Lower School End-of-the-Year Trip: Sacramento
March 31 – April 3, 2014
Teachers: Megan Nesland and Suzie and Gordon Sichi
Media release | Facebook photos
Monday, March 31
Students arrived on campus at 6:00 AM for a 6:30 departure. With 20 students and an entire Santa Barbara Airbus to ourselves, the packing went very easily. Once again, veteran Anacapa bus driver David Harkness was our careful and courteous driver.
With our trip’s special focus on California water issues, our first stop at 11:30 was the San Luis Reservoir, a major off-stream storage reservoir for the State Water Project (SWP). Department of Water Resources (DWR) representative Howard Berman, an expert on the history of the SWP, gave us a comprehensive introduction to the SWP at the Romero Visitor Center, which overlooks the enormous reservoir and the Forebay below that provides the water that is pumped up to the San Luis Reservoir for storage to be released into the California Aqueduct and the Delta Mendota Canal. The San Luis Reservoir produces 70% of the energy needed for its operations.
Our next stop was to visit an Almond Farm to learn how the water crisis is impacting almond farming. 
Jerry Sanders, whom we had met in 2012 during a follow-up to our “Food: You Are What You Eat” Synthesis Unit, gave us a tour of his almond orchard, proudly showing off the changes he’s made to cope with water cutbacks. Jerry was busy that day with his crew installing new drip irrigation systems to water his almonds more efficiently. After showing off his equipment for harvesting almonds and sharing samples of his high-grade almonds with our students, he guided us over to his son’s dairy.
As the rain began to fall, we met Rich Nutcher of Nutcher Farms-Dairy, who gave us a very comprehensive tour of his dairy operations with a special emphasis on how lower water allotments were impacting his business. Rick grows much of the food on his nearby farmlands that he uses to feed his dairy cows. He also showed us all of the different types of food, including cottonseeds and corn kernels, that he buys from other sources. He was very proud of all of the innovative recycling operations he has engineered. For example, waste products from his cows are stored in ponds, which are later pumped to irrigate and fertilize the farms where he grows food for his cows. We saw calves that were just hours old, the high-tech milking station, and the complex technology he uses to safely store the milk. He also shared with us his next planned enterprise, which is to build a creamery across the street to make cheese products. The next time we visit this resourceful farm family, we will be able to see the fruits of their ongoing efforts to be productive Central Valley farmers.
We left for Sacramento at 4:30 in pouring rain and arrived at the Sacramento Hostel’s Williams Mansion at 6:30 PM. The Mansion, built in the 1880’s by the Flour King of Sacramento, is a beautiful example of Victorian architecture with the finely crafted woodworking done at that time. That night our cooking crew made a quick pasta dinner with Caesar salad and strawberry shortcake for dessert. After dinner, each student shared something new that he or she had learned from our first day. At the 10:00 PM curfew time, all lights were out and the students were quiet and got a good night’s sleep.
Tuesday, April 1
After breakfast, California Lobbyist Amy Brown visited us at 8:00 AM for our morning Breakfast Club at the Sacramento Hostel. She had made a presentation to Anacapa in 2012 during our all-school End-of-the-Year Trip to Sacramento, and it was nice to meet her again. She gave us a very interesting account of what she does on behalf of her clients and their interests regarding California legislation. She also told us how she came to be a lobbyist, and she shared her first-hand knowledge of the State Senators who have recently been accused of highly unethical “Pay for Play” behavior (State Senators Wright, Calderon, and Yee) and, as a result, have been suspended from the Senate.
At 10:00, we met public information officer Doug Carlson at the Department of Water Resources for a PowerPoint presentation on the State Water Project with a special emphasis on the Bay Delta Conservation Plan (BDCP) and its proposed Twin Tunnels project.
We were lucky to be in Sacramento when much-needed rain was falling, but our scavenger hunt in the State Capitol Park was going to be difficult, so we changed our plans. We wanted to tour the Governor’s Mansion, but found out it was closed on Monday. Fortunately for us, Bob Esparza offered to open up the Mansion just for us, and he gave us a private tour of the Mansion, including the newly restored 3rd Floor, which he personally supervised and worked on himself. He enthusiastically shared many “insider” stories about the Mansion, including the possibility that Governor Jerry Brown might move into the Governor’s Mansion if he is re-elected.
Because of the rain, we returned to the Hostel for lunch and to rest. Gordon and seventh graders Athena Masthoff and Anne Burdette walked to the Capitol to watch a hearing of the Assembly Higher Education Committee with our Assemblyman, Das Williams, leading the hearing as Chairman. At 2:30, the rest of the students and teachers arrived for our official Capitol Tour. On our way out of the Capitol, we met a group of paramedics who were each being honored with medals for saving a life. One man actually saved two lives; he delivered twins who were born prematurely.
We left the Capitol and walked through pouring rain to the nearby California Museum, which features the multi-faceted history of California with many contemporary and interactive exhibits. Because of the rain threat, David met us with the Airbus for our return to the Sacramento Hostel. That night we had tacos and burritos and brownies for dessert. We met in one of the two beautiful salon rooms to share what we each had learned that was new for us that day. Then it was lights out and curfew at 10:00 for all.
Wednesday, April 2
After breakfast, we walked from the Hostel on a clear, bright, windy morning through the downtown to the Leland Stanford Mansion for a 10:00 AM private tour. After seeing an informative introductory film, we were divided into two groups and each received a very detailed tour of the Mansion and learned about its history. The Mansion serves as the official location of the State for ceremonial luncheons and dinners and entertaining visiting dignitaries. For our lunch, we went to Yolo County Park on the Sacramento River and sat in the sun on the boat launching docks and watched the river flow downstream.
After lunch, we returned to the Capitol and walked through the Capitol Park with its Vietnam War Memorial and nearby Rose Garden and made our way through Capitol Security for the 1:30 Senate Health Committee Hearing and watched our Senator, Hannah Beth Jackson, introduce her new bill, Distinguished After School Programs (DASH). After watching her introduce the DASH bill and hearing some testimony, we left to walk down the 4th Floor hall to meet Assemblyman Das Williams in his office at 2:00 PM. 
All of us fit into his cozy office and enjoyed meeting Das and hearing his perspective on representative government. When asked about how he got started in his career, he put enormous emphasis on his determination to get a good education. Because he was raised in Isla Vista in poverty, even living in a car for a while, he shared his self-determination to improve his life through education.
Next, we went to meet State Senator Hannah Beth Jackson in her office. She shared some tasty tangerines with us and had a very friendly conversation with our students, including Q and A. When asked how she got started thinking about being a representative, she shared her love of baseball, growing up near Boston. She was a good player and wanted to play Little League baseball as a girl. Her parents encouraged her to gather signatures in favor of her petition to Little League. She sent her petition to Little League and never heard back from them. That, she said, inspired her to fight for equality and rights. Senator Jackson was kind enough to arrange, thanks to her assistant Daniel Rounds, a tour of the Floor of the Senate, where she officially closed the day’s proceedings and posed with us for a photo.
After our big afternoon with our legislative representatives, we traveled by bus to the California State Railroad Museum. We divided up into three groups and took our self-guided tour. Next, the students were given an hour of free time to explore Old Town with all of its souvenir stores. Some students took a horse-drawn carriage ride. We returned to the hostel at 6:00 PM and met Athena Masthoff’s uncle, Michael de Silva, who is a California Highway Patrol Officer assigned to protecting State Treasurer Bill Lockyer. He spoke to us about what he does to protect our elected leaders.
Thursday, April 3
We packed up and departed at 8:30 for our 9:00 AM Delta Tour of the town of Locke led by California Deltas Chamber of Commerce representative Bill Wells. The town of Locke, built in 1912 for Chinese only, is on the National Register of Historic Places. Bill led us on a walk through Locke, and he took us on a forest path to the nearby levee holding back the Delta waters. Students saw firsthand the relationship between a levee and the Delta. Bill took the time to make his case for why he and many of the Delta citizens are adamantly opposed to the Twin Tunnels project. He represents the group Restore the Delta and gave us a stack of bumper stickers that read Save the Delta/Stop the Tunnels.
Our last official stop for our power-packed trip was an official visit, led by Jim Odom, to the Banks Pumping Station, where the water is lifted up by powerful pumps from the Delta to start its by-gravity flow down the California Aqueduct with the next stop the San Luis Reservoir, where we had begun our trip!
After a 5:30 PM fast-food stop at In-N-Out Burger in Atascadero, we returned to campus just 10 minutes late at 8:10 PM. All had an absolutely great educational and fun trip!
“Going on the Senate floor was the most exciting part of the trip for me. When we went to Hannah Beth’s office and she asked us is we wanted to go on the floor, I was very excited! It was a special experience that not many people get to do and I am grateful I had that opportunity.” -Haydn, grade 8
“When we learned different points of view on the twin tunnels project, I understood the basic idea of the project and what it would do. Now, if I hear someone talking about the project, I will know the pros and cons and what it will do.” -Anne, grade 7
“One of the experiences that was special was being able to get to know other students better. In the hostel, we had a lot of time to talk and have fun. In Old Town, we got into groups and my group went on a horse drawn carriage together. Since we spent so much time with each other, I felt like I got to know everyone else and they got to know me. I appreciated the teachers because they planned the trip very well and I appreciate the other students because they were so friendly to everyone during the trip. Also, I liked asking Das Williams how he felt about rodent glue traps. I had been wanting to ask him this question since the bill passed, but he didn’t think we should immediately ban them. It was very special that I had the opportunity to ask him.” -Anne, grade 7
“Hearing the different opinions on the Twin Tunnels helped me to consider diverse points of view. From Bill Wells in the Delta to Doug Carlson of the DWR, we heard every side of the story: whether that tunnels would help people or not, destroy the Delta environment or not, or whether they would help or harm the economy. We heard a perspective for each.” -Josh, grade 8
“Listening to Amy Brown helped me learn ways to be an active contributor to the community. She told us about political issues from lobbyists point of view which I had never considered. She told us that she only accepts offers from causes that she believed in. She told me that someone can really make a difference in the world from a new angle: be the person responsible for convincing legislators to introduce bills.” -Josh, grade 8
“I thought it was very special how we got to work together in the kitchen to make and clean up our meals. Being put into food groups was a very different yet fun experience. This change me because, now, I appreciate what other people do to contribute to my life.” -Luna, grade 8
“Going to the almond farm really helped me in discovering the importance of finding creative ways to face new situations. Jerry Sanders’ almond trees were being impacted quite strongly by the drought so he installed a drip irrigation system to save water, money, and his trees.” -Rocelia, grade 7
“Two special experiences were the chance to meet our state legislature representatives and the opportunity to get both points of view on the twin tunnels. Senator Jackson was a really optimistic person and I enjoyed hearing Das Williams speak about his journey to becoming an assemblyman.” -Rocelia, grade 7
“I learned to be aware of my responsibilities as a citizen because we are in a drought and my responsibility as a citizen to use less water.” -Natalie, grade 8