Morning Lookout: Wind, rain expected tonight; UCSC reaches settlement with lecturers and more

By Tulsi Kamath

Source: Lookout Santa Cruz

Good Morning! It’s Monday, November 8 and we’re watching the weather again today with parts of Santa Cruz County under a Wind Advisory later this evening and rain expected after 4 p.m. The high today is forecasted near 61 degrees.

The National Weather Service says precipitation totals over the CZU Lightning Complex burn scars and in the Santa Cruz Mountains could peak at half- to three-quarters of an inch of rain.

The pandemic hasn’t been easy on our kids and Santa Cruz County Office Education just got a major monetary boost to improve mental health treatment for kids. Educators around the state are looking for ways to buck the grade-point system as the pandemic shines a light on what they say is an evaluation method that hurts disadvantaged students. A judge has ordered state officials to immediately to provide distance learning that is comparable to last year for students with disabilities — a ruling that has broad implications for California kids.

Some cool news for tech lovers: a “holy grail” of vintage tech, a handmade 45-year-old Apple-1, is going up for auction and it will not be cheap. And finally, as it turns out, the bane of our Wallace Baine’s existence is leafblowers and he has a hot take you should read here.

Here are your headlines:

Helping students, families navigate mental health: $4M grant will target challenge of finding services

Santa Cruz County’s Office of Education and Behavioral Health Division received a $4 million grant to improve access to mental health treatment for youth. School officials and mental health providers say it’s coming at a time when the need for such services has increased due to the pandemic. Read more from our Hillary Ojeda here.

Faced with soaring Ds and Fs, schools are ditching the old way of grading

Senior student Ariana Diaz with a plexiglass barrier in the art classroom

Pandemic-forced school closures revealed how grade-point systems hurt disadvantaged children, prompting educators to look for ways to bring equity to grading. “By continuing to use century-old grading practices, we inadvertently perpetuate achievement and opportunity gaps, rewarding our most privileged students and punishing those who are not.” Read more here.

Court order reinstates distance learning for group of disabled students; broad implications

Teresa Miller holds algebra class, live as well as on and zoom simultaneously

State officials must act immediately to provide distance learning that is comparable to last year for students with disabilities and also adequate to their overall needs, a judge has ordered. The court finding will provide immediate relief for 15 students — with several dozen others that could follow — but there are broad implications for students across California. Read more here.

UCSC, lecturers reach settlement over unpaid work between 2018 and 2021

UC Santa Cruz lecturers filed a grievance in 2018 alleging that the university owed them pay for hours they spent attending faculty meetings and special events, among other tasks. As part of the settlement of the issue, the school will pay lecturers sums of between $650 and $1,000 for each course taught between 2018 and 2021 and increase pay going forward. Read more from our Hillary Ojeda here.

Apple-1 computer, ‘holy grail’ of vintage tech, to be auctioned off in Southern California

Original Apple-1 "NTI" motherboard and an Apple Cassette Adapter (ACI) in an original ByteShop Apple-1 koa wood case

An Apple-1 unit, built by Steve Wozniak, Steve Jobs and others, is set for auction this week. The unit is dubbed the “Chaffey College Apple-1" because its first owner was identified as a Chaffey professor. It was unearthed from the Rancho Cucamonga home of a former Chaffey student who bought it from the professor for $650 in 1977. The investment may pay off as it’s expected to sell for close to $500,000. Read more here.

Santa Cruz artist Dag Weiser does it all — and he’s finally at peace with the moniker ‘Mr. Cardboard’

A detail from “The Last Waltz of the Penguins," a display made out of cardboard made by artist Dag Weiser.

Artist Dag Weiser says he’s always had “a weird attitude about the impermanence of art,” which fits neatly into his one-night-only Halloween displays both this year and in years past. Though he’s more than just “Mr. Cardboard,” with a discipline that includes assemblage and painting, he’s happy to be known for his temporary art. Read more from our Wallace Baine here.

WALLACE BAINE: To insure domestic tranquility, it’s time to ban those &#$%@! leaf blowers

File image of man blowing leaves in the fall

The bane of Wallace Baine’s existence, as it turns out, is leaf blowers. In his latest column, he urges the various government bodies of Santa Cruz County — who seem to be unable to agree about anything — to go for an easy win and ban, at least, the gasoline-powered version. Read his full hot take here.

The cheese stands alone: Staff of Life’s fromager maps out party-pleasing cheeseboards

Cesar Olivares, a world-class cheese expert who personally tastes and selects each of the 300-plus cheeses Staff of Life stocks, is our go-to for tips on not just which cheeses you need on for that holiday cheese arrangement but how to cut and present them. Read more about what he told our Food Correspondent Lily Belli here.

READ ALSO: Here comes REI: Will Santa Cruz be a good fit for the big outdoor/adventure sports retailer? (Grace Stetson / Lookout Santa Cruz)

Around the county...

New Santa Cruz homeless manager weighs in on job responsibilities (Santa Cruz Sentinel)

Watsonville Veterans Day ceremony returns after pandemic hiatus (The Pajaronian)

Monarch butterfly count update puts population at 13,708 in Pacific Grove (KSBW-TV)

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Have a great day!

Tulsi Kamath
Lookout Santa Cruz