LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The California Attorney General’s Office on Thursday confirmed that the U.S. Department of Education has released a billion dollars of education funding to California a month after the federal agency said it had frozen the funds for programs including those benefiting English learners, migrant students, adult learners and those relying on community learning centers.
On June 30, a day before the start of the new school year, the U.S. Department of Education announced the freeze or “impoundment of federal funds.”
The funding that was frozen totaled $6 billion nationwide for six longstanding programs administered by the U.S. Department of Education.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the funding from those program are used for services including educational programs for migrant children and English learners; programs that promote effective classroom instruction, improve school conditions and the use of technology in the classroom; community learning centers that offer students a broad range of opportunities for academic and extracurricular enrichment; and adult education and workforce development efforts.
Lake County Superintendent of Schools Brock Falkenberg said the action was expected to result in $1.2 million being withheld from county schools — or about 16.5% of its over $7 million in total federal funds allocation — months after school budgets were set for the coming school year.
On July 14, Attorney General Bonta co-led a coalition of 23 attorneys general and two states together in filing a lawsuit and motion for a preliminary injunction, arguing that the freeze violated federal funding statutes and regulations authorizing the programs and appropriating funds for them, federal statutes governing the federal budgeting process and the constitutional separation of powers doctrine and the Presentment Clause.
Then, on July 25, the California Department of Education received notice that beginning the week of July 28, the U.S. Department of Education would begin releasing previously impounded federal funds for the current federal and education fiscal year.
“The Trump Administration has officially reversed course on its blatantly illegal, misguided effort to freeze critical education funds weeks before the school year was set to start,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta. “Let’s be clear: This funding should never have been frozen in the first place – that’s why we filed our lawsuit. We’re glad to see the Administration back down from its illegal effort to withhold these funds, but we can’t lose sight of the long-term damage caused by the President’s campaign of chaos and uncertainty. California will not stop fighting to hold the President and his Administration accountable to the law and to protect our children’s educational future.”
The state Department of Education received grant award notifications on Wednesday confirming that the entirety of the funds that ED was required to make available to the states on July 1 was being released.
“California schools have been waiting for these resources to serve students, and now nearly $1 billion of illegally impounded federal education funds will finally reach our classrooms,” said California State Superintendent of Schools Tony Thurmond. “The Trump administration’s delay created unacceptable uncertainty for our schools and harmed many of our most vulnerable students. However, we are moving swiftly to ensure these funds support students, educators, and school communities without further interruption.”
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, and on Bluesky, @erlarson.bsky.social. Find Lake County News on the following platforms: Facebook, @LakeCoNews; X, @LakeCoNews; Threads, @lakeconews, and on Bluesky, @lakeconews.bsky.social.
“Syd.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. — Clearlake Animal Control has dogs of many breeds, sizes and temperaments waiting for their new homes this week.
The shelter has 48 adoptable dogs listed on its website.
This week’s dogs include “Syd,” a 2-year-old male Belgian Malinois mix.
“He is an energetic, affectionate dog who thrives on companionship, play, and comfort. His playful nature and love for toys, coupled with his excellent leash skills and potential for cohabitation with other dogs, make him a wonderful addition to any home,” shelter staff said.
The shelter is located at 6820 Old Highway 53. It’s open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
For more information, call the shelter at 707-762-6227, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., visit Clearlake Animal Control on Facebook or on the city’s website.
This week’s adoptable dogs are featured below.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, and on Bluesky, @erlarson.bsky.social. Find Lake County News on the following platforms: Facebook, @LakeCoNews; X, @LakeCoNews; Threads, @lakeconews, and on Bluesky, @lakeconews.bsky.social.
The earthquake near the east coast of the Kamchatka peninsula in Russia on July 30 2025 generated tsunami waves that have reached Hawaii and coastal areas of the US mainland. The earthquake’s magnitude of 8.8 is significant, potentially making it one of the largest quakes ever recorded.
Countries around much of the Pacific, including in east Asia, North and South America, issued alerts and in some cases evacuation orders in anticipation of potentially devastating waves. Waves of up to four metres hit coastal towns in Kamchatka near where the earthquake struck, apparently causing severe damage in some areas.
But in other places waves have been smaller than expected, including in Japan, which is much closer to Kamchatka than most of the Pacific rim. Many warnings have now been downgraded or lifted with relatively little damage. It seems that for the size of the earthquake, the tsunami has been rather smaller than might have been the case. To understand why, we can look to geology.
The earthquake was associated with the Pacific tectonic plate, one of several major pieces of the Earth’s crust. This pushes north-west against the part of the North American plate that extends west into Russia, and is forced downwards beneath the Kamchatka peninsula in a process called subduction.
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) says the average rate of convergence – a measure of plate movement – is around 80mm per year. This is one of the highest rates of relative movement at a plate boundary.
But this movement tends to take place as an occasional sudden movement of several metres. In any earthquake of this type and size, the displacement may occur over a contact area between the two tectonic plates of slightly less than 400km by 150km, according to the USGS.
The Earth’s crust is made of rock that is very hard and brittle at the small scale and near the surface. But over very large areas and depths, it can deform with slightly elastic behaviour. As the subducting slab – the Pacific plate – pushes forward and descends, the depth of the ocean floor may suddenly change.
Nearer to the coastline, the crust of the overlying plate may be pushed upward as the other pushed underneath, or – as was the case off Sumatra in 2004 – the outer edge of the overlying plate may be dragged down somewhat before springing back a few metres.
It is these near-instantaneous movements of the seabed that generate tsunami waves by displacing huge volumes of ocean water. For example, if the seabed rose just one metre across an area of 200 by 100km where the water is 1km deep, then the volume of water displaced would fill Wembley stadium to the roof 17.5 million times.
A one-metre rise like this will then propagate away from the area of the uplift in all directions, interacting with normal wind-generated ocean waves, tides and the shape of the sea floor to produce a series of tsunami waves. In the open ocean, the tsunami wave would not be noticed by boats and ships, which is why a cruise ship in Hawaii was quickly moved out to sea.
Waves sculpted by the seabed
The tsunami waves travel across the deep ocean at up to 440 miles per hour, so they may be expected to reach any Pacific Ocean coastline within 24 hours. However, some of their energy will dissipate as they cross the ocean, so they will usually be less hazardous at the furthest coastlines away from the earthquake.
The hazard arises from how the waves are modified as the seabed rises towards a shoreline. They will slow and, as a result, grow in height, creating a surge of water towards and then beyond the normal coastline.
The Kamchatka earthquake was slightly deeper in the Earth’s crust (20.7km) than the Sumatran earthquake of 2004 and the Japanese earthquake of 2011. This will have resulted in somewhat less vertical displacement of the seabed, with the movement of that seabed being slightly less instantaneous. This is why we’ve seen tsunami warnings lifted some time before any tsunami waves would have arrived there.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — A weekend traffic stop led authorities to seize a large amount of hallucinogenic mushrooms and hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, and arrest a North Coast man.
Lake County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Lauren Berlinn said 31-year-old Alexander Abare of Arcata was arrested during the stop.
At approximately 1:45 a.m. Saturday, July 26, a Lake County Sheriff’s deputy conducted a traffic stop on a transit-style van traveling along Highway 20 in Upper Lake, Berlinn said.
When contacting the driver, identified as Abare, Berlinn said the deputy observed signs consistent with recent marijuana use and noted a strong odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle.
Berlinn said Abare told the deputy he was returning to Arcata from the Sacramento area. During the interaction, he appeared visibly nervous.
When questioned further, Abare admitted to having a bag of marijuana between the seats and a vape pen containing concentrated cannabis on the dashboard, Berlinn said.
The deputy’s search of the vehicle led to the discovery of approximately 400 pounds of psilocybin mushrooms, packaged in black plastic bags and large totes, each labeled with various strain names, according to Berlinn.
Berlinn said deputies also located more than $370,000 in cash, vacuum-sealed in multiple bundles.
Abare was arrested and booked on multiple charges, including felony transportation of a controlled substance for sale across county lines, possession of a controlled substance for sale, possession of a switchblade, and possession of an open container of marijuana in a vehicle, Berlinn said.
Berlinn said the investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Narcotics Taskforce Tipline at 707-263-3663.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Pacific Gas and Electric Co. said it will hold an online meeting to discuss its plans to decommission and eventually remove the Potter Valley Project, which includes Lake Pillsbury.
The meeting will take place from 3 to 5 p.m. Monday, Aug. 11.
PG&E has owned the Potter Valley Project, located in Lake and Mendocino counties, since 1930.
The Potter Valley Project, consists of two dams along the upper main stem of the Eel River, the Scott Dam and the Cape Horn Dam — as well as the Potter Valley powerhouse, the 80,000-acre-foot Lake Pillsbury in Lake County, the Van Arsdale Reservoir, a fish passage structure and salmon and steelhead counting station at the Cape Horn Dam, and and 5,600 acres of land.
During the virtual town hall, PG&E said it will discuss the overall regulatory process and note opportunities for public participation in the regulatory process.
The company has so far been unwilling to hold an in-person town hall in Lake County.
On Wednesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order to address a growing issue — the alarming rise in suicides and disconnection among California’s young men and boys.
The order directs a coordinated statewide response to improve mental health outcomes, reduce stigma, and expand access to meaningful education, work and mentorship opportunities.
“Too many young men and boys are suffering in silence — disconnected from community, opportunity, and even their own families,” said Newsom. “This action is about turning that around. It’s about showing every young man that he matters and there’s a path for him of purpose, dignity, work, and real connection.”
“Women and men face different challenges — but there are systemic barriers we can take on together,” said First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom. “Whether it’s the shortage of male mental health providers, outdated ideas about care work, or boys falling through the cracks in school, this Executive Order is a step toward real solutions. Our young men and boys are facing a crisis of loneliness and social isolation that is showing up in their mental health, educational outcomes, future economic opportunities, and more. Raising healthy boys will take all of us—moms, dads, teachers, coaches, and mentors—working together to find new ways forward.”
The executive order helps address this crisis, directing state agencies to create a new focus on this issue and creating new pathways to help reconnect men and boys with the support, assistance, and help they need.
Ending mental health stigma
Lack of mental health support and gender stereotypes have perpetuated a culture where men and boys feel unable to ask for assistance or support, leading to higher rates of disconnection, suicide, drug use, crime, and lack of participation in the workforce.
Depression is ranked as a leading cause of death among men, and mental health conditions often go untreated among men because they are far less likely to seek mental health treatment than women.
Newsom’s office said this crisis impacts everyone. Violence is focused both internally and externally, affecting all people in the community. Men are responsible for almost 80% of violent crime, and almost half of female homicide victims are killed by a current or former male intimate partner.
Although California consistently has one of the lowest gun death rates in the nation, the toll remains too high – about 3,200 Californians lose their lives to gun violence each year, with suicides making up a significant share, especially among men. In California, men aged 15–44 die by suicide at 3 to 4 times the rate of women, often by firearms.
Strengthening mental health support
The executive order directs the California Health and Human Services Agency, or CalHHS, to develop recommendations to address the suicide crisis among young men.
The governor is also ordering CalHHS, with support from the Center for Data Insights and Innovation, to examine existing data on gender disparities to identify any gaps in service delivery and assess potential changes to address disparities.
Crisis of loneliness
Young men are more disconnected from school, work and relationships than ever before, with nearly one in four men under 30 years old reporting that they have no close friends, a five-fold increase since 1990, with higher rates of disconnection for young Black males.
A lack of social connection is associated with increased risk of poor health, including mental health disorders, poverty, and even premature death.
This disconnection has pulled men out of the workplace. Labor force participation among men without a college degree is currently at historic lows, with about one in nine men aged 25-54 neither working nor looking for work.
The unemployment rate for men in California is also higher than the rate for women, and college enrollment and completion rates for men have dropped significantly over the past decade.
Pathways to work and education
The executive order aims to reconnect men and boys with pathways to enter education or the workforce, including through service opportunities.
The governor is directing the Office of Service and Community Engagement, in consultation with the Office of the First Partner and the executive director of the State Board of Education, to identify opportunities for promoting and enhancing the participation of men and boys in service opportunities through California Volunteers.
The order also will help improve opportunities for the full participation of men and boys as part of California Jobs First, the Master Plan for Career Education, the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative, and the California Community Schools Partnership Program, which are being implemented by the Governor’s Office for Business and Economic Development, the Labor and Workforce Development Agency, the California Health and Human Services Agency, the Governor’s Office of Service and Community Engagement, and the California Department of Veterans Affairs, and in consultation with the Office of the First Partner and the Executive Director of the State Board of Education.
The order also helps address the lack of male role models in educational settings, by directing the executive director of the State Board of Education and requesting the California Department of Education and the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing to identify opportunities to improve recruitment of men as teachers and school counselors.
Ongoing funding for job training and apprenticeship programs
The governor’s announcement of the executive order comes alongside the new announcement of $20 million awarded through the California Apprenticeship Council Training Funds. This funding will go to support apprenticeship training in the building trades.
Apprenticeship funding is a key component of the Governor’s Master Plan for Career Education, which focuses on creating different career pathways that do not necessarily rely on a four-year college degree.
Apprenticeships in the building trades are a debt-free option and can lead to stable jobs with family-sustaining wages and help support the governor’s efforts to address this crisis.
With California leading the way in apprenticeship programs nationwide, Gov. Newsom aims to serve 500,000 apprentices by 2029; 219,784 registered apprentices have been served thus far.
At-risk young men may also be connected to the workforce through California’s Youth Employment Opportunity Program, which helps young people ages 15 to 25 who may be struggling with school or work. Advisors for the program are available across California.
In March 2025, EDD and the LWDA awarded approximately $1,700,000 of Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Governor's discretionary funds under the Opportunity Young Adult Evaluation and Technical Assistance Program. These funds support organizations who help young adults reach educational and employment goals.
Ongoing initiatives
The Newsom administration is in the midst of implementing several initiatives that are directly responsive to addressing negative outcomes for men and boys, including:
California Jobs First, a statewide plan built with input from 13 regions to drive sustainable economic growth, innovation, and access to good-paying jobs over the next decade, paired with $125 million to support new projects and $92 million for new apprenticeship and job programs.
The Master Plan for Career Education, which focuses on strengthening career pathways, prioritizing hands-on learning and real-life skills, and advancing educational access and affordability and complements additional investments.
Mental Health for All, California’s plan to build a stronger and more equitable behavioral health system, with the goal to make sure every Californian — especially those who have struggled to get help like men and boys — can access high-quality mental health and substance use disorder treatment when and where they need it.
Proposition 1, passed by the voters in 2024 to modernize the state’s behavioral health care delivery system and provide $6.4B in bond funds to build treatment facilities and housing.
The Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative, which invests billions of dollars to create a larger and more representative workforce supporting behavioral health for young people and improve coordination and integration across different settings delivering behavioral health care.
The California Community Schools Partnership Program, which is transforming more than 2000 public schools into community hubs that provide integrated educational, health, and mental health services to students and families through more than $4 billion in grants.
California Volunteers, which is tasked with engaging Californians in service, volunteering, and civic action and operates the largest service force in the nation, in addition to facilitating volunteer and civic engagement opportunities across the state.
I wrap up my workday and head for home, making a quick stop to grab the supplies my sixth grader needs for a project due this week and some ingredients for a quick dinner.
Once home, I check the sixth grader’s school website and discover a missing assignment. Bringing this up sparks a minor meltdown. I summon the emotional energy to help her calm down and problem-solve. My husband arrives home with our high schooler, who’s discouraged by something that happened at soccer practice. We’ll have to process that later.
Around the dinner table, we realize that both kids have sports practices Thursday, on opposite ends of town, at the same time as a mandatory parent meeting at school. And now I’m ready for my own meltdown.
On this particular evening, my family wasn’t navigating anything unique or especially catastrophic. Scenes like this play out nightly in homes across the United States. In fact, my family’s circumstances offer the protections of multiple forms of privilege. Certainly others have more difficult circumstances.
Why is it still so hard?
For a long time, I felt ashamed for being overwhelmed by parenthood. How do others seem to have it all together? Of course, the highlight reel of social media only fueled this comparison game. I often felt that I was falling short, missing some hack that others had found for not feeling constantly exhausted.
The reality is I’m far from alone in experiencing what social scientists term parenting stress. Defined as the negative psychological reaction to a mismatch between the demands of parenting and the resources available, parenting stress has become increasingly prevalent over the past five decades. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly half of all parents in the U.S. said their stress was completely overwhelming on most days.
I began researching parental stress and well-being when, several years after becoming a parent, I left my job as a social worker and entered a Ph.D. program. Through this process, I learned something that changed my perspective entirely: Parents today experience such high levels of stress because people have never traditionally raised children in isolation. And yet, we are more isolated than ever.
It clicked: Parents don’t need to do more or try harder. We need connection. We don’t need more social media posts on the “top three ways to keep your family organized.” We need a paradigm shift.
In the age of the nuclear family, it’s common for multiple generations to come together only on special occasions.Maskot/DigitalVision via Getty Images
The myth of family self-reliance
Throughout human history, people primarily lived in multigenerational, multifamily arrangements. Out of necessity, our hunter-gatherer ancestors relied upon their clan-mates to help meet the needs of their families, including child-rearing. Research over time and across cultures suggests that parents are psychologically primed to raise children in community – not in isolated nuclear family units.
Anthropologists use the term alloparents – derived from the Greek “allo,” meaning “other” – to describe nonparent adults who provide care alongside that provided by parents.
Research suggests that alloparenting contributes to child well-being and even child survival in populations with high rates of child mortality. A 2021 study of a present-day foraging population in the Philippines found that alloparents provided an astounding three-quarters of the care for infants and an even greater proportion of the care for children ages 2 to 6.
In contrast, the ideal of the nuclear family is incredibly recent. It developed with industrialization, peaking in the 1950s and 1960s. Despite the significant changes in family structure – such as an increase in single-parent households – since that period, the paragon of the self-reliant nuclear family persists.
Social support, while often viewed as a singular phenomenon, is actually a constellation of actions, each with its own unique function. Social scientists specify at least three types of support:
Tangible: Material or financial resources or assistance
Emotional: Expressions of care, empathy and love
Informational: Provision of information, advice or guidance
Different parenting challenges call for different types of support. When my husband and I realized we had three commitments in a single evening, we didn’t need advice on managing our family’s calendar; we needed someone to take our kid to practice – that’s tangible support. When my tween was blowing up over homework, I didn’t need someone to bring us dinner; I needed to remember what I learned from a book on parenting adolescent girls – that’s informational support.
To move away from the myth of family self-reliance and back toward an ideal of collective care would take a paradigm shift, requiring intervention at every level, from federal to state to family. A 2024 Surgeon General’s Advisory on parenting stress called it an urgent public health issue and provided recommendations for government leaders, service systems and communities. Systemic strategies like providing access to high-quality mental health care, expanding programs like Head Start that support parents and caregivers, and investing in social infrastructure like public libraries and parks could all help reduce parenting stress in the U.S.
Parenting stress is not a problem that can be solved solely by the individuals experiencing it. But here are five ways you can start making the shift toward collective care in your own life:
Take stock of your network. Assess not only in terms of the number of supporters, but what types of support they offer. Do you have plenty of people to talk to, but no one who would bring you a meal or give your kid a ride? Identify gaps and consider ways to round out your “village.”
Start small. Introduce yourself to your retired neighbor. Sit next to another parent at your kid’s sporting event. Talk to the babysitter you regularly see at the playground. Supportive relationships don’t just happen; they are grown.
Offer help to others. While it seems counterintuitive, people who give support to others experience greater well-being and even longevity compared with those who don’t. Helping others also creates the opportunity for reciprocity. Those you support may be more likely to return the favor in the future.
Normalize asking for help and taking it when offered. For many people, asking for support is hard. It requires dropping the facade and letting people in on your struggles. However, people are often more willing to help than you might assume. Further, allowing others to help you gives them permission to voice their own needs in the future.
Consider your caregiving expectations. The way others care for your children may not mirror your way entirely. Consider what are nonnegotiable practices for your family – such as limits on screen time – and what is worth loosening up on – like veggies at every meal – if it means you have more alloparents helping you out.
None of these suggestions are easy. They take time, vulnerability and courage. In our society of rugged individualism and nuclear family self-reliance, parenting through a lens of collective care is downright countercultural. But perhaps it’s closer to how we, as humans, have raised children throughout the millennia.
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