Somewhere along the way, California’s public schools became enamored with the notion that all students will — or at least should — acquire degrees from four-year colleges. Local school districts often adopted college-prep-for-all policies and in doing so denigrated and often eliminated what was once called vocational education — classes...
Schwarzenegger, Brown Talk Solar and Robots in Clovis
Arnold Schwarzenegger's star still shines. The Hollywood celebrity, former California governor, and WWE Hall of Famer headlined a celebration of solar energy at the Buchanan High School's CTE amphitheater in Clovis. Listen to this article: "The Terminator" shared the stage with his successor, former Gov. Jerry Brown, in an event...
West Fresno Satellite Campus Gets Giant $1 Million Check
Fresno City College's West Fresno satellite campus is still a couple years away, but there should be plenty of training equipment for nursing and automotive students on opening day. On Aug. 16 Assemblymember Joaquin Arambula presented an oversized check representing the $1 million in state funds he obtained this year...
Law Slaps New Limits on Full-Contact High School Football Practices
Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a law limiting full-contact practices for California's high school football teams and other youth programs to reduce brain injuries. State law already limits full-contact practices for high school and middle school football teams to no more than 90 minutes per day, twice per week. Wednesday,...
What's Next From FUSD's Measure X? Air Conditioning for All.
One thing appears certain in Fresno Unified's near future: Every school will have air conditioning. The topic dominated the district's special school board meeting Wednesday, which focused exclusively on setting priority projects for Measure X construction funds. Fresno Unified voters passed Measure X — a $225 million bond measure to improve...
Singh Chann Challenges Dawar for Area 7 Central Unified Seat
Naindeep Singh Chann, an executive director of a youth nonprofit in Fresno, believes his ability to listen and execute plans efficiently is what Central Unified's School Board lacks in Area 7. "We need a new leadership that puts students first and listens to the vision of the entire Central Unified community," Singh...
Brooks Challenges Atkins for Area 4 Central Unified Seat
After unseating incumbent George Wilson Jr. in 2014, Richard Atkins will face off with Shawn Brooks for the Area 4 seat on the Central Unified School Board in the November election. Atkins ran as part of the "Four Horsemen" slate, which swept incumbents out of the Area 1, 2, 4, and...
Resistance Finally Fading to Career Technical Education
Thirty years ago, vocational ed programs were struggling to attract students and political support. They were stigmatized as "throwaway" classes. Many educators and parents said that college preparatory classes would better prepare students for college and careers. That's not the case today. The label "vocational ed" has been replaced by...
Edison Area Trustee Candidates Offer Their Visions for Fresno Unified
The November election will bring new representation for the Edison High School area on the Fresno Unified school board. After 12 years as a trustee, Lindsay Cal Johnson decided not to run for re-election. He will exit having made good on perhaps his biggest promise to Edison area families: The...
Ashjian Can Be His Own Worst Enemy. And a Student's Best Friend
Brooke Ashjian is not the simple attention seeking politician that some of his critics assume him to be. Rather, he's a complicated man largely shaped by a hard-scrabble upbringing, his Mormon religion, Armenian heritage and strong embrace of the First Amendment. He has said a thousand things I wouldn't say....