California News

“We are the poster child for NCLB.”

At Las Palmitas Elementary School, nestled between rundown homes and fields of grapes, peppers and dates in Southern California, 99 percent of students live in poverty and fewer than 20 percent speak English fluently.

Las Palmitas and other schools in the Coachella Valley Unified School District are just the type policy makers had in mind when Congress passed the federal No Child Left Behind Act in 2001 to shed light on the disparities facing poor and minority children.

Nineteen of the district's 21 schools _ including Las Palmitas _ have not met the federal law's performance benchmarks for four years. Now the entire district faces sanctions for the first time. Read more

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“Twenty years ago that would not have been the case. That's how far we've come.”

SAN DIEGO -- -- Groaning and trembling slightly, a three-floor, 400-ton concrete structure was playing its part Wednesday in an earthquake simulation project meant to help prepare California for the Big One. via Los Angeles Times

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“I believe the only way to determine once and for all whether there are bodies buried at Barker Ranch from the time of the Manson family is to proceed with limited excavation in a very few areas”

US police believe more bodies may be buried at Manson's ranch. US police are to carry out excavation work at a Californian ranch to search for more possible victims of notorious mass murderer, Charles Manson. via Jackaranda

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“Even after the near-disaster in March”

The general manager and possibly other senior staff members at the Crandall Canyon Mine near Huntington, Utah, where nine miners died last August, withheld information from federal officials that could have ... via The Dispatch

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“We planned to use separate wavelengths for traffic from different carriers, as well as point-to-point circuits between our headquarters and the other lit facilities”

Californian network and services company Evocative has improved its network and quality of services following an installation of equipment from Transmode, a leading provider of optical networking solutions. via Fibers.org

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Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is instructing state fire officials to begin fining rural homeowners who fail to clear their properties of brush, trees and dry grass. via KCBS

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A sweeping drug investigation at San Diego State University in California has found large amounts of cocaine and Ecstasy pills along with marijuana, psychedelic mushrooms, amphetamine, illicit prescription ... via Philippines News.net

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“We implore you to do everything in your power to level the playing field and bring our jobs back to California by enacting meaningful incentives.”

Members of the Los Angeles-based Ugly Betty crew who have lost their jobs as a result of the production's move to New York city are said to be taking out an ad in Friday's Variety , blaming Governor Arnold ... via TV Guide

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“California community colleges serve a vital role in preparing our state's future workforce, and the board of governors could not have chosen a more qualified or highly respected candidate than Sen. Jack Scott.”

Sen. Jack Scott has great influence over California schools and universities as chairman of the Senate Education Committee. via Sacramento Bee Newspaper

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Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said pressure from the auto industry will not deter California from attempting to impose strict emission rules for vehicles sold in the state. via KRCA-TV Burbank

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