This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. Last week, organizers of a community holiday festival in San Marcos were busy planning a neighborhood procession and readying trays of tamales for guests. At the same time, they were preparing security to watch for ICE activity in...
See the Photos That Defined California in 2025: A Year in CalMatters’ Visuals
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. Each year is unique in the joy, wonder, and heartache it can bring. Each year is the same in that our photographers and visual journalists spend it traversing the state to bring you those moments. We were on...
Will California’s New Guns Laws Make Us Safer? Or Violate 2nd Amendment?
With several new gun bills becoming law in California in 2026, gun rights advocates and gun control supporters have sharply different views on the reasoning behind the legislation and its effects. The new laws address how firearms are stored in homes, expand the list of banned guns, and streamline gun...
Meet the Researcher Using Sass and Social Media to Transform Bilingual Ed
In the bilingual education world, José Medina is a superstar. A former teacher-turned-principal-turned-researcher, Medina spreads his message about validating and acknowledging a student’s native language and expression on social media and in schools across the country with a sassy, no-nonsense style, telenovela-level energy, and strong research to back it up....
How Does Newsom’s New Mental Health Court Work? Here’s What Real People Involved Say
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. Gov. Gavin Newsom two years ago launched a new program called CARE Court that gave hope to families struggling with severe mental illness. It promised to provide treatment and housing through court-supervised plans that would keep difficult-to-help individuals...
Opponents Pronounce SEDA Dead as Residents Pack City Council Meeting
A roomful of community groups, property owners, labor organizers, and educators showed up to protest what many thought would be the approval of Fresno's plan to expand the southeast part of the city. The Fresno City Council at Thursday's meeting even ordered chairs be brought to the lobby to seat...
After 50 Years of Struggle, Valley’s Hmong Community Charts a New Path Forward
Fifty years after Hmong families fled war and rebuilt their lives in the Central Valley, a new chapter is taking shape – one of rising influence. After a special election in 2025, Brandon Vang emerged as the first Hmong American elected to represent District 5 on the Fresno City Council. That win...
‘False Hope’: Why Families Who Celebrated Newsom’s Mental Health Court Feel Let Down
This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. Boom. Ronda Deplazes had just gotten out of the shower and placed curlers in her long blond hair when she heard something slam against her front door. Boom. Outside, her son — a man who could fix...
3 to 5 Fresno Unified Schools May Shut Down, but Not Because of SEDA: Dyer
Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer says he calmed Fresno Unified's worries about the city's southeast plan after saying he will recommend restrictions on how the plan will be rolled out. Three days before Fresno City Council was set to vote on the 9,000-acre Southeast Development Area specific plan and environmental study...
Fresno Area Districts Invest in CTE so Students Can Find Their Passion Sooner
On a 40-degree December day in the Central Valley, two dozen high school students in firefighter gear steady themselves before carrying and climbing a 24-foot, 100-pound ladder. They balance the ladders on their shoulders and place them against a two-story building. “Going up,” they yell. Next semester, students will extinguish...