide. It fosters grass-roots expansion of the sport, providing a national system of affiliated clubs, certified coaches and officials.

Official USA Water Polo Sponsors & Suppliers

24 Hour Fitness, Active Media, American Pistachios, Aquahydrate, Athleta, Bare Fruit Snacks, Beachside Produce, Big Fish Payroll Services, Capital One, Colorado Time Systems, Deckside Pools, H2O Audio, Intercontinental Hotels Group, iSport, Jamba Juice, Jostens, Kaenon, Katin USA, KT Tape, Ludus Tours, Malibu Wellness, Mikasa, Napa Smith Brewery, Nestlé Nesquik, Ospraie Management, PowerBar, Pro-form Mouthguards, REUSE Jeans, Sea Air Federal Credit Union, Special Event Contractors, Squar Milner, Stemilt, SwimOutlet.com, TRX, TURBO, United, U.S.Navy SEALs, VIDA Organic Life Massage & Water Marque.

Featured photo

USA Women’s Olympic water polo team. Courtesy photo.

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The President of a Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) is scheduled to be arraigned tomorrow for embezzling over $22,000 from school fundraisers. Gail Diane Panella-Monestere, 52, Huntington Beach, is charged with one felony count of grand theft by embezzlement. If convicted, Panella-Monestere faces a maximum sentence of three years in Orange County Jail. Panella-Monestere is being held on $25,000 bail and is expected to be arraigned tomorrow, May 18, 2012, at 9:00 a.m. in Department W-14, West Justice Center, Westminster.

Between September 2010 and February 2011, the defendant is accused of serving as PTO president for Sun View Elementary School in Huntington Beach and was responsible for tracking and maintaining fundraiser money.

The defendant is accused of abusing her position of trust by embezzling approximately $22,000 by writing unauthorized checks to herself from the PTO bank account in amounts ranging from $250 to $800 and cashing them for her own personal use. The defendant is accused of keeping cash raised from fundraising events intended to be deposited into the PTO bank account.

School administrators discovered fundraiser money was missing and reported the theft to the Huntington Beach Police Department, who investigated the case.

Featured photo

Logo of the Orange County District Attorney.

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Ever dream of traveling to the orient? Now is your opportunity!

The Los Alamitos Area Chamber of Commerce together with Citslinc International is providing a rare opportunity — an all-inclusive trip to China for only $2,099 per person (based on double occupancy).

The trip will take place from October 24 through November 1, 2012, and includes air fare, 4- or 5-star hotels, three meals per day, all tours, and a fluent English-speaking tour guide.

Call the Chamber today for more information at 562-598-6659.

Informational meetings will be held on Monday, May 21, and on Monday, June 11. Both meetings will start at 3 p.m.

The Chamber office is located at 3231 Katella Ave. in Los Alamitos.

Featured photo

Courtesy photo of the Great Wall of China.

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• Congratulations to John and Mike Anderson (oc-breeze.com)
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55-Hour Closure on the Southbound I-605 / Northbound I-405 Connector

Crews will fully close the southbound I-605 / northbound I-405 connector for 55-hours from 10 p.m. Friday, May 18 until 5 a.m. Monday, May, 21. This closure is necessary for crews to realign the connector to accommodate the widened I-605 freeway.

55-Hour Closure on the Northbound I-405 / Northbound I-605 Connector

The northbound I-405 / northbound I-605 connector will be closed over a weekend in June 2012 for 55-hours. An exact date is not yet available however more information will be provided as the date nears. This closure is necessary to realign the connector to accommodate the widened I-605 freeway.

55-Hour Closure of Valley View Street and Garden Grove Boulevard

Crews will close Valley View Street (between Tiffany Avenue and Old Bolsa Chica Road) and Garden Grove Boulevard (between Valley View Street and the northbound I-405 Valley View Street off-ramp) for 55-hours from 10 p.m. Friday, June 8 until 5 a.m., Monday June 11. This 55-hour weekend closure will allow crews to restripe Valley View Street and Garden Grove Boulevard in preparation for the bridge reopening in July. Additional information will be provided on the project website as the date of the 55-hour weekend closure nears.

Seal Beach Boulevard Bridge

Once work to reconstruct the Valley View Street bridge is complete this summer, crews will begin demolishing and reconstructing the west half of the Seal Beach Boulevard bridge over the I-405. Similar to the Valley View Street bridge, crews will reconstruct the Seal Beach Boulevard bridge one half at a time.

During the first stage of construction, Seal Beach Boulevard (over the I-405 freeway) will be reduced to one lane in either direction with a center median dedicated exclusively for emergency response access for approximately 11 months

Featured photo

Map of the West Orange County Connectors Project courtesy of OCTA.

Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas) is committed to the safety of its customers, the communities it serves and its employees.

As part of their ongoing effort to enhance natural gas safety, they wanted to remind everyone about how to recognize and respond to a potential natural gas leak.

Look, Listen, Smell

Use your senses of sight, hearing and smell, along with any of the following signs, to alert yourself to the presence of a gas leak:

Look

• A damaged connection to a gas appliance
• Dirt or water being blown in the air
• Dead or dying vegetation (in an otherwise moist area) over or near pipeline areas
• A fire or explosion near a pipeline
• Exposed pipeline after an earthquake, fire, flood or other disaster

Listen

• An unusual sound, such as a hissing, whistling or roaring sound near a gas line or appliance.

Smell

• The distinctive odor of natural gas*

Immediately evacuate the area, and from a safe location, call SoCalGas at 1-800-427-2200, 24 hours a day, seven days a week; or call 911.

* Please be aware that some people may not be able to smell the odor because they have a diminished sense of smell, olfactory fatigue (normal, temporary inability to distinguish an odor after prolonged exposure to it), or because the odor is being masked or hidden by other odors that are present, such as cooking, damp, musty or chemical odors. In addition, certain conditions in pipe and soil can cause odor fade – the loss of odorant so that it is not detectable by smell.

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The Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG), in coordination with the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) and the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA), have been conducting an analysis of the Pacific Electric Right-of-Way/West Santa Ana Branch Corridor. The corridor is a railroad right-of-way that extends for approximately 20 miles between the Cities of Paramount and Santa Ana. The railroad corridor was once part of the Pacific Electric Red Car system that provided mass transit service to Southern California from 1901 to 1961. Much of the corridor has been abandoned and is not currently used for transit purposes. In La Palma, this corridor runs along the southern border of the community.

The analysis examined potential transit services along the corridor that can provide additional travel options between Los Angeles and Orange Counties, reduce congestion on nearby streets and freeways, and provide adjacent communities with access to the regional transit network.

The final round of community meetings are taking place now and the offer the public an opportunity to review the final alternatives evaluation results and provide input on a preferred alternative. This input will help the study’s advisory committees to develop recommendations on what alternative(s) should continue to be analyzed in future studies, including engineering and environmental impact analysis. The content presented at each meeting will be identical. For more information visit www.pacificelectriccorridor.com

SATURDAY, MAY 19, 2012
1:00 – 3:00 pm
Walter Ehlers Community Center
8150 Knott Ave., Buena Park, CA 90620

TUESDAY, MAY 22, 2012
5:30 – 7:30 pm
Japanese American National Museum
100 N. Central Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90012

WEDNESDAY, MAY 23, 2012
5:30 – 7:30 pm
John Simms Park
16614 S. Clark Ave., Bellflower, CA 90706

THURSDAY, MAY 24, 2012
5:30 – 7:30 pm
South Gate Park, Senior Center
4855 Tweedy Blvd., South Gate, CA 90280

Featured photo

Logo of the Pacific Electric Corridor courtesy of the City of La Palma.

On Monday, May 14, 2012, the newly remodeled McDonald’s restaurant, across from Gate 12, opened to the traveling public at John Wayne Airport.

The innovative design of the new McDonald’s restaurant gives a contemporary “forever young” feel in line with the McDonald’s “i’m lovin’ it” brand. The modernized features of this restaurant include an upscale interior décor, comfortable lighting levels and fixtures that create pleasant dining experiences, modern seating and furniture, including booths, chairs, high seated community tables and lounge-style seating areas. Additionally, this restaurant is the first McDonald’s in California to feature new digital menu boards.

The décor of the restaurant, owned and operated by local McDonald’s franchisee Isabelle Villaseñor and her daughters Lisa De Bono and Jenny Briones, reflects the interests and community Villaseñor treasures. A mural depicts the cultural impact of Orange County, highlighting key Orange County locations such as San Juan Capistrano, Chapman University, the Bowers Museum and the Orange County Ronald McDonald House. Additionally, there is an image of Villaseñor’s five grandchildren skipping away arm-and-arm with Ronald McDonald.

“As a resident and businesswoman in Orange County for more than 40 years, it was important to me to build a restaurant that reflected the beauty of this community and also pay homage to what is most important in my life – family,” said Villaseñor. “I wanted to remind passengers of the Orange County beauty they were about to step into or were about to leave behind.”

A second McDonald’s location, near Gate 5, is closed for remodeling and will reopen in August. Both McDonald’s venues will offer the chain’s popular McCafé menu. Renovating the two McDonald’s locations is part of a comprehensive effort by the Airport to bring a greater variety of quality dining and retail choices to our passengers.

Construction is also taking place between Gates 8 and 9 in the Thomas F. Riley Terminal where a Ruby’s Diner, Ruby’s Grab n’ Go and Farmer’s Market by Laguna Culinary Institute will open later this year. These and other concession changes are part of the overall Airport Improvement Program which includes construction of a new multi-level terminal building with six new commercial passenger gates, new security checkpoints, greater baggage screening capability, 2,000+ new parking spaces and new commuter terminals at the north and south ends of the extended terminal.

About John Wayne Airport

John Wayne Airport (SNA) is owned by the County of Orange and is operated as a self supporting enterprise that receives no general fund tax revenue. The Airport serves approximately nine million passengers annually, reaches more than 20 non-stop destinations in the United States and Canada and is served by eight commercial passenger airlines. More information can be found at www.ocair.com.

Featured photo

Courtesy photo of the newly remodeled McDonald’s/McCafé near Gate 12 at John Wayne Airport.

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