Local news for your classroom: Weekly roundup 11/4/25
Clocks sprung back this weekend, giving us a helpful extra hour of sleep after Halloween weekend festivities. While it may be the end of the spooky season, it’s only the beginning of shorter days. Evidently, some people are still making the most out of them. Pranvera Hyseni, who helped found the first national observatory in Kosovo a year ago, now contributes to astronomy knowledge in the Bay Area. Meanwhile, marine researchers explain that the phenomenon of intrepid otters mounting surfboards may actually be explained by our behavior influencing theirs.
Also, I have some big news: Lookout’s annual journalism scholarship, where students write about a local “unsung hero”, is officially taking submissions! All high school students in Santa Cruz County are encouraged to apply. The top ten winners will be published on Lookout’s site and the top three winners will win $500 each. Check out more information, including entry requirements, here. If you would like to assign this to your class and would like us to host a class workshop, or have a Lookout representative come to your class to share more info, we would be happy to! Feel free to reach out with any questions at interns@lookoutlocal.com or jamie@lookoutlocal.com.
This week’s highlighted stories
Too cute for comfort? Santa Cruz’s sea otters might have a publicity problem
Why it matters: Researchers say furry surfboard thieves off Santa Cruz’s shores aren’t just a cute, quirky phenomenon, but indicative of how humans are reshaping natural otter behavior. Researchers say that marine recreation and tourism is making otters less wary of humans, which can have negative effects on their natural instincts for self-preservation.
In the classroom: Though otter adorability attracts crowds, bringing millions of dollars in ecotourism into the coast, why is it important for boundaries to remain? How does the article define habituation? What are some of the effects the article mentions of otters getting too used to humans? Students may consider otters being less likely to flee predators, more likely to approach threats, and wasting their energy with the stress of human disturbances.
UCSC astronomy Ph.D. survived war and helped build Kosovo’s first observatory. Now, she’s bringing the cosmos to Bay Area classrooms.
Why it matters: Pranvera Hyseni, now a Ph.D. candidate at UC Santa Cruz, was only four years old at the end of the Kosovo War when she witnessed her first partial solar eclipse. In 2024, she, alongside other volunteers, opened the first national observatory and planetarium in Kosovo. An inspirational article about the power of knowledge, not only does Hyseni aim to make the knowledge she learns accessible to her homeland, but also to the youth in her current home, the Bay Area.
In the classroom: Ask students how the article speaks to the testament of the human spirit and of perseverance; what challenges does the article illustrate and what challenges can students imagine Hyseni has had to overcome to get where she is today? To expand on the themes of the article, how might the democratization of knowledge lessen inequality?
Interested in more stories? Browse all our recent coverage here.
More current events for the classroom
Head Start child care program for low-income families closes temporarily due to government shutdown
By Hillary Ojeda
A federally funded Head Start child care program run by Encompass Community Services has temporarily closed due to the ongoing government shutdown, leaving 250 children without care and 91 staff members out of work. Encompass partnered with Pajaro Valley Unified School District to offer limited temporary placements while awaiting the program’s reopening.
Santa Cruz City Council is making real progress on accountability in affordable housing
By Bruce Van Allen
The Santa Cruz City Council is moving forward with a new accountability and preference system to ensure local workers and residents get priority for affordable housing. Bruce Van Allen, a former Santa Cruz mayor and a longtime housing advocate, is a member of the progressive group that pushed for this resolution. He says the move marks a major step in community trust and will result in a public dashboard that will track affordable units and how quickly they fill.
Carmageddon: To ease Murray Street Bridge closure, RTC pushes ahead with biking, walking path over harbor
By Max Chun
Transit officials are proposing an 8-foot trail over the Santa Cruz Harbor rail bridge between Seabright Avenue and 7th Avenue that could be used by as many as 450 cyclists and pedestrians daily.
Continue reading…
California News
California Democrats made Prop 50 about Trump. Polls show it’s working as voting ends
By Maya C. Miller / CalMatters
While lopsided polling and fundraising have given the Yes on 50 campaign an undeniable advantage, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s team is taking nothing for granted as Election Day arrives.
Student Events
Making a splash: Cabrillo’s ‘Metamorphoses’ flows with theatrical magic
There is high praise of Cabrillo College Theatre Arts Department’s production of “Metamorphoses,” based on “Ovid” and considered a flowing visual masterpiece. See it at the Black Box Theater at Cabrillo College.
Educator Resources
How a Wildlife Photographer Uses His Talent to Advocate for an Ecosystem
From PBS Student Reporting Labs, learn how an engineering student uses his technical knowledge to design motion-activated mechanisms to capture wildlife photographs with the ultimate goal of saltwater marsh protection.
Lookout will be accepting submissions for our journalism scholarship contest from November to February. We invite all high school students in Santa Cruz County to apply. Top three winners win $500 each and top ten winners get published on the Lookout site.
Book a class visit with Lookout Santa Cruz
We’d love to visit your classroom! Lookout staff can come to your classroom and lead a workshop about various things from journalism to elections. These workshops last the length of one class period and are a great way to get your students engaged in different aspects of learning. Reach out if you are interested.
Thank you for all the work you do in our community. Your efforts help younger generations build media literacy skills, engage with their communities, and grow as active democratic citizens. If you’d like to learn more about our school programs, get involved, or have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at interns@lookoutlocal.com or my mentor Jamie Garfield (Director of Student and Community Engagement) at jamie@lookoutlocal.com
Best,
Ava Salinas
Educational Program Assistant
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