As Encinal High School’s publication design instructor Joshua Linville thought about all that the class of 2020 would miss out on, he realized their was one time-honored tradition they could still celebrate: the yearbook.

At a special public meeting held April  9, the Board of Education for the Alameda Unified School District (AUSD) voted unanimously to extend the suspension of in-class instruction through the end of the 2019-20 school year.

Sun Staff Reports

Julian Chea, a seventh-grader at Lincoln Middle School, took fourth place in the Alameda County Junior High Spelling Bee on March 7. The Alameda speller who progressed the furthest this year didn’t qualify for state competition, but he did take home an impressive trophy.

McDaniel College awarded Sergio Martin of Oakland a full-tuition Dorsey Scholarship. Martin is a senior at Alameda’s Saint Joseph Notre Dame High School.  

Starting Sunday, March 1, The Alameda Kiwanis Foundation will be accepting applications from Alameda’s graduating high school seniors for its 2020 college scholarships. Application forms will be available beginning next month at school sites.

Two fourth-grade classrooms at Otis Elementary School have agreed to take part in The Bioma Project. “Developed by students for students,” the project was created in Maryland by several high school students who decided to help develop the next generation of environmental leaders.

The only school chosen from Alameda Unified School District this year, Amelia Earhart Elementary School on Bay Farm Island was selected for a 2020 California Distinguished Schools Award.

Many students spend more for college than they should because they’ve made some common mistakes when seeking financial aid.

The 75 second graders at Bay Farm Elementary School have started work on new community service projects this year. The effort is called “We Love Our Town!” For their first project, the kids planted more than 600 spring bulbs in November around the school. Then, on Dec.