Kids Hope to Earn Their Robot a First

What has four wheels, can stretch more than 9 feet high and boasts an arm that rotates 360 degrees? Go to the head of the class if you correctly guessed Chatsworth High School’s robot.

The technological wonder, still under construction by teacher Wendy Wooten’s robotic team, is one of a series of prototypes that eventually will be refined into what the physics teacher hopes will be a winning entry in the 1999 regional and national robotics competitions, sponsored by FIRST--For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology.

The Chatsworth robotics class, an elective open to interested ninth- through 12th-graders, is busy raising the $45,000 needed to build the industrial robot and to travel to the competitions, which last year attracted 12,000 students nationally. This will be Chatsworth High’s third entry in the popular engineering competition.

“The students learn about the role of technology in society in a hands-on, exciting way,” Wooten said. “The kids who’ve participated in the last two years have said it’s the highlight of their high school career. They get to learn technology and teamwork and get a clear picture of the potential employment opportunities in the technology fields.”

EVENTS

Anniversary: About 30 of the original Canyon High School varsity football players will join fellow alumni and current student body members Friday night when the Canyon Country school kicks off its 30th anniversary celebrations at its Alumni Game against Crescenta Valley High School.

Canyon High, which opened its doors to about 1,100 students in 1968--that number has now doubled--is planning a series of commemorative activities over the next month, including a dance, barbecue, rallies and a bonfire. A highlight of the anniversary is the much-anticipated homecoming game against Alemany High School on Oct. 9.

PROGRAM NOTES

Special School: Students with special learning needs, such as reading disabilities, processing problems or attention deficit disorder, are being offered individual instruction from special education teachers at the new Clairmont School in Van Nuys.

The private school, which is partly funded by the Los Angeles Unified School District, currently offers instruction to 12 seventh- through 12th-graders, half of whom also take some classes at the neighboring Montclair College Prep School.

Under the direction of Mark Simpson, Clairmont offers students access to computer and lab facilities, and they meet with a psychologist weekly.

“Every one of our students has areas in which he or she excels, including an honors physics student,” Simpson said. “We concentrate on eliminating the students’ deficits by highlighting their strengths.”

APPOINTMENTS

David Joseph has been named director of science and math at Valley Torah High School in North Hollywood. The onetime teacher and administrator at Yeshiva University High Schools of Los Angeles recently oversaw construction of Valley Torah’s new science lab, where classes for the school’s new four-year laboratory-based curriculum will be held.

Alemany High School recently welcomed the Rev. James Anguiano as principal of the Mission Hills Catholic school. After a sabbatical at the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium, the longtime educator most recently served as principal at St. Bernard High School in Playa del Rey.

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Class Notes appears every Wednesday. Send news about schools to the Valley Edition, Los Angeles Times, 20000 Prairie St., Chatsworth 91311. Or fax it to (818) 772-3338. Or e-mail them to diane.wedner@latimes.com.