Santa Cruz County Local News: Education


All Local Education News articles contributed by our local media allies and other local newsrooms.

The Pajaronian logo From The Pajaronian...

03/27/2024
Image for display with article titled PVUSD Trustees Approve New Superintendent Contract

The Pajaro Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees on Wednesday unanimously approved a three-year contract for its new superintendent.

California Local Pin Marker From Santa Cruz Sentinel...

03/26/2024
Former Santa Cruz city council member and county supervisor Ryan Coonerty has been named as the new Executive Directory, taking over from Interim Executive Director Dave Vincent.

Santa Cruz Local logo From Santa Cruz Local...

03/21/2024
Image for display with article titled What Went Wrong at Live Oak School District

In the wake of layoff notices for more than two dozen employees of Live Oak School District and the abrupt departures of its superintendent and two assistant superintendents, details emerged this week on where the district’s money went and how its management compares with other school districts in Santa Cruz County.

Hilltromper Santa Cruz logo From Hilltromper Santa Cruz...

03/21/2024
Image for display with article titled Fossil Sloth Bone Found in the Santa Cruz Mountains

Local students find Jefferson’s ground sloth fossil in the Santa Cruz Mountains, the first fossil evidence for this species reported in Santa Cruz county history.

Good Times logo From Good Times...

03/16/2024
Image for display with article titled Live Oak Superintendent Resigns

Live Oak School District Superintendent Daisy Morales announced her resignation in an email to staff and parents last Friday afternoon. She will stay on until June 30, 2024, the end of her current term.

The Pajaronian logo From The Pajaronian...

03/15/2024
Image for display with article titled PVUSD Names New Superintendent

Pajaro Valley Unified School District on Friday named its new superintendent.

California Local Pin Marker From EdSource...

03/14/2024
An interview with Lucinda Lee Katz, the first grade teacher of the lead plaintiff in the Supreme Court case Lau vs. Nichols.

Good Times logo From Good Times...

03/13/2024
Image for display with article titled Live Oak Board Cuts 7 Teachers, Staff

The Live Oak School District Board (LOSD) approved laying off at least 16 workers.

The Pajaronian logo From The Pajaronian...

03/07/2024
Image for display with article titled PVUSD Facing Declining Enrollment, Revenues

Pajaro Valley Unified School District has suffered declining enrollment for the past two decades, due to several factors such as increasing cost of living, as well as housing and rental costs that make Santa Cruz County among the most expensive places to live in the nation.

California Local Pin Marker From YubaNet...

03/07/2024
The University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources advisors has published a new website with information resources for small acreage landowners raising livestock.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

03/07/2024
California’s public schools depend on state aid for the lion’s share of their operational income. Two trends – declining enrollment and high absenteeism – are creating financial headaches.

San Lorenzo Valley Post logo From San Lorenzo Valley Post...

03/06/2024
Image for display with article titled County’s Youth Poet Laureate Finalists Selected

Five finalists have been selected for the Santa Cruz County Youth Poet Laureate designation, a project of the Santa Cruz Public Libraries, and the Santa Cruz County Poet Laureate (SCCPL) in partnership with Urban Word.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

03/04/2024
California schools got $23.4 billion in federal pandemic relief money. Low-income schools that got the most may be hardest hit when the funds expire this year.

California Local Pin Marker From Santa Cruz Sentinel...

02/28/2024
The board unanimously approved preliminary layoff notices at a special meeting Tuesday for the equivalent of 53 staff, or about 24% of full-time employees in the district.

California Local Pin Marker From EdSource...

02/26/2024
EdSource asked students at California colleges and universities why they are choosing between online or in-person options.

California Local Pin Marker From Santa Cruz Sentinel...

02/25/2024
Joel R. Primack, distinguished professor of physics emeritus at UC Santa Cruz, was recently announced as the 2024 recipient of the AAAS Philip Hauge Abelson Prize, awarded to those who demonstrate significant contributions to science through their research, policy work or public service. “As a young scientist, I was often advised that spending time on social and political issues would be career suicide, and that I should focus solely on research,” said Primack on receiving the reward. “But I take seriously the social responsibility of scientists, and I deeply appreciate being recognized both for my scientific contributions and for my efforts to broaden the opportunities for scientists and scientific societies to help solve the challenges facing our world.” Growing up in Montana, Primack became fascinated with science from an early age. His concern for its social implications grew during the arms race, where he was instructed to hide under his desk at school as drill practice for nuclear bomb threats. He would go on to study physics at Princeton University, where he graduated as valedictorian in 1966. Primack’s speech caught the attention of Oppenheimer — the theoretical physicist known as the father of the atomic bomb who was retiring as the head of Princeton’s Institute for Advanced Study — who was impressed by his humanizing appeal of science. “I wouldn’t have made such a speech unless I had had a lot of preparation,” said Oppenheimer in the June 15, 1966, issue of the New York Times. Pursuing a Ph.D. in physics at Stanford University, Primack was further inspired to seek science policy by his graduate adviser Sidney Drell, a critical scientific consultant of the U.S. government on nuclear weapons. He then started a series of workshops to educate students on political and social issues with physics professor Frank von Hippel, another rising leader in science policy. These workshops led to the creation of a congressional fellowship program in 1973, which would eventually become the AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellows Program. The fellowship supports an increasing number of scientists and engineers in getting first-hand experience in policymaking with the federal government. Primack has established that with good ideas and strong conviction, even young graduate students can have a big impact, said von Hippel. Primack continued his work in science policy as a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University in 1970, when he founded the Union of Concerned Scientists and proposed the American Physical Society’s program of studies on public policy issues. He would also later create the APS Forum on Physics and Society, AAAS Program on Science and Human Rights, and the National Science Foundation’s Science for Citizens program that would be signed into law. In the 1980s, Primack was a leading force in promoting the abolition of nuclear weapons. He served as a U.S. delegate to several Pugwash Conferences and even flew to Moscow to stop the Soviet Union from launching nuclear reactors into orbit. He believed that because many worldly issues are fairly technical, scientists and engineers have a social responsibility to provide practical solutions given their background. Following his time at Harvard, Primack chose to start a faculty position at UC Santa Cruz in 1973 for its growing astrophysics prowess. He applied his knowledge as a major contributor to the Standard Model in Particle Physics to fundamental questions about the universe. Together with former UCSC Chancellor George Blumenthal and professor emerita Sandra Faber, Primack’s research pioneered modern theories of cosmology. Today, Primack continues to mentor young physicists and encourages them to shape the evolving state of our world using their expertise. Many of his students now occupy leadership positions, showcasing his meaningful impact on future generations. “He’s been a really great exemplar of what a scientist should be,” said Faber. “An expert in their own field, [making] important contributions to society at large and in their own lives, and exhibiting honesty, integrity and authenticity.”

Santa Cruz Local logo From Santa Cruz Local...

02/23/2024
Image for display with article titled Live Oak Teacher Layoffs Proposed to Avoid State Takeover of School District

Plans to close a $2.9 million budget gap and save the Live Oak School District from a state takeover stalled, as some parents and staff said administrators should be laid off rather than teachers.

California Local Pin Marker From Santa Cruz Sentinel...

02/22/2024
In the face of a looming budget crisis, the Live Oak School District’s governing board declined to approve recommended employee cuts, at least for now, despite warnings from staff that the reductions are necessary.

California Local Pin Marker From EdSource...

02/21/2024
Lawyers representing organizations in property-poor school districts are pressing Gavin Newsom and legislators over a school bond for the November ballot.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

02/21/2024
On one side: Equality California, the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ advocacy group. On the other side: Protect Kids California, a parents rights organization.
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