Lookout PM: This weekend’s events, Live Oak’s successful school farm, parent and graduating senior face off for Pajaro Valley school board

Weekender: Celebrating spring – and Mom

Your cheat sheet for eating well and going out in Santa Cruz County this weekend.

From field to lunch tray: Live Oak’s thriving school farm grows thousands of pounds of produce for students

Live Oak School District celebrated the first full harvest year of its campus farm, which produced 4,800 pounds of organic fruits, vegetables and herbs used in school meals and educational programs across seven schools. The project, built on a former baseball field, combines nutrition, hands-on learning and food access, with students helping prepare fresh meals while the farm also donates surplus produce to local families.

A parent and a high school senior are running for Pajaro Valley school board

By Hillary Ojeda

Parent advocate Mads Realmuto and graduating Pajaro Valley High senior Eriberto Estrada have announced campaigns for the Pajaro Valley Unified School District board, challenging incumbents Misty Navarro and Daniel Dodge Jr., respectively, in the November election.

Connecting climate science and storytelling at Mission Hill Middle School

By Ava Salinas | Educational Programs Assistant

Working with seventh grade science teachers Sallie Corbin and Christy Fairbairn, Lookout developed a science communication workshop to support students’ climate change research projects and help students think about how complex scientific ideas can be communicated clearly and meaningfully.

OPINION: Fund life, not death: Rep. Jimmy Panetta votes for military spending – Sean Dougherty better aligns with local values

By Unhae Langis

In a time of rising cost of living and escalating war spending abroad, voters in Santa Cruz County face a stark choice in the vote for U.S. House District 19 representative, writes activist Unhae Langis. She argues that current federal budgets favor militarization over community needs such as housing, healthcare and climate resilience, and contrasts incumbent Rep. Jimmy Panetta’s record with challenger Sean Dougherty’s platform. She believes Dougherty is a better choice for Santa Cruz County voters who don’t support military spending.

Latinos in California are mad at Trump. Their votes for Democrats’ gerrymandering show it

By Maya C. Miller / CalMatters, Jeremia Kimelman / CalMatters, and Mohamed Al Elew / CalMatters

Proposition 50, which Democrats framed as a referendum on the Trump administration, attracted far more support from California Latinos than Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign did just the previous year, a CalMatters data analysis has found. The swing toward Prop 50 is yet another indication that President Donald Trump’s fragile coalition of Latino support is dissolving.