STUDENT STANDOUTS

Local teen to attend ceremony

CANYON LAKE -- Carlee Blakemore, a 2008 graduate of Elsinore High School, has been invited to attend the inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama later this month in Washington, D.C.

As an alumna of the National Youth Leadership Forum, the 18-year-old has been invited to the five-day University Presidential Inaugural Conference from Jan. 17 to 21. The conference will feature keynote speakers Colin Powell and Al Gore, as well as panel discussions with well-known political experts.

Blakemore plans to attend the official swearing-in ceremony and watch the inaugural parade, as the new president and vice president and their families proceed down Pennsylvania Avenue from the U.S. Capitol to the White House.

"I will even be attending one of the inaugural balls," Blakemore states in a news release.

The teen was invited to participate in the program before the primary election, so she did not know at the time who would be inaugurated. The fact that this was the first election in which she could participate and that her candidate won, makes her trip even more special, she said.

Blakemore attends UC Santa Barbara.

Chamber awards students of month

LAKE ELSINORE -- The Lake Elsinore Valley Chamber of Commerce recognized four boys and four girls as students of the month for their high schools for December at a Dec. 9 lunch.

Students honored from Elsinore High School were Matthew Fazekas and Randi Johnson. At Lakeside High School, Tyler Owen and Amber Brewster were selected for the honor. Don Dennert and Fabiola Sanchez were chosen from among students at Temescal Canyon High School. From the Keith McCarthy Academy, Seth Thomas Brand and Claire Lawry were recognized.

The students were honored at a lunch held by the chamber at the Lake Elsinore Sizzler restaurant.

CLASS NOTES

Financial aid workshop set

TEMECULA -- A workshop on financial aid for college will be held Thursday for seniors and their parents at Chaparral High School.

The speaker will be Donna San Miguel, a financial aid adviser at Cal State San Marcos. The topics that will be covered include the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, known as FAFSA; the online filing process for FAFSA, the student aid report, the expected family contribution, federal loan programs and the Cal Grant program.

The workshop will be held in the school's performing arts center from 6:30 to 8 p.m. The school is at 27215 Nicolas Road in Temecula. For information, call (951) 695-4200, Ext. 262.

Money tagged for district programs

LAKE ELSINORE -- The Lake Elsinore Unified School District was awarded more than $676,000 in state money for career technical education projects in the district last month.

The State Allocation Board approved more than $210 million in funding for 244 technical education facilities across the state. Included in the list of approved facilities were six programs run by the Lake Elsinore school district.

Through technical education programs, students can take a series of classes focusing on a particular industry to prepare for a job after they graduate or to prepare for college coursework. The district offers courses related to 16 industries, known as pathways, and district officials say they plan to expand to 20 in the near future.

According to administrators, the state money will be used for:

- Lakeside High School, 139,343 -- Retrofitting classrooms for a new biotechnology pathway.

- Temescal Canyon High School, $241,857 -- Buying machinery for the engineering, machining and production pathway.

- Temescal Canyon High, $25,120 -- Buying equipment for a new medical careers pathway.

- Lakeside High, $80,544 -- Retrofitting classrooms for the stagecraft pathway.

- Temescal Canyon High, $70,770 -- Expanding the fashion design and retail merchandising pathway to include a manufacturing component with supporting facilities including sewing machines, embroidery machines, etc.

- Lakeside High, $118,400 -- Expansion of the culinary and hospitality pathway, to include expansion of the culinary arts kitchen.

SCHOOL LUNCH MENUS

Menifee Union elementary schools

Monday: Bean-cheese burrito

Tuesday: Chicken rings

Wednesday: Tony's pizza

Thursday: Turkey corn dog

Friday: Chicken nuggets

Served daily: Fruit and veggie bar, milk

Temecula Valley Unified elementary schools

Monday: Popcorn chicken

Tuesday: Bean-cheese burrito

Wednesday: Chicken dip with bun

Thursday: Pepperoni pizza

Friday: Dino nuggets

Served daily: Salad, corn, applesauce, orange smiles, crackers, milk