Berkeley

CITY HALL — City officials were looking for inspiration last week when they hit the streets of Berkeley via bike. Six city employees from a range of departments joined Councilwoman Laura Friedman and consultant Colin Bogart, a liaison with the nonprofit Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, for a two-day trip that included a bike tour of Berkeley’s amenities for local cyclists. “I thought it was valuable for people to see firsthand what Berkeley has in place for bicyclists and pedestrians,” said Bogart, who organized the visit as part of his efforts to help Glendale implement a Safe and Healthy Streets plan.

Thanks for the inspiring article about Sonia Yeghkian (“A better life in a new country,” April 28), who is working toward a nursing degree at Glendale Community College, only two years after immigrating to the U.S. I would like to see a follow-up article regarding the severe shortage of nursing program openings in the U.S. I doubt that most of the public is aware that nearly all nursing schools have a lottery system to select students...

GLENDALE ? The following are updates on local athletes competing at the collegiate level: Jillian Davis (Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy, 2003) senior libero, UC Berkeley women's volleyball ? The 2002 All-Area Player of the Year played a key role in helping No. 17-ranked Cal capture its second tournament of the season. California posted a 30-22, 30-25, 30-26 victory against host Florida International on Saturday in the championship match of the Florida International Tournament in Miami.

GLENDALE — Residents and community leaders walked the streets Saturday and examined local city intersections to determine whether they are safe for pedestrians. The stroll was a walkability assessment as part of the Community Pedestrian Safety Training seminar that the UC Berkeley Traffic Safety Center and California Walks put on for the city. Saturday’s seminar was the first of 12 that the center will conduct this year, said Jill Cooper, the center’s assistant director.

These are big days that lie ahead of Jillian Davis. On Aug. 25, the Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy graduate has a birthday, her 21st, in fact. On that same day, the UC Berkeley women's volleyball team begins its 2006 year. For Davis and company, it's predicted to be the genesis of the program's greatest season. Big days, indeed. Davis, along with Samantha Carter, is co-captaining the squad, hopefully, into uncharted waters. For three successive seasons, these Golden Bears have made the NCAA playoffs and an unprecedented fourth consecutive trip will only be the starting point in reaching the team's redefined goals.

GLENDALE — The following are updates on local athletes competing at the collegiate level. Rachel Salvo (Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy, 2006) freshman middle hitter, Haverford College women's volleyball — Salvo, a former All-Area first-team selection, finished with 12 kills, 12 assists and 10 digs to power the visiting Fords to a come-from-behind 20-30, 29-31, 30-28, 30-19, 15-8 victory against McDaniel in Saturday's Centennial Conference match at Westminster, Md. The Fords (20-4 overall, 6-2 in conference)

Instructor Curtis Adney places a transparent copy of his high school report card on the overhead projector. Not a pretty picture. Three Ds and two Fs. Then Adney places another transparent copy of another report card, this time from College of the Sequoias. Straight A’s. “Everyone has the brain power to get all A’s,” Adney says. “Everyone in this class has the natural brain capacity to get all A’s in school.” For students, the ability to turn grades around is as simple as making key lifestyle and academic changes, with a few tips and tricks along the way. Such is the cornerstone of Adney’s class, Natural A’s, at Toll Middle School Monday afternoons, presented by the Glendale Community College Services Education Program.

Glendale High senior Berkeley Everett will perform a piano concert at 7 p.m. Thursday at the First Lutheran Church of Glendale. The concert is free, but donations will assist Berkeley in paying for his travel to a youth conference in Atlanta July 12 to 27. He will perform songs from his first CD "Berkelating" with other Glendale High students. Berkeley is president of the jazz band and heads several jazz combo groups. He also plays at the 10:30 a.m. Sunday service at First Lutheran.

LANGE Karen Kimberly Cann, the daughter of former La Crescenta residents Dennis and Marianne Cann of Shadow Hills, and Alan Lange, the son of Kenneth and Cheryl Lange of Chico, have announced their engagement. Karen graduated from Mayfield High School in Pasadena and graduated from UC Berkeley in 2000. She lives in Sacramento, and is a legislative analyst for Assemblyman Bill Maze (R-Visalia). Paul graduated from Pleasant Valley High School in Chico and graduated from UC Berkeley in 1998.

Fewer Armenian Americans are speaking the language of their native country, eroding the ability of the diaspora to preserve its culture, according to an expert at UCLA who addressed a conference organized at the Central Library on Saturday. Since 1970, the use of the Armenian language has decreased dramatically in all areas of diasporan life, including weddings, baptisms, schools and newspapers, said Hagop Gulludjian, a lecturer of Armenian studies at UCLA. Language is key to the survival of ethnic identity, particularly because the Armenian diaspora appears to be permanent, he added.

Thanks for the inspiring article about Sonia Yeghkian (“A better life in a new country,” April 28), who is working toward a nursing degree at Glendale Community College, only two years after immigrating to the U.S. I would like to see a follow-up article regarding the severe shortage of nursing program openings in the U.S. I doubt that most of the public is aware that nearly all nursing schools have a lottery system to select students...

CITY HALL — City officials were looking for inspiration last week when they hit the streets of Berkeley via bike. Six city employees from a range of departments joined Councilwoman Laura Friedman and consultant Colin Bogart, a liaison with the nonprofit Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, for a two-day trip that included a bike tour of Berkeley’s amenities for local cyclists. “I thought it was valuable for people to see firsthand what Berkeley has in place for bicyclists and pedestrians,” said Bogart, who organized the visit as part of his efforts to help Glendale implement a Safe and Healthy Streets plan.

GLENDALE — Residents and community leaders walked the streets Saturday and examined local city intersections to determine whether they are safe for pedestrians. The stroll was a walkability assessment as part of the Community Pedestrian Safety Training seminar that the UC Berkeley Traffic Safety Center and California Walks put on for the city. Saturday’s seminar was the first of 12 that the center will conduct this year, said Jill Cooper, the center’s assistant director.

GLENDALE — The following are updates on local athletes competing at the collegiate level. Rachel Salvo (Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy, 2006) freshman middle hitter, Haverford College women's volleyball — Salvo, a former All-Area first-team selection, finished with 12 kills, 12 assists and 10 digs to power the visiting Fords to a come-from-behind 20-30, 29-31, 30-28, 30-19, 15-8 victory against McDaniel in Saturday's Centennial Conference match at Westminster, Md. The Fords (20-4 overall, 6-2 in conference)

GLENDALE ? The following are updates on local athletes competing at the collegiate level: Jillian Davis (Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy, 2003) senior libero, UC Berkeley women's volleyball ? The 2002 All-Area Player of the Year played a key role in helping No. 17-ranked Cal capture its second tournament of the season. California posted a 30-22, 30-25, 30-26 victory against host Florida International on Saturday in the championship match of the Florida International Tournament in Miami.

These are big days that lie ahead of Jillian Davis. On Aug. 25, the Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy graduate has a birthday, her 21st, in fact. On that same day, the UC Berkeley women's volleyball team begins its 2006 year. For Davis and company, it's predicted to be the genesis of the program's greatest season. Big days, indeed. Davis, along with Samantha Carter, is co-captaining the squad, hopefully, into uncharted waters. For three successive seasons, these Golden Bears have made the NCAA playoffs and an unprecedented fourth consecutive trip will only be the starting point in reaching the team's redefined goals.