UCLA students at graduation ceremonies.(Photo: Joseph Sohm, via Shutterstock)Times are flush in the Golden State, fiscally speaking. With a total budget surplus of $97.5 billion, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s May budget revision prioritizes the funding of higher education. Just ask Chancellor Eloy Ortiz Oakley, who helms the California Community Colleges.
Harvesting and collecting grapes in August in Kern County. (Photo: Richard Thornton, via Shutteratock)OPINION: Food hubs could be a supply chain solution for California produce. Instead of languishing in a warehouse waiting for truck chassis or open cargo containers to ship it around the world, our bountiful California produce could feed into a local supply chain that could go straight to our schools and feed California’s children.
A man receives the Johnson and Johnson COVID-19 vaccine in Covina in March. (Photo: Ringo Chiu, via Shutterstock)OPINION: Vaccines are one of the greatest public health tools for preventing the spread of infectious disease and death. Innovations in vaccines have helped all but eliminate significant threats from measles, polio, pertussis (whooping cough), influenza, and pneumococcal disease among those who are vaccinated.
Students at San Diego State University, pre-pandemic. (Photo: Pictor Picture, via Shutterstock)A long and steady increase in the number of California students seeking financial aid came to an abrupt end this year, and while it’s too soon to know exactly why 25,000 fewer students filled out federal aid forms than last year, all signs point to the pandemic.
An eastbound driver on Interstate 15 near Baker at the Death Valley turnoff. (Photo: TS Photography, via ShutterstockGrowth – rapid, buoyant, unstoppable – has been part of California’s DNA since tough and greedy men from around the world came here in search of gold 170 years ago. Now it may be a thing of the past. There are even websites giving prospective emigrants tips on how to make stress-free moves to various states, such as Oregon, Texas and Idaho.
Photo illustration of the coronavirus in California. (Photo: Maridav, via Shutterstock)COVID-19 cases in California are spiking dramatically — more than 6,600 new cases on Tuesday alone — and scientists predict California will double its transmission rate every four to five weeks. On Wednesday, the death toll spiked to 98, bringing to 5,725 the total number of deaths so far.
A man pays digitally at a restaurant using a smart phone. (Photo: Brain2Hands, via Shutterstock)OPINION: The demand for clean, cost-effective alternative fuel vehicles, trucks and buses continues to rise. The installation of thousands of alternative fuel pumps and charging stations up and down the state, supported by state grants and dedicated funding, has helped to make this possible. However, a bill making its way through the State Legislature threatens to unravel these advancements and slow the adoption of clean vehicle fleets.
Bee hives for pollination in an almond orchard in California's Central Valley. (Photo: Richard Thornton, via Shutterstock)As the world faces a declining bee population, California almond growers say they are doing their best to promote bee health. Over the last few weeks, bee keepers from all over the U.S. were in the Central Valley releasing bees to pollinate the almond crops. Almond growers use about 75 percent of the commercial beehives in the country to pollinate their crops.
Folsom State Prison east of Sacramento. (Photo: Wikipedia)The state auditor says the California prison system’s programs to reduce recidivism aren’t working, noting that inmates who complete the programs wind up back behind bars at roughly the same rates as those who don’t. “These results are serious enough to highlight an urgent need for Corrections to take a more active and meaningful role in ensuring that these programs are effective,” California State Auditor Elaine Howle reported.
San Francisco Marriott hotel employees picketing in October in support of better wages, benefits. (Photo: 1000Photography, via Shutterstock)California labor confronted major challenges last year but responded with frenetic organizing and a newfound aggressiveness—momentum unions hope to maintain in 2019. As 2018 opened, California had 2.49 million union members, roughly 15.5 percent of the state’s official working population