Photos by John Coleman

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(EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK—ENN)— SACRAMENTO, CA—- Today, Assemblymember Holden’s College Athlete Civil Rights Act of 2019 was signed into law. The legislation, Assembly Bill 1573, gives college athletes more tools and protection to address the challenges or abuses they may face on campus. The bill also allows colleges to create a degree completion fund.

“Many college athletes are putting everything on the line and risking their bodies, and for some, one injury away from losing everything. Others are at risk of losing it all for speaking out for their team or any abuses they are experiencing as college coaches have the power to keep you on or off the team,” said Assemblymember Chris Holden. “This bill is personal for me – before I started my journey in public service, I played college basketball for San Diego State University.”

Abuses and unfair policies against college athletes have made headlines and raised questions about the way college sports programs are run. Assembly Bill 1573 requires schools to inform students of their rights with documentation and public signage and prohibits retaliation by schools if a student reports violations of abuse or violation of rights.

“In addition to providing protection, laying out a path for universities to create a degree completion is a big step towards creating an equitable system for college athletes,” said Holden. “I hope to see universities across California establish degree completion funds in the near future – whether to help students complete their academic program should they lose their eligibility, or to provide a savings account to collect money earned through sponsorships that would be available upon graduation.”

Nielsen’s Latest Report Reveals How Technology and Culture Drive Black Buying

African Americans want more for themselves and from corporate America, and they express it with their dollars as they move through the consumer journey, from brand awareness to purchase, as revealed today in Nielsen’s 2019 Diverse Intelligence Series (DIS) Report on African Americans.

It’s in the Bag: Black Consumers’ Path to Purchase explores the non-linear and uniquely technologically driven road that African Americans follow to make purchasing decisions, which ultimately maximizes both online and in-person shopping options. This path highlights several differences in shopping behavior and purchasing when compared to the total U.S. population. The report also includes deeper insights into how culture, socio-economics and business influences how, why and what motivates African American spending in a special co-authored section by advocate and media commentator Angela Rye, CEO and Principal of Impact Strategies.

“At 47.8 million strong and a buying power that’s on par with many countries’ gross domestic products, African Americans continue to outpace spending nationally,” said Cheryl Grace, Nielsen’s Senior Vice President of Community Alliances and Consumer Engagement and co-creator of the DIS Report. “This year, we wanted to help brands and marketers understand the multi-faceted process that Blacks take to buy the products they buy. There are several drivers, but culture is at the center of them all. Further, with their love for technology, they are much more savvy and conscious consumers. They are as we say, ‘woke.’ They pay attention to how companies are speaking to them. As they spend more, they want more for themselves and from the brands they support.”

Dating back to 2011, this is Nielsen’s ninth report highlighting the media consumption, purchasing habits, lifestyle interests and economic advancements of African Americans. It is the third in a theme, released by Nielsen this year following the comprehensive purchasing processes of Asian American and Latinx consumers. Key takeaways from It’s in the Bag: Black Consumers Path to Purchase include:

African Americans are welcoming recipients of advertising across all channels. However, while the trends of the Black buying power and over-indexing in spending continue to increase, companies’ investments to advertise to them have decreased.

• African Americans are more likely than the total population to agree that advertising provides meaningful information on most platforms, including mobile (42% higher), television (23% higher), radio (21% higher) and the internet (18% higher).
• Advertising spend designed to reach Black consumers declined 5% between 2017 and 2018.

Physical appearance reflects a sense of cultural pride and self-expression in the Black community. This is evidenced by the top spending priorities for African Americans from everyday soap to luxury handbags.

• African Americans outspend the total market on personal soap and bath needs by nearly 19% ($573.6 million).
• Men are making an impact with grooming habits, outpacing the total market by 20% on toiletry items.
• Blacks are 20% more likely than the total population to say they will “pay extra for a product that is consistent with the image I want to convey.”
• They are also more likely to say they shop at high-end stores including Saks Fifth Avenue (63%), Neiman Marcus (45%) and Bloomingdales (24%).

While online shopping grows, African Americans continue to head to physical stores for the personal touch and feel experience—but with more discerning eyes.

• More than half (52%) of African Americans find in-store shopping relaxing, compared with 26% of the total population.
• 55% of Black consumers say they enjoy wandering the store looking for new, interesting products.
• When shopping, African Americans are more influenced than the total population by store staff (34% more likely), in-store advertising (28% more likely) and merchandising (27% more likely).

The “for us by us” trend of Black-owned brands is profoundly impacting the African American path to purchase and consumer marketplace. Black consumers support brands that align with their lifestyles and values.

• African Americans dominate the ethnic hair and beauty aids category, accounting for almost 90% of the overall spend.
• 42% of Black adults expect brands they purchase to support social causes (16% higher than the total population).
• 35% of African American shoppers are more likely to agree, “when a celebrity designs a product, I am more likely to buy it.”
• Procter & Gamble (P&G) is the largest advertiser in African American media, spending more than a half-billion dollars ($544.3 million). Five of the top 20 baby care category products come from P&G’s Pampers and Luvs brands.

Soul food drives African American consumers’ top grocery purchases. These consumers are also passionate about the environment, wanting to buy safe, locally sourced food items.

• African Americans outpace the general market on: Quaker grits ($19 million); Louisiana Fish Fry ($11 million); Glory Greens (frozen and fresh, $9.5 million combined) and Jay’s Potato Chips (nearly $2.7 million).
• 61% say produce is the most important category to buy local, followed by bakery and prepared foods (56%), eggs (55%) and dairy (52%).
• Blacks over-index the total population concerned about food safety issues: antibiotic use in animal production (by 20%); artificial ingredients (by 19%) and GMO crop development due to climate change. The biggest worry is rising prices due to trade tariffs (68% Blacks vs. 56% total population).

“Nielsen continues to unearth undeniable data and insights that highlight both the agency and power of Black consumers, and the plethora of opportunities that exist for companies that are focused on nurturing and empowering how they move through the world,” said Jonathan Jackson, former 2019 Nieman-Berkman Klein Fellow in Journalism Innovation at The Nieman Foundation for Journalism and member of Nielsen’s African American External Advisory Council.

Nielsen uses U.S. Census data to determine population estimates that inform its U.S. panels and its understanding of consumer behavior. Given the rapid diversification of the U.S. population, an accurate census has never been more important. That’s why Nielsen has signed on as a 2020 Census Official Partner with the U.S. Census Bureau and utilized census data to show the economic and demographic impact of African American consumers. This is the second time the company has leveraged this partnership for the Diverse Intelligence Series, after the 2019 Latinx consumer report, released in August.

For more data and insights, download It’s In the Bag: Black Consumers Path to Purchase at Nielsen’s African American community site. Nielsen invites consumers to weigh in on the discussion using the hashtag #TruthBeTold on social media. Follow Nielsen on Facebook (NielsenCommunity) and Twitter (@NielsenKnows).

Thanksgiving is a time for reflecting on what we have been blessed with, and giving back. On Wednesday, November 27^th – the day before the annual turkey feast – local non-profit Project Boon and over 25 other local businesses, non-profits and government organizations will be teaming up in Fontana’s Seville Park to help give thanks and bring the spirit of the season to the Inland Empire’s underserved communities. Beginning at 11:00am and running until 3:00pm, the 8^th Annual Eat and Be Well event will provide families with a traditional Thanksgiving meal, access to health services, fun and entertainment for the whole family to enjoy.

Eat and Be Well will enters its 8^th consecutive year of bringing the Inland Empire community together for the common good. The annual Project Boon event draws thousands of people together for a fun-filled day of feasting, entertainment, and health services. Most importantly, it helps people in need stretch their budgets while still enjoying all that the season has to offer.

Although providing a free bountiful meal to those in need is a reward in and of itself. Eat and Be Well also serves up health and wellness by partnering with both non-profits and for-profits businesses that have programs that provide vital resources. To be able to serve up to 2,500 attendees, Eat and Be Well relies on donations to cover costs and food items. In past years, this has included free dental exams, provided by In motion Dentists, health exams from Bloomington Community Health Center, and bus passes provided by Omnitrans to help people without transportation get to and from the event.

“Last year, after having my house-call dental practice volunteer at Project Boon’s Thanksgiving Health Fair, I was able to see what type of impact they were making in the lives of so many people in Southern California,” said Dr. Wade Banner, In Motion Dentists. “It was because of their mission, vision and overall heart to help their local community that I found a desire to continue helping Project Boon in any way I could, I look forward to many years of a close volunteering relationship to support our local community.”

You can contribute to Eat and Be Well by dropping off turkeys, canned food; such as sweet potatoes, gravy, and cranberry sauce at The Hitch Burger Grill in Rancho Cucamonga, California or visit our website for a complete list of items needed and drop-off locations.

Excess perishables will be donated to help support recovery homes, churches, soup kitchens, veterans and missions the next day on Thanksgiving.

For more information on how to volunteer, donate, sponsor or for a complete list of items needed and drop-off locations visit eatbewell.org

During the tour, Torres visited eight homegrown businesses in Fontana and Ontario to highlight the strength of local manufacturers

EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK—ENN— (ONTARIO, CA)—U.S. Representative Norma J. Torres (D-Pomona) recently concluded her annual “Made in the 35^th” tour of manufacturing businesses in the 35^th congressional district. The tour included meetings and site visits with manufacturers in a wide range of industries, including metal fabrication, aerospace, cargo, and defense in Fontana and Ontario.

“The 35^th Congressional District is home to manufacturers that support everything from the military to the roofing on our homes. My annual ‘Made in the 35^th‘ tour highlights our local businesses and provides me with an opportunity to hear directly from them about how we can grow the Inland Empire economy,” said Torres. “As a member of the Appropriations Committee, I will continue to push for increased funding to help manufacturers find new markets to sell their products and bolster efforts to train and prepare the workforce to fill the jobs these businesses are creating every day. That’s how we ensure that Inland Empire manufacturers and workers can continue to compete and thrive for decades to come.”

In the 35^th congressional district, a total of 36,955 people are employed in the manufacturing industry. The average wage for manufacturing employees in California is $83,000, which is nearly the double wage of all sectors in the 35th district at $48,797.

As a member of the House Appropriations Committee, Torres worked to secure $14,000,000 in additional funds for the Manufacturing Extension Partnership in the fiscal year 2020 Commerce-Justice-Science appropriations bill. The funding will help small and medium-sized manufacturers improve production processes, upgrade technological capabilities, and facilitate product innovation. Since her first term in Congress, Torres has held district-wide Job Creation Listening Tours, where she brings together area business owners, community leaders, educational experts, and employees to get their views on the local economy. She released a white paper outlining a legislative plan based on the listening tour and a one-year update on the progress made on the plan.

By Lou Yeboah

For thus saith the Lord, “My hands have made both heaven and earth; they and everything in them are mine. LET IT GO – NOW!  “See I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland” [Isaiah 43:19]. “For I am the LORD your God, the one who takes hold of your right hand, who says to you, ‘Don’t be afraid, I am helping you.” [Isaiah 41:13]. LET IT GO – NOW!

 I tell you, the joy of leaving everything in the Lord’s hands is seeing the Lord’s hand in everything. Listen, God will never take something away from you without the intention of replacing it with something much better! The crucial thing for us to remember is that all that God does for us as his children is for our good. He is blessed in both the giving and the taking away because both are for the sake of our joy. [Ephesians 3:20] tells us that He wants to do abundantly above and beyond ALL that we could ever ask or think. And if we trust Him enough to take Him at His Word, we will find ourselves on a journey toward the fulfillment of whatever we need. Therefore, humble yourself and seek to understand what the Lord is doing around you.  For God has written a destiny over your lilfe, and if you trust Him enough to take Him at His Word, you will find yourself on a journey toward the fulfillment of that destiny. Take your hands off the wheel and let God have His way in your life. LET IT GO! Total surrender everything to Him. For now is the time to release all control of your destination over to Jesus -whether you understand or not. Because as long as you hold on and try making sense of everything and of where He is leading you His will can’t prevail. LET IT GO – NOW!

You see, when you finally put your complete trust in Him -blinded by faith- Jesus will bring you beyond the troublesome and cumbersome same old same old and thrust you into a bright new place. So close your eyes and release it all into the hands of God. Get out of the driver’s seat and stop trying to find your own way. Stop trying to understand the path that He’s taking you. He will restore what has been lost. He will resurrect what has died. He will give beauty for ashes. Just give up and let Him take over. LET IT GO – NOW! And let Jesus take the wheel.

“In all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.  [Proverbs 3:6]

“We need to take the stigma away from mental health issues in the Black family.”

There is a tradition in Black families that says mental health problems are really a “demon” inside the person and all you need is prayer to get better.  “You don’t have demon, you need help,” says Cathedral of Praise International Ministries, Bishop Craig W. Johnson last Sunday as he introduced mental health day with the Broken Crayons Still Color Project created by the Healthy Heritage Movement.

Bishop Johnson’s comments introduced one of the nation’s leading clinical psychologists Dr. Gloria Morrow and the Broken Crayons Still Color Project to the Cathedral of Praise congregation in two services discussing the need for professional mental health in the Black Community.

Broken Crayons Still Color Project is an eight-week program created and presented by the non-profit Healthy Heritage Movement at churches in Riverside and San Bernardino Counties.  It is taught by Dr. Gloria Morrow and Dr. Candance Walters.  

“This program is designed for African American women to learn effective strategies to cope with and identify signs of depression, stress, anxiety, PTSD, substance abuse, and other mental strains,” said Dr. Morrow.

“Broken Crayons Still Color Project is important to implement in the faith community because churches are one of the central institutions for African Americans; and when they are able to integrate spirituality with some of the psychological concepts that are important for them to learn, it really makes a difference,” said Dr. Morrow.

“Our Mission is to decrease health disparities and increase health equity in the African American Community”, said Healthy Heritage Movement founder Phyllis Clark.

“Some people in church don’t just need prayer, they need a pill, or they need therapy, or pastoral guidance.  We do our best to distinguish between them,” said Bishop Johnson.  “We need to take the stigma away from mental health issues in the Black family.”

Bishop Johnson understands the need for mental health support.  Before becoming a pastor, he served as a Peer Group Counselor, Probation Group Counselor, Employment Services Counselor, Social Service Worker, Independent Living Skills Program Coordinator, Service Program Specialist, and Social Services Supervisor.

For a list of Black mental health professionals in the Inland Empire, for a class near you or more information visit BrokenCrayons.org or call (951) 682-1717 or email: pyclark@healthyheritage.org

The Broken Crayons Still Color Project is made possible by the California Reducing Disparities Project – Office of Health Equity.

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About Healthy Heritage

Healthy Heritage Movement, Inc. was founded in 2007 by Phyllis Y. Clark in Southern California. Created to target and address health disparities within the African American community, Healthy Heritage Movement focuses on the wellbeing of African Americans through health education, policy change, and community outreach. For more information on Healthy Heritage go to: www.HealthyHeratige.org.

About Bishop Johnson
Bishop Johnson is a graduate of California Baptist University with a BA in Religion and a BA in Behavioral Science, he studied Social Work and Public Administration at Cal State San Bernardino and a Doctor of Theology from Pentecostal Bible College. For more information on Cathedral of Praise church and Bishop Johnson go to: http://copim.org

About Dr. Gloria Morrow

Dr. Morrow has a PhD in Clinical Psychology from Fielding Graduate University, Santa Barbara, a Master of Science degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Azusa Pacific University, and a BS degree in Psychology from the University of La Verne.  For more information on Dr. Morrow go to: http://www.gloriamorrow.com/bio.html

The 35^th Congressional District is one of the hardest to count in the country

The town hall brought together representatives from the U.S. Census Bureau, local elected officials, community-based organizations, educational institutions, the business community, and members of the public  

ONTARIO, CA — U.S. Representative Norma J. Torres (D-Pomona) recently convened a town hall at the Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters, Local 909 to discuss the importance of the upcoming 2020 Census with representatives from the U.S. Census Bureau, the NALEO Educational Fund, the Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters, the County of Los Angeles, The Community Foundation, the Warehouse Workers Resource Center, First 5 San Bernardino, the County of San Bernardino Preschool Services Department, and members of the public. California’s 35^th Congressional District is one of the hardest to count in the country, with approximately 231,300 people or 31 percent of the district living in hard-to-count neighborhoods. This is the second town hall Torres has held on the 2020 Census. The first forum connected community partners with resources to promote participation in the 2020 Census.

During the town hall, Torres and the participants discussed how information collected by the Census is protected under U.S. Code Title 13. In light of concerns over the Trump administration’s proposed citizenship question in the census, U.S. Code Title 13 requires the Census Bureau to keep any information collected from respondents confidential and strictly used only for statistical purposes. This information may not be shared with any government agencies, including law enforcement. The town hall also touched on challenges surrounding the undercount of children, resources to increase access to online questionnaires in Los Angeles County and the Inland Empire, and employment opportunities available with the Bureau.

“I’m committed to making sure that every person in our community is counted in the census—just as the Constitution mandates. The census determines so much for the hard-working families in my district and throughout the Inland Empire. From how many federal dollars go to improving our schools, to access to affordable, quality healthcare and strengthening the roads we drive on and the availability of affordable housing,” said Torres. “This town hall helped connect residents with the resources and knowledge they’ll need to be prepared and engaged for the 2020 Census. I’m grateful to all of our partners for their participation. It’s up to all of us to make sure every Californian is counted.”

“The 2020 Census is important, and partners are critical to its success. The goal of the Census is to count everyone once, only once and in the right place,” said Julie Lam, Census Bureau Los Angeles Regional Director. “By mid-March 2020, every home will receive an invitation to participate in the 2020 Census with three options for responding: online, by phone, or by mail. It’s against the law for us to publicly release your responses in any way that could identify you or your household.”

“Latino children suffered a 7.1% undercount rate, which is significantly higher than the 4.3% rate among non-Latino children. San Bernardino county had the fifth largest percent of undercounted very young Latino children of any county in California during the 2010 Census,” said Adan Chavez, Regional Census Campaign Manager in the Inland Empire for the NALEO Educational Fund. “When young children are not counted, our families and communities cannot get important resources and services like the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), Head Start, and the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Supplemental Nutrition Program. NALEO Educational Fund’s Hazme Contar campaign will help our communities avoid a devastating undercount of Latino children and we are going to continue to work closely with NALEO Member and Congresswoman Norma Torres to ensure the best count possible.”

“The Southwest Carpenters want to thank Representative Torres for her leadership on this important issue,” said Dan Langford, Executive Secretary-Treasurer, Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters. “Representation matters for working people, and the Carpenters will continue to be part of the solution by educating our members and their families about the importance of participating in the 2020 Census.”

Article 1, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution requires the Census Bureau to conduct a census every ten years to count every resident in the U.S. The data collected by the census determines how billions in federal funds are distributed to local communities, as well as the number of seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives. The 2020 Census will begin on April 1, 2020.  

As a member of the Appropriations Committee, Torres helped pass legislation that blocked the Trump administration’s proposal to add a citizenship question to the 2020 Census. She also worked to increase funding for the Census Bureau to $8.45 billion in the Fiscal Year 2020 Appropriations Funding Bill to ensure that the Bureau can conduct a thorough and accurate census that counts all persons, as required by the Constitution. This funding enables the Bureau to carry out the largest and most technologically advanced decennial census in its 230-year history.

ONTARIO, CA— – The Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship (IECE) will be hosting the 2019 Spirit of the Entrepreneur Awards Judging reception on, Wednesday, September25^th where our official 2019 Spirit of the Entrepreneur Semi-Finalists will convene with our judges face-to-face at the Spirit Judging reception (by invitation only). From this event the finalists will be determined. Once they have been determined, the 2019 Spirit Finalists will be featured at the Spirit Awards gala on November 13^th at the Riverside Convention Center. Finalists to be announced September 26^th, 2019.

The Spirit judging reception event is generously sponsored by Roorda, Piquet & Bessee, Inc. (http://rpbcpa.com) who have been providing tax, audit, and accounting and advisory services in the Inland Empire area for over 35 years.

THE JUDGING PROCESS (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/the-judging-process)

All nominees are initially screened and evaluated by the Spirit of the Entrepreneur awards staff to ensure that they meet the basic eligibility requirements. Those companies that pass the initial screening are eligible to participate in the judging reception.

Judges for the event are selected by the Spirit of the Entrepreneur producers and work independently, evaluating each nominee.  Each judge is chosen based on their prior business experience, integrity and willingness to dedicate a significant amount of time to review and evaluate the nominees.  The judging panel is almost exclusively made up of past Spirit award recipients and business leadership professionals that have been vetted to serve as our esteemed judges.  

Each eligible nominee provides extensive company information that is used in the judging process. Judging is based on financial metrics as well the nominee’s accomplishments, innovative approaches and their entrepreneurial spirit.

This year selecting the 2019 finalists from a vast field of over 220 entrepreneurial nominees will be a very difficult task! 

VIEW Our Chosen 2019 Spirit of the Entrepreneur Semi-Finalists (https://spiritawardsie.com/newsMgr/index.php?newsId=56&page=)

LEARN MORE About the Judging Process… (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/the-judging-process)

MEET OUR 2019 SPIRIT JUDGES (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/the-judges)

SECURE Your Tickets to the gala – this event is sold out every year! * (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/ticketing)

More information about sponsorship & volunteer opportunities please contact Mike Stull (909) 537-3708 or via email mstull@csusb.edu.

Ticketing

Attendees can book tickets online with direct seat selection for the 2019 Spirit of the Entrepreneur Awards gala event at https://spiritawardsie.com/content/ticketing. Attendees have the selection choice of pre-show standard reception or our VIP reception Ticket prices for the black-tie event range from $135 to $175 each. Full-table discounts are available. Details are located below:

Spirit Awards Event Features:

• Commencing at 5:00 p.m. on November 13th, attendees can experience either a Gala or VIP reception, three course dinner, stellar event entertainment, awards presentations, and for select parties, an exclusive after party! (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/spirit-schedule)
• The “Best of the Best” award. Sponsored by Best, Best & Krieger (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/best-of-the-best-award)
  One company from among the award recipients that best exemplifies the entrepreneurial spirit will take home the additional 2019 Best of the Best award.
• The Garner Holt Student Fast Pitch Competition (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/garner-holt-fast-pitch-competition)
  Witness featured business pitches from the Top 5 student finalists. Audience members cast their votes for the best business idea through a live voting poll to determine which students will win the cash prizes. These Top 5 students will have competed in a semi-qualifying event that is held one week prior to the Spirit Awards gala in order to gain those top positions. A truly unique aspect to our awards program that celebrates and supports student growth and involvement.
• Entertainment
  Upcoming entertainment guest stars are always an anticipated reveal during the gala. Past events have included top flight entertainment such as: Rock Legend Eddie Money, Ekenah Claudin-Transcending Box, and Greg Adamson- Facing the Music Performance Art.
• VIP Reception Sponsored by City National Bank, an RBC Company (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/vip-seating)
  Treat yourself to a luxurious experience only available to VIP ticket holders. The 2019 Spirit VIP Experience includes access to the exclusive pre-show VIP reception with hosted wine bar, hors d’oeuvres, entertainment, and preferred access to showroom seating for the gala presentation as well as top section seating for the main event while you enjoy specialty selected cuisine for your 3-course dining experience.

Proceeds from the Spirit of the Entrepreneur event benefit the Spirit of the Entrepreneur Scholarship established by Dr. Mike Stull, Director of Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship at California State University, San Bernardino. (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/spirit-scholarship)

About the Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship (IECE) (https://entre.csusb.edu/)

Established in 1999, the Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship (IECE) supports and celebrate Entrepreneurship & Small Business through innovative programs and educational resources. IECE coordinates academic programs that lead to business degrees in Entrepreneurship for undergraduate and graduate students as well as delivering experiential learning and student support programs such as the Fast Pitch Competition.  In the local community, IECE offers existing and aspiring entrepreneurs a wide array of business advisory and mentoring services and entrepreneurial training programs that help them achieve greater levels of success in their business ventures.

IECE was recognized internationally by The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) and received the Entrepreneurship Spotlight Challenge award for demonstrating leadership in creating (and incubating) cutting-edge business innovations through enriched student learning and experiential education; which ranked them among the top 35 entrepreneurship programs globally.

California State University, San Bernardino is a preeminent center of intellectual and cultural activity in Inland Southern California. Opened in 1965 and set at the foothills of the beautiful San Bernardino Mountains, the university serves more than 20,000 students each year and graduates about 4,000 students annually. CSUSB offers 48 undergraduate, 35 graduate, and 1 doctoral degree programs and 14 academic programs with national accreditation.

The Upland Unified School District will tap into a $140,000 grant to create a teacher-residency model in partnership with Cal Poly Pomona.

The district received the funding from the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing and will work on developing the model with the College of Education and Integrative Studies’ Educational Specialist Credential Program, which prepares teachers to work with students with disabilities.

Associate Professor Joanne Van Boxtel, CPP’s project lead, said the grant will provide financial assistance to education specialist teacher residents and their mentor teachers as they participate in a one-year residency program with UUSD. The candidates’ time in residency will satisfy their clinical practice requirement.

“I am thrilled to partner with Upland Unified School District to design an innovative and effective model for teacher preparation,” said Van Boxtel. “Through the residency model, education specialist candidates will engage in powerful hands-on learning in the field from experienced and supportive mentor teachers—it’s a perfect fit with Cal Poly Pomona’s learn-by-doing philosophy!”

The teacher-residency program will formally launch in Spring 2020. Van Boxtel, along with co-project lead Associate Professor Heather Wizikowski, will be working with UUSD to recruit residents until then.

“One of the most exciting features of this grant is the ability to work with Upland to train teachers right in the district’s own classrooms. It’s a win-win in that Upland is able to train high-quality special education teachers and CPP is actively involved with meeting the needs of our surrounding communities,” said Wizikowski.

In order to qualify, candidates must hold a bachelor’s degree in a related field and be accepted into the Education Specialist Credential Program. All qualified applicants will be considered for the residency program through a joint vetting process with Upland USD. Each candidate must commit to teach in Upland once they complete the program.

For more information, email jmvanboxtel@cpp.edu or hewizikowski@cpp.edu.