June Bayha – Page 3 – Bayha Group

WORDS: JOANNA BANKS

The stars aligned for the production of How to Be a Latin Lover, thanks to California’s new tax credit initiatives to encourage more filming in the state. Not only did the Pantelion Films/Lionsgate production, released April 28, put its crew to work in Los Angeles, the production hosted three high school teachers on set as part of the career readiness component of the economic stimulus initiatives established by AB 1839 for the Film & Television Tax Credit Program 2.0, administered by the California Film Commission.

With How to Be a Latin Lover, studio executives knew they wanted to give the production an LA look, but initially considered other locations because of cost. “I did three budgets: One for LA, one for Georgia and one for Vancouver,” says Executive Producer Mike Upton. “[The studio] shot in LA because they got the tax credit.”

The state’s hundreds of millions of dollars in tax credits helped bring the How to Be a Latin Lover production to the region, boosting the local economy by employing a cast and crew within LA County. An important aspect of increasing film and television production in California and bringing jobs and tax revenue to the state is the career-based learning and training program required for projects that apply for tax credit incentives provided in the legislation. The requirement asks film and television producers to choose from options to engage the next generation of creative minds through set or post-production internships, teacher externships, classroom workshops, studio employment and professional skills tours for high school or community college students, or donating money to an educational purpose.

Film projects that may apply for tax credits include non-independent feature films and independent films. Applicants compete for funds with comparable projects, and tax credits are awarded after each project completes post-production, verifies that in-state jobs were created, and provides all required documentations, including audited cost reports.

In addition to films, tax credits target television production with pilots shot in California, new TV series, recurring TV series and relocating TV series. According to the Commission, in just two years under Program 2.0, California has attracted or retained 100 film and television projects generating an estimated $3.7 billion in direct spending to the state ‐including $1.4 billion in below‐the‐line wages.

“Even in high school, I worked as a photographer’s assistant in a work study program to look at what photographers do,” Upton says. “I’ve found that just by volunteering and getting involved, it opened doors for me. I valued that experience greatly as my career developed. It’s just a way of kind of giving back because I’ve found so much value in it myself.”

*Marina High School teacher Don Hume, Executive Producer Mike Upton, and teachers Marilyn Cunneen and Carrie Peterson.*

Cunneen, who spent two days on the set of How to Be a Latin Lover with Peterson, says Upton introduced the teachers to the head of every department on set, and she learned about nearly every aspect of the production, from the publicists running social media for actors to the carpenters building sets. “It was phenomenal just to be able to bring that knowledge back to our classroom — all the different types of jobs that are available for students to work in that industry.”

Adds Peterson, “It’s one thing to teach digital media, but it’s another to hang out on a set all day long. … It really gets the teacher fired up to discuss what’s happening out there in the industry.”

Peterson took part in a second faculty externship in January on the set of the Netflix original film, Bright, coordinated by Sean Glumace, K-14 Career Pathways Statewide Technical Assistance Provider, Doing What Matters for Jobs and the Economy, California Community Colleges. On the set of Bright, Peterson talked to an optometrist and learned that the professional had been hired to change and care for the contact lenses going into actors’ eyes.

“With the Bright production, from 1:30 p.m. to 9:30 at night, it gave us access to people that quite honestly probably don’t have time for us – the producers and the production team,” says Glumace. “It gave us a forum to ask questions we wouldn’t be able to ask in another setting.

“There’s this insider stuff that unless you’re there all the time, you’ll never see,” Glumace adds. “It’s theory vs. practice.” Career options in the creative economy are expansive, but not always obvious. “It’s not just about, ‘Oh, my student wants to be a camera person or my kid wants to be an editor. They built an apartment complex, they dug a hole and put in a pool. Those trades are there, HVAC, lighting, electrical, carpentry. I think as educators we’re not exposed to that enough. You become very good at what you teach, but there’s all this other stuff you didn’t realize existed on a film set.”

How to Be a Latin Lover stars Eugenio Derbez, Salma Hayek, Rob Lowe, Kristen Bell, Raquel Welch, Rob Corddry and Rob Riggle. Derbez produced with partner Benjamin Odell through 3Pas Studios.

On Twitter @HowToBeALatinLover; Instagram @HowToBeALatinLover; and hashtag #HowToBeALatinLover. www.PantelionFilms.com

Educators interested in participating in the tax credit’s career-based learning component, contact Nancy.Stone@film.ca.gov. Please include name, email and cell number, as well as school name and address, teaching focus, preferred method of participation and areas of interest.

In our very first podcast, June and I provide a sweet and short introduction to the why and what of our work. We’re so excited to share our story with you all! Be sure to stay tuned for upcoming podcasts on work/life balance, finding the right school for your child, and more!

Last Saturday, the extended Bayha Group crew convened with our family and friends for an Equus Workshop guided by horse whisperers Renee Robinson Sievert and Honor Medina. The workshop was both a celebration of the Bayha Group’s recent launch and a beautiful opportunity to better connect to our coworkers through shared experiences.

Horses are incredibly gifted at sensing energy. It doesn’t matter if you “look” calm; it matters that you feel calm. If you are anxious, nervous, or lacking confidence, a horse will get that and give you the space to work it out on your own. If you are grounded, sure of what direction you want to take, and clear, a horse will respond in kind. In this way, working with horses helps us tap into the kind of energy that we want to radiate out into this world. Horses are mirrors of who we are and not only how we present ourselves.

Over the course of the day, we participated in several courses to help us learn how to tap into our deepest energy. During the morning, we gathered under a cloudy sky (leftover from a week of much-needed rain in our sunny city of San Diego) to set intentions. We observed several horses interact before breaking off into groups to have one-on-one time with the horses. We didn’t ride the horses. Rather, we walked into a pen, and, with Renee or Honor supporting us, figured out what we wanted the horse to do.

What does that mean exactly? For each of us, the experience we wanted with the horse differed. Some of us wanted to get the horse to follow us. Others wanted to get the horse to run in a circle and turn around at a specific point. Me? I just wanted to pet the horse. Renee and Honor invited us to seek out the experience we wanted by listening in on our energy—and figuring out just how our energy was influencing the horse.

The energy within us always exists in conversation with external factors. By honoring this energy and tuning into the wavelengths that we’re emitting, we can learn how to better support our coworkers and how to decide which projects nourish us. We can learn how to establish what set of skills we want to grow and determine what approaches work best with which people.

Because of this, our Equus Workshop wasn’t just fun; it was freeing. For many of the participants, myself included, our time with the horses opened us up to a deeper part of ourselves. I’m excited to bring this revitalized energy back into the workplace and I know the same holds true for the wonderfully open-minded and compassionate Bayha Group crew.

On March 3rd, 2016, the Bayha Group participated in Downey Unified MADE: Program Celebration at the Columbia Memorial Space Center. Business owners and entrepreneurs in the Downey community were invited to meet with DUSD students participating in the MADE program. For employers, it was a valuable occasion to share experiences and provide support to students seeking meaningful job opportunities. For students, it was a special chance to practice their networking skills and connect with mentors.

For the Bayha Group, MADE was an incredible opportunity to see the fruits of our labor in action. Several years ago, June wrote a California Career Pathways Trust grant to support the MADE program. It was exciting to speak with students and learn firsthand about how this initiative had positively impacted their lives. Students shared with us their success stories and future visions. Many of the youth we spoke with were inspired to pursue careers in cooking, engineering, and STEAM through their experiences in MADE. Many of the young women we spoke to in particular credited MADE with empowering them to make waves in the realm of robotics.

The event represented a powerful collaboration between the creative crew at Stay Gallery and the growing number of STEAM students within DUSD. We are looking forward to future collaborations that meld the arts and sciences to cultivate integrative educational opportunities for high school learners. Because we want every student, regardless of socioeconomic background, to have access to the kind of resources, mentors, and spaces that can help them bring their big dreams into being.

In honor of Wonder Con starting tomorrow at the Anaheim Convention Center, I wanted to highlight Star Wars in the Classroom, “a website for educators and fans alike that provides resources for transdisciplinary teaching and learning with the Star Wars saga. For nearly thirty years, our team has been integrating the Star Wars saga into history, English/Language Arts, and science classes at the middle school and high school levels. From studies in mythology, history, philosophy and the arts, to hands-on experiments in physics and engineering, we spark learning and the imagination by providing engaging and relevant experiences for students of all ages inspired by the captivating characters and stories from the Star Wars universe.”

Star Wars is near and dear to my heart. I have watched Star Wars, Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi countless times as a child and as an adult and now with my own kids. I love the idea of educational resources integrated with the Star Wars saga and wonder if kids enjoy learning more. Do teachers enjoy teaching more?

I’m curious if any teachers out there have used these resources. Please share stories of your experiences or your students’ reactions to materials from Star Wars in the Classroom. Look forward to your comments. Thanks so much!

And if you haven’t seen the movies, I highly recommend them, especially Star Wars (episode IV), Empire Strikes Back (episode V) and Return of the Jedi (episode VI).

1989: I applied for a full-time summer job at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) because my uncle was a computer scientist at JPL and encouraged me to apply. Thanks to Jan Ritchie, four of us were hired that summer to hand address VIP guest invitations and prepare packets and other materials for the big two-day Voyager/Neptune Encounter event. This was a historic encounter with the planet Neptune and its satellites by the Voyager 2 Spacecraft on August 25 and 26, 1989. It was also the BEST summer job ever.

Even though I was still in high school, my colleagues at JPL treated me as a member of the team. In reflection, I learned a lot that summer. One, I was proud to earn my own paycheck. Two, I learned the importance of showing up to work on time, how to act and dress like a professional. Three, JPL is a special place with a culture that always made me feel like I mattered to the organization (which I later learned is not true for other workplaces). Plus, it was fun and people liked working there. And I made new friends, like Jill who is still a dear friend today (see photo below) and I keep in touch with Jan and a few others from that summer.

The Encounter days were a big deal. Vice President Dan Quayle came to JPL to speak and commemorate this huge accomplishment for JPL. Entertainers like Sidney Poitier and Woody Harrelson were invited and came to the celebration. After my full-time summer job ended with the Legislative Affairs Office, my contact in human resources at JPL asked if I wanted to continue working during the school year. I said yes and she found me a part-time position working for the Mechanical Systems Division. This was my senior year of high school. Every day after school, I went to work at JPL where my job was to support the administrative staff by making copies, answering the phone, and delivering time sensitive documents across the lab. Even though, I was part-time and still in high school, my supervisor gave me regular performance reviews and we had meaningful conversations about my five-year plan. The Section Manager gave everyone a pound of See’s Candies during the holidays and I was amazed he took time to deliver one to me. After high school, I went to Pasadena City College (PCC) full-time and continued working at JPL part-time. JPL encouraged people to grow and change roles within the organization. I wanted to learn and do more so was able to find a job with the Communications group. I wrote phone orders for when JPLers needed new phones or moved to different offices. This was also during JPL’s transition from analog to digital phones and the lab was replacing answering machines with voicemail so I wrote orders for those features and helped train rocket scientists (literally) on using their new phone systems. Plus, when JPL operators took lunch breaks, I stepped in to answer calls from the general public and transferred them to the appropriate people at JPL. After one year at PCC, I transferred to attend Claremont McKenna College (CMC) and my supervisor in the Communications group let me work on weekends so I had steady income my first year at CMC.

In total, I worked at JPL for about five years. At the time, I thought of JPL as just another job. But now, I see how much working there impacted how I view the world and what I value. I took for granted at the time that JPL was a place of possibilities. The people who worked there were given the space and encouragement to do the impossible every day. I recently read an essay by the current Director of JPL, Dr. Charles Elachi and it captures the culture, spirit and ethos of JPL:

l thought about how no one at JPL cares where you’re from, what color you are, what your religion is. When we need someone to analyze spectrometer data, calculate how much heat a spacecraft will encounter from the atmosphere of a distant planet, or improve our business systems, it doesn’t matter whether you’re a Muslim, a Christian, a Jew, or whether you were born in South America, Asia, Africa, or the United States. Your mind and your ideas — those are the things that matter. I believe this uniquely American spirit of optimism, the sense that anything is possible for anyone, is a key reason our nation is the world leader in space exploration. I’ve personally seen it, for example, as the leader of the science team working with the radar instrument aboard the Cassini spacecraft. Cassini is an international mission that just celebrated its 10th year of exploring Saturn and its moons, including Titan. Whenever we encounter a particularly tough issue — such as a risky flyby through the plumes shooting up from Enceladus, or flying through the gaps between Saturn’s rings — our international partners have been amazed at our optimistic spirit, our can-do attitude, our firm belief that anything is possible.

To put it in current education-ese, I had a paid summer internship at JPL in 1989 and it continued for the next five years. Yes, I made a lot of copies and did many low-skill tasks along the way. But, it made me extremely empathetic to others I’ve asked to do those same tasks. JPL also taught me about how to treat people especially when times are tough. I remember when Mars Observer was lost and there were big banners at the lab that read, “MO Phone Home.” Budgets were being slashed and some people received lay-off notices. The people I met with lay-off notices were helped by the human resources folks with reassignments to different groups and offered retraining for different jobs based on their skill sets. Because of my JPL experience, I am a big advocate of young people having access to internships or other work experiences (internships are included in a grant proposal I’m working on now). I have hired summer interns who stayed on to work well past the summers. I now understand how my ‘internship’ at JPL left lasting impressions on me and was an integral part of my life journey. That is why I love and appreciate JPL! Thanks for reading.

“Our goal is to show kids that being a professional nerd can be cool and exciting.” – Brent Bushnell, CEO and Roustabout of Two Bit Circus

I went to a meeting last month to help dream up ways to make Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Math (aka STEAM) engaging, FUN, and even COOL for kids and that’s where I met Brent Bushnell. I am fired up about what he and his team at Two Bit Circus are doing with the STEAM Carnival, “circus of the future” filled with lasers, fire and robots.

“We have an opportunity to rebrand what it means to be an engineer. We can show kids that it can be awesome,” Bushnell shared with WIRED.

I am sad I missed the inaugural STEAM Carnival that happened last October 25 and 26 at CRAFTED at the Port of Los Angeles. From what I’ve read and heard from Brent, it was an unforgettable experience. I’ll keep you posted on when the next STEAM Carnival is happening and where. I’m definitely bringing my kids (11 and 9 years old) and my proud-to-be-a-nerd husband.

If you are interested in reading more about Brent, Two Bit Circus and even his dad Nolan (founder of Atari and Chuck E. Cheese), check out articles: “Two Bit Circus: The Science of Fun” by Whitney Vendt in C-Suite Quarterly and “Ring Master of the Nerd Circus” by Michelle Woo in Narratively.

I’m reading Anya Kamenetz’s new book The Test: Why Our Schools areObsessed with Standardized Testing – But You Don’t Have to Be. For one, I’m interested in Anya’s perspective on the topic of testing in public schools because I have my opinions due to my work with schools, teachers, etc. Two, she’s written this book with parents as her intended audience. As a parent, I say, “Finally! We need more resources to help navigate what all the test scores actually mean for our children and the schools they attend.” Third, I’ve read, enjoyed and learned from Anya’s other two books: DIY U and Generation Debt.

Here is short description about The Test from the inside cover. When I read this, I found myself nodding in agreement and giddy to read the book. I am so excited I had to share:

Your child is more than a score. But in the last twenty years, schools have dramatically increased standardized testing, sacrificing hours of classroom time. What is the cost to students, teachers, and families? How do we preserve space for self-directed learning and development–especially when we still want all children to hit the mark?
The Test explores all sides of this problem–where these tests came from, their limitations and flaws, and ultimately what parents, teachers, and concerned citizens can do. It recounts the shocking history and tempestuous politics of testing and borrows strategies from fields as diverse as games, neuroscience, and ancient philosophy to help children cope. It presents the stories of families, teachers, and schools maneuvering within and beyond the existing educational system, playing and winning the testing game. And it offers a glimpse into a future of better tests. With an expert’s depth, a writer’s flair, and a hacker’s creativity, Anya Kamenetz has written an essential book for any parent who has wondered: what do I do with all these tests?

I am going to end tonight’s post so I can read The Test before bed. If you are also reading The Test, please let me know. I welcome your thoughts about testing in schools. Thanks!

I was lost when I got to Crescenta Valley High School as a 9th grader. My friends from junior high wanted to be popular. They soon realized hanging out with me was not going to get them there. I didn’t have any real friends, only girls I stood next to during snack and ate with during lunch so I would not feel like a loner. My grades suffered. I got my first and only D in typing (yes, typing was a class in the late 1980s) because I was chronically tardy. I was not connected to anyone at school and drifting into invisibility.

Then journalism happened my junior year. Because I thought I needed an extracurricular activity for college applications, I applied and was accepted to be part of the journalism staff. It was a yearlong class and every two weeks, we wrote all the articles and literally cut and pasted together the school newspaper. My life changed after joining journalism.

Yam (short for Ms. Yamaguchi) set high standards for good writing and she treated us like people…not teenagers. She told us stories about her life and she knew each of our stories as individuals. If there was a love crisis or family drama, we told Yam. I ate lunch in the journalism room, I stayed hours and hours after school in that room especially if we were under deadline. I was part of a team. Many classmates became good friends, and together we produced a real product every two weeks. I learned to appreciate working hard and feeling proud of what we accomplished.

Today, I am still proud of this 2-page center newspaper spread (see photo) focused on drug use prevention, a topic I chose, researched, and wrote by myself. It was the first time I conducted interviews with adults outside of school, like Brian a recovering drug addict. I interviewed Brian at his house while my mom waited outside in the car. I remember feeling nervous and scared to cold call, schedule and conduct an interview with the director of the St. Joseph Drug Rehabilitation Center for my story. These newspaper pages are from 1989 and I keep them as a reminder of feeling challenged by an assignment, facing fears, and gaining self confidence as a result.

Yam used to joke, “Everything you will ever need in life, you learned in journalism.” She was right. I don’t remember much of what I learned in high school, except for what I learned in journalism. Journalism taught me how to write under pressure and to take deadlines very seriously, a handy skill for grant and report writing for current my day job. Journalism taught me to spot spelling and grammatical errors without trying, which I used a lot as the final final proofer for when I worked on the Kentucky statewide test and Nevada High School Exit Exam at my day job with WestEd. Finally, journalism taught me to work in a team. An added bonus, I learned to cold call without fear. In writing this, I feel compelled to publicly thank Yam:

To Yam: I want to say thank you, Yam! I am deeply grateful you took a chance on a shy Asian girl and welcomed me into your journalism family. It wasn’t just producing a newspaper every two weeks that made journalism special. You created an environment where it was safe to be an awkward teenager and explore who I wanted to be. I felt safe to take risks and make mistakes because you always had my back. You stayed in the classroom everyday during lunch and after school so we always had a place to go where we felt at home. Thank you for transforming my public education experience. And most importantly, thank you for being my friend, my advocate and my mentor. I would not be who I am today without you.

Was there someone who made a difference when you were going to school? Please share in the comments section. Thanks for reading!

I was so happy to see Dan Thoene as the Judo Math Dude featured in this week’s San Diego Reader cover story. My daughter, in 6th grade, is learning math at her own pace thanks to Judo Math. She’s currently a yellow belt, but instead of actual belts – she has a rubber bracelet. When asked what she thought of Judo Math, she shared, “It is a fun way to learn math and build teamwork skills because we learn in groups. It also makes me feel accomplished when I pass a level in Judo Math.”

Below are key points about what is Judo Math (from their website) and what makes it noteworthy as an edtransformer:

Judo Math incorporates Judo–a form a martial arts that focuses on cooperation and working for mutual welfare. Because Judo preaches working for mutual welfare, students work with other members of their belt class to help each other advance through their belts.
Everyone starts each discipline as a white belt. They progress through each level to earn the next belt: white to yellow, then orange, blue, and finally black. Every student becomes a Black Belt in each discipline, signifying mastery of that area.It is the goal of the entire class to help everyone progress to a black belt.
Then once a student becomes a black belt, they are partnered up with another student to become their personal tutor, helping them progress through the belts. For those students with a faster pace, there is a sensei belt that can be achieved by moving past the required curriculum. They work towards becoming a Sensei, receiving a green belt. The students that reach this status become extra teachers in the classroom, running lessons on topics and helping out the most people that they can.
Moving from one level to the next is celebrated as an achievement with the presentation of belts, where each student who advanced is called up in front of the class to receive their new belt while others recognize the achievement with applause.
When the entire class finally reaches the black belt level in any discipline, there is a huge community celebration of their accomplishments, and the process starts over with the next discipline.
Judo Math motivates all students to take responsibility. There are no ability groups, just pacing groups. By the end of each discipline, everyone is a black belt rank, reinforcing the unity of the class. There is a sense of pride when moving from one belt to another.
The students’ confidence level increases throughout the year due to the marking of their achievements. Because the ultimate goal of Judo is to develop oneself to the fullest extent possible, the hope is that all students will develop this way of thinking throughout the school year, and apply it not only to math but other areas of life.

I like the tagline for Judo Math, “It’s not what you teach, it’s how you teach it.” Judo Math is not about bracelets or packets of math, it is about relationships or relationship-based learning and building a culture where learning is FUN. Judo Math allows students to learn math at their own pace. From my daughter’s experience in Judo Math, her teachers create a positive classroom environment where students build relationships with one another and with their teachers. Before going to middle school, my daughter did not feel she was good in math. Now after being in Judo Math for a semester, she likes math and sees she can master it.

I personally would love to see more students learning Judo Math instead of from traditional textbooks. How can we share Judo Math and get it into more classrooms? I welcome your thoughts and ideas. Thanks for reading!