In a resounding victory for students, the Ohlone College District Board of Trustees voted Wednesday to eliminate a controversial policy that student leaders claim silenced them and led to an abuse of power. The move ends an impasse between top college leaders and a fierce group of student activists who said their voice was being silenced...
VTA directors ponder their future in latest committee meeting
In the aftermath of this summer’s explosive grand jury findings, VTA has been taking a long, hard look at its current governance setup. At the latest Ad-hoc Board Enhancement Committee meeting, members of VTA’s Board of Directors fielded a wide-ranging discussion about how to best address not only the findings of the grand jury, but...
San Jose school district unveils plan to hire special education teachers
The number of special education students across the country is rising, but teachers qualified to teach those students aren’t — especially in the South Bay where soaring rents and cost-of-living are squeezing educators out. The National Center for Education Statistics reported that the number of public school students that required special education services rose 14...
VTA votes to discontinue Route 65 despite strong support
Transportation leaders voted Thursday to eliminate Route 65, a bus route that runs from Cambrian Park and as far north as Japantown, citing low ridership and alternative routes available. The discontinuation comes after the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority organized a $100,000 two-month ridership community campaign to attempt to increase ridership. This effort included social...
Bay Area college students claim suppression by administration
A sign on the Ohlone College campus in Fremont boasts “students first” but the Associated Students at the community college say the message they’re getting from the school’s administration tells a different story. A high-stakes fight between the college’s student leaders and its top administrators has touched off a debate over student independence and free...
Burnett Middle School to be renamed Ohlone Middle School
After a process that brought together students, teachers and the local community, Burnett Middle School will have a new name: Ohlone Middle School. The school’s outgoing namesake is California’s first governor, Peter Burnett, whose racist policies included the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and attempts to keep black Americans out of California. He also believed...
San Jose: Hundreds rally for charter schools amid scrutiny from Sacramento
With charter schools increasingly under scrutiny in Sacramento, hundreds of charter school families, dressed in purple, orange and green, rallied in downtown San Jose Friday to stand up for their rights. The state Legislature is considering two bills, AB 1505 and AB 1507, which would further regulate charter schools. AB 1505 would repeal provisions allowing the state...
After decades, VTA light rail extension to Eastridge moves forward
The Valley Transportation Authority Board of Directors on Thursday voted unanimously to approve new plans for a light rail extension to San Jose’s Eastridge Transit Center — giving what should be the go-ahead on an almost 20-year-old project. The vote came decades after East San Jose residents waited for the wheels of government to crank...
Top takeaways from blistering state audit of Alum Rock School District
Another chapter in the long history of mismanagement and financial woes in the Alum Rock Union Elementary School District was written this week in the form of an audit from state officials. The story was a familiar one for those following the troubled East San Jose district: ARUSD officials’ mismanagement of contracts cost the district...
Burnett Middle School’s new name narrowed down to three finalists
After a week of voting, the list of new names for Burnett Middle School is down from seven to the top three: Ohlone Middle School, San José Middle School and Sofia Mendoza Middle School. Input from students, staff and community members was weighed by the Burnett name change committee. Each name was ranked by how...