Booster President

(8/14/07) After a careful review of the history of the Boosters, blended with the desire to make the program 100% successful in its goal of fundraising for Alameda High School athletics, the decision has been made in 2007 and henceforth to award membership to all parents or guardians of participants. In the past, Booster membership was elective. A participant would bring home a "packet" from the coach, and the parents would look at all of the material to be signed as a huge task. The Booster envelope was one of those tasks, and often parents who would otherwise make great volunteers would not join this great program. Now, parents will automatically become members when their student signs up for a sport.

But the Boosters organization needs more than just membership. It needs members who realize that our school district, like all the other districts in the State of California, can no longer fund athletics like it use to. Once we realize this fact, we must join our forces and work hard to save our sports. Yes, we are in a crisis time period when sports are at risk of going away because there is no money to run them. And if you believe, like I believe. that sports are a vital activity for our youth, you will understand that we need your help to avert this crisis.

We are lucky to live in this great community called Alameda. Community efforts like this will not go unrewarded. We will all see the benefits for years to come as long as we see the need to save our sports now. Please join us in this very unselfish and honest effort to raise money for our kids. You won't regret it!

Anyone wishing to make a tax-free donation to the Boosters
can make checks out to:

-- Booster News --

Mark Ruckman (Hornet Weight Training Coach) and Cody Nelson (Hornet Baseball alum) of Alameda Babe Ruth were both honored at a recent Warrior's game as Positive Coaching Alliance "Coaches of the Year". ...photo

Steve Yamasaki (Hornet Football/Baseball) was recently named one of AFLAC's "National Assistant Coaches of the Year", honoring coaches who toil, frequently with little recognition, to make certain their programs are the best that they can be.

Hornet Pride - Steve Kettelhut
Support your local Marine!

Steve Kettelhut -- an AHS graduate in 2003 -- was a Hornet through and through, playing 3 years on the Varsity football team as a standout defensive end and defensive lineman.

Now Steve is showing that same dedication and commitment serving as a U.S. Marine over in Iraq.

With the holidays coming up and these young men in harms way so far from home, this is a great opportunity to show some of that Hornet Pride.

Steve reports home that there are a lot of everyday items that are hard to come by over there and a number of his buddies in the unit don't have family back home, so in the spirit of the season, and to support one of our own, below are some things you can do.

This year Alameda High is going to try something new in regards to game day photos. Instead of scattering low-resolution, lower quality photos throughout our website, we're going to use VarsityPix, a service that lets our school display all its action game photos in a single location online. Pictures are presented in a large format, school-branded slideshow. And our school earns a share of the profits for every picture that's purchased.

We'd like to capture the action for as many of our games as possible this year. But to get the pictures, we need photographers.

All you need is a passion for your favorite team, a good digital camera, and a bit of practice if you've never shot sports before. (Tips for Taking Sports Photos.)

You don't have to shoot every game. You decide what works best for you. Your pictures will be appreciated by our players, parents and fans regardless of the number of games you photograph.

You'll be creating a visual legacy for our teams and our school community will be grateful for the memories you capture.

Photographers also earn a share of the profits from picture sales. You can keep it or give your share back to the school.

Don't be intimidated. It's easy!!
... just give 'em a call and they'll walk you through it.

Tips for Taking Sports Photos

Look in magazines such as Sports Illustrated or ESPN The Magazine and you'll see amazing photographs; the agony of a quarterback caught in the middle of a sack, the concentrated face of a bicycle racer sprinting to the finish line, or the tight expression of a basketball player slam-dunking the ball.

It may look easy, but anyone who has brought a camera to a Little League game or a division playoff knows that taking great sports shots isn't so simple. The pros with the photographs we see in the magazine rely on years of experience and bags full of equipment to capture that perfect shot. But you don't need to bring more gear to a game than a football player in order to get a great shot. To get better sports photographs you just need to follow the same rules the pros use.

When it comes right down to it, every sport is about speed. Not all sports are as fast-paced as a basketball game, but they all center on motion, speed, and action. The key to sports photography is to know when and where the action is happening, and taking the picture at the right time.

Know the sport...
Before you can take great sports pictures, you have to understand the action involved. You need to know the basic rules of the game so you can figure out when the exciting moments will happen. In a soccer game there's usually a flurry of action in front of the net. In hockey the face-off can be exciting as two teams battle for control. In baseball, nothing beats a last-inning slide to home plate.

Making sure your camera is ready at the right time will go a long way to helping you capture that perfect shot. Many pros spend the whole game looking through their viewfinder. While it's not necessary to watch a whole game with one eye closed, it's a good idea to bring the camera up and look through it when exciting things start to happen.

It's also a great idea to walk around the sidelines, if possible, to get different angles, and remember to take a look at what's happening behind the action, too. Nothing ruins a nice action photo than something really distracting in the background.

Keeping your focus...
If you look at any great sports photograph you'll notice that some parts of the action are razor sharp, while other parts are blurry. This helps draw attention to the action, and make the background less noticeable. Photographers do this by changing the depth of field of a photograph. Depth of field is a complicated subject (and it really just means "how much of the photograph is in focus") so it might be easier to think of it in a practical way. Many cameras have a mode called "aperture control" (it's usually a setting with the letter "A"). The aperture is the opening in the camera that light comes through. Aperture numbers (often called f-stops) relate to changes in the depth of field.

When a camera is set to a low-numbered aperture (like 2.8 or 3.5) only the area where you focus will be sharp. Everything else will be blurry. Focus on a football player's head and a teammate right behind him will be out of focus. Set the aperture to a higher number (like 8 or 11) and not only will his teammate be in focus, but so will the crowd of people behind them sitting on the sidelines.

Sometimes you might want to make sure that only the star player is in focus (during his touchdown run for example) but some times you might want to see everything going on (like when the people in the stands are cheering). By changing the aperture you can control how your picture looks. Check out the manual that came with your camera to find out more about changing your aperture.

Making it blurry...
Sometimes though you might not want a sharp picture at all. Sometimes if you take a picture of a subject, the camera freezes in the action so well that you cannot see any motion at all. There are two easy ways to use a bit of blurriness to let people know how fast your sports hero is moving.

The first way to add a bit of intentional blur to your photographs is to change the camera's shutter speed. The shutter is a little flap inside the camera that opens and closes to let light get to the film or digital sensor, and that's how a camera takes a picture. Shutters can move very quickly, so a shutter could be open for a really, really short period of time or a really long period of time.

A shutter that's open for 1/1000 of a second (that's one thousand times shorter than a second) freezes motion in place because even the fastest athlete can't move very far in that time. A shutter that's open for 1/8 of a second, though, doesn't freeze the action as well because it is open long enough that when you start to take a picture the subject is in one place, but when you finish taking the picture.

With a slow shutter speed a moving racecar is blurry, a fastball pitcher's arm looks like a cool stream of lines, and surfers look like they are riding a wave made of ice. Varying the shutter speed can yield great results. Check your camera's manual to find out how to control the shutter speed.

Panning for gold...
Professional photographers don't just control the blur in their photographs, they also create some blur with a technique called panning. Panning's easy to do and the result can be very cool looking. Start by setting the camera's shutter speed to something slow, something like 1/15 of a second or slower, then start to follow your subject before you are ready to take the picture. Right before the action heats up, press the shutter and then follow the subject until the shutter closes.

For example, if you're photographing a track meet, look through the viewfinder and watch as the racers come toward you. As they get close to the finish, aim the camera at the chest of the lead racer. Push the shutter release and keep the camera pointed at the racer's chest while they keep running by. If you held the camera steady the racer would be blurry, but since you moved the camera at the same pace as the subject, you get a different image. The result will be a picture with a runner who is sharp, but everything else will be a neat motion blur.

Steady yourself...
When panning or using a slow shutter speed it's important to have a steady hand: leaving the shutter open for a long time allows the motion of the camera to affect the final picture. That's why sports photographers like to use tripods, or even monopods. A monopod is a like a walking stick that connects to the bottom of a camera, and allows you to steady it while you're shooting. They are a really great investment for anyone shooting sports pictures, and really can help improve the quality of a sports photographer's images.

Getting up close...
The final rule of sports photography is that often "closer is better." Some of the greatest sports photographs of all time have been of the faces of athletes, or of just a small part of the action. It's not just that athletes and their expressions are so interesting, it's also because most of us just get to watch a sporting event from the sidelines. By getting in close to the action we can make a photograph seem more interesting than the same event viewed from the bleachers.

Often it's hard to get close to an event (that's why professional photographers use very expensive lenses to take pictures from very far away) but many times it's possible to get right up to the action. Amateur events often allow people to stand up on the sidelines, and even some professional events have good areas where spectators can get up close and personal.

The great sports shot...
Getting a great sports photograph is a matter of timing, technique, and equipment. The best way to learn to take a great sports picture is to take lots and lots of photographs, and see how they look. Over time anyone can go from a sideline snapshot taker to a professional photographer. It just takes a little practice.

ALAMEDA -- More than a week after voters went to the polls, a parcel tax to benefit local schools squeaked to victory Wednesday after election officials tallied absentee and provisional ballots.

It capped days of anxious waiting by Measure H supporters, who say money generated from the tax will help save music, sports and other school programs.

Homeowners will pay $120 annually under the measure. It needed a two-thirds majority to pass and initial results showed that it was short by 115 votes.

"We have climbed from behind the whole way up," said Bill Schaff, a member of the Board of Education. "It's been quite exhausting for all those who have fought so hard for this campaign."

The board placed the tax on the June 3 ballot to help offset a projected $4.5 million shortfall within the Alameda Unified School District due to the state budget deficit.

Along with taxing homeowners, the measure calls for business and industrial property owners to pay from $120 to $9,500 annually. The tax would be on top of the $189 property owners now pay.

Measure H opponents said district officials should find other ways to raise money, such as cutting salaries and benefits for teachers.

According to the results released Wednesday, the ballot measure secured 11,397 yes votes, or 66.87 percent. No votes totaled 5,646, or 33.13 percent.

While the latest numbers apparently pushed Measure H over the top, Schaff was still cautious about declaring victory, noting that he believed some votes still must be counted.

"It's great for education and it's great for our kids," said Trish Spencer, president of the district PTA council, about the latest numbers. "We're very appreciative of all those who supported it."

But Spencer also said that such a tight race means district officials must show opponents that they will be fiscally responsible with money generated from the tax.

You’ve all read the recent headlines, the threat is real. This Tuesday, 3/4, the AUSD School Board is voting on whether or not to ELIMINATE all high school sports on the island of Alameda.

This would have a DEVASTATING impact on the culture of both campuses and the culture of our city. Nearly 50% of all high school students participate in athletics. This projected loss would levy a tremendous negative impact on the richness, breadth, and depth of a student’s high school experience.

Athletics changes lives; it motivates young men and women to achieve greater levels of success in the classroom; it keeps them off of the streets and engaged in positive endeavors; it teaches competitive desire, self-discipline, team work, dedication and self-motivation. Athletics positively engages young adults in Alameda and imparts lifelong skills that enhance their abilities to succeed in adult life – be it in higher education or any life path they choose.

Eliminating athletics would not only change the face of our high schools, but the feel of our city. Our young adults need positive outlets. They need to develop and flourish in a nurturing, supportive environment. The experience athletics provides equips these young adults with the tools to allow them to deftly move into adulthood, stay properly focused and thrive.

Please come out and support our efforts to preserve the valuable experience student athletics provides and keep high school sports alive and well in Alameda. The meeting will take place @ 6:30 @ Chipman Middle School in their multi-purpose room. The address is 401 Pacific Ave.

Respectively Yours,
- Brad Thomas, Athletic Director Alameda High School
- Kevin Gorham, Athletic Director Encinal High School

But during a special meeting that stretched through Tuesday night and into the early hours of this morning, trustees opted instead to cut $265,000 from sports and the pools, which the public also uses.

"We are still strong as a team," said 17-year-old Jason Silsdorf, a 6-foot-11-inch player on the Jets, the Encinal High School basketball team. "But we still want to make a stand. We are saying, 'Keep the teams.'"

When Superintendent Ardella Dailey first suggested no longer paying for high school sports last month as a way to help offset the shortfall, the proposal quickly came under fire from parents, teachers and students, who packed last night's special meeting at Chipman Middle School.

It prompted trustees to continue earmarking some money toward the program and make other cuts, including laying off

the district's public information officer. The student walk-out today culminated with rally outside the district's administrative offices on Central Avenue. Dailey also pledged to meet with a student delegation this afternoon.

The initial cost-saving measures from Dailey cover just this fiscal year and total about $2.8 million. She proposes an additional $2.2 million in cuts during the next fiscal year through "restructuring of the K-12 education program," which she said could mean closing or consolidating schools.

The current Alameda shortfall stems from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposal to cut at least $4 billion in overall education spending as a way to help make up the state budget deficit.

Schwarzenegger also wants to spend Proposition 98, the constitutional amendment that guarantees K-12 schools and community colleges annual money from the state's general fund.

In response, dozens of Bay Area parents - including some from Alameda - visited Sacramento last week to lobby against the governor's budget proposal.

Allen Nakamura of Alameda High School Presented with $10,000 Check,
2008 All-Star Teacher Announced During Giants Pregame Live Show

SAN FRANCISCO, CA (June 21, 2008) – Comcast SportsNet Bay Area announced that Allen Nakamura of Alameda High School was named the winner of the 2008 ALL-STAR TEACHER AWARD. Ted Griggs, Vice President and General Manager, Comcast SportsNet Bay Area and San Francisco Giants All Star pitcher Brian Wilson, presented Nakamura with a check for $10,000 during yesterday’s Comcast SportsNet Bay Area telecast of Giants Pregame Live, prior to the Giants/Milwaukee Brewers game from AT&T Park.

The ALL-STAR TEACHER AWARD was created to recognize middle and high school teachers in Northern California who go above and beyond to inspire their students and community. An esteemed panel of community leaders selected five finalists based on four categories: Overall Commitment, Excellence in Teaching, Rapport with Students, and Level of Distinction. The five finalists were Allen Nakamura of Alameda High School (Alameda, CA); Clyde Carpino of Fairfield High School (Fairfield, CA); Tommie Lindsey of James Logan High School (Union City, CA); Alicia Vosberg of El Camino High School (South San Francisco, CA); and Chris Wardlaw of Anzar High School (San Juan Bautista, CA).

Members of the public voted for the ALL STAR TEACHER finalists from May 23-July 15 by voting on-line at www.comcastsportsnet.com and by filling out official ballot forms in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Allen “Nak” Nakamura grew up in Berkeley and El Cerrito. Staying true to his East Bay roots and desire to give back to the community, the 54-year-old Nakamura teaches ninth through twelfth grades at Alameda High School. When he is not teaching Leadership, Ethnic Studies and U.S. History to students, and coaching the freshmen boys basketball team, he is tirelessly supporting his students and the greater Alameda community.

Typically, Nakamura is in his classroom after school providing academic help and guidance for students, and is often on campus in the evenings and on weekends doing the same. Nakamura’s commitment to his students and community has gone far beyond the classroom. In addition to working on school activities such as pep rallies and assemblies, he has helped plan school fundraisers, which often benefit blood drives, needy families, and disaster victims. Nakamura graduated from San Francisco State University with a degree in social science. He currently resides in Alameda.

“We are honored to present Allen Nakamura with the title of ALL-STAR TEACHER and a $10,000 check for Alameda High School,” said Griggs. “Mr. Nakamura has shown tireless dedication and commitment to his students and the East Bay community. We hope this award will serve as recognition for all Northern California teachers as they continue to inspire their students and community every day.”

Griggs added, “We’d also like to congratulate the other four finalists and all the award nominees for making a difference in their schools and communities. We applaud their efforts and wish them all the best.”

The elite panel of community leaders that selected the ALL-STAR TEACHER AWARD finalists consisted of Doug Bartlett, Senior Marketing Director, Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART), and former Bay Area teacher; Rob Jaynes, Director of Fan Development/The Sharks Foundation, San Jose Sharks; Detra Paige, Director of Community Relations, Oakland Athletics; and Sue Petersen, Executive Director of Giants Community Fund, San Francisco Giants.

Last February, Comcast SportsNet Bay Area sent ALL-STAR TEACHER AWARD nomination forms to over 200 Northern California middle and high schools. Nominations were received from parents, principals, students and teachers throughout the Central Coast and Northern California region.

The ALL-STAR TEACHER AWARD is sponsored by Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, Comcast Cable, KNBR 680 AM, and the San Francisco Chronicle.

The ALL-STAR TEACHER AWARD is a component of Comcast SportsNet Bay Area’s annual Stay in School Challenge. The Stay in School Challenge is a community outreach program that rewards middle and high school students for perfect attendance over an eight-week period. Students in grades 6-12 in the Northern California/Northern Nevada region who maintain perfect attendance (no unexcused absences) can win tickets to a 2008 Oakland Athletics or San Francisco Giants home game. Since 1996, over 245,000 tickets to an Oakland or San Francisco baseball game have been awarded to students.

Amazon.com Fundraising

The Boosters have teamed up with Amazon.com so that whenever you purchase anything from Amazon -- AS LONG AS YOU ACCESS THEIR SITE FROM THE LINK ON OUR HOME PAGE -- the Boosters receive a percentage of the purchase, which will directly benefit AHS athletics.

The key is, you MUST access the Amazon.com website from our home page link -- that's the only way Amazon can track the purchases so that the Boosters receive credit.

You can purchase anything you normally would online, but if you access Amazon via our site, the Boosters get a percentage of the purchase at no extra cost to you!

Monte Carlo Night

Alameda High will be holding it's 6th Annual Monte Carlo Night sometime in early 2009. Details will be posted as soon as plans are finalized.

This fun-filled evening of music, dancing, delicious food, Black Jack, 50/50 Raffle, and Live & Silent Auctions benefit many worthwhile programs at Alameda High, including after-school tutoring, PC maintenance, support for our AVID program (4-yr. College prep classes) and transportation for many of our sports teams.

In order for this important event to be successful, we need not only your support in purchasing a ticket and attending the event, but we also need donations (services & goods) for our silent auction. Your donation is tax deductible.

NCS Vote Keeps Berkeley, Alameda in ACCAL
Encinal joins the BSAL as part of a 2008-2012 league realignment proposal
By Chace Bryson
ccTimes – 5/04/07

Team Photos for the Website

Each Hornet team has its own webpage where we show the team roster, schedule, and team photo. HOWEVER... we often have a difficult time getting teams to submit photos.

Come on... we make it pretty easy. Either have a parent take a photo before a practice or a game, or contact the web manager and he'll come down and take it. Tell your coach it won't even take 5 minutes.

So, don't be camera shy, just ask your coach when your team can take a team photo and get it scheduled.

Note: The photo doesn't even have to be digital.
If a parent has taken a regular team photo, just contact the web manager
and he'll pick it up, scan it and return it to you.

Sportsmanship Code
The following is reprinted from the Alameda High website:

Students should set a good example in the matter of sportsmanship. To this end, they should:

-- Booster News --

Hornet Pride - Steve Kettelhut Support your local Marine!

Amazon.com Fundraising

Monte Carlo Night

Team Photos for the Website

Hornet Pride - Steve Kettelhut
Support your local Marine!