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RIVERSIDE, CA- If you’re a woman who wants to start a business, or if you know a woman longing to be an entrepreneur, you can start to make those dreams a reality. Applications are now being accepted for an intensive program of education, business planning, and business counseling for women who want to start their own businesses.

The program is offered by the Inland Empire Women’s Business Center, a program of the Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship at Cal State San Bernardino in partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration, and sponsored by Citibank.

“It’s Your Time: Entrepreneurial Training Series for Women,” offers women education, business counseling, and individual support to help them develop a workable business idea. Participants selected for the program must attend a minimum of 12 workshops, work individually with a business counselor for at least two hours, and write a business plan. The cost to participate is based on income, and ranges from a minimum of $25 to a maximum of $130 for all program services. The program is open to women living in San Bernardino and Riverside counties.

Three graduating participants will be selected to receive an award to help launch their new ventures.

“We know there are women in the Inland Empire who have great business ideas,” said IEWBC director Nicole Kinney. “This program will help them evaluate those ideas and learn how to turn them into a viable business through education, focus, and accountability.  Business counselors and mentors help participants focus on the essential elements of business planning and offer real-world experience to guide them through the start-up process.”

Applications for “It’s Your Time” are available at the IEWBC website at www.iewbc.org, and must be completed and submitted by Friday, July 22, 2016 at 5 p.m. Late applications will not be accepted. Program orientation for qualified participants will be held on August 15. Participants will have until early December to complete the program requirements.

The Inland Empire Women’s Business Center, 3780 Market St. in Riverside, is a program of the Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship at Cal State San Bernardino.  Housed in the College of Business and Public Administration, IECE, which administers the program in collaboration with the U.S. Small Business Administration, is inland Southern California’s leading organization dedicated to supporting and promoting entrepreneurship. The IEWBC provides business counseling, training and mentoring designed for women business owners.

The Inland Empire Women’s Business Center hours are Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday by appointment only. For more information, visit the IEWBC website at www.iewbc.org or contact Nicole Kinney at (909) 890-1242.

Set in the foothills of the beautiful San Bernardino Mountains, CSUSB is a preeminent center of intellectual and cultural activity in inland Southern California. CSUSB serves more than 20,000 students each year and graduates about 4,000 students annually. CSUSB is listed among the best colleges and universities in the western United States, according to The Princeton Review, Forbes, U.S. News and World Report and Money Magazine.

For more information on Cal State San Bernardino, contact the university’s Office of Strategic Communication at (909) 537-5007 and visit news.csusb.edu.

 LOS ANGELES, CA – In observance of Independence Day, Metrolink will not operate service on Monday, July 4, with the exception of two round-trip trains on the Antelope Valley Line between Lancaster and Los Angeles Union Station.

Antelope Valley Line train 262 will depart Lancaster at 8:55 a.m. and arrive in Los Angeles at 11 a.m., while Antelope Valley Line train 268 will depart Lancaster at 2:25 p.m. and arrive in Los Angeles at 4:30 p.m.

Making the return to trip to the Antelope Valley will be train 263 departing Los Angeles Union Station at 11:40 a.m., while train 269 will depart LAUS at 5:25 p.m. The trains will reach Lancaster at 1:50 p.m. and 7:25 p.m.

The four trains will make stops at all 11 stations along the Antelope Valley Line. Regular service will operate system-wide on Saturday and Sunday, July 2 to July 33, and resume on Tuesday, July 5.

VICTORVILLE, CA – Earlier this month on June 16, recording artist and community raptivist Justified (JM) and Men of Faith in Action (MOFIA) brought a blessing to the high desert once again. Prior to JM’s Event “Compton In The House Concert” starring Legendary Rap Group 2^ND II NONE and Leader of the new wave, AV LMKR, Justified and his rap friends distributed free diapers to families in Victorville. With the help of Terry Boykins of Street Positive and Community Action Partnership (CAP), over 300 packs of diapers were given away to young families with new born babies.

This awesome event was used as a fundraiser for Men of Faith in Action’s Annual Heal the Ville Event, where Justified and his MOFIA bring blessings to the community with a huge diaper give away, along with other resources and supplies to benefit the less fortunate.

On August 13, Men of Faith in Action, will be going all out and doing it again for the High Desert. Partnering with Who’s Next Barbershop, MOFIA will be hosting a free community event in the parking lot of the Barber Shop located at 15770 Mojave Drive in Victorville (Suite J), and they will also be giving away back to school supplies, along with diapers and other necessities that will leave a multitude of families blessed, accompanied by a free concert from Justified and a special Celebrity Guest.

Justified is very passionate about fatherhood, being that he is a single father raising two young girls after losing his wife and their mother to a vicious battle with cancer. Justified is currently involved with the National Daughters Lives Matter campaign and has devoted his time to being a light in the dark and extending a helping hand to others in need in the midst of his own trials and tribulations.

Join your faith with Justified and Men of Faith in Action by partnering via a donation and helping them draw nearer to the ultimate goal of Healing the Ville. Visit Gofundme.com/healtheville and join the MOFIA as they strive to HEAL THE VILLE!

SAN BERNARDINO, CA-The Way World Outreach is offering free marriage counseling for 2,000 people through its Marriage 2000 Challenge over a period of four consecutive Sundays beginning June 26 at 9 a.m., 11 a.m. or 1 p.m. at its campus on 4680 Hallmark Parkway in San Bernardino. Interested parties can register at www.thewayworldoutreach.org, and will receive The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love that Lasts by Gary Chapman, marriage manual with weekly homework, a marriage coach, and a session of marriage counseling after graduation, if needed.  The conference culminates with a graduation ceremony highlighted by the renewal of wedding vows.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- If you loved “For Colored Girls,” then you’ll love author and playwright T’ana Phelice’s “The Diamond Monologues,” which will be coming to San Bernardino on Saturday, September 17. For all of our actresses in the city, you’ll have an opportunity to showcase your skills on the stage. Auditions for “The Diamond Monologues: will be held on Saturday, June 25 from 2 p.n. to 3:30 p.m. at 577 N. D. Street in San Bernardino. For more information and to receive a script to prepare, please email mstanaphelice@gmail.com or pr@sophisticatedrelations.com. Serious inquires only please!

Loma Linda University Health advancement films pose with their new trophies after the 42nd Annual Pacific Southwest Emmy Awards over the weekend in Rancho Mirage. From left: Michael Wolcott, Maranatha Hay, Keturah Reed and Patricia Kelikani.

LOMA LINDA, CA – Loma Linda University Health advancement films earned, once again, the highest honor in the television industry – the Emmy. The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences awarded “Life on the Line” its first Emmy Award in the category of health/science program at the 42^nd Annual Pacific Southwest Emmy Awards over the weekend in Rancho Mirage.

Produced by Advancement Films, The documentary TV series gives viewers an inspiring look into the resilience of humankind as it brings Loma Linda University Health’s mission to life.

The winning episode, “Rough Beginning,” features the Maternal Fetal Medicine Center and NICU at Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital.

After an unexpected pregnancy, Janett and Gian find out their baby boy will be born with a life-threatening condition called gastroschisis, a birth defect in which the intestines are outside of the body. Without immediate medical treatment, baby Theodore’s life will be in danger as soon as he is born. Gastroschisis happens twice as often in California’s Inland Empire and researchers at Loma Linda University Health are working to find out why. The episode follows the journey of a young family, whose bond grows stronger during their biggest life challenge, and the doctors and nurses who pull together with hopes of giving Theodore a future.

This recent win brings the film team’s total Emmy count to 13. The advancement films team is currently in production of season 3 of “Life on the Line,” which is scheduled to air winter 2016.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- California students heading to institutions of higher learning this fall are receiving much needed financial support thanks to BLU Educational Foundation (BLU).  On Thursday, June 9, BLU held its annual scholarship and awards reception at San Bernardino Valley College where more than $150,000 in educational scholarships was awarded to more than 40 students preparing to start their freshman year at colleges and universities around the country. The students are participants in BLU’s College Exodus Project (CEP), which assists students in obtaining undergraduate and graduate degrees from accredited colleges and universities.  The scholarships are made possible by a new partnership with the Masons of California, a grant from the College Futures Foundation, and private donations. The Masons awarded 12 students with 4-year scholarships totaling more than $80,000. The scholarships cover tuition, fees, and other educational expenses for students.

“We’re extremely proud of our students and very thankful to our funders and donors who make this scholarship opportunity possible,” said Dina Walker, President and CEO of BLU. “The scholarships provide some financial relief for students with limited income and pursuing higher education.”

This is the seventh consecutive year that BLU has awarded more than $100,000 in scholarships to students participating in the CEP, which provides comprehensive college information, assistance and support to help students with admissions, financial aid, retention, and graduation from public and private institutions throughout the country. In exchange, students are expected to contribute to the local economy through employment, internships and/or volunteer service while participating in the program.

“Our mission is to ensure that students in our program come full circle and exit as a college graduate. We stay in close contact with every student throughout their undergraduate experience. We’re dedicated to preparing students to enter college and successfully complete their education,” added Walker.

The CEP was created out of a need to increase the number of Inland Empire students graduating from college. BLU congratulates the following scholarship recipients:

Summit High School

• Tiffany Abodoh
• Tiarra Blanche
• D’Ante Booker
• Alesha Bowen
• Amber Clay
• Davina Clay
• Jade Gayles
• Taelor Gray-Arnold
• Samantha Ndege
• Ryan Rogers
• Marcus Shields
• Makayla Thompson
• Jabari Watson
• Angel Williams
• Desmond Young

Vista Del Lago High School

• Mario Hernandez
• Alfonso Madrigal
• Pearlene Phem

Wilmer Amina Carter High School

• Jazmine Gray

Eisenhower High School

• Taja Sinclair

Rialto High School

• Breanna Earvin
• Natalie Jews

Arroyo Valley High School

• Ashly Brown
• Cynthia Hernandez-Rendon
• Austin Montoya
• Maria Tamayo
• Alejandra Tapia

Middle College High School

• Jordan Brown

San Bernardino High School

• Adam El-Sheriff

Rancho Verde high School

• Ayzia Clowney

Pacific High School

• Sharece Adams
• Brahier Anthony
• Janaye Browne
• Darnell Collins
• Kiana Flenor
• Jasmine Garcia
• Mister Gibson
• Aryana Hernandez
• June James
• Korion Mabin
• Casey Ortega
• Allen Smith
• Breana Smith
• Tatyana Taylor
• Sarah Tilo
• Emily Turcotte
• Dominique Whitfield

Val Verde High School

• Markell Parker

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- Black Scholars Matter, Dreamers (Undocumented – AB540), and representatives from a cross-section of our diverse student body here at California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB) have combined forces to address an unsettling matter that has been perpetuated on our campus in recent years.

It is a matter of great pride that CSUSB serves as a beacon of tolerance, advocacy, and community partnership and for the past several years we have been aggressively promoting unity, inclusivity, empowerment, and shared governance. However, our rich tradition of San Bernardino Strength is in jeopardy as a result of what can only be defined as the self-serving interests of specific CSUSB entities at the exclusion of what is best for our students. That said, this open letter is to share our frustration and disappointment with The Faculty Senate at CSUSB.

It is our position that The Faculty Senate has waged a concerted effort to alienate – undermine – and dismiss students’ voices on campus. Furthermore, the Faculty Senate continues to promote academic segregation and has strategically worked to devalue students’ input. As students at CSUSB we find the recent climate survey to be divisive, misleading, conveniently inaccurate, and deliberately designed to attack President Morales and his administration.

It is no secret that as our first Latino President at California State University, San Bernardino (a federally recognized Hispanic Serving Institution), President Morales has been the recipient of open hostility – particularly from faculty members who have undeniably expressed their unequivocal prejudices towards our president and by extension towards our students. Moreover, as students of color from diverse backgrounds ourselves, we have experienced firsthand discrimination and alienation in our own classrooms from some faculty members. The inability and/or unwillingness of our Faculty Senate to listen to and address our concerns has caused us to pursue a variety of avenues of recourse – both within and without the university – in order to ensure an accessible and quality education for ALL students – not just SOME students. This is particularly important when 80% of our students are First Generation enrollees who lack the institutional knowledge to navigate “The System” by themselves.

Black Scholars Matter, Dreamers (Undocumented – AB540) and representatives from a cross-section of our diverse student body on campus have worked with President Morales and his administration (in addition to College Deans, Department Chairs, Student Affairs Officers, and willing faculty members) to promote unity, autonomy, professionalism, academic efficacy, and a climate that encourages inclusivity. Students have publically supported President Morales because, unlike The Faculty Senate, President Morales values and encourages our participation in the shared governance process. President Morales’ contributions to our success include, but are not limited to: increased jobs for students on campus, increased student scholarships, and expanded student resources and access to said resources – just to name a few. Thus, it is no surprise that The Faculty Senate intentionally excluded student participation in the climate survey.

As student representatives, we have attended The Faculty Senate meetings and find their presentations offensive, destructive, and unproductive. The Faculty Senate does not represent many of the amazing faculty members we have on campus. The Faculty Senate is comprised of entrenched faculty members who neglect our students so as to utilize their taxpayer funded tenure time to wage war against President Morales.

Fortunately, CSUSB is also home to faculty members who do not attack our students, but work with our students to improve our professional and academic careers. These faculty members get very little credit and many times no recognition. The corruption in which the climate survey was conducted does not in any way reflect on our real allies who actually work to improve our academic and professional climate here at CSUSB. In many cases, these faculty members are also silenced by the entrenched faculty of The Faculty Senate.

At a time when the City of San Bernardino is garnering international notoriety for our very real problems with crime, poverty, and economic instability our sole focus at CSUSB should be to serve as the intellectual and cultural hub for our shared communities. With the eyes of the world on us, we should be the model of shared governance, tolerance, and inclusivity. That is why it is critical that we here at CSUSB accept our charter and work together to improve not only the climate of our campus but of our entire City of San Bernardino. As students at CSUSB in order to support a city we love, we are committed to finding ways to stay in San Bernardino after we graduate in order to help address some of the social and economic disparities we have both witnessed and experienced firsthand. We shouldn’t have to battle our own faculty to accomplish this goal. We look forward to the day when The Faculty Senate (and some of their faculty supporting allies) can get over their prejudices and narcissism so that we can all work together towards the renaissance of San Bernardino as one of the best cities in which to live, work, and learn.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church will celebrate its 112^th Anniversary of serving the San Bernardino Community at the 10 a.m.  worship service on Sunday, June 26. The guest Preacher will be Rev. Dr. Cecil (Chip) Murray followed by a luncheon and concert featuring The Starlights at 12:30 p.m.

St Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church was founded and organized on Easter Sunday in the year of our Lord, 1904, by Presiding Elder Reverend James H. Wilson, in a Holiness Church Tent. A Caucasian minister and his wife were conducting revival services in the 700 block of Fifth Street. Mr. Inghram was granted permission by the Holiness Minister to allow Reverend Wilson to come down and organize the church. He not only permitted it but also asked Reverend Wilson to come and deliver the Easter Sunday message to his congregation. The type of town San Bernardino was in 1904 made it quite difficult to establish a Negro Church. There were 300 Negroes in San Bernardino County, the largest county by area in the United States. As we write this history in 1970, we have a Negro population of 17,000 in the city of San Bernardino.”  Today, the African-American population of San Bernardino City is 30,161.

The actual beginning of the church membership is very humble.  The required 12 members to establish a church were: Henry D. Inghram, his wife Mary Ella Inghram, their children Henry, Ben, Howard, and infant daughter Ruth Rebecca; Mrs. Martha Bush and her son Earnest.  From that required twelve, the church has moved from 6^th and Harris Street to their current location at 1355 West 21^st Street in San Bernardino.

The church has nurtured the first African-American Superintendent of Schools and the first African American physician for the City of San Bernardino. From those “first” they  have cultivated doctors, nurses, lawyers, educators, law enforcement officers, artists and singers.  These are the children of St. Paul AME Church, proud members of St. Paul AME Church.

Once again, they invite you to join them in celebration of 112 years of service to God our Father, Christ Our Redeemer, The Holy Spirit Our Comforter, Humankind Our Family.

By Naomi K. Bonman

On Saturday, June 11, Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southern California (RMHCSC) awarded 94 accomplished college-bound seniors scholarship funds totaling $288,000 during a celebratory event at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles. The scholarships and medals were awarded during a recognition ceremony where recipients were honored and commended by their families, school counselors, RMHCSC representatives, and Southern California McDonald’s owners and operators. Chris Pan, founder of myintent.org gave an inspiring keynote message before the celebrations ended with photos and well wishes.

“The scholarship luncheon is a great opportunity to recognize our scholarship recipients for their hard work in front of their friends, family and McDonald’s franchisees” said Vince Bryson, CEO, RMHCSC. “We are committed to providing opportunities and resources that strengthen families and are inspired by what these students have accomplished and are looking to achieve.”

Among those 94 students was Perris’ Citrus Hill High School senior, Lela Owens. Owens is involved in her school’s STEM program and will continue her education within the STEM field at Duke University where she will be majoring in Computer Science. After she graduates from college, Owens wants to dive into a career with a major technology company, such as Google or similar.

“The Ronald McDonald Scholarship has taken a lot of pressure off my shoulders,” Lela Owens stated on being awarded. “It will definitely help to pay my tuition.”

Owens emerged into the STEM field after enrolling an AP Physics class during her Junior year. Her teacher at the time inspired her to look into field after telling her about another young Black woman who took the AP Exam and passed it.    Owens wanted to pass it as well, and from there she found a passion for the industry.

In addition to receiving her degree, the rising scholar also wants to start a mentorship classroom at her high school. Her community service won’t start there though. Owens was the captain of her cheer team where she participated in hosting summer camps along with her team. She also tutored students at March Middle School in Mathematics.

Recipients of RMHCSC scholarships are selected through a rigorous application process and represent the highest caliber students in the five counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura. These scholarships give the recipients an opportunity to pursue their education goals and help ease some of the collegiate financial burden. Interested applicants can begin the process for 2016 scholarships in October, 2015. More information about RMHCSC and its programs can be found at www.rmhcsc.org or on www.Facebook.com/RMHCSoCal and via Twitter.com/RMHC_SoCal.