After a two-and-a-half-day visit, a five-member team from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges said Berkeley High School has made progress on communications and governance, but needs to improve on staff development and its approach to the “achievement gap” that separates white and Asian-American students from African-Americans and Latinos. -more-

Today is Wednesday, May 22, the 142nd day of 2002. There are 223 days left in the year. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

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Monday, May 20

Souders gets the start against Antioch -more-

xGov. Gray Davis’s proposed education budget shouldn’t inflict much harm on the Berkeley Unified School District next year, according to one highly-placed district official. But concerns about health care costs, special education and mentoring programs at two Berkeley schools linger. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

STANFORD – Cal’s representatives in the NCAA Women’s Tennis singles championship were eliminated Tuesday, as sophomore Raquel Kops-Jones and junior Christina Fusano both lost in the first round. -more-

xIf Berkeley can’t readily muster space for new sports fields within its city limits, maybe the city of Oakland can pinch hit. -more-

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Wednesday -more-

To the Editor: -more-

Desperate jury search -more-

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BERKELEY — In a time of war, the University of California, Berkeley, is launching a center devoted to the study of inner peace. -more-

City Council

BERKELEY — A Berkeley group concerned about a recent rash of racially-motivated hate crimes in the city honored Mayor Shirley Dean Tuesday for her efforts to bring the crimes to a quick halt. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — Developers who want a piece of a one-time military oasis may find themselves squeezed under a new plan for San Francisco’s last sprawl of prime real estate. -more-

SACRAMENTO — A constitutional amendment to bolster California’s open government requirements passed its first test Tuesday, but supporters said it was still only a “semi-work in progress” that would be reshaped as it moves through the Legislature. -more-

SACRAMENTO — California grid officials asked state energy traders to buy unnecessary power at above-market rates, which the state later had to sell at a loss, a senator investigating California’s energy market said Tuesday. -more-

SACRAMENTO — The legislative committee investigating a $95 million no-bid software contract asked for permission Tuesday to subpoena five top Oracle Corp. officials to testify. -more-

University of California officials are concerned about Gov. Gray Davis’s proposal to slash $118 million in funding for the system, but acknowledge that the university fared relatively well in the context of a nearly $24 billion budget shortfall. -more-

Today is Tuesday, May 21, the 141st day of 2002. There are 224 days left in the year. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

“Playing Our Roots”

Monday, May 20

The Berkeley High Yellowjacket track & field team, traditionally a laggard in the distance running events, leaned heavily this season on an uncharacteristically strong distance team. Leading the pack: 17-year-old sophomore Alex Enscoe, 2002 ACCAL champion in the 1,600 and 3,200 meters. -more-

A year-old spat that some say is as much about politics as it is about pain is scheduled to be heard in court this week. -more-

Enron castaways -more-

The core of the problem in the Middle East is in the cultural differences between the East and the West. The social rules that the West believes in are totally estranged to the Arab culture. With the introduction by the English department of a course to be taught by a fifth-year graduate student, Snehal Shingavi, and titled “The Politics and Poetics of Palestinian Resistance,” that very same problem may become the core of a major problem in UC Berkeley. -more-

FOXBORO, Mass. — The United States isn’t quite ready for the World Cup. The way the Americans look at it, they don’t have to be just yet. -more-

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The largest housing development in recent Berkeley history, slated to include 174 units of residential development and necessitate the replacement of 350 parking spaces in central Berkeley, the Library Gardens project was mysteriously pulled from further consideration at last Tuesday’s City Council meeting. -more-

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SACRAMENTO — Trying to put to rest a politically embarrassing contract controversy, Gov. Gray Davis issued an executive order Monday requiring competitive bidding on most state contracts worth at least $100,000. -more-

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Environmentalists expected to ask city to support lawsuit -more-

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Monday, May 20

"What Cats Know" by Lisa Dilman -more-

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The Berkeley High boys’ lacrosse team fell just short of their state championship dream on Saturday, falling 7-3 to St. Ignatius at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco in the Northern California championship game. -more-

The UC Theatre, at 2036 University Ave., was shut down last year and dismissed as a relic of the past. Now, though, it’s in high demand with several Berkeleyans wanting a refurbished theatre as part of their future. -more-

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It is an old baseball axiom: Do not walk the leadoff man. The St. Mary’s High Panthers violated that cardinal rule one too many times Saturday afternoon and it cost them both the BSAL crown and a shot at the North Coast Section playoffs. -more-

Berkeley’s broadcast program Youth Radio has joined the ranks of “60 minutes” and CNN news, and last week, their kinship with the media giants was acknowledged by the state Assembly. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

BHS baseball gets No. 6 seed, face Antiochfd -more-

Today is Monday, May 20, the 140th day of 2002. There are 225 days left in the year. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

Imposter Viagra? -more-

SAN FRANCISCO – Some 75,000 racers slogged through early morning mist and rains Sunday, but the wacky San Francisco spirit synonymous with the Bay to Breakers footrace shone bright in everything from a ‘trailer-trash’ float to a few runners sporting nothing but a smile. -more-

OAKLAND — Attorneys for FBI agents and Oakland police officers said the officers acted within reason and did not violate the constitutional rights of two Earth First! activists injured when a bomb went off in their car in 1990. -more-

RENO, Nev. — Don’t put away the winter jacket just yet. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO – A Canadian company has called for an investigation into stock option trades in a brokerage account held by a Banc of America Securities analyst. -more-

REDWOOD CITY – Internet software maker BroadVision Inc. is wheezing like another high-tech company down to its last gasp after firing nearly three-fourths of its work force and losing $25 billion of its market value in two years. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO – Security Pacific National Bank and Bank of America trust fund customers could end up receiving $40 million more for overcharges between 1975 and 1994, following a federal appeals court ruling. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO – The San Francisco Police Department is struggling to solve violent crimes and ranks last among the nation’s 20 largest city’s in doing so, according to a study of crime statistics. -more-

Construction was slated to start this week, but now officials say it may not start at all -more-

Newfound wealth in Silicon Valley contributing to big increase in car ownership -more-

Graduation ceremonies kicked off Friday at UC Berkeley's Greek Theatre with words of wisdom for the Class of 2002 from professors, alumni and an Olympic gold medalist. Thousands of parents, alumni, faculty and friends watched and cheered as a portion of the university's 6,000 graduating seniors donned caps and gowns and participated in the commencement convocation. -more-

In 1896 the first motion picture in the United States was presented to the public in a New York City music hall, and for the next decade most films were shown as fillers in travelling vaudeville shows. The films were short and the subjects — such as dancing girls and moving trains — were limited. Partially because of lawsuits over patent infringements, the U.S. film industry lagged behind France and England until there was a patent settlement in 1908. -more-

Saturday, May 18

LOS ANGELES — Mexican singer Paulina Rubio has topped People en Espanol’s list of the ”25 Most Beautiful” Latin entertainers. -more-

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Complicated tie-breakers keep Berkeley in suspense as NCS playoffs loom -more-

Berkeley is oft maligned by much of the nation for being divisive and living in a sort of time warp, but no more. A new monument is being developed in Cesar Chavez Park that will provide Berkeleyans not only with a sense of time but also of universal direction -- a solar calendar. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

What happens when catty people collide? -more-

FRESNO – The fifth-ranked Golden Bears (50-19 overall) won their 50th game of the season, only the third team to do so in Cal history, on junior Courtney Scott’s double to center in the bottom of the sixth inning to defeat No. 2 seed Stanford, 1-0, in the second round of the NCAA West Regional at Bulldog Diamond. -more-

Five Berkeley High School students were among 140 East Bay girls at a young women’s health conference convened Friday afternoon by State Assemblywoman Dion Aroner, D-Berkeley, at Mills College in Oakland. -more-

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Some news stories that may seem too small to thrive, actually grow to haunt a culture. In this country the Jon Benet Ramsey murder lives on in seemingly endless permutations, while the shame and scandal of Stephen Lawrence’s death plagues England nearly a decade after the bloody act. -more-

Today’s Bay Shore Athletic League baseball championship game has been moved from Washington Park in Alameda to Salesian High School in Richmond. -more-

Today is Sunday, May 19, the 139th day of 2002. There are 226 days left in the year. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

I recognize the scene of John Osborne’s dark and disturbing “The Entertainer,” now at Berkeley’s Aurora Theater, a play about the travails of a family of music hall performers in a declining British seaside resort. -more-

Armored car spills -more-

LOS ANGELES — “Star Wars: Episode II — Attack of the Clones” took in more money Thursday than any weekday release in movie history but failed to beat the best single-day box office take of all time, set this month by high-flying “Spider-Man.” -more-

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Computer security firm Network Associates restated its earnings from 1998 to 2000 on Friday, reducing reported profits by about $28 million, after completing an internal probe that uncovered accounting irregularities. -more-

Almost everywhere you turn, flats of seedlings are crying out to be bought — from drugstores, from supermarkets, from department stores, and, of course, from nurseries. -more-

Outdoor grills aren’t just for flame-broiled burgers and steaks anymore. -more-

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Photography is history in the making. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — Telephone clerks at the state’s largest HMO were given bonuses for keeping calls with patients brief and limiting the number of doctor appointments scheduled, a program some opponents argue was deceitful and harmful to patients with serious medical problems. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — The family firm of millionaire Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Simon was fined and censured by securities regulators in the 1990s, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Friday. -more-

HOUSTON — Former Arthur Andersen partner David Duncan wrapped up a week of testimony in the firm’s obstruction of justice trial Friday by saying he never explicitly told his colleagues to “destroy” Enron documents. -more-

WASHINGTON — Two years before the Sept. 11 attacks, an analysis prepared for U.S. intelligence warned that Osama bin Laden’s terrorists could hijack an airliner and fly it into government buildings like the Pentagon. -more-

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — A co-leader of an Internet software piracy group that authorities say was responsible for billions of dollars in lost sales was sentenced to nearly four years in prison Friday. -more-

HAVANA — Jimmy Carter ended a historic visit to Cuba Friday sharply at odds with the Bush administration over how to deal with Fidel Castro. The former president said limits on tourism and trade often hurt Americans more than Cubans. -more-

HYDERABAD, India — India baked in a heat wave Friday so intense that mud huts became as hot as ovens and birds in trees dropped dead, villagers said. This month’s heat has killed 638 people nationwide. -more-

A revised state budget may have Berkeley residents paying more for a pack of cigarettes and reaching deeper into their pockets to register an automobile, but residents aren’t likely to lose out on many city services, Berkeley officials say. -more-

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Keanu Reeve’s Dogstar, Russell Crowe’s Thirty Odd Foot of Grunts, now Billy Bob Thornton… the list of crossover stars (or attempted crossovers) is longer than a Hollywood rap sheet. -more-

Friday, May 17

Maybe the St. Mary’s High baseball team should start a psychic hotline. -more-

City Councilmember Linda Maio waded into school politics last week, moderating a meeting of high-powered activists — predominately African-American and Latino — intent on fielding more minority candidates for the November Board of Education race. -more-

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The Berkeley High boys’ lacrosse team slew an old foe on Thursday, beating University High (San Francisco), 8-6, in a Northern California semifinal game. The win put the Yellowjackets into the NorCal final on Saturday for a shot at the first CIF-sponsored title game in the sport. -more-

Peace proclamation approved in No. Calif. town -more-

To the Editor: -more-

NEW YORK — The Fox network, stuck with sagging ratings and the end of two signature shows, will replace “Ally McBeal” this fall with another drama about lawyers produced by David E. Kelley. -more-

CANNES, France — From “Star Wars” to a small Iranian film, offerings at Cannes are showing how digital cameras give new freedom to directors, whether they want to create dazzling asteroid showers or more intimate settings. -more-

Today is Friday, May 17, the 137th day of 2002. There are 228 days left in the year. -more-

CANNES, France — From “Star Wars” to a small Iranian film, offerings at Cannes are showing how digital cameras give new freedom to directors, whether they want to create dazzling asteroid showers or more intimate settings. -more-

By Peter Crimmins -more-

Couple scales Everest -more-

Berkeley loves to emphasize its diversity, but all too often ignored among the hodgepodge of ethnicities, religions, nationalities, and linguistic groups is a proud community of dedicated science fiction fans. -more-

Oakland - Partnerships among local artists and public school teachers in Berkeley will allow arts education to flourish in classrooms thanks to a $70,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. -more-

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LOS ANGELES — California violates a federal law requiring that it provide education help to its poorest children, although it is receiving $1.2 billion in federal funding this year for that purpose, a civil rights group said in a report issued Thursday. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — California’s $23.6 billion budget deficit exposed a glaring financial weakness that lawmakers knew about but didn’t want to think about — the state’s dependence on money collected from relatively few taxpayers profiting from steadily rising stock prices. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — Amgen Inc. shareholders on Thursday approved the company’s proposed acquisition of rival Immunex Corp. -more-

Dear Tom and Ray: -more-

RAMALLAH, West Bank — Facing pressure from the United States, Europe and his own people, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat agreed Thursday to hold presidential and parliamentary elections within six months. -more-

According to Census 2000 data released Tuesday, Berkeley is fifth among Bay Area cities when it comes to using mass transit to get to and from work, passing neighboring Oakland and coming in behind other neighbors Emeryville, Albany and El Cerrito. -more-

NEW YORK — ABC has pulled the plug on “Politically Incorrect,” which battled sinking ratings and, after Sept. 11, advertising erosion because of host Bill Maher’s reference to past U.S. military action as “cowardly.” -more-

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Friday, May 17

It’s rare that a high school coach blames a loss on the officiating. Coaches usually choose to gloss over blown calls, concentrating on their team’s mistakes that made a difference. But on Wednesday, there was little doubt about what decided the Berkeley-El Cerrito baseball game and perhaps the ACCAL championship. -more-

East Bay Municipal Utility District representatives met with Berkeley leaders this week to share their curiosity about becoming a power provider. -more-

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Dear Editor: -more-

Staff Report -more-

The chief U.S. representative for the Palestine Liberation Organization said the Palestinian Authority will pursue democratic reform at a UC Berkeley appearance Wednesday afternoon. -more-

Today is Thursday, May 16, the 136th day of 2002. There are 229 days left in the year. -more-

To the Editor: -more-

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Charges against two FBI special agents were dropped Wednesday in the Earth First v. FBI and Oakland Police Department trial in an attempt to narrow the scope of the case accusing the FBI and OPD of mishandling the 1990 car bombing of environmental activists Judi Bari and Darryl Cherney. -more-

United offers $5 flights -more-

Cal junior catcher John Baker has been selected as one of 10 finalists for Johnny Bench Award, it was announced May 15 by The Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission. -more-

Parents at Willard Middle School are concerned about the Board of Education’s decision last week to layoff one of the school’s two safety officers next year, and transfer him to another school. -more-

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OAKLAND — A report released by an environmental research group in Oakland Wednesday says that dirty air accounts for more deaths in California than traffic accidents, homicides and AIDS combined. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — San Francisco cycling enthusiasts are congregating in the South of Market neighborhood today to celebrate new bike lanes on half of busy Howard Street -- painted just in time for Bike to Work Day on Thursday. -more-

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LOS ANGELES — A nationwide postcard campaign aimed at winning legal rights for illegal immigrants, was launched Wednesday in 30 American cities by a coalition of immigrant groups, labor unions and church officials. -more-

SACRAMENTO — State police will replace National Guard troops who began patrolling three major California bridges after last fall’s terrorist attacks, Gov. Gray Davis said Wednesday. -more-

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sen. Jackie Speier has been trying for two years to pass financial privacy legislation in the California Legislature. -more-

Berkeley’s urbanity, Palma Soriano’s agriculture, and thousands of miles may serve to separate these two cities, but as of last week they have joined an increasing sisterhood despite the estrangement. -more-

SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gray Davis’s budget contains some hot-button proposals that require legislative approval, and his administration has launched an all-out public relations effort to try to sell them. -more-

Berkeley’s Star Grocery celebrated its 80th birthday yesterday, with balloons, friends, music and food for all. -more-

Last week, Verlon Bourd was shot and killed at 1001 Chester St. in Oakland, making him the sixth young black man to be murdered in Oakland this month and rounding out a recent spat or similar murders in the last month. -more-

Subsidized housing plan at Acton and University avenues moves forward -more-

Deep cuts to health programs proposed by Gov. Gray Davis to help fill a $23.6 billion budget hole unfairly target those who need state help the most, California health care officials and advocates for the poor said Wednesday. -more-