REVERSING A TREND: After taking steps for...

REVERSING A TREND: After taking steps for the first time to reduce dropout rates, Simi Valley school officials say fewer students left the city’s schools this year than last (B4). . . . Addressing the problem is a lesson that school districts across the county are slowly learning. Dropout rates countywide have plunged more than 30% in an eight-year period.

REACHING OUT: Victory Outreach offers hope for people throughout Southern California who are grappling with drug addictions, gang affiliations and other problems (Life & Style, Page E1). . . . In Ventura County, the Victory Outreach ministry helps more than 400 congregation members, who go to “lighthouses” for a strict regiment of prayer and hard work. . . . “We’re all over the county,” said Fernando Franco, a minister with the organization in Oxnard. At the group’s farm in Santa Paula, members can get a real rural experience: toiling in the fields.

BACK IN BUSINESS: The venerable Central Market in Fillmore, heavily damaged in the Jan. 17 earthquake, has been restored and will soon open for customers (B1). . . . The new and improved version of the landmark grocery store will serve as a model for the renovation of old downtown Fillmore’s quake-ravaged structures. The renovation is in keeping with Fillmore’s turn-of-the-century flavor--plus it provides a few improvements: steel reinforcement against future earthquakes and a dash of architectural character.

DOMINO EFFECT? A Simi Valley school was the first in the county to implement a voluntary uniform policy. Now, Arroyo West in Moorpark is following suit (B4) . . . Arroyo West is Moorpark’s newest elementary school, so uniforms may be a good way to persuade students to get spiffed up so that they blend in with the campus. . . . But there’s a rebel element of students--and parents. In a survey, some parents rejected the notion of forcing their children into sartorial lock-step.