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LAKE COUNTY – This month saw an unprecedented in event in Lake County, with 19 institutions of higher education coming together to visit students at local schools.
Higher Education Week events that took place May 14-15 were sponsored by the Lake County College Going Initiative.
The initiative – a partnership between the Lake County Office of Education, University of California Office of the President, and University of California San Francisco – describes an effort to promote a college-going culture in Lake County.
The three-year strong partnership continues to gain momentum as more colleges and programs combine efforts to support Lake County students.
The 19 schools involved in this year’s Higher Education Week were: Mendocino College, Yuba College, CSU East Bay, Chico State, Humboldt State, Sonoma State, DeVry University, Pacific Union College, St. Mary’s College, University of the Pacific and Dominican University.
Eight of the 10 UC institutions also were present: Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Merced, Riverside, Santa Cruz, San Diego and San Francisco.
Ruben Lubers of UC Davis stated in his presentation that “everyone who wants to attend college has the opportunity to do so. Financial aide and scholarships are available to all students.”
Lubers, once homeless, shared his inspirational story of becoming a college graduate, and encouraged Lake County students to follow their dreams no matter what obstacle crosses their path.
UCOP offered a tremendous amount of support in the organization of the event. Angel Max Guerrero, coordinator of Regional Academic Collaboratives at UCOP, was pleased that the number of participating colleges has more than doubled in size since the first Lake County Higher Ed Week in 2006.
Blas Guerrero, UCOP Director of Regional Academic Collaboratives, stated: “Higher Ed Week highlights a collaborative approach to student and family outreach by UC, CSU, community colleges, and private schools. It is an effort to increase the number of students that pursue higher education. I would like to personally thank the high school counselors and administrators, Dave Geck (LCOE Superintendent), and Jamey Gill (LCOE Coordinator for the College Going Initiative), for their support in the implementation of this event.”
AVID students at Clear Lake High school welcomed the traveling team of college reps with posters. Students at Oak Hill Middle School made a point of thanking the college reps, stating that, “they had never had a presentation like this before.”
Daniel Gildea, a junior at Clear Lake High School, has had his eye on attending Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, with the goal of becoming a civil engineer.
After talking to UC Berkeley, Chico State and University of the Pacific representatives during the week, he said, “It is good to discover how many options I have.” He said he's excited now about investigating a program at University of the Pacific that will allow him to get hands-on experience working in the field with a civil engineer while attending college.
Higher Education Week is only one of the many activities offered to Lake County students by the partners of the Lake County College Going Initiative.
Many of the students attending this event have also participated in the UC Summer Algebra Academies, and many have attended a variety of student and parent workshops focused on college readiness skills and financial aide.
Last month, 57 of the 109 Lake County seniors accepted to four-year colleges attended the University Admit Reception.
“The hard work of all the partners, especially the high school counselors and administrators, has contributed to the success of this initiative,” said Dave Geck, superintendent of Lake County Schools. “Making a vision of helping all students gain access to higher education a reality requires the willingness to try new approaches and new strategies. ‘New’ means ‘change’, and ‘change’ means ‘hard work’. So I commend our high school counselors and administrators for their commitment to the future of our students.”
For more information please contact Jamey Gill, Curriculum Specialist and Coordinator for the Lake County College Going Initiative at the Lake County Office of Education, by e-mail at
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UKIAH – At their May meeting, the Board of Trustees of the Mendocino-Lake Community College District awarded the first contract for facilities renovation under Measure W, the $67.5 million construction bond passed by voters in November.
The $967,476 contract for the re-roof of seven buildings at the Mendocino College Ukiah campus was awarded to Solano County Roofing Inc., the successful bidder out of five companies.
“We are very excited about beginning our first and much needed construction project under Measure W,” said Superintendent/President Kathy Lehner. “We are very busy in the planning and selection phase for several other projects, but this is the first construction project released.”
Re-roofing work will begin in June. The buildings to be re-roofed include the Child Care Center, Vocational Technical building, Physical Education complex and gymnasium, Fine Arts building, Agricultural Headhouse and Potting Shed.
For several years the current cement tile roofs have been leaking when it rains. The new roofs will be standing seam metal roofs that are expected to last 50 years.
“We are scheduling these projects to cause the least disruption to students and classes,” said Mike Adams, director of Facilities Planning. “However, several of these projects are large and will be in progress while summer classes are in session. For safety reasons, several areas will be fenced off. We ask that students and the public respect these boundaries.”
Other bond projects in the planning or selection phase include a new Integrated Information System (computer software), new Library/Learning Resource Center on the Ukiah campus, site selection for permanent centers in Willits and Lakeport, and a new Maintenance/Warehouse on the Ukiah campus.
In April, the College issued the first $30 million in bonds to fund projects and established the Bond Citizens’ Oversight Committee.
Additional information on Measure W activities is available online at www.mendocino.edu/bond.
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KELSEYVILLE – The US Department of Labor has settled a two-and-a-half-year old civil suit against the owners of Konocti Harbor Resort & Spa.
According to court documents obtained by Lake County News, the suit – which was filed in November 2004 – was resolved in a May 15 settlement conference presided over by Magistrate Judge Bernard Zimmerman.
As Lake County News previously reported, the U.S. Department of Labor sued current and former trustees, the plan administrator and Local 38 of the United Association of Plumbers, Pipefitters and Journeymen for diverting more than $36 million in assets of five employee benefit plans to renovate and operate Konocti Harbor Resort and Spa.
The employee benefit plans in question were UA Local 38's Pension Trust Fund, Scholarship Trust Fund, Health & Welfare Trust Fund, Apprentice & Journeyman Training Trust Fund and Vacation & Holiday Trust Fund.
Local 38 controls the UA Local Convalescent Fund, which has owned Konocti Harbor since 1959, according to court records.
The lawsuit alleged that the fund's trustees, including Lawrence J. Mazzola Sr., business manager and financial secretary-treasurer of Local 38, violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) by diverting the funds.
ERISA is a 1974 federal law that establishes protection to individuals covered by private industry health and pension plans.
Mazzola, son of labor leader Joe Mazzola – and namesake of Konocti Harbor's resort's indoor showroom – was named personally in the suit, as was his son, Lawrence Mazzola Jr.
In addition to the Mazzolas, about one dozen other men – who had fiduciary responsibility as members of the joint board of trustees that governed Local 38's ERISA plans – were named in the lawsuit.
James Baker, attorney for Mazzola and Local 38 in the case, confirmed this week that the case had been settled.
However, Baker declined to discuss the tentative settlement, preferring to wait until the details are finalized next month.
As part of the agreement, the Department of Labor will receive a $3.5 million payment, which will be covered by Local 38's insurance company, ULICO Casualty Co.
Judge Zimmerman noted in the settlement conference that a sale of Konocti Harbor is expected to be completed soon, with the funds from that sale going to reimburse Local 38 and the pension fund. (For the full story of the Konocti Harbor sale, see the related story, “Konocti Harbor sale in the works.”)
Other terms of the settlement include the Mazzola and the other named defendants' resignation from the joint board of trustees and installation of new trustees by Dec. 31, according to court documents.
Two of the named defendants, Lawrence Mazzola Jr. and Robert Buckley Jr., were not required to resign, court documents state; however, they have “agreed to complete a course of training in fiduciary duties as a condition of remaining on the board,” Zimmerman stated.
Mazzola Sr. also has agreed to resign from his position with the Plumbers Union's International Training Fund within the next two years, court documents reported.
The Department of Labor stipulated that those defendants who were required to resign from the joint board “be permanently barred from again being fiduciaries of any ERISA-covered plans or service providers.”
Other settlement terms include appointing an independent plan administrator to develop a system of controls over the ERISA plan's cash flows for a term of six years.
“This is an important moment for you,” Zimmerman told the defendants. “You will be closing, hopefully, a chapter, a long chapter in your life.”
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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LAKEPORT – A Clearlake Oaks man accused of criminal threats, battery and elder abuse was acquitted of all charges this week.
On Wednesday, a Lakeport Superior Court jury returned not guilty verdicts on the charges against Joel Paulle, according to his defense attorney, Doug Rhoades of Lakeport.
Deputy District Attorney Rachel Abelson prosecuted Paulle's case. Abelson did not return a call seeking comment on the case.
Paulle was accused of a felony criminal threat against his neighbors, a charge of battery against a neighbor’s son, and two counts of elder abuse against his 82-year-old mother as a result of an April 2006 incident.
The neighbor and her son both testified against Paulle, but no charges were sustained, Rhoades reported.
Paulle’s mother had passed away while the trial was pending, which Rhoades said was due to health problems not related to the charges in the case.
The trial lasted only two days, Rhoades reported. After deliberating less than one hour, the jury returned not guilty verdicts on all charges against Paulle.
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WASHINGTON, D.C. – An emergency supplemental spending bill which will put another $120 billion toward the Iraq war is on the way to the president for his signature.
The bill split the state's Democratic senators, and drew a no vote from North Coast Congressman Mike Thompson.
The U.S. Senate on Thursday night approved HR 2206 in an 80-14 vote, according to GovTrack.
The Senate vote came the same day as the House voted 280-142 to approve the bill.
HR 2206 did not contain a timeline for withdrawal from Iraq, as did HR 1591, an emergency supplemental that Congress approved last month but which President Bush vetoed on May 2.
Sen. Barbara Boxer voted against the bill. She cited her concerns that the supplemental maintains the “status quo,” which so far this year has meant higher casualties amongst US troops. Boxer reminded fellow senators of the more than 3,400 US troops killed and more than 25,000 wounded.
At the same time, Sen. Dianne Feinstein voted for the supplemental.
On the House side, Thompson, who has been a consistent critic of the war in Iraq, voted against HR 2206 on Thursday, saying he did so because it lacked the timeline or benchmarks needed to end the war.
“I voted against the Iraq supplemental because it only furthers the president's open-ended war in Iraq,” Thompson said in a statement.
Thompson had previously supported HR 1591, but has maintained that war funding should go through the regular budgeting process. “If the administration doesn't know after four years how to fund the war, we're in more trouble than we may think.”
He stated his belief that the Iraqi government “needs to take responsibility for securing their country so we can bring our troops home as safely and quickly as possible.” Benchmarks are needed, he said, to know whether or not the Iraqi government is making progress.
The supplemental only continues what Thompson said has been a lack of accountability in the war spending, said Thompson, with $400 billion spent so far.
“I can't support a war funding bill that doesn't make our troops and veterans the top priority,” Thompson said.
President Bush is expected to sign the bill over the Memorial Day weekend.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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LAKE COUNTY – In an effort to make the roads safer during the Memorial Day weekend, the California Highway Patrol is increasing enforcement and planning a local checkpoint to look for drivers who may be drunk or high behind the wheel.
Memorial Day weekend traditionally marks the beginning of summer and the end of the school year, with people enjoying outdoor activities and events.
The holiday weekend also is a Maximum Enforcement Period for the CHP. All available officers will be on duty from 6 p.m. on Friday, May 25 through midnight on Monday, May 28, the CHP reported Thursday.
CHP, the State Office of Traffic Safety (OTS), Caltrans, Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) and local law enforcement agencies are asking that drivers plan ahead before heading out for fun – which includes having a designated driver, wearing your seat belt and not speeding.
“Once the barbecue is over, you still have to get home safely,” CHP Commissioner Mike Brown said in a statement.
Brown reported that 80-percent of CHP's officers statewide will be out looking for people driving while drunk or not complying with other rules of the road.
Locally, that will include one DUI checkpoint on May 26, according to Lt. Dane Hayward, the Clear Lake CHP office commander.
Hayward said the checkpoint will be staffed by CHP officers trained in detecting drivers who are impaired by drugs or alcohol.
CHP Drug Recognition Experts, certified by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, also will be on site to provide on the spot assessments of drivers suspected of drug use, according to Hayward. Officers will be equipped with state of the art hand-held breath devices which provide an accurate measure of blood alcohol concentrations of suspected drunk drivers.
Traffic permitting, said Hayward, all vehicles will be checked, and any driver suspected of DUI can expect to be arrested.
“Our objective is to send a clear message to those considering mixing alcohol and/or drugs with driving during summer vacation – the CHP will be keeping a watchful eye out for you,” he said.
Hayward said the checkpoints are an effective tool in reducing the high frequency of drunk driving on the roads during the holidays.
Officer Josh Dye of the Clearlake CHP office said DUI checkpoints are conducted at regular times throughout the year, such as Memorial Day.
Last year CHP officers statewide arrested 1,639 drivers for DUI during the Memorial Day weekend, the CHP reported. That is a 6.5-percent increase over the previous year.
Memorial Day DUI statistics for past years weren't available for Lake County. However, DUI remains a year-round problem in Lake County.
As Lake County News previously reported, there was an increase in DUI arrests in Lake County from 2005 to 2006, rising from 360 to a reported 411, or about a 14-percent increase, according to CHP records. However, from 2001 to 2005 there was a steady decline in local DUI arrests.
CHP works to reduce fatalities
Last Memorial Day weekend, 20 people were killed on roadways within CHP jurisdiction, statewide, Brown reported. While that number was down significantly from the previous year’s total of 33, Brown said, “We can still do better.”
As part of that effort to reduce fatalities, OTS is coordinating California law enforcement’s 2007 “Click It or Ticket” campaign.
“We have funded overtime to put extra police and CHP officers on the road to look for people not wearing their seat belt during this campaign,” said OTS Director Christopher J. Murphy.
Fifty percent of the people killed on the roadways during Memorial Day weekend were not wearing their seat belts, Murphy reported.
Caltrans Director Will Kempton said they're also joining the effort, and asking the public to help keep impaired drivers off the road.
Signs at Caltrans statewide network of public rest stops urge people to report drunk drivers by calling 9-1-1, Kempton reported. When calling to report someone suspected of driving under the influence, try to provide as much of the following information as possible: description of the vehicle, its location and direction of travel.
Because a lot of teens are driving at this time of year, extra ABC agents will be working over the weekend to prevent the sale of alcohol to underage or intoxicated people, said ABC Director Steve Hardy.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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