Students on the campus of UC Berkeley. (Photo: cdrin, via Shutterstock)OPINION: “Our role begins when babies are still in the womb and it doesn’t end until we’ve done all we can to prepare them for a quality job and successful career.” Those were the words Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom used to describe his “cradle-to-career” education platform during the 2018 campaign.
Graduates await their diplomas in graduation ceremonies at UCLA. (Photo: Joseph Sohm)OPINION: California has always captured the imagination of visionaries and innovators. Historically, our state leaders have backed up big ideas with concrete plans and sound investments, which has paid dividends for California. For example, California’s Master Plan for Higher Education encompassed a bold vision and plan for ensuring that every Californian had equal access to a high-quality college-level education.
A depressed man sits alone atop an office building. (Photo: Fure, via Shutterstock) OPINION: The effects of poor behavioral health can be seen all around us every day. We see it in the form of alcoholism or drug addiction, including the epidemic of opioid use. It can be seen in the daily struggles of those with depression, anxiety, or other psychiatric conditions. It can make headlines, as with the shocking suicides of celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain and designer Kate Spade.
Pasadena City College. (Photo: Ken Wolter) The bad news: there are simply not enough skilled workers to meet the needs of California’s businesses. The good news: there are 2.5 million Californians who can be part of the solution with some college level training. They just need a more flexible educational opportunity. The “opportunity” for this population of working adults comes in the form of Gov. Brown’s proposed online community college.
Demonstrators protesting U.S. immigration policy at a Los Angeles rally. (Photo: Joseph Sohm)OPINION: Our nation has procrastinated far too long on fixing our broken immigration system. What is needed is a solution that has support from the large and diverse political middle of America, represented by most members of the congress.
A man addresses a raise-the-minimum-wage demonstration in Los Angeles. (Photo: Dan Holm)While lawmakers were cutting themselves up over the thorny minimum wage bill this week, a powerful conversation took place three blocks away from the capitol. Industry, union and college leaders were working through the pragmatic next steps on a modest proposal to move more Californians from minimum wage to medium wages and higher.
The California state Capitol in Sacramento. (Photo: Shutterstock)OPINION: With more than a dozen major tax measures moving through the Legislature or toward the November 2016 ballot, California’s perennial debate about taxes is set to begin anew — with millions of dollars in political campaigns preparing to shape how the state will raise billions of dollars in revenue, and provide public services, for years to come.
OPINION: The Congressional Budget Office report also shows that under the hike to $9 per hour, 300,000 people would be lifted out of poverty. However, another estimated 100,000 to 200,000 people would lose their jobs. If the wage increases to $10.10 per hour the number of people being raised out of poverty would rise to 900,000 while 500,000 people would lose their jobs.