Last year was a good year for the national job market, maybe not the great year that some people needed, but a good one. The U.S. economy added 2.2 million jobs. Cautious optimism reigned for most of the year. Then the final monthly employment numbers for 2013 were released. The national economy added only 74,000 […]
On Monday, February 10, staff and students were told that after a year’s work, the College of the Sequoias was taken off of ‘show cause’ status and put on ‘warning,’ a much less severe status. The ‘warning’ status is the least serious the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) is able to give; […]
Four years ago, deep in a recession and in the face of prevailing anti-incumbency, Tulare County Supervisor Steve Worthley won re-election by only 109 votes. “There was a tremendous amount of negative publicity,” Worthley said, “primarily engineered by the Visalia Times-Delta. We were in their paper practically every week.” But Worthley also credited his then […]
In a political race that already has more than its fair share of drama, Tulare County District Attorney candidate Ralph Kaelble has the endorsement of the Tulare County Sheriff’s Department, the Tulare County Corrections Association and police officer associations in Visalia, Exeter, Lindsay and Dinuba. “It is a difficult move to back a challenger against […]
About 11 months ago, on February 11, 2013, College of the Sequoias was notified that it was being placed on “show cause,” the highest sanction from the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges, for being significantly noncompliant in key areas required for full accreditation. The ACCJC never questioned the quality of education, the rigor […]
When I took over as Chairman of the Board of Supervisors in 2013, I wanted to address four broad areas that I believed would help improve life in Tulare County. Those areas included: Health & Wellness, Public Safety, Investing in Youth and Building Communities. Although I cannot say that all challenges were completely addressed over […]
College of the Sequoias is implementing a TNR Program that would solve the cat problem at Mooney Grove by the end of 2014. After listening to everyone involved, the solution to managing the cat population in Mooney Grove was there all the time – the Trap, Neuter and Release Program that was suggested in the […]
The normal quiet, steady flow of small town politics in the city of Dinuba, tucked away in the rural northeastern reaches of Tulare County, has taken on an ugly face that threatens to rip the fabric of the once-tranquil community. Many in this community of approximately 24,000 residents are shocked and angry over what they […]
The San Joaquin Valley has suffered for years from over-regulation and a resulting man-made drought. With the U.S. Senate having blocked a comprehensive water solution, the lack of surface water is creating excessive demand on the aquifer, threatening even worse water problems in the future. These policies – imposed by big-government adherents and environmental extremists […]
The Valley Voice asked local elected officials, public servants and others in the community to share their resolutions for 2014. As expected, we received a wide range of responses. “My New Year’s resolution is to try to remember every day how short and precious life is and to remember that God has a purpose for […]