San Jose State students will have to wait even longer for a place to live near campus, following delayed approval of a high-rise apartment tower. A decision on a downtown student housing project has been deferred another month following an appeal from a neighboring property owner. The San Jose Planning Commission debated Wednesday over how...
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San Jose State offers beds on campus for homeless students
After several years of grappling with student homelessness, San Jose State is finally offering beds on campus for students living outdoors or in their cars. The 12-bed pilot program launched last month, provides on-campus beds for SJSU students seeking emergency housing. The beds are located in University Housing. Students facing housing insecurity can apply for...
San Jose schools report COVID cases as students return
Weeks after students returned to campus, San Jose’s three largest districts have reported nearly 120 COVID-19 cases. Officials say the low count is a sign that masks are working to fend off the virus. At the San Jose Unified School District, the largest district in the region with more than 30,000 students and 4,000 employees,...
Santa Clara County schools prepare for COVID-19 outbreaks
As schools in San Jose complete the second week of in-person classes, administrators are preparing for COVID-19 infections and outbreaks. “We anticipate there will be COVID-19 cases in schools,” Santa Clara County officials said in a statement to San José Spotlight. “However, we have to balance the risks of COVID-19 in schools with the considerable harm...
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San Jose students rely on campus pantry as food insecurity grows
As students return to San Jose State University, many are relying on the campus food pantry for groceries. Vinay Guda, a computer software engineering masters student, said he and his roommates shop at the food pantry every week to get essential groceries such as eggs, milk and vegetables. “We use it all the time,” Guda...
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Largest San Jose school district skips streaming meetings
The largest school district in San Jose does not broadcast its board meetings, potentially excluding voices from disadvantaged families who can’t attend in person. The San Jose Unified School District has not provided a live broadcast of its board meetings since May—despite the pandemic—when its board returned to in-person sessions. The only way residents can voice...
How a new law allows San Jose students to redo last year
San Jose leaders say a new state law that allows students to redo a disastrous year of distance learning could be a “godsend” for struggling South Bay students. On July 1, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 104, which allows students to request a redo of the 2020-21 school year, substitute Pass or No Pass...
Lack of light rail affects San Jose State University students
Classes start next week at San Jose State University, but with VTA’s light rail still out of service, some students and workers could face daunting commutes. Before the pandemic, Suzie Bahmanyar, an academic librarian at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library, said she took the light rail from her Camden home to downtown San...
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UPDATE: Largest San Jose school district brings back cops as security
Six weeks after the largest school district in the city kicked cops off campus, its school board unanimously voted to bring them back for after-school events. The San Jose Unified School District renewed terms and conditions Thursday for police officers while they’re on campus. The agreement allows the district to hire SJPD officers as “private...
San Jose school district cuts bus service at numerous schools
Many San Jose students will be left behind this upcoming school year as officials cut critical bus services. The San Jose Unified School District, the largest district in the city, decided to cut bus service to more than a dozen elementary campuses as well as Willow Glen Middle School and Willow Glen High School to...