Dec 24, 2015
The race for California’s Assembly District 24 appears set, and there are several strong contenders looking to replace Assemblymember Rich Gordon. Josh Becker ran against Assemblymember Gordon in 2010 when the seat was last open and made a good showing. Mr. Becker, a venture capitalist and social entrepreneur, recently sold his business and should be able to devote substantial time,…
Dec 24, 2015
As 2016 draws to a close, the fields for the San Jose City Council District 2 and 6 races appear to be largely set. Current District 2 Councilmember Ash Kalra is terming out in November 2016 and is running for California State Assembly District 27. Here’s a look at those vying to replace him: Sergio Jimenez, an investigator at the Santa Clara County…
Dec 24, 2015
New U.S. Census Bureau data show the Bay Area is booming, but rising housing costs and poverty rates are making the recovery a spectator sport for many people trying to pay their bills while eliminating their personal debt. Incomes have increased, but rents have jumped way more, and owner-occupied housing has dropped in the region. For most people, it’s hard…
Dec 23, 2015
Rumor has it that conservative West Valley-Mission Community College District Board Member Chad Walsh’s resignation is on the horizon. We wonder why he is making such a sudden move. Just recently, Walsh campaigned vigorously for fellow conservative Steve Landau to take an open seat on the Board, turning away a more qualified candidate, Randi Kinman. One possible reason for Walsh’s…
Dec 21, 2015
When the Santa Clara County Water District Board appointed former Morgan Hill Mayor John Varela to fill the Board seat vacated by Dennis Kennedy, who is battling cancer, they probably were not looking ahead to the 2016 election, but one potential candidate was. Apparently, San Jose Vice Mayor Rose Herrera, who will be termed out at the end of 2016,…
Dec 15, 2015
In November of this year, a poll conducted by EdSource and the Learning Policy Institute revealed that 64 percent of California voters surveyed regard the shortage of k-12 teachers as a “very serious” problem. A similar proportion feels that more should be done at the state level to encourage young people to pursue a career as educational instructors. The statewide poll, which…
Dec 14, 2015
In this week’s edition of How the Morgan Hill Unified School Board Turns, a 3 – 3 divided board will attempt to select a new board president and vice president. It is also the first regular board meeting since The Morgan Hill Times released a series of sexist, vulgar e-mails sent by Trustee David Gerard, so we can expect that parents, teachers,…
Dec 14, 2015
Santa Clara County: Consider policy revisions to Equal Opportunity/Nondiscrimination provision in County contracts; County to pursue more robust pay equity assessment After a preliminary review on the County’s demographic data examining classified and certain unclassified County positions under the County pay ordinance and the Executive Management Pay Ordinance, the data showed the following: Female employees comprise 70% or more of…
Dec 9, 2015
The candidate pool for the vacant Santa Clara Valley Water District 1 seat, has been narrowed from 21 to five. The Board is set to make the appointment tomorrow afternoon. The final five candidates, all of which received at least three votes during the candidate screening process earlier this week, are: Morgan Hill Council Member Rich Constantine, President of the…
Dec 8, 2015
There are many words that can be used to describe the Morgan Hill Unified School District Board of Education (Board), but “unified” is actually not one of them. The now six member board has consistently split 3 – 3, making virtually no headway on issues important to the education of our children. The citizens of Morgan Hill hope that the…