December 17, 2003

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Palo Alto Online

News digest

Palo Alto will take a closer look at the law that allows neighbors to comment on, and object to, second-story home additions and new, two-story homes.

The city's planning staff will bring together homeowners who went through the process and people who filed appeals against such additions in two January focus group discussions to find out about their experiences, said Steve Emslie, the city's planning director.

The great majority of the almost 200 applications in two years have gone through the process without difficulty, but a few have been appealed to the City Council for a final decision. The city is looking into whether to streamline the appeal process to make it easier for applicants.

The city's Planning and Transportation Commission is tentatively scheduled to discuss the home review ordinance at its meeting Jan. 28. Any recommended changes to the ordinance would then go to the City Council for a final decision.

--Don Kazak
Stanford offers 800 early admission

Stanford University has offered early admission to 800 future first-year students under its new program, Early Action. Unlike the previous program, Early Decision, students who apply are not bound to attend Stanford if they are accepted.

The students have until May 1 to accept enrollment. More than 4,100 students applied under the Early Action program. Stanford typically enrolls about 1,600 freshmen a year.

"Our hope, of course, if that Stanford remains the first choice of all of our admits," said Robin Mamlet, dean of admission and financial aid. "But the pressure is off -- we encourage those students to consider carefully all their college options and decide by spring which campus is the best fit for them."
Stanford to open China campus

Beijing, China will join the list of Stanford overseas campuses in 2004-05, the university announced last week. Up to 30 students will be able to spend an academic quarter studying in Beijing, in collaboration with Peking University.

China will be added to the list of overseas campuses that includes Australia, Berlin, Florence, Moscow, Oxford, Paris and Santiago.

"In general, our vision is to expand the opportunities for students in East Asia," said Amos Nur, program director of Overseas Studies. "The focus for years has been on Europe, with lip service paid to Latin America. Africa and Asia have been basically ignored. We are really committed to changing that."

The next target for an overseas campus is in New Delhi, followed by Cape Town.

The Beijing campus will be opened next May 26 by Stanford President John Hennessy.
Online calendar on kids'-health events launched

Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health has debuted a free calendar on the Internet listing classes, lectures, conferences, health fairs, fundraisers, legislative hearings and other activities on children's health at www.KidsCal.org. The new service covers events in both San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.

Calendar users can browse through listings in numerous ways, including by date, by city, by event subject, and by target audience.

Nonprofit and governmental organizations in the two counties may sign up to post their children's health events without cost, foundation officials stated.

For more information, call (650) 724-5778 or e-mail events@lpfch.org.
CEO appointed to Ravenswood Family Health Center

The two-year-old Ravenswood Family Health Center in East Palo Alto has a new CEO, Luisa Buada. Buada has 21 years' experience in health-care administration and organizational development and has been the health center's interim executive director since November 2002. In that role, she guided the center through a year in which the number of patients doubled and services expanded to include perinatal care, dental care and immunizations.

Prior to Ravenswood, Buada, who holds both a nursing degree and public health masters' degree, was the executive director of the California Institute for Rural Health Management of Oakland.

Located on Bay Road, Ravenswood is a nonprofit that provides primary health care and dental services to uninsured and low-income residents in East Palo Alto, Belle Haven in Menlo Park, and North Fair Oaks. It is primarily funded by the federal Bureau of Primary Health Care.

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