Policies

Students will no longer be graded based on a yearly average, or on how late they turn in assignments. Those are just some of the major grading changes approved this week by California's second-largest school district. The San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD) is overhauling the way it grades students. Board members say the changes are part of a larger effort to combat racism. “This is part of our honest reckoning as a school district,” says SDUSD Vice President Richard Barrera. “If we’re...

Attorney General Kamala D. Harris Issues New Guidelines to Encourage Secure Sharing of Information Between Schools and Child Welfare Agencies to Better Serve Foster Youth Attorney General Kamala D. Harris today announced that the California Department of Justice’s Bureau of Children’s Justice (BCJ), the California Department of Education (CDE), and the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) have jointly developed statewide guidelines for school districts, county offices of...

If AB 1300 helped people access emergency care during a mental health crisis, counties, doctors, people living with mental health conditions, and their families would be the first in line to support it. Instead, the bill represents California’s hospital lobby trying to cut care under the guise of helping those most in need. Statewide, many hospitals lack psychiatrists and emergency room staff are not required to have the specialized training needed to support people at risk in a psychiatric...

Three area housing developments have received $16.2 million in state funds to provide new housing for homeless military veterans and their families. An announcement from Assemblywoman Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, says that $6.37 million was awarded through the Veterans Housing and Homeless Prevention program to the Grantville Veterans Housing project, $3.34 million went to the Vista del Puente in Southcrest in San Diego, and Veterans Village San Diego’s project in Escondido received $6.5...

Services that help area homeless people will receive even more money than originally requested from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development this year. HUD Secretary Julian Castro announced $1.6 billion in grants this week, and almost $15 million is coming to San Diego County. The amount received so far is about $660,000 more than requested. Diaz said the increase was partially the result of adjustments to rental-assistance programs that reflected market increases. HUD funding is...

A North County nonprofit that houses homeless families says it will walk away from roughly $95,000 in federal funding rather than comply with new regulations that forbid it from requiring residents to stay away from drugs. Solutions for Change is one of several homeless agencies in the region working to respond to a new federal policy called Housing First that focuses on getting people into permanent homes with no strings attached. The philosophy is a monumental shift in fighting...

City Attorney Jan Goldsmith (Nelvin C. Cepeda) A San Diego program focused on preventing early offenders from becoming career criminals is expanding to include minor drug offenses and illegal lodging charges brought against homeless people. The one year old criminal diversion program lets people avoid jail time and a criminal record for low-level misdemeanors if they complete two days of community service and pay a $120 fine. It's been touted as a national model and recently received a...

On Tuesday, July 28th, 2015, our San Diego City Council Members unanimously passed the Resolution in Support of Trauma InformedApproach to Address and Prevent Gang Violenceput forth by the Commission on Gang Prevention & Intervention. The ADOPTION AGENDA, DISCUSSION, OTHER LEGISLATIVE ITEMS RESOLUTIONS: ITEM-330 : Resolution Number R-309894 A RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN DIEGO SUPPORTING A TRAUMA-INFORMED APPROACH TO ADDRESS AND PREVENT GANG VIOLENCE ...

Bill HR 850, The  Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning Act of 2015 was introduced by Congressperson Tim Ryan from Ohio in February.  The bill is supported by San Diego representative Susan Davis .  At the end of April, the Bill...