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; …

In a closed meeting on July 29, SANDAG, the San Diego Association of Governments, voted to purchase the lease to operate the South Bay Expressway, the portion of SR-125 that is a toll road. According …

Tuesday, July 19, was an ordinary day in the National City Borders store. Customers at the Westfield Plaza Bonita location were browsing, studying, and drinking coffee. When asked, few people realized that the Borders chain …

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 …

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 …

Kurt Donsbach, an alternative health practitioner who lives in Bonita, pled guilty to 13 felony counts on Friday, April 15. The charges he pled guilty to included “practicing medicine without a license, selling illegal and …

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 …

I am not dying of any particular disease; I am dying, like all of us, a day at a time. Yet, the dialogue with death that I severed when I was an adolescent has begun …

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 …

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 …

In 2005, Barry John Johnson left his job as city manager of Solana Beach, where he drew an annual salary of $149,344, to volunteer as a counselor at South Bay Community Services. At the agency’s …

In an email to faculty and staff, on February 8, Southwestern College vice president Nicholas Alioto resigned from his position. Two months ago the president of the college, Dr. Raj Chopra, resigned. Alioto wrote in …

Since l976, the City of Chula Vista has been slashing the hours of the Norman Park Senior Center. According to Kay Bodge, a Norman Park volunteer, the center was open 78 hours per week in …

A rumor began to circulate this week on the Southwestern College campus that Henry Amigable was no longer managing the $389 million construction and reconstruction projects generated from Proposition R. In November 2009, Seville Construction …

An ordinance to suspend development-impact fees in redevelopment-project areas for a period of five years was before the Chula Vista City Council on Tuesday, January 11. Impact fees, often paid by the new developer, assist …

A controversial program to fluoridate the City of San Diego’s water was postponed last month, but South Bay residents who receive water from Sweetwater Authority, a separate water district, will begin drinking fluoridated water in …

Buffeted by wind and light showers, Peter Donohue stood on the steps of the Chula Vista police station on the afternoon of December 22 to tell the press that, according to his initial analysis of …

It came as no surprise November 30 when Southwestern College’s superintendent Dr. Raj Chopra announced his resignation, effective the same day. Chopra’s contract was not due to expire until June 2012, but according to a …

The City of Chula Vista does not want to be “outgunned,” according to councilmember Steve Castaneda. Following that idea, the entire council voted for a no-bid purchase of a Lenco BearCat armored tactical vehicle at …

On November 15, Stewart Payne went before the Sweetwater Union High School Board and asked for the creation of an independent task force to investigate charges against the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF), the governing body …

Three days after election day, when Southwestern College school-board incumbents Yolanda Salcido and Jorge Dominquez were voted out of office, the board called a special meeting. The meeting — called for by the board only …

The Reader reported in May and July of this year that Derrick Roach appeared before the Chula Vista City City Council to accuse former interim councilmember Mitch Thompson of unlawful activity. All complaints filed by …

Southwestern College, the Sweetwater Union High School District, and the Chula Vista Elementary School District, all located in the South Bay, have several school-board seats up for grabs in a few days. The level of …

Southwestern College held a social gathering in May of this year at Frida’s, a Mexican restaurant in Chula Vista. The event was well attended by many local dignitaries, a plethora of contractors, and most of …

On September 27, Southwestern College vice president Nicholas Alioto organized a golf tournament for the Southwestern College Foundation. The tournament raised a great deal of money while utilizing the resources and prestige of the college …

Chula Vista residents will have to pick their poison when they go to the polls November 2. Proposition H, a utility users’ tax, is posited by the mayor and city manager as a vital source …

Jim Cartmill has been a Sweetwater Union High School District board member since 1990. This November, he’s running for a seat against Karen Janney. As the incumbent, Cartmill’s campaign donors have predictable associations. Sweetwater is …

When big business was selling the public on the need to approve multimillion-dollar school bonds, whose needs were they talking about? In 2008, a majority of South Bay voters agreed to open their wallets for …

What does it mean when a public lobbying firm says that a key objective is to “isolate and expose extremists”? Public records recently obtained from Southwestern College offer a rare peek into the strategies of …

In 2008, voters approved Proposition R, a $389 million bond for Chula Vista's Southwestern College. As construction plans begin to take shape, contractors, subcontractors, and consultants are lining up before the Southwestern Governing Board. Some …

Like many community colleges, Southwestern College, located in Chula Vista, had to severely cut course offerings in the spring and summer of this year. At a June 2010 press conference, California Community College chancellor Jack …

On July 27, the Chula Vista City Council will revisit four potential ballot propositions to consider placing them before voters in November. The items to be considered are: (1) term limits for the mayor and …

Complications for the City of Chula Vista and police chief David Bejarano have begun to pile up like cars on a rain-slicked San Diego freeway. In early April, Art Moreno, head of Presidential Security Services, …

On June 22, the Chula Vista City Council suspended a campaign-enforcement ordinance that has troubled the City every election cycle since its inception. According to city attorney Bart Miesfield, the stated purpose for this campaign …

On June 15, the Chula Vista City Council postponed passing a resolution that would potentially affect anyone driving in the city of Chula Vista. After many residents expressed concern about the consequences of passing the …

Almost no information is available to voters about Proposition A. The East Otay Mesa Recycling Collection Center and Landfill Ordinance, a countywide proposition on the June 8 ballot, requires a simple majority to pass. Aside …