The board will present Her’s contract to the public and officially name her superintendent at the April 30 board meeting, according to Fresno Unified spokesperson Nikki Henry.

Related Story: Trustees Select Fresno Unified’s New Superintendent. Was ‘the ...

Community Reacts to Misty Her’s Appointment

Members of the Hmong community came out to support the board, thanking them for supporting diversity.

The district reserved the first three rows of seats for Her’s family. While the board was not supposed to have made a decision at that point, Henry said they were preparing for what they believed was going to take place.

One member of the Hmong community, who said he was part of the first wave of refugees, thanked them for putting homegrown talent in a position of leadership. “I think you will be engaging in a very historical move,” he said.

Others, however, felt the district did not uphold its promise for a transparent process and did not, in earnest, look at outside candidates.

President of the Fresno Teachers Association Manuel Bonilla congratulated Her on the new position, saying her success would lift the district. But he said a supermajority of teachers in a recent poll said they’ve lost trust in the district because of the process. “It’s about a pattern of closed-door decisions,” Bonilla said.

Granville Homes President Darius Assemi said the district has for decades failed in terms of reading and writing. He cited statistics showing Black students testing below grade level in reading and math.

“I thought this was going to be different,” Assemi said. “I thought this was going to be a new day.”

(Disclosure: Darius Assemi is the publisher of GV Wire)

Related Story: Secret Search or Meet the Finalists? Debate Rages as Fresno Nears Its ...

Questions Arise About Board Transparency

After becoming a teacher and principal in Fresno, Her joined the district’s leadership in 2011 as instructional superintendent for school leadership, according to Fresno Unified. In 2021, she became deputy for former superintendent Bob Nelson, who left the position in July 2024.

Related Story: Fresno Unified Trustees Passed Over a National Superintendent of the Year

When a majority of board members wanted to limit the search to only internal candidates, the community — led by then Board President Susan Wittrup — strongly opposed the limited search process.

Her promised to reform the district, focusing on student attendance and outcomes.

The post Fresno Trustees Choose District Insider Misty Her for New Superintendent appeared first on GV Wire.

Roberts, alongside 30 student volunteers from Hoover High School’s Science Enrichment club, celebrated Earth Day by planting trees.

The students worked together from 12:30p.m. to 3p.m., placing five trees on Hoover’s campus.

“It’s pretty awesome that we all got to work as a team to do something that will benefit us for a long time,” said John Banuelos, a member of the Science Enrichment club.

The club also celebrated Earth Day by guiding students through planting wildflowers to take home.

Five valley oaks, a species endemic to California, were planted on Wednesday, a number the group hopes will grow.

How the Effort Came Together

Robert worked with Fresno Unified for close to a year to get the project underway.

The University High student pitched presentations to trustees, the site principal, and maintenance managers.

His presentation detailed the benefits of planting valley oaks and spreading environmental education.

“Over 90% of these trees (valley oaks) have been chopped down since the city’s founding, and I believe that we shouldn’t accept that for what it is,” Roberts said.

Roberts is working to restore planting sites and integrate valley oaks back into the community, aiming to plant trees at Free State next, he said.

He hopes that students will take pride in their campus and their contribution, while also cultivating an understanding of the importance of trees.

This project is an opportunity to begin doing just that.

“I think today went really smoothly,” said Favour Amobi, a senior at Hoover. “Everybody was working very hard. It was nice to see everything come together”

Why Plant Valley Oaks?

Valley oaks are native and exclusive to California making them best suited for its ecosystem.

The trees’ size and lifespan allow for a massive intake of carbon, efficiently converting CO2 into oxygen, while needing less water than grass.

Additionally, these trees house native species, so their removal caused “native ecosystems to start to vanish,” Roberts said.

Roberts hopes that bringing valley oaks back into the community will prompt more native species to return.

Two weeks prior to planting, a drilling company pierced through the site’s hardpan.

Drilling through the hardpan, a dense layer that water and roots cannot permeate, allows the tree to reach subsoil. This provides crucial water retention and essential resources for the plant.

Also, the tree’s roots will be able to grow down instead of out, ensuring that roots will not interfere with infrastructure or cause tripping hazards.

Environmental Education

Climate anxiety is rising amongst youth, but a lack of knowledge and education regarding the environment is prevalent.

That fear was shared by the students, who also reiterated a sense of responsibility.

“I think us, as a generation, need to make sure that we care about it (the climate),” Amobi said. “If we don’t care about it more then we’re going to lose our chance of being able to solve this. And that’s what I’m scared about.”

Despite widespread worries about climate change, a 2021 survey indicated that students ages 14 to 18 had large gaps between their conceptualization of Earth’s systems and reality.

“Here at school is one way to learn it and get the correct education about climate change, because it’s real,” said Aaliyah Miles, a junior at Hoover.

There are environmental science courses offered at Fresno Unified high schools, but the classes are not mandatory, the Hoover students said.

“I think it’s very important to emphasize how climate change is going to affect us. And how we can prevent that, even little steps within the community we can take to help,” Roberts said.

The post Fresno Students Celebrate Earth Day by Planting 5 Valley Oaks appeared first on GV Wire.

Want to know how students at your child’s school district are performing five or even 10 years down the line?

On Tuesday, California released a new tool that aims to make that question — and many others — much easier to answer. Known as the Cradle to Career Data System, these new “dashboards” consolidate data from roughly 3.5 million high school graduates in California, showing where they enrolled in college, what kinds of degrees they earned, and the wages they made four years after receiving a college diploma or certificate.

For years, parents and researchers alike have complained that accessing education data is unnecessarily hard — with information spread out across various websites, drop-down menus and graphics. A new data system was a key priority for the Newsom administration, though it faced months of delays, in part because of data privacy concerns.

“We have people who’ve been calling for this (data system) for 10 years, for 20 years,” said Mary Ann Bates, executive director of the Cradle to Career Data System. “The effort the state is making now to bring this together is so that students, families, educators and policymakers can have this information at their fingertips.”

Some other states, such as Kentucky, have already pioneered better approaches, creating a single, understandable website that houses data from the state’s K-12, college and workforce providers. In 2019, California allocated more than $24 million so it could catch up.

Limitations of the New Tool

But today’s data tool represents just a fraction of the state’s education and workforce data. It only looks at students who attend one of California’s public colleges and universities and it only looks at students who graduate from a public high school. One tool by the California Department of Education shows that among 2015 California public high school graduates who headed to college, 15% went to a private or out-of-state college or university within 16 months.

Bates said her team will eventually update these public dashboards to include information about students who attend private or out-of-state colleges and who don’t graduate high school.

As part of this data system, the state has also promised to release other data, including information about early childhood education and teachers’ training and retention. Bates’ team initially said the teacher training information would be available by June 2024, but it remains in limbo. She said that tool would be released “soon,” though she did not specify a date.

How Useful Is It?

Although the Cradle to Career Data System is presenting information in new ways, the information itself isn’t new. California has already developed similar tools, but none so widely accessible to the public or incorporating data from so many different schools and state agencies.

The state Education Department already allowed users to download data and sort college-going rates by school or district, although it’s unlikely most parents would spend the time to download the spreadsheet and try to understand all the column names. One strength of the system is its ease of use — the tool displays key data visually and intuitively.

But each data system may use slightly different numbers. For example, the department uses DataQuest, which has a broader definition of what it means to “graduate” high school. The Cradle to Career Data System looks only at traditional graduates and not people who receive a GED, said Ryan Estrellado, the Cradle to Career system’s director of data programs.

The nonprofit Educational Results Partnership operated one of the many predecessors to the Cradle to Career Data System, and president Alex Barrios said he’s skeptical that the state’s new tool is a real improvement.

“If the dashboard doesn’t start the cohort at 9th grade, then the dashboard is useless,” wrote Barrios in a text to CalMatters. Just over 88% of students who started as ninth graders finished high school five years later, according to 2024 state data, but for certain groups, such as African American or Native American students, the graduation rates were lower.

Without information about high school dropouts, the new tool makes it look like students attend college at higher rates than they actually do, he said. It’s called the Cradle to Career Data System, he added, not the “the High School Graduation to College Data System.” In the previous tool that Barrios helped operate, known as Cal-PASS Plus, researchers could look not just at high school graduates but also at all students who enrolled in 9th grade.

Bates said the Cradle to Career Data System is only as powerful as the data that schools and agencies share. This current data uses information from the past 10 years, which is only enough time to measure the long-term college and career outcomes of high school graduates, she said, adding that other data, such as information about the long-term fates of younger students, will be added as it’s available.

Although the data lacks certain features, it may still lead to powerful findings: One of the new data dashboards shows that community college students who receive a certificate earn more than those who receive an associate degree— even though certificate programs typically take much less time to complete.

The Cradle to Career Data System is “a neutral source of information,” said Bates. “Our office is not going to weigh in on specific policies or interpret the why.”

CalMatters higher education reporter Mikhail Zinshteyn contributed to this story.

This article was originally published on CalMatters and was republished under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license.

The post How Do High Schoolers Really Fare After Graduation? A New California Tool Lets You Know appeared first on GV Wire.

Fresno Unified Board President Valerie Davis previously told GV Wire they would likely select the new superintendent Wednesday. After GV Wire published the names of applicants Friday, district spokesperson Nikki Henry said those candidates were not finalists and that the board would announce the finalist or finalists Wednesday.

In addition, GV Wire reported last week based on interviews with multiple sources that interim Superintendent Misty Her will succeed Bob Nelson as superintendent.

However, one thing is clear: Board members will not conduct a public forum of the top candidates even though community members and leaders are calling for that very thing.

Many executive search firms say getting good school superintendents requires keeping the names of candidates, sometimes even finalists, confidential.

Diego Arambula, vice chair of the CSU Board of Trustees and vice president of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, has done numerous superintendent searches. He wasn’t surprised that the board decided to keep the search closed.

“Most districts that I’ve had a chance to watch go through this have had a closed search because otherwise they just fear they’re going to get no great external candidates,” Arambula said. “You either find someone who’s either currently out of a job and so isn’t worried about it, or you just lose people who might be great candidates.”

But community leaders say an open search process is essential given the board’s past desire to keep the superintendent search behind closed doors.

Retired Fresno County Judge Robert Oliver has served on several selection committees, including the search for a Fresno State president. He described the process as “unclear and confusing.” He said the public should be able to expect a thorough search with a list of finalists.

“We’re just looking for a selection of a person who hopefully will bring a new life and a new day to the unified school district challenge,” Oliver said. “This is a 74,000-or-so student, 10,000-or-so employee organization. I think it’s fair to say, without being overly critical, that the current leadership has not succeeded in making the necessary change to improve the standing of the students in the district.”

Related Story: Trustees Select Fresno Unified’s New Superintendent. Was ‘the ...

Community Didn’t Ask For an Open Forum: FUSD

In Texas, most districts don’t share names until they’ve found a lone finalist, said Susan Enfield, former superintendent of Washoe County School District in Reno and current executive director of The Network of Distinguished Educators.

Washington State districts typically release the names of the final two or three candidates once trustees have decided.

“Confidentiality is quite common as part of the search process for superintendents— mainly because sometimes those individuals applying are sitting leaders. That said, the process varies from district to district and state to state,” Enfield said.

In Texas, most districts don’t share names until they’ve found a lone finalist, Enfield said. Washington State districts typically release the names of the final two or three candidates once trustees have decided.

However, more and more, districts are opening up their search processes, including open forums with finalists. So much so that every one of the outside finalists applying to become Fresno Unified’s new superintendent has participated in one elsewhere — either taking questions from board members or from the community before getting the job.

Henry said the public had a chance to ask for a public forum but never did.

“The board brought the superintendent search timeline to open session for comment and feedback multiple times,” Henry said. “This was never brought about as a request by the public. The board will stick to the search plans they transparently voted on in open session.”

But the record shows that Fresno Teachers Association President Manuel Bonilla talked about the importance of open search — including an open forum — several times going back at least to April 2024. That’s when a majority of trustees wanted to keep the search internal.

Many community leaders GV Wire spoke with say that with Fresno Unified’s failing student outcomes an open search is essential. Bonilla said it gives the public confidence that their choice was indeed the best.

“(Trustees) had an opportunity to regain trust in the community and to their employees by going through a very transparent process,” Bonilla said. “Because they didn’t, now it leaves a lingering process and it leaves a lingering doubt in the selection of Misty (Her). And that’s not fair to her, it’s not fair to the district, to its employees.”

Open Forum Best Serves the Community: District Employees

Bonilla wrote in an email to trustees on behalf of Fresno Teachers Association in April 2024 that by not being transparent and inclusive, the board opens the door to accusations of backroom deals and political maneuvering.

“They must commit to opening the search to all qualified applicants and provide a public forum for finalists to present their vision for our district,” Bonilla wrote.

During public meetings that year, multiple community members, including Bonilla, called on trustees to conduct an open forum. Those calls came with applause from the crowd.

“You have to have a process, and a process where those people that are going to be the top two, top three, come back to the community and meet with us and answer some difficult questions. The same problems come up over and over,” said community activist Gloria Hernandez on April 3, 2024.

Employees with Fresno Unified in an question-and-answer forum specifically asked for a community forum. One said the board can’t hide behind confidentiality and then say they’re being transparent.

Henry told them trustees chose not to do a public forum because it could scare away candidates.

“We decided to prioritize a confidential hiring process to ensure we received the most highly qualified candidates out there,” Henry wrote in that email. “Many potential candidates would be current superintendents or executives at other school districts who might not consider applying for the job if there were a public town hall before they were hired.”

All of District’s Outside Finalists Did Public Forums Previously

In 2022, when Calvert County Public Schools in Maryland held its superintendent search, the district held community meetings where the public could hear from candidates directly, ABC 7 reported. That included its current superintendent, Andraé Townsel, who is applying to be Fresno Unified’s superintendent.

Townsel earlier this year also participated in an open forum in Milwaukee Public Schools, according to ABC News WISN.

In December 2024, current Fresno Unified superintendent candidate Thomas Ahart took part in “a marathon of public forums,” according to the Albuquerque Journal. Ahart is a former superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools, where he served for more than 10 years.

Gustavo Balderas answered questions from the public when he applied to be the superintendent in Oregon’s Edmonds School District in 2020, according to community news site MLT News.

San Diego Unified — the state’s second largest district — took a transparent approach when it searched for a superintendent in 2021-2022. The school board created an advisory committee that held open meetings. The names of the finalists were publicly released, and the district hosted a town hall at which the community could ask questions.

And State Center Community College District trustees recently chose to use an open search process when selecting a new president of Fresno City College. The same approach was used in 2022 after college president Carole Goldsmith was elevated to district chancellor.

Both Clovis Unified and Central Unified held closed searches. Central Unified may do an open search in its upcoming superintendent search, said board trustee Naindeep Singh Chann.

Long Beach Unified, a district very similar to Fresno, kept its search internal. Arambula said the public was largely OK with that because that district has been successful in advancing student outcomes. Arambula said Fresno Unified is not at a place where it could justify keeping its search internal.

“I don’t think anyone can or should look at the results in Fresno Unified and say ‘we’re knocking it out of the park,'” Arambula said. “We have a long way to go to get to really serving our students in the way they truly deserve.”

A Good Search Firm Should Bring Strong Candidates: Arambula

Large districts such as San Diego or Miami have their own pull, Arambula said. Fresno, however, with its billion-dollar budget and 71,000 students, should draw out quality candidates.

“Fresno Unified should be a really attractive position to many internal and external candidates,” Arambula said. “There are huge opportunities for growth because they haven’t yet cracked the code on academic achievement. There is strong funding with the Local Control Funding Formula. Fresno is a great city; very livable. A good search firm could really pitch this place to build a great pool of candidates”

But given Fresno Unified’s challenges, they need a superintendent who will stay a long time and not use the district as a “waystop.”

In addition, trustees shouldn’t discount candidates based on the size of their previous districts, Arambula said.

Davis previously told GV Wire that “size and success matters.” Two of Fresno Unified’s candidates come from districts exceeding 30,000 students. To Arambula, districts at that size have the same level of complexity.

“It’s roughly the same amount of complexity, you’re still managing through multiple layers, you still have dozens of schools,” Arambula said.

‘Profound and Dramatic Improvements Are Required At All Levels’: FUSD Board Policy

Fresno Unified’s first board policy says “profound and dramatic improvements are required at all levels of the Fresno Unified School District.” Oliver said the board has not followed through on this.

The district consistently ranks toward the bottom for reading and math in California and nationwide, according to education data.

“By definition, if they are needing to make dramatic and substantial change for improvement, you would be well advised to look outside of the C-suite that has been unable to enact that substantial and necessary platform for improvement,” Oliver said.

GV Wire Senior Reporter David Taub contributed to this story.

The post Secret Search or Meet the Finalists? Debate Rages as Fresno Nears Its Superintendent Pick appeared first on GV Wire.

The only way that happens is when we force Fresno Unified to finally get its act together and provide our community’s children with the quality of education they need and deserve.

Sadly, Fresno Unified — which has some of the nation’s worst test scores, especially for black and brown kids — is up to its old tricks. Not only did the trustees shroud a promised national search for a new superintendent in secrecy, but they’re also ready to promote an insider, Misty Her, to the top job.

There are no rational reasons for this appointment other than politics and an insidious need to protect the district’s bloated bureaucracy. I understand why a board would want to keep an insider: you can control that person much easier, and you know they won’t be replacing the existing executive staff that trustees have established relationships with.

To our community’s shame, the trustees are passing on three highly qualified outside candidates with proven records of success as superintendents. One was the 2020 National Superintendent of the Year.

Related Story: The Superintendent Search Document FUSD Does Not Want You to See

How Much Longer Must Fresno’s Children Wait?

How much longer are we going to sacrifice our children’s and our community’s future on the altar of political ambition by trustees like Keshia Thomas and Elizabeth Jonasson Rosas, both city council seekers?

How much longer are we going to bow to the highly paid Fresno Unified bureaucrats who fear an outsider will show them to the door because of their incompetence and indifference?

Misty Her has been the interim superintendent for a year without moving the needle on student learning or improving chaotic operations. The district remains mired in special ed challenges, an abundance of litigation, and a culture of retaliation.

In addition, she long has been part of the district’s failing team. It is very difficult and costly, not to mention disruptive for students, to remove a superintendent. Bob Nelson was superintendent for eight years with no demonstrable improvement in outcomes and would still be there today if he had not accepted a teaching position at Fresno State.

Related Story: Trustees Select Fresno Unified’s New Superintendent. Was ‘the ...

We need a leader with the expertise and backbone to do right by students. I am not sure Misty Her wants to be that person, because if she did, she would have already made many changes to her cabinet and the hiring process.

Central Unified recently let its superintendent go and brought in a proven winner, Eimear O’Brien, as the interim. In just one month, she is setting high standards and making sure that every employee does their job with urgency and in the best interests of students!

I’ll wrap up with a call to action: Show up at the Fresno Unified board meeting downtown on Wednesday at 4:30 pm and voice your opinion. If you can’t attend, email the trustees with your thoughts.

Let’s not sentence Fresno’s next generation to lives of poverty and despair, as we have done so many times before.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Fresno Teachers Association (@fresnoteachersassociation)

(Video: FTA President Manuel Bonilla sharing his insights on the superintendent search and FTA’s offer to host a public forum featuring the final candidates.)

About the Author

Darius Assemi of Fresno is a builder and philanthropist. He is the president/CEO of Granville Homes and publisher of the award-winning GV Wire.

Make Your Voice Heard

GV Wire encourages vigorous debate from people and organizations on local, state, and national issues. Submit your op-ed to bmcewen@gvwire.com for consideration.

The post Will Fresno Unified Sacrifice Another Generation of Students? The Choice Is Ours appeared first on GV Wire.

Roughly 5.3 million borrowers are in default on their federal student loans and soon could be subject to having their wages garnished.

Referrals for collection had been put on hold since March 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the U.S. government also paused federal student loan payments and interest accrual as a temporary relief measure. That grace period was extended multiple times by the Biden administration and ended in October.

One of the borrowers facing more severe consequences is Kat Hanchon, who works in higher education information technology in Michigan.

“My stomach dropped immediately as soon as I read (the news),” said Hanchon, 33. “I wanted to throw up because I already live paycheck to paycheck.”

Hanchon said she owes nearly $85,000 in debt between their undergraduate and master’s degrees. And even with an income-driven repayment plan, Hanchon said she could not afford to pay those loans off on top of other expenses including a mortgage and medical bills.

The last time Hanchon remembers being able to make a student loan payment was September 2024. “I couldn’t even afford the like $55 that they were trying to charge me … because it’s that tight of a budget,” she said.

The department says it will soon begin sending notices on collection efforts, but there are options for borrowers to get out of default.

Here are some key things to know.

How Will Involuntary Collection Work?

Beginning May 5, the department will begin involuntary collection through the Treasury Department’s offset program. Borrowers who have student loans in default will receive communication from Federal Student Aid in the upcoming weeks with information about their options, according to the Education Department.

Involuntary collection means the government can garnish wages, intercept tax refunds and seize portions of Social Security checks and other benefit payments to go toward paying back the loan.

What Is the Difference Between Delinquent and Default in My Student Loans?

A student loan becomes delinquent when a borrower doesn’t make a payment 90 days after its due date. If you continue to be delinquent on your loan for 270 days — or roughly nine months — then your loan goes into default.

While being delinquent affects your credit score, going into default has more serious consequences such as wage garnishment.

What Happens When a Loan Goes Into Default?

When you fall behind on a loan by 270 days, the loan appears on your credit report as being in default. Once a loan is in default the government will send the borrower into collections.

What Can I Do Right Now if My Student Loan Is in Default?

The Education Department is recommending borrowers visit its Default Resolution Group to make a monthly payment, enroll in an income-driven repayment plan, or sign up for loan rehabilitation.

Betsy Mayotte, president of The Institute for Student Loan Advisors, recommends loan rehabilitation as an option.

Borrowers in default must ask their loan servicer to be placed into such a program. Typically, servicers ask for proof of income and expenses to calculate a payment amount. Once a borrower has paid on time for nine months in a row, they are taken out of default, Mayotte said. A loan rehabilitation can only be done once.

What Does Forbearance Mean?

Student loan forbearance is a temporary pause on your student loan payments granted to borrowers who are experiencing financial difficulties. To apply for forbearance, borrowers must contact their loan servicer.

Borrowers can be granted forbearance by their loan servicer for up to 12 months but interest will continue to accrue during this period.

Forbearance is not an option for borrowers whose student loans are in default. However, they are an option if you are delinquent on your loan.

How Can a Borrower Find the Status of Their Student Loans?

Borrowers need to know the status of their student loans in order to find out if they are in default, said Kate Wood, student loans expert at NerdWallet.

To find the status of a student loan and their loan servicer information, borrowers need to access their studentaid.gov account. Since the Education Department is going to send notices about involuntary collections through email, borrowers want to make sure all their personal information is updated such as email and physical address, Wood recommended.

Can Involuntary Collections Affect My Supplemental Security Income?

Yes, benefits from Social Security are considered income and can be affected by involuntary collections.

How Does Delinquency Affect My Credit Score?

Borrowers who are delinquent on their student loans take a massive hit on their credit scores, said Wood. Those who are delinquent on their student loans might see a drop of one hundred points or more to their credit score. A delinquency stays on your credit report for seven years.

Credit scores are used in many aspects of people’s financial lives such as access to credit cards, buying a house or renting an apartment.

Can I Apply to Income-Driven Repayment Plans?

Income-driven repayment plans applications are currently open. These plans base your monthly student loan payment amount on your income and family size.

The Biden administration’s SAVE program is no longer open for applications since it was challenged in court. However, those who got accepted into the SAVE program are currently in administrative forbearance, meaning they don’t have to make payments.

To review income-driven repayment plan options, you can check the loan simulator at studentaid.gov.

The Associated Press receives support from Charles Schwab Foundation for educational and explanatory reporting to improve financial literacy. The independent foundation is separate from Charles Schwab and Co. Inc. The AP is solely responsible for its journalism.

The post Student Loans in Default Will Be Sent for Collection. Here’s What to Know for Borrowers appeared first on GV Wire.

Amalee Jayasinghe was re-elected to Merced Union High School District’s board of education last year for a second term, and Priya Lakireddy was elected to the Merced City School District’s board of education in 2022.

In December, both were nominated by their fellow trustees to lead their respective boards as president. According to the California School Boards Association, local school boards are responsible for ensuring school districts are responsive to the values, beliefs and priorities of their communities.

Both women immigrated to the U.S. from the subcontinent of India as young adults and pursued higher education here. Jayasinghe was born in Sri Lanka, and Lakireddy was born in India.

While Merced is home to a diverse population, only around 6,000 residents, or 2.1% of Merced County’s 285,000 population, identified as Asian Indian alone, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2023 American Community Survey five-year estimate.

Ed Leaders Came to Merced County About 20 Years Ago

Both Jayasinghe and Lakireddy first came to Merced around two decades ago and have since made the city their home and raised their children here.

Jayasinghe’s career in manufacturing brought her to Merced around 20 years ago.

She moved to the U.S. to attend University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, where she earned a degree in biology. After college, she took a job in a manufacturing plant in the quality assurance department and has worked in manufacturing ever since, moving her way up the ranks to become a plant manager.

Lakireddy met her future husband, Dr. Vikram Lakireddy, in 2004 during a trip to Merced to visit family. The two married the following year, and in 2009 they permanently settled in Merced, where Lakireddy’s father-in-law and husband have worked as the region’s go-to cardiologists.

Before Merced, Lakireddy earned her bachelor’s degree from University of Missouri, known as Mizzou, while working for Citi bank in the mortgage sector. Once her children were older, Lakireddy re-entered the workforce and charted her own career at UC Merced, working her way up to become a staff adviser to the UC regents.

The COVID-19 pandemic propelled both women to take their parental involvement to the next level and run for elected office.

“I just realized the influence of school boards and just how important the role they played in our daughters’ education,” Jayasinghe told The Merced FOCUS in a telephone interview.

The Merced FOCUS sent the following questions to both board presidents to learn more about their philosophies as leaders of their respective school boards.

Why Did You Decide to Get Involved in Merced’s School Systems?

Jayasinghe: “As a mother of three daughters, I have always been involved in their education and extracurricular activities. Being on the school board was yet another way to be involved.”

“Many may not know this, but I first ran for the school board in 2014. I discovered that the representative for my area was running unopposed, so I visited the county elections office to learn more and ultimately decided to run. However, the process felt overwhelming, and I didn’t actively campaign. I expected to receive only 15-20% of the vote, but to my surprise, I earned nearly 40%. That experience showed me that with effort, I could make a real impact.

“In 2018, I chose not to run because my friend Shane Smith was a candidate, and I fully supported his campaign. However, the COVID-19 pandemic reignited my desire to serve. I was already concerned about academic performance in our district, but as I followed the flow of the millions of dollars in COVID relief funding, I was disappointed to see that much of it was not directed toward improving academic performance of our students or the physical state of many schools. That pushed me to take action, and when the opportunity arose, I decided to run for office to ensure our students receive the resources and support they deserve.”

What Are Your Goals?

Jayasinghe: “I am honored to serve as the board president this year, and I am committed to seeing that all our students receive a good education, resources, and guidance to be the best versions of themselves after high school.

“In manufacturing, we follow the Kaizen process, ‘Kaizen’ being a Japanese term for continuous improvement. Improving our processes in the manufacturing plant ensures that we keep improving for better outcomes.

“The board has that same mindset, to always evaluate what we do and improve to ensure that our students are well prepared for life after high school.”

Lakireddy: “During my time on the board, my primary goals are to improve student achievement, strengthen community engagement, and ensure that our teachers and staff have a safe, supportive, and welcoming environment. Academic success is at the heart of our mission, and I believe that strong partnerships between schools, families, and the broader community are key to creating the best opportunities for our students. Additionally, prioritizing the wellbeing of our educators and staff is essential. They are the foundation of our schools, and when they feel valued and supported, our students thrive.

“As board president, my role expands beyond these priorities to include fostering collaboration among board members, ensuring transparency in decision-making, and setting a tone of accountability and inclusivity. My focus is not only on policy, but also on execution—ensuring that our district’s strategic goals are followed through with measurable results. My goal is to strengthen communication between the board, administration, and the community so that families and stakeholders feel heard and involved in shaping the future of our schools. Ultimately, my goal as president is to lead with a vision that unites our district in its commitment to student success and continuous improvement.”

Discuss Some of the Highlights and Challenges of Leadership

Jayasinghe: “(Some) highlights: Engaging with the different schools and attending events at all our schools, approving funding to improve our facilities and programs in all the school sites.

“(As for) challenges: My career has been in manufacturing, and learning all the processes and procedures of education, the school system and board governance has been a learning curve.

“However, I am always up for a challenge and have enjoyed my time on the board, especially serving with the other trustees who care deeply about our students.”

Lakireddy: “One of the biggest challenges I’ve faced as a board member is navigating the complexities of working with different personalities. Leadership isn’t just about policies and decision-making — it’s about people, relationships, and finding common ground. No one fully prepares you for the human aspect of serving on a board, and it took time to find a rhythm.

“The past few years have been particularly challenging with frequent leadership changes, which added to the uncertainty. However, despite our differences, we remained committed to prioritizing students and staff in our decision-making. A defining moment was our unanimous 5-0 vote to hire our superintendent. This decision was the result of tough but necessary conversations, proving that when we put aside personal differences and focus on what truly matters, we can come together to make meaningful progress for our schools.

“As for a highlight, sometimes, the smallest changes make the biggest impact. During a visit to Stowell Elementary, I spoke with staff who shared concerns about a chain-link fence at the back of the school. They wanted to cover the fence, but despite previous requests, the issue hadn’t gained traction. Seeing how much it mattered to the school community, I personally put in a request to the superintendent via email and followed up to ensure it was addressed.

“It took longer than it should have for such a simple fix, and that’s not OK. But it reinforced an important lesson: sometimes leadership means persistently advocating for the things that others have overlooked. A few months ago, the fence was finally covered, making the school environment safer and more secure for students and staff. This experience reminded me that change, even at the smallest level, requires persistence, follow through, and a commitment to listening to those on the ground. Paying attention to everyday concerns are just as important as big initiatives when it comes to making a real difference.”

Describe Your School Experiences in Your Home Country 

Jayasinghe: “I was born in Sri Lanka and came to the U.S. to attend university.

“Education was always emphasized in our household, and my parents instilled a love of learning from a very young age. I loved to read and remember sitting and reading the newspaper with my dad, sharing sections of it between us. I still enjoy reading the newspaper from front to back – ads, articles and even obituaries – and love turning the pages of a book (I own an e-reader but prefer an actual book any day!). There was an expectation that we do well in school. My grandfather would ask to see our report card and once asked me what happened to the other two points when he saw a grade of 98/100 for English!

“My wish for every student is that what they learn in the classroom, on the sports field, or during their extracurricular activities resonates with them and that they find an interest that they can build on. We aim to give our students as many tools as possible to be successful after high school, whether they decide to go to college, vocational school or the workforce, so that they could all live happy and successful lives!”

Lakireddy: “I had the privilege of attending excellent schools in Hyderabad, and I am deeply grateful to my parents for prioritizing my education. My school experience was a blend of rigorous academics and diverse extracurricular opportunities. I played the clarinet in the school band, was exposed to instruments like the sitar, and participated in sports such as volleyball and basketball. Academically, I found physics particularly challenging, but I was great at learning new languages, which became one of my strengths.

“Attending a secular school also gave me the unique opportunity to learn about different religions. This exposure helped me develop an appreciation for diverse perspectives and an understanding that, even in our differences, there is much to learn and value from one another.

“One key difference I noticed after moving to the U.S. was the limited access to second-language instruction at a young age. In India, I studied Hindi, Sanskrit, and French in addition to English, and I developed native fluency in three languages—English (my primary language in school), Hindi (my second language in school), and Telugu (my mother tongue). I strongly believe all students should have the opportunity to become multilingual, as language learning fosters cultural understanding and global awareness.

“However, one major gap in my schooling experience was the lack of special education services. There was little awareness or support for students with learning disabilities. This is an area where I see U.S. schools making meaningful progress, and I hope we continue to expand these services to ensure every child receives the support they need to reach their full potential.”

What is Your Message to Underrepresented Students?

Jayasinghe: “My message to all our students is that education is transformational. Make use of every opportunity that comes your way, and find your niche. There are so many different jobs and careers out there, some that are yet to be created, so be open to all possibilities. And no matter what you do in life, never stop learning.”

Lakireddy: “While I had a strong education and many positive experiences, I also faced challenges, including bullying. It took a toll on my self-esteem, but I never confided in an adult because I didn’t realize there was support available. Looking back, I wish I had known that there were people willing to listen and help.

“To any student who feels unseen or unheard — I want you to know that you are not alone. There are people in our schools who care deeply about you, whether it’s a teacher, a staff member, or an administrator. Don’t hesitate to reach out. No dream is too out of reach, no question is too small, and your voice matters. Be proud of who you are, where you come from, and the unique perspective you bring. You belong here, and you have so much to offer.”

About the Author

Brianna Vaccari is the accountability and government watchdog reporter for The Merced FOCUS.

The post South Asian Women Lead Merced School Boards. How Did They Rise to the Top? appeared first on GV Wire.

Related Story: Why Fresno Unified Tried to Keep Superintendent Search Secret

Fresno Unified, the state’s third-largest school district, has been without a full-time superintendent since May 2024, when Bob Nelson gave his farewell speech at a board meeting. He had announced months earlier he would step down to take a job with Fresno State.

The school board later named deputy superintendent Misty Her as the interim, and she is reportedly a top contender for the full-time job.

Related Story: Trustees Select Fresno Unified’s New Superintendent. Was ‘the ...

Wednesday’s board agenda includes an item under “public employment/appointment” regarding the “superintendent search.” The closed-session item is set to start at 4:30 p.m. at the district office (2309 Tulare Street in downtown Fresno).

The FUSD board hired executive recruiting firm McPherson & Jacobson, LLC, to recruit and present candidates under a $34,000 contract approved in February. Firm consultant Ben Johnson II told GV Wire last week that all seven trustees, and members of a community panel, signed the non-disclosure document.

Several members of the school board said they signed to protect the confidentiality of the search. Neither the members, the firm, nor the district immediately provided a copy of the document. However, a source provided an unsigned version.

It is unclear if this is a version the school board members signed, the community panel signed, or if there is a difference.

“The Committee Member and the District are engaged in a process for selection of a superintendent for the District. As such both Committee Member and District will have access to the confidential application materials and information which has protection from disclosure pursuant to State law, including (add a state statute if applicable),” an unsigned version of the document stated.

“No legal advisory was necessary for the district in this case as these documents were signed by individuals to the search firm, not signed by the district or for the district,” Fresno Unified spokesperson Nikki Henry said.

A Public Records Act request with the school district for a signed version of the document remains pending.

What the Agreement Says

The two-page, five-paragraph confidentiality agreement said the applicant name is among the confidential information not to be shared.

The document also allows sharing of information to “other Committee Members, or to such individual District staff for third-party consultant(s) that the District and the Committee identify as assisting the committee in its process.”

Committee members shall not discuss aspects of the search with others, the document said, including conducting their own interviews and/or investigations.

“The Committee Member and the District expressly agree that failure to maintain confidentiality pursuant to this agreement is a material breach with irreparable damages that may be remedied by an award of damages, an injunction, and other award deemed equitable by a Court of competent jurisdiction,” the agreement said.

“Further, if the Committee Member is an employee of the District she or he is on notice that breach of confidentiality can and may result in disciplinary consequences,” the document said.

The elected board trustees are not considered district employees, Henry said.

“All members who signed the confidentiality agreement are aware of how recourse may be taken if a breach of confidentiality happened,” Henry said.

Community Panel Members Remain a Mystery

The district has refused to share the names of the community panel members.

“The Community Advisory Panel was discussed in closed session by the board on March 26 and April 3 and the panel’s role was to give feedback directly to the search firm, not directly to the board. Each Trustee was able to suggest one community member to join the search firm’s Community Advisory Panel. We will not be releasing the names of the community advisory panel to respect the confidential process,” Henry said.

David Loy, legal director with the First Amendment Coalition, said holding such discussions in closed session is improper. While discussions about specific candidates may be OK, talking about the search process itself is not, Loy said.

“If they created a community advisory panel, that should have been a separate agenda item and that should’ve been done an open session,” Loy said. “The board should not be refusing to disclose the names.”

Loy said the panel itself should be covered by the state’s open meeting laws, the Brown Act.

Board members Susan Wittrup, Keshia Thomas and Valerie Davis declined to name their appointee, citing the confidentiality agreement. Elizabeth Jonasson Rosas also declined to speak. Other board members did not respond to requests for comment.

The post The Superintendent Search Document FUSD Does Not Want You to See appeared first on GV Wire.

This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters.

President Donald Trump has promised to keep special education intact, even as he dismantles the federal department that has overseen it for nearly a half century. But some experts and parents in California fear Trump’s policies will imperil the program on multiple fronts, and undoing decades of progress for disabled students.

“Students in special education are equally as important as students who aren’t, but that hasn’t always been the case. The disability community has fought hard for where we are now,” said Gina Gandolfi, a former special education teacher in San Bernardino County whose 10-year-old son has Down syndrome. “What if those services are taken away? Kids with disabilities will go back to being second-class students.”

Last month, Trump said he’s moving special education from the Department of Education, which he’s described as wasteful and inefficient, to the Department of Health and Human Services, under the direction of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Enforcement of special education laws would likely move to the Justice Department. Although the laws surrounding special education wouldn’t change, there’s likely to be disruptions as the program moves to a new department, especially one not focused on education and that’s undergoing a 20% reduction in its workforce.

More than 40 disability rights groups sent a strongly worded letter to Congress in early April imploring members to preserve special education funding, keep the program in the Department of Education and leave the department intact. The authors said the plan to move special education to Health and Human Services is “short-sighted, insulting and unacceptable.”

Trump has not announced cuts to special education funding, and Congress left its funding intact in the most recently passed budget. But at the same time, Trump has threatened to cut school funding to states — including California — that defy his orders to eliminate diversity programs or scrap protections for transgender students. The federal government currently covers about 10% of California’s total cost for special education.

Beyond school funding, Republicans in Congress are debating cuts to Medicaid, which would have a deep impact on services for students with disabilities and their families. School districts use Medicaid to help pay for speech and occupational therapy and mental health services for students with disabilities. In addition, parents with disabled children rely on California’s regional centers — funded in part by Medicaid — for diagnoses, in-home visits, equipment like wheelchairs and walkers and other services.

Impacts on Special Education Services

Cuts to any of those programs would have a cascading effect that would upend the disability community, said Kristin Wright, former director of special education for California and currently the executive director of prevention, intervention and inclusive practices at the Sacramento County Office of Education.

For example, if families lose services from a Medicaid-funded agency such as a regional center, they may have to quit working to care for their disabled child. That could potentially catapult a family into poverty.

“It’s a fragile ecosystem,” Wright said. “These programs have evolved together. When you pull any one strand away, it affects everything else.”

Wright fears that the changes would set special education back decades. Until the 1970s, when the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act passed, many children with disabilities didn’t attend school at all. And for many years, they were often in separate classrooms, segregated from their classmates without disabilities. Now, in California, most students with disabilities spend the majority of their time in general education classes, with the assistance of aides and other supports, where they tend to do better academically and socially.

“We’ve come so far, moving away from pathologizing people and using a medical model of disability toward a social model, where disability is seen as a natural part of the human condition,” Wright said. “This feels like we’re backpedaling. As a society, we’re going to have to decide what we care about, and how committed we are to educating every student.”

About 14% of K-12 students in California are enrolled in special education, with disabilities ranging from mild learning disorders to severe autism or traumatic brain injuries.

Typically, students receive extra services from therapists, aides and special education teachers, which can be costly. California spent about $13 billion on special education last year, with about 10% coming from the federal government. That doesn’t include money that schools get from Medicaid. If Medicaid is cut, schools would have to find the money elsewhere.

Effects on Schools

Ginese Quann is a special education director for the El Dorado County Office of Education and oversees the Special Education Local Plan Area, a cost-sharing consortium for 464 California charter schools. Quann said she’s not overly worried about the federal changes — yet.

Special education funding has always been in flux, she said, and the state has its own systems for monitoring and enforcing the program. Even if the federal government cuts its enforcement of special education laws, she said, parents will still be able to file complaints with the state.

She’s less sure about the transition to the Department of Health and Human Services. Even in a best-case scenario, there’s likely to be some disruptions in payments or services, she said. In a worst-case scenario, the program will be overseen by people with little expertise in how to educate students with disabilities.

The best she can do, Quann said, is to “try and cushion schools from changes at the federal level, so ideally there’s no impact on students. I see this as our biggest challenge right now.”

But even minor disruptions could be damaging for schools that rely on a smooth-running special education system. One of those schools is the Hanna Academy, a small nonprofit boarding school in Sonoma County that contracts with school districts to serve students with acute behavioral challenges. Federal changes to special education could have lasting effects on students, and jeopardize students’ and staff safety, said principal Courtney Jackson.

The academy, which opened in 1945, serves about 50 students from around California. The students receive extensive therapy, vocational training and academic and life-skills classes, delivered in small groups with numerous teachers and aides who can intervene when students have meltdowns or violent outbursts.

Budget cuts will likely mean fewer adults in classrooms, which could endanger students as well as staff. It also means students won’t get the individual attention they need and their progress will almost certainly drop off, Jackson said.

“We’re dealing with the most delicate population in education. When you start removing services in a careless manner, without a backup plan, it just causes chaos,” Jackson said. “The damage will be so deep, it could take years to fix and be far more expensive.”

Future of Special Education Law

Special education has traditionally had bipartisan support, with champions in both parties. The Trump administration has promised to leave special education unscathed, but that would require continued funding, said Rorie Fitzpatrick, vice president for K-12 systems at the nonprofit research and consulting firm WestEd.

“The biggest concern is the future of IDEA,” Fitzpatrick said, referring to the 1975 legislation that created special education. “Students with disabilities have a right to a free, appropriate public education under the law. But you need well-trained staff and funding to make that happen. If you cut that funding, you’re gutting IDEA by default.”

Gandolfi, whose son has Down syndrome, said special education has made a world of difference for her son, Nathan, a fourth grader in Redlands Unified. He loves his friends in his general education classroom, and gets extra services like speech and occupational therapy, one-to-one classroom support and academic help through special education. Through the local regional center, he attends classes in swimming, drumming and social skills, as well as camps. He loves hip hop dance, movies, singing and his two younger siblings.

“He’s living his best life. He’s full of joy. He looks forward to school every day,” Gandolfi said. “We want him to have a long, purposeful, meaningful life, and having the support of special ed makes that possible.”

This article was originally published on CalMatters and was republished under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license.

The post Trump Is Dismantling the Education Dept. How That Might Harm Special Ed appeared first on GV Wire.

Victor A. Patton

The Merced FOCUS

Merced College officials and local leaders broke ground April 17 on the AgTEC Innovation Center, a $21 million state-of-the-art facility focused on agricultural techology, automation tech, and robotics.

The 22,000 square-foot AgTEC (Agrifood Technology and Engineering Collaborative) center is expected to be completed by late 2026/early 2027.

Center Features and Student Skills

It will include facilities and labs for processing nuts, vegetables, fruits and meat, in order to give students high-demand skills in agriculture, according to Cody Jacobsen, Merced College’s director of ag innovation.

Other highlights include a nutrition and food product development kitchen where students and industry partners can collaborate to test recipes and innovate new food products.

There will also be an on-site farm market that will allow students to experience direct to consumer sales while practicing food safety, customer service and small business operations.

Economic Impact and Industry Relevance

The value the building will bring to Valley students is immense, as California remains the nation’s largest producer and exporter of agricultural products, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture estimates that’s a $49 billion industry that generates at least $100 billion in related economic activity. Merced County’s agricultural commodities grossed an estimated $4.2 billion in 2023, according to the Merced County Department of Agriculture.

Merced College President Chris Vitelli said the AgTEC Innovation Center will serve as a hub for industry partnerships and economic development, in addition to giving students the skills they need to thrive in the ever-changing multi-billion dollar industry.

“We’re going to make sure that everyone that wants a career in ag within the Merced region and the Valley know that agriculture is in our DNA and it’s a pillar of our community and our educational program,” Vitelli said.

Vitelli said the center will provide a space that’s flexible for learning key job skills that are driven by industry needs.

Funding and Community Collaboration

Funding for the new center was made possible with help from the Fresno-Merced Future of Food (F3) initiative. In addition, Sen. Anna Caballero was able to obtain $15 million in state funding for the project.

Ashley Swearengin, president and CEO of the Central Valley Community Foundation and former Fresno mayor, said she felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude Thursday, when considering the numerous individuals who played a role in making the AgTEC Innovation Center possible.

“I’ve seen over the last few years that people have come together to do the impossible and to truly lead the state in competency-based education and to break out of the mold and say ‘we are ready for the future, we’re showing up to support a new and different place for our community and our region,’” Swearengin told the audience gathered for the groundbreaking.

Rep. Adam Gray, an alum of Merced College, was among those on hand for Thursday’s groundbreaking. “We have venture capitalists from Silicon Valley relocating to the Central Valley. Why? because the future of agriculture is great,” Gray said. “The opportunities in ag tech, in the bio-circular economy are immense and incredible.”

The new AgTEC Innovation Center will be built on the north side of the main Merced campus, where the old Plant Science/Horticulture Facility is currently located. Jacobsen said that building will be torn down in the coming days to make way for the Innovation Center.

A new Plant Science/Horticulture Facility is currently being built, and is expected to open within a few months.

About the Author
Victor Patton is editor-in-chief of The Merced FOCUS.

The post Merced College Breaks Ground on $21 Million Center Geared for Tomorrow’s Ag Jobs appeared first on GV Wire.