By José A. Álvarez, County of San Diego Communications Office

• Aug. 17: 89.8
• Aug. 16: 91.8
• Aug. 15: 94.7
  

By Ricardo Cano and Lauren Hepler | CALmatters

CALmatters is an independent public interest journalism venture covering California state politics and government.

Photo:  Kyla Hill, 5, left, Rebecca Hill, center, and Kaden Hill, 7, right, sit for a portrait at their home in Chico on July 23, 2020. Rebecca has to balance what's best for her children's education with their safety and that of her immuno-compromised husband. Photo by Salgu Wissmath for CalMatters

July 27, 2020 (San Diego) - They worry about who will care for the children and how far their education will slide.

They anxiously await details on what distance learning will actually look like this fall, hopeful but skeptical that there will be more structure and support than a spring of crisis education that left many dissatisfied.

Kemper assumes new role effective July 1

Source:  GUHSD

July 20, 2020 (El Cajon) - The GUHSD Governing Board unanimously appointed Theresa Kemper as Superintendent of the Grossmont Union High School District effective July 1, 2020.

Theresa Kemper began her career in education as an English teacher at El Cajon Valley High School. She was promoted to educational administration in 1995, serving as Assistant Principal for three years at Granite Hills High School, followed by Principal of Grossmont High School for nine years. For most of the past decade, Ms. Kemper served as Assistant Superintendent, Educational Services in the Grossmont Union High School District.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: International flags: Creative Commons via S.A.

July 17, 2020 (Washington D.C.) – After the state of California joined a lawsuit filed by Harvard University and others against the Trump administration, the White House has dropped its plan announced July 6 to deport international students not enrolled in in-person classes this fall. 

Instead, the government has reinstated a policy initiated at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March, which allows foreign students to study online and remain in the U.S. on student visas under the Student and Exchange Visitor Program, the New York Times reports.

*Wheelhouse awards $5,000 to college-bound students in San Diego through annual scholarship program*

East County News Service 

Photos:  Wheelhouse Scholarship Recipients Alby Penney from Valhalla High School and Hailey Qasawadish from Patrick Henry High School, San Diego

July 9, 2020 (San Diego’s East County) -- Wheelhouse Credit Union (Wheelhouse) is helping the next generation of environmental trail blazers by awarding five scholarships of $1,000 each to college-bound students through its annual Sustainability College Scholarship Program. In this year’s program, Wheelhouse recognized five graduating high school seniors in San Diego County who demonstrated leadership, public service, and a desire to make a sustainable difference in their schools and communities.

By Paul Kruze, Contributing Editor

June 24, 2020 (El Cajon) -- The Cajon Valley Union School District Board of Trustees has approved a plan to re-open its 27 schools this fall, after going to a state-mandated distance learning program in March due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The final plan approved by the board on June 11, however, looks different from what had been envisioned by the district’s Superintendent, Dr. David Miyashiro. The original plan would have had students continue to use internet teleconferencing exclusively, as they have been since mid-March.

However, after documents from a private meeting involving some 40 district employees at the Marriott Coronado Resort and Spa on June 6 and 7 were leaked to parents and to East County Magazine, Miyashiro’s vision began to unravel. Some 100 parents throughout the district quickly organized and descended on school district headquarters on June 9 for what was supposed to be a one hour board workshop to approve the measure.

By Miriam Raftery

June 17, 2020 (San Diego’s East County) – After the state of California released a 62-page “Stronger Together” guideline for schools to reopen, the County Office of Education released its own extensive COVID-19 recovery and reopening plan for the nearly 800 public and 230 private schools in our region.

Board to decide future use of distance learning technology at 1 p.m. today; Superintendent apologizes over staff comments

Story and photos by Paul Kruze, Contributing Editor

June 11, 2020 (El Cajon) -- The Cajon Valley Union School District’s carefully controlled public relations moat has been seriously breached over the past week with embarrassing social media comments, news of secret district meetings, and documents accidentally shared by a district employee, as reported by San Diego television and newspaper media outlets.  

One report was about a CVUSD school district employee and the revelation of a document of a secret meeting held over the weekend involving Dr. David Miyashiro and four district Trustees (except not Jill Barto) at the shuttered Marriott Coronado Resort and Spa.

The district also had two protests by parents yesterday outside district headquarters, one over racism concerns raised by staff comments, the other objecting to a district plan to continue distance learning instead of in-person classes this fall -- a vote delayed until an emergency session convening this afternoon after parents raised vigorous objections.

Source: Sony

May 24, 2020 (San Diego) --- Sony Corporation, based in Rancho Bernardo, has established the "Sony Global Relief Fund for COVID-19," a 100 million US dollar fund to support those around the world affected by the COVID-19 virus. According to the company’s press release, Sony will provide support in mainly three areas "Medical" "Education" and the "Creative Community."

By Mimi Pollack

Update May 21, 2020: Dr. Kalmar and his staff love their new headbands, which have now been delivered to Grossmont Hospital to help hold masks in place more comfortable. Photo, left, courtesy of Dr. Kalmar. (Other photos courtesy of Mimi Pollack)

May 13, 2020 (San Diego’s East County) -- What is the small movement? It’s an informal group of people brought together by yours truly to find ways to help others, especially during this pandemic.  This includes giving business to small mom and pop restaurants that may be struggling, buying pizzas for Grossmont Hospital staff,  making masks for Rady’s Children’s Hospital and for shelters in Tijuana, gathering and donating food and fresh fruit to a food pantry, and making headbands for hospital staff to alleviate the discomfort of face masks.

The movement so far includes two East County Magazine writers (Rebecca Jefferis Williamson and me), three Grossmont College teachers (Sara Ferguson, Edda Temoche and me), a San Diego Continuing Education retired teacher (Lynn Francis), two well-known artists (Becky Guttin and Griselda Rosas), East County resident Sharonne Ketels, North County resident, Janna Leoff, and Dr. Frank Kalmar.

By Mikhail Zinshteyn, CalMatters

CALmatters is an independent public interest journalism venture covering California state politics and government.

Photo:  A student walks back to her car after picking up eggs, milk, produce and dried goods from the weekly drive-thru food pantry at Santa Monica College. Photo by Mikhail Zinshteyn for CalMatters

May 8, 2020 (San Diego) - In the third week of April, Shannon Hill approved the donation of some $35,000 in emergency aid to 40 students at Cuesta College in San Luis Obispo.

By Miriam Raftery

April 29, 2020 (Sacramento) – In a briefing yesterday, Governor Gavin Newsom suggested California schools could reopen in July or August, provided keys steps are met. 

“We recognize there’s been a learning loss because of this disruption,” Newsom said of school closures since mid-March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Those closures have impacted 6.1 million students statewide.  “We’re concerned about the learning loss even into the summer,” the Governor added.

Newsom outlined four phases to reopen the state, which is currently in phase one. Phase two would allow some low-risk businesses to reopen, ease restrictions on some public spaces, and potentially include plans to reopen some K-12 schools for either summer school programs or an earlier start to the 2020-2021 school year.

CVUSD contends Barto interfering at school meal handouts; claim disputed by CVUSD Personnel Commission member

By Paul Kruze, Contributing Editor

April 16, 2020 (El Cajon) The ongoing legal clashes between embattled longtime Cajon Valley Union School District Board member Jill Barto continued last week when the district lobbed another salvo at her by filing a temporary restraining order (TRO) against her.

The injunction enjoins Barto from being present at the district's student food distribution efforts at its schools. Like other districts around the state, Cajon Valley continues to provide meal services to its 17,000 students, although it has shut down regularly scheduled instruction at its schools until further notice. According to a video release produced by the district, it produces 4,000 lunches a day at its child nutrition center.

By Paul Kruze, Contributing Editor 

April 10, 2020 (El Cajon) -- The Cajon Valley Union School District was handed a major defeat on Monday when the United States Southern California District Court refused to dismiss a federal civil rights lawsuit against the district.