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SAN BERNARDINO – The San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools (SBCSS) and the San Bernardino County Teachers Association (SBCTA) are proud to be the recipients of an award grant aimed at enhancing, supporting and sustaining high-quality teaching for all California students.

The California Teachers Association (CTA) Institute for Teaching (IFT) award grant for $13,159.39 was used to purchase a new wheel balancer and a tabletop tire changer expandable for the Bob Murphy Community Day School’s Career Technical Education auto shop. Bob Murphy is one of 13 County alternative school placements for students grades 7-12 who are facing challenges in a public school setting.

“I am proud and grateful for the phenomenal work of our SBCSS staff and our collaboration with SBCTA. We strive to provide every one of our students the opportunity to learn and recognize their unique potential,” said County Superintendent Ted Alejandre. “One of the priorities at San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools is to ensure innovative and inspirational educational practices, and this is one of the many ways we are providing the tools and skills needed for students to succeed.”

The IFT grant project benefits up to 200 students at all of San Bernardino County’s alternative education programs. The auto shop class is currently attended by students both virtually and in-person by students from Community Schools in San Bernardino, Colton, Redlands, Yucca Valley and Victorville. Students will have hands-on experience and learn skills that they can apply to a career.

“This is who we fight for every day, and this grant will give our students all the tools they need and the extra layer of support so they can be on equal footing with their counterparts in comprehensive schools,” said Yvonne Molles, President of the San Bernardino County Teachers’ Association. “The grant opens up opportunities for our students. I was inspired by Superintendent Ted Alejandre’s leadership and support to help give our students the opportunities they might not have had otherwise.”

The 2021/2022 grant project team from SBCSS/SBCTA consisted of administration, union leaders, teachers and site staff as part of a multi-year plan.

Myrlene Pierre (Assistant Superintendent of Student Services), Rich De Nava (Assistant Superintendent of Business Services), Scott Wyatt (Area Director of Student Services), Yvonne Molles (President of SBCTA), Tony Alvarado (CTE Automotive Teacher), County Superintendent Ted Alejandre, and students from the auto shop class.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA — It is inspiring to see our community come together to keep our students safe. It is one of our top priorities here at SBCSS, and why it is so important to collaborate with our community partners.

This year’s San Bernardino Countywide Gangs and Drugs Task Force Safety Summit brought together law enforcement leaders throughout the County and our staff here at SBCSS. I had the pleasure of making the opening remarks alongside 47th District California State Assemblymember Eloise Gomez-Reyes.

This was an eye-opening and important discussion. Not only did we hear from the Chiefs of our law enforcement agencies, but our students. A panel of teens and young adults who have been in foster care or experienced homelessness shared their unique challenges. They also spoke about the people and resources that helped them.

One of the young panelists made a comment about the importance of including student voices at the summit. She shared she experienced homelessness and the foster care system and appreciated the opportunity to speak. She said, it “helps me know my voice is valued.”

County Superintendent Ted Alejandre and 47th District California State Assemblymember Eloise Gomez-Reyes made the opening remarks. The summit included a Chiefs’ Panel consisting of law enforcement leaders from throughout the area as well as San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools (SBCSS) staff.

Panelists discussed safety issues within schools and the community at-large. Questions were also fielded from individuals who participated virtually.

A second panel consisted of teens and young adults who have been in foster care or experienced homelessness. They shared their unique challenges and spoke about the people and resources that helped them.

“I have experienced homelessness and the foster system,” said one young panelist. “I have always strived to achieve my goals and break my family’s cycle of poor choices. There are people I’ve met who genuinely want to help me, and I know who and where to go. I’ve had mentors who have guided me. I am so grateful for the opportunity to share my experiences. It helps me to know my voice is valued.”

The most common responses from recent student surveys were shared. A majority of students asked for mentorship and stability to overcome difficulties associated with being in the foster care system, adverse life experiences and the ongoing pandemic. They also pleaded for their voices and ideas to be heard and respected.

The keynote speaker, San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department Lieutenant Marc Bracco, spoke about the most important drug-related issues facing the region.

Over 160 people attended the summit, which was open to all community members including school administrators, counselors, and security personnel, as well as local law enforcement, faith-based and community organizations, parents and other community leaders. The annual event is designed to help participants network, collaborate and exchange effective strategies to help keep our communities safe.

The summit is organized by SBCSS Children Deserve Success and the San Bernardino Countywide Gang and Drugs Task Force, in partnership with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, San Bernardino County Probation Department and the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office.

The San Bernardino Countywide Gangs and Drugs Task Force provides a leadership role in advocating the prevention and suppression of gang membership and drug use. The task force is a coordinated partnership among education, law enforcement, criminal justice, elected officials, private enterprise and community members across the county.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA— Students at Curtis Middle School in the San Bernardino City Unified School District are leveling up their budding eSports team. The San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools (SBCSS) delivered game consoles for their team to use.

County Superintendent Ted Alejandre expressed his pride in SBCSS eSports, saying, “I am impressed by the tremendous growth we have seen in just a couple of years. There has been an overwhelmingly positive response from students. It’s proving to be a powerful way to keep them engaged.”

The equipment will give the Curtis Middle School team the capability for up to nine players to participate in Super Smash Bros. tournaments. Previously, the team was only able to join Rocket League tournaments on their computers, which greatly limited their opportunities to compete.

The setups provided by SBCSS eSports will allow the team to grow and compete in all types of tournaments the SBCSS eSports League offers.

“I’m excited to start playing on the Switches because I’ll get to see what skills my teammates have in other games, and they will have the chance to show off,” said Andy Morales, an eighth-grade student at Curtis Middle School. “Playing eSports at school inspires me to keep my grades up so I can stay on the team, and it has given me the confidence to try out for soccer in high school next year.”

SBCSS recognizes eSports can transform the lives of students. Aside from the possibility of playing at a collegiate or professional level, students can leverage their eSports experience in many sciences, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM) fields.

Students are encouraged to explore careers in computer science, streaming, video game development, animation, programming, marketing and production. Gaming also allows children of all abilities to experience the sense of belonging and accountability that comes from being part of a team sport and can engage students who may not feel as connected to traditional extracurricular offerings.

“I was really surprised that eSports was available [at school].” said Rae’Quan West Corbett, a seventh grader at Curtis Middle School. “I was excited when I heard about it during morning announcements and me and my cousin went right after school to sign up. I want to be on the team next year too!”

This is the second year SBCSS Digital Learning Services is facilitating district participation in the growing field of competitive gaming. They provide a simplified pathway for eSports adoption at San Bernardino County schools with an emphasis on ensuring the programs established are equitable and accessible for all students.

SBCSS eSports empowers districts by providing guidance and resources for administrators who are interested in starting their own programs, as well as providing ongoing support for established teams.

They also host the virtual SBCSS eSports League, which is a comprehensive, yet flexible, series of tournaments that can accommodate teams who are just starting out in addition to well-established teams.

Competition in the SBCSS eSports League is on an ongoing basis and there is no deadline to establish a team. To maximize play time however, teachers, schools and districts are encouraged to register as early as possible to allow time to complete all necessary paperwork ahead of the tournament dates.

Students aged 13 and older are eligible to register for the SBCSS eSports League and can compete on any of the following gaming devices: Nintendo Switch, Sony PlayStation, Microsoft Xbox, or on a PC or Mac computer.

If you or your student are interested in participating in scholastic eSports, contact your administrators to find out what opportunities are available at your school site or district.

For more information on SBCSS eSports, resources to help create a program at your school, to view the tournament schedule or to register for the SBCSS eSports League, please visit esports.sbcss.net.

To receive updates and information about the league, follow @eSportsSBCSS on Twitter.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA—- Alyssa Holmes was a special guest on Wallace Allen’s “Empire Talks Back” radio broadcast on Sunday, October 24. She wrote her Halloween appropriate book, The Bat Blues, when she was nine years old. She is an elementary school student in Highland that is very excited about being back in a classroom. Alyssa will be at the Barnes & Noble Book Store in Montclair beginning at 1 pm on Saturday, October 30th.

Allysa is enthusiastically supported by her mother, Tracy, who has written and published five books and now has her own publishing company, All Home Publishing. You can contact Tracy for more information at 909-745-3763.

The Empire talks Back radio talk show is broadcast each Sunday morning at 10:05 on KCAA 1050 AM, 102.3 & 106.5 FM streaming live video via http://www.kcaaradio.com .

Here is the link to Sunday’s show with Allysa: http://podcasts.kcaastreaming.com/empire/20211024.html

INLAND EMPIRE—As part of the statewide tours, Assembly Majority Leader Eloise Gómez Reyes (D-San Bernardino) and Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes (D-Riverside) hosted the Assembly Housing Working Group in the Inland Empire this week. The group — comprised of legislators from throughout California— spent the day meeting with local elected officials, housing experts and other stakeholders to tour affordable housing in the Inland Empire and to discuss the unique challenges and solutions being used by local governments, not-for-profit organizations and developers.

“The Inland Empire is one of the largest metropolitan regions in the United States and it is important that my colleagues in the State Legislature hear from our community on their housing needs and their challenges and see how unique our region is. I wanted them to see the solutions being deployed to tackle the issue of homelessness and affordable housing,” said Assembly Majority Leader Eloise Reyes. “This housing tour and discussion is just the beginning in what I hope will be a series of discussions to identify solutions and fund the models we know are working and being deployed by our community.”

The day included a panel and roundtable discussion hosted by Assembly Majority Leader Eloise Gómez Reyes (D-San Bernardino) and Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes (D-Riverside) and moderated by Maria Razo, Executive Director of the Housing Authority of San Bernardino County. Participants in the panel included Lorraine Kindred, Vice President of Public Affairs, National CORE; Kim Carter, Founder, Time for Change Foundation; David Kersh, Executive Director, Carpenters/Contractors Cooperation Committee and Tim Johnson, Chief Operating Officer, Quality Management Group/LaBarge Industries.  Sites toured in San Bernardino County: Phoenix Square, Pacific Village, Arrowhead Grove, Bloomington Grove & Lillian Court.

The State Assemblymembers completed their day touring Las Coronas Affordable Communities in Riverside County, followed by a panel discussion. The participants included Michael Walsh, Deputy Director, Riverside County Affordable Housing and Community Services; Michelle Davis, Housing Authority Manager, City of Riverside; Karen Roper, Manager of Homeless Solutions, City of Corona and Vice Chair, Riverside County Continuum of Care; Gabriel Maldonado, Executive Director and CEO, TruEvolution Inc. and Damien O’Farrell, Chief Executive Officer, Parkview Legacy Foundation and Steering Committee Member, Inland SoCal Housing Collective.

“The greater Riverside metropolitan area has the highest percentage of cost-burdened renters in the entire State, 30% of whom must spend at least half of their income on rent. Riverside County is currently at a deficit of 51,000 affordable homes for low-income renters, and the gap keeps growing every year, ” said Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes (D-Corona). “I was proud to join Assembly Majority Leader Gomez Reyes in welcoming our legislative colleagues on the Assembly Housing Working Group to the 60th District for the Inland Empire Regional Roundtable, highlighting the needs of our region. Coming together is the only way that we will find solutions to our housing crisis.”

“I was thankful to have been invited to this Assembly housing forum.  It was refreshing to see private and public partnerships working together showing successful outcomes here in the Inland Empire.  We have monumental challenges ahead as we address our housing crisis. This kind of engagement reminds us we must focus on fixes that are honest and real,” Assembly Member Tom Lackey, 36th Assembly District.

The Assembly Housing Working Group Inland Empire tour was attended by Assembly Members from across the state, including , Eloise Gómez Reyes (San Bernardino), Sabrina Cervantes (Riverside), Freddie Rodriguez (D-Ontario), Tom Lackey (R-Palmdale), Robert Rivas (D-Salinas), Tim Grayson (D-Concord), Mia Bonta (D-Alameda), Marc Levine (D-Marin County), Chris Ward (D-San Diego), Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland), Laura Friedman (Glendale) as well as staff from the offices of Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood), Assembly Housing Committee Chair David Chiu (D-San Francisco), The Assembly Working Group, led by Assembly Members Grayson and Rivas, have conducted a statewide series of regional roundtables and site visits—including the Bay Area, Central Coast, Central Valley, and Southern California—to inform policy ideas that the working group may want to pursue in 2022.

Assemblymember Eloise Gómez Reyes represents Assembly District 47 which includes the cities of Fontana, Rialto, Colton, Grand Terrace, San Bernardino and the unincorporated areas of Muscoy and Bloomington.

RIALTO, CA—-     On the evening of October 12, 2021, Mayor Deborah Robertson, City of Rialto made a presentation during the City of Rialto public meeting a proclamation to Eta Nu Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. in celebration of their 60th anniversary. Mayor Robertson along with the City Council declared October 28, 2021 “Eta Nu Omega Chapter Day!”

Members of Eta Nu Omega Chapter Birthday Committee where present to receive the proclamation, including co-chairs Erika Bennett and Linda Gaines-Brooks. Ruth Rembert, vice president accepted the proclamation on behalf of the chapter along with a beautiful birthday cake for the chapter and a gift to give to Rialto resident, Gwendolyn Heard Nelson who was among members responsible for the chartering of Eta Nu Omega chapter in the City of Rialto.

YUCAIPA., CA— After more than a year and a half of being closed to the public, the doors are open again at Crafton Hills College’s (CHC) Learning Resource Center (LRC) Art Gallery, with a new exhibit celebrating the talent of the College’s faculty.

Six faculty members – including Art Department Chair Renée Azenaro and staffer Michael Bedoya – each selected works representing different mediums and interpretations to display inside the space now through Oct. 19.

The show, which opened Sept. 31, celebrates the important connection art has on CHC and the surrounding communities, Azenaro said.

“Honestly, art itself is the ‘connective tissue’ for all of humanity and society,” she said. “It’s about bringing the community together. It’s the nexus and the connection to get new ideas.”

The show also signals a bit of normalcy to the Art Department and the Roadrunner campus following the COVID-19 pandemic. Last year, the department took things online with a virtual faculty art show but being back in the gallery space allows for guests to take their time to absorb each piece and reflect on what they see.

“Art is so important because it fulfills parts of our life,” said Azenaro. “We are happy to be back in the space and put up physical work.”

There was not a limit imposed on how many pieces each artist could submit, nor a timeline. For example, Bedoya has three works on display, including a piece he created in the 1990s.

The painting, he explained, was originally sold to relatives, but when his uncle died, Bedoya noticed the painting was no longer on display at his uncle’s home.

“Three of my pieces are on the back wall (of the gallery), and the one furthest to the left is the one my aunt was on the verge of throwing away, which I think is funny,” Bedoya continued with a chuckle. “Exhibitions aren’t about new work necessarily, but ‘your work.’”

The Art Faculty Exhibition is open to the entire Roadrunner community and the public from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Admission is free. Chairs and seating areas will be set up inside the space to allow for visitors to “look in front of works just like at a museum and enjoy the art,” Azenaro said.

To learn more about the show or for directions to the gallery, visit www.craftonhills.edu/art-gallery.

IF YOU GO

What: Crafton Hills College Faculty Exhibition

Where: LRC Art Gallery

When: 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, now through Oct. 19

Info: www.craftonhills.edu/art-gallery

APRA HARBOR, GUAM (Oct. 02, 2021) Engineman 1st Class Anthony Munz, from San Bernardino, Calif., secures damage control equipment aboard the Independence-variant littoral combat ship USS Jackson (LCS 6). Jackson, part of Destroyer Squadron Seven, is on a rotational deployment, is operating in the U.S. 7th fleet area of operations to enhance interoperability with partners and serve as a ready-response force in support of free and open Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Andrew Langholf/released)

SAN BERNARDINO, CA— San Bernardino County 5th District Supervisor Joe Baca, Jr. is proud to announce the approval of the contract with Social Work Action Group (SWAG) as of the Board of Supervisors meeting on October 5, 2021. SWAG will spearhead the “homeless services plan” in collaboration with the 5th district and Supervisor Joe Baca, Jr.

“It is vital that we work with providers like SWAG to engage with chronically homeless individuals, especially “Super-Utilizers” of emergency medical services to help them create a life off the streets. We must also work to link medical, predominately substance abuse, services to our identified population of people without stable shelter.” – San Bernardino County 5th District Supervisor Joe Baca, Jr.

SWAG was originally found in 2017, composed of individuals with diverse educations and experience in a variety of social services. They specialize in program design and implementation of direct services to people experiencing homelessness. Unlike many short-term solutions to homelessness, SWAG’s vision involves a systematic approach that ignores the focus on services themselves in favor of positive long-term outcomes with measurable success.

Call the San Bernardino County 5th district office at (909)-387-4565 for more information.

VICTORVILLE, CA—-The City of Victorville is seeking veterans to honor during its 25th Annual Veterans Day Celebration. The event will begin at 8:45 a.m. with a Freedom Mile Run. The parade will follow at 9 a.m., running from 7th Street and Tracy to Forrest Avenue.

The ceremony will take place at 9:30 a.m., featuring marching bands, entertainers, military units and guest speakers.  The online form to honor our local veterans is due Oct. 22 at https://www.victorvilleca.gov/government/city-departments/community-services/recreation/special-events/veterans-day-parade.