Chula Vista news & stories
People are wondering: What was the board thinking when they hired former Sweetwater Union High School District superintendent Jesus Gandara? Did the executive search committee not provide boardmembers with enough information? And how many superintendents …
Approximately 500 parents, students, and teachers attended the Sweetwater Union High School District board meeting on the evening of January 30. A cacophony of angry voices filled the Hilltop High School gymnasium. Lauren McLennan, a …
At the January 30 Sweetwater Union High School board meeting, the Vega report was released. Parents, teachers, and students have been demanding the report for months. It appears their suspicions had substance. Attorney Greg Vega …
A tipster recently brought to the Reader’s attention the fact that Calexico Unified School District is beginning to look like Sweetwater Union High School District. To begin with, Calexico’s district counsel is GCR, LLP, the …
In a closed session on January 11, the Southwestern College board suspended their Proposition R program manager, Seville Construction Services. The board also suspended BCA Architects, which was hired to design Southwestern College’s now-infamous corner …
Tuesday night, January 10, the Chula Vista City Council wrangled for four hours over whether or not the chamber of commerce (aka the Tourism Marketing District) was doing an adequate job promoting motel/hotel businesses. Finally, …
Last week, Sweetwater’s interim superintendent Ed Brand suspended the Funds for Education Committee, saying, “I can stop the grief right here.” This is the second time Brand’s private-sector fund-raising efforts have ended in controversy. Brand …
On January 4, Sweetwater Union High School interim superintendent Ed Brand suspended the services of Seville Group, Inc, the program manager for Proposition O. Managing $644 million of bond construction money, the company came into …
Two press conferences were held today pertaining to charges against current and former members of the Sweetwater Union High School District. At 10:00 a.m., district attorney Bonnie Dumanis announced that charges were filed against five …
There is a connection between the Sweetwater Union High School District’s alleged corruption and Southwestern College’s. Affidavits recently unsealed by the San Diego County district attorney’s office help make those connections. Paul Bunton, CEO of …
Affidavits were released on December 28 that detailed the San Diego DA’s motivations for the December 20 raids on former and current trustees of the Sweetwater Union High School District, contractors associated with them, and …
Will Harvard or Notre Dame come to a South Bay university site as Sweetwater school district boardmember John McCann suggested in November? Will taxpayers vote for another bond to build a university? Will the City …
The legacy of former Southwestern College vice president Nicholas Alioto is not a closed chapter, as attested to by the following: Alioto’s house was searched by the San Diego district attorney’s office on December 20 …
Southwestern College issued a statement on December 22 that calls for “procedures and protocols…to ensure the integrity of the contract selection process.” The statement continued, “No employee associated with construction or general acquisition shall accept …
While attention from the district attorney’s December 20 raids was focused on Sweetwater Union High School District trustees, the agents also searched the homes of former of Southwestern College officials. Both districts were recipients of …
It’s amazing what you can learn sitting at your friendly neighborhood sushi bar. Back in 1999, when we were still living in the greater Los Angeles area, I took on a consulting gig here in …
Today, December 20, district attorney investigators raided the homes of several Sweetwater Union High School District boardmembers and Henry Amigable, who served as a bond construction program manager for both the district and Southwestern College. …
On December 12, the Sweetwater Union High School District board was asked to consider a resolution that would place a $500 limit on campaign contributions from individuals or committees to trustee candidates. The resolution died …
On December 6, the Chula Vista City Council voted unanimously to dissolve the Chula Vista Redevelopment Corporation. Modeled after San Diego’s Centre City Development Corporation, it was hoped that the organization would inspire redevelopment projects …
Chula Vista turned 100 this year. Along with holding celebrations, the city published a centennial book detailing the growth of San Diego County’s second-largest city. A popular adage maintains that history is written by the …
The Sweetwater Union High School District board called a special meeting on November 29 that raised as many questions as it answered. The meeting reviewed expenditures for Proposition O, a $644 million construction bond, with …
For months, community activists have asked the Sweetwater Union High School board, “Where is the Vega report?” In May, board president John McCann called for attorney Greg Vega to conduct an independent review of controversial …
Membership: 250 Pastor: David Montajes Age: 55 Born: Manila, Philippines Formation: Bethel Bible College, Venezuela City, Philippines Years Ordained: 13 San Diego Reader: What is your favorite subject on which to preach? Pastor David Montajes: …
The ink had just dried on Dynegy’s South Bay LLC’s contract with the Port of San Diego to demolish Chula Vista’s defunct power plant when Dynegy Holdings filed for bankruptcy. Dynegy’s website says of the …
On October 29, Sweetwater Union High School District superintendent Ed Brand dressed down the Union-Tribune. The district’s website tells it this way: “In an ongoing effort to bring balanced media coverage, [Brand] met with San …
On October 17, the Sweetwater Union High School District board voted 3-2 to move forward on electing trustees by area. Over the protest of teachers, parents, and ex-students, the board chose to seek from the …
"The honeymoon might be over,” acknowledged Dr. Edward Brand, interim superintendent for Sweetwater Union High School District. Knee-deep in scandal, the Sweetwater school board on June 21 fired Superintendent Jesus Gandara. On June 22, Brand …
The trustees of Southwestern College named a new superintendent on October 12. The selection of Melinda Nish came as a surprise to some who felt that interim superintendent Denise Whittaker was a shoo-in for the …
United Technologies Corporation bought out the Goodrich Corporation on September 21. The purchase includes a Chula Vista company called Goodrich Aerostructures, which employs over 2000 people. Although some business media voiced concerns about potential layoffs, …
"Teachers have an analogy for all the testing that we are required to do,” says Melanie Morton, a Sweetwater Union High School District teacher. “You don’t lose weight if you just keep stepping on the …
The criminal justice research arm of SANDAG (San Diego Association of Governments) released a crime report today, September 16. The data was a mixed bag for people who live in San Diego County: “While overall …
Southwestern College has conducted a nationwide search to replace former superintendent Raj Chopra, who resigned from the institution last November. Five finalists have been selected: Dr. Williard Lewallen, president of West Hills College in Coalinga; …
At the kitchen table, Andrea Manroe pauses her reading from The Story of the World and asks her three children a question about what they’ve just heard. “How did Shamshi-Adad get the people to obey? …
Membership: 100 Pastor: Roger Wagner Age: 62 Born: Burbank Formation: Westmont College, Santa Barbara; Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia; Westminster Seminary, Escondido Years Ordained: 38 San Diego Reader: How long do you spend writing your sermon? …
On June 21, Sweetwater Union High School District bought out superintendent Jesus Gandara’s contract for $416,675. Last November, Southwestern College paid superintendent Raj Chopra $100,000 to walk away from his contract. Prior to the buyouts, …
One day after buying out departing superintendent Jesus Gandara’s contract, the Sweetwater Union High School District board chose Ed Brand to serve as interim superintendent, paying him $20,000 a month. Brand served as Sweetwater’s superintendent …
On June 20, about 400 people packed Southwest High School’s gymnasium for a Sweetwater Union High School board meeting. Several hundred people packed the meeting, many wearing “Stop Corruption” buttons. Community member Kathleen Cheers set …
The agenda for the June 20 meeting of the Sweetwater Unified High School District board was posted this week. On June 15, parents, retired teachers, a librarian, a former Chula Vista councilmember, and Sweetwater boardmember …
In a recent interview, Bertha Lopez voiced a strong opinion about Sweetwater Union High School District attorney Bonifacio Garcia. Lopez, who has been a Sweetwater boardmember since 2008 and served as a Chula Vista boardmember …
Education foundations have historically been groups that assist students with scholarships. However, last year’s revelations about Southwestern College’s foundation and recent exposés on Sweetwater Education Foundation raise the question, who are these organizations serving? The …
I am surrounded by papers and books at 10:30 at night. I am trying to concentrate on writing a rhetorical masterpiece on the financial recession of 2008 that will hopefully get me an A in …
Last week the Sweetwater Union High School board voted to have an independent audit of Scott Alevy, a public relations professional. The board's choice of an auditor has raised this question: can an attorney who …
On the evening of May 17, 40 minutes before a Sweetwater Union High School board meeting was scheduled to begin, John Brickley and Fran Brinkman attempted to enter the board room. According to Brinkman, a …
Is the Sweetwater Union High School District playing roulette with students’ health? The district has signed lucrative contracts with communication companies that allow them to place 32 cell phone towers on campuses throughout the southernmost …
Chula Vista is considering doing away with the nonprofit corporation that advises the city council and the city’s Redevelopment Agency and Housing Authority on redevelopment projects. On May 3, the city council, in a 3-2 …
Don’t know why I expect things to be cheaper just because they’re in Chula Vista. Guess I think rents must be lower than, say, downtown. Or uptown. But when I check the prices at Mea …
The Food 4 Kids program at Harborside Elementary School in Chula Vista is set up to assist hungry children. According to school nurse Maia Higgins, some of the signs of chronic hunger are dry lips, …
The California Public Records Act insures the people’s right to access information held by public agencies. In the past year, accessing pertinent emails, documents, and contracts was critical to understanding what was transpiring at Southwestern …
The City of Chula Vista is considering assuming the responsibility for cleaning up the water and soil pollution after the deconstruction of the South Bay Power Plant. Negotiations on what the City has called a …
Rifftide is a Chula Vista–based classic-rock cover band. The members met on Facebook and formed the band in March of 2010. Their day jobs include construction manager and brewmaster. Plus one stay-at-home mom. Jill Harvey …
Clandestine negotiations, fueled by the prospect of a pot of gold set aside for cleaning up the South Bay Power Plant, have become a concern to some city council members and residents of Chula Vista. …
On Sunday, February 20, students and mentors from all over the county brought their team-designed robots to an exposition at Madison High School. The expo was a last opportunity to prepare the robots for a …