Fresno Unified teachers are in negotiations with district administrators to revise a labor contract amendment and return to classroom teaching sooner than currently specified in their contract in exchange for extra pay, sources told GV Wire℠ on Friday. Trustee Terry Slatic, who said district and union officials reached a tentative...
Another Councilman Joins Growing Call to Re-Open Fresno Schools
Fresno City Councilman Miguel Arias, whose two children are enrolled in Fresno Unified schools, is adding his voice to the growing chorus of parents and others who say it's time for the district to reopen campuses to in-person instruction. Arias will be joining parents clamoring for schools to reopen at...
Did She Teach Her Fresno Students Remotely While in New Orleans for Mardi Gras?
A Fresno Unified teacher who reportedly told students in her virtual classroom that she was teaching them live from New Orleans during Mardi Gras may be facing disciplinary action from the district. The teacher's trip to the Big Easy surfaced during Power Talk radio host Trevor Carey's broadcast on Feb....
Random COVID Testing of Teachers, Staff Brings FUSD Closer to Reopening, Superintendent Says
Random, voluntary COVID-19 testing of Fresno Unified staffers will begin next week, moving the district an important step closer to reopening schools, Superintendent Bob Nelson said Monday afternoon in a news briefing. Random testing is one of the requirements set by the state for districts to reopen schools to in-person...
Fresno Trustee Slams Board Over Review of Son-in-Law’s Charter School
Fresno Unified School Board Clerk Keshia Thomas minced no words Wednesday night in an angry, eight-minute diatribe about the School Board's review last month of the charter petition for Golden Charter Academy School, which was founded by her son-in-law Robert Golden. She called an analysis by the nonprofit group In...
This COVID Testing Deal Helps Fresno Unified Prepare for Reopening
Fresno Unified trustees are considering a four-month agreement with United Health Centers of the San Joaquin Valley to provide COVID-19 testing for district staffers. The memorandum of understanding, which is up for approval on Wednesday's agenda, would begin Thursday and continue through June 10. The cost per test would be...
Fresno Councilmen Continue to Butt Heads Over Reopening Schools
The battle of news releases continued last week between Fresno councilmen Garry Bredefeld and Nelson Esparza. It started Wednesday when Bredefeld floated the idea of the city suing Fresno Unified to reopen its schools. That was quickly met with rebuke from Esparza, who not only vowed that the City Council...
Bredefeld Says Fresno Council Should Sue FUSD to Open Schools. SF Council Already Did That.
Fresno City Council Member Garry Bredefeld says he wants to follow in the footsteps of the San Francisco City Council, which recently filed suit to force San Francisco Unified to open its schools. Bredefeld announced Wednesday that he will introduce an agenda item next week for a similar lawsuit against...
Take a Tour Through Fresno’s Planned $60M High School at Former ‘Hall of Shame’ Site
Just a few years from now, the site of Fresno County's infamous old juvenile hall will be transformed into Fresno Unified's newest campus that will look like no other in the area. And it seemingly will have something for just about everybody. The 12.8-acre site at the southwest corner of...
‘Disneyland of Schools’ Charter Proposal Raises Serious Red Flags, Outside Expert Says
The petition for a K-8 charter school that would be linked to Fresno Chaffee Zoo and proposed by former NFL player Robert Golden has numerous flaws and should be denied by the Fresno Unified School Board, according to an analysis by In The Public Interest, a research and policy nonprofit....