Good morning! It’s Wednesday, Dec. 17. This is Rob.
😶🌫️ Misty morning: More fog and highs in the 40s over Fresno today. NOAA
🤔 Whistle-stop: Gubernatorial candidate and Bay Area congressman Eric Swalwell made a campaign stop in Fresno this week. CBS47
🚨RIP: Family and friends are grieving the loss of a couple who died while trying to stay warm in their tent along a Fresno highway. The Fresno Bee
🔍 Antisemitism at Fresno State? President Dr. Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval says Fresno State is investigating at least three cases of antisemitic vandalism on campus in recent weeks. ABC30
💵 Thanks? Trump’s $12 billion relief bill won’t do much for Fresno growers. Business Journal
🚗 Heads up, gig workers: The California Gig Workers Union (SEIU) is having a meeting from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 17, at 5228 E. Pine Ave., to gather rideshare drivers for more info about the unionization efforts and to connect drivers with other drivers. Please attend! It’s all informational: no cost, no commitment necessary. More information here
🛣️ Carpool lane study: The Fresno Council of Governments invites you to participate in the Managed Lanes Study survey, which aims to collect important feedback regarding how you use and experience highways State Route 168, State Route 41, and State Route 180. Survey
😺 Xmas pet toys: The Fresno Animal Center invites the community to help spread joy to its animals through a Christmas Toy Drive. Donate here
1. ‘Guaranteed income works’
A Fresno State study of a program that gave 150 families monthly stipends of $500 showed participants used the guaranteed basic income primarily to buy food, clothes and pay down debt.
Fresnoland’s Julianna Morano was on hand Tuesday at a Fresno Economic Opportunities Commission news conference where program participants discussed how the extra cash helped.
As has been consistent across numerous studies of basic income programs, participants didn’t report any lower rates of employment.
Program leaders now plan to bring the results of this pilot to more funders, as well as local and state policymakers, to make the case for an expanded version.
Fresno State Professor Amber Crowell: “Nobody reported that they quit their job. In fact, what we did hear is that people were maintaining their regular jobs, but cutting back on gig hours that they’d been doing to make extra money.”
2. ‘We can’t be the only ones feeling this way right now’
Many shoppers in Fresno — and across the country — don’t appear to be feeling the holiday season this year, Fresnoland’s Gisselle Medina notes.
Amid rising prices and economic uncertainty, shoppers are relying more on bargains and online conveniences. Studies show that younger consumers, and Generation Z in particular, appear to be tightening budgets — spending is down.
And at least some Fresno-area businesses are feeling that pain this year.
Ashley Mireles-Guerrero, cofounder of Judging by the Cover, says inflation, economic uncertainty, and shifting tariffs have all made this holiday season more challenging for the Fresno bookstore.
Overall, holiday sales are down 20% from last year.
Fresno artist and organizer Antonio Quevedo: “Anti-holiday sounds negative, but that’s not the purpose. We can’t be the only ones feeling this way right now, so let’s make a message out of it.”
3. Career tech education on the rise
Throughout California, Career Technical Education has never been more popular in California schools, including schools in Fresno County.
Across the state, more than 26% of students completed a pathway in 2025, an 18% bump over seven years. The push is fueled by changing attitudes about the value of college and concerns that students are not leaving high school with marketable skills, EdSource reports.
Historically, school systems had funneled students with behavior problems or those considered less likely to be college-bound through the CTE pipeline, formerly known as vocational education.
That changed as districts such as Sanger Unified School District expanded the focus of CTE more than a decade ago. Now, CTE programs offer both skill-based certificates and college classes to train all students for careers that may or may not require college degrees.
Sanger Unified Superintendent Dennis Wiechmann: “Breaking the cycle of poverty — sometimes it takes generations to do that. So how do we get them ahead of the curve in one generation? CTE is a great avenue.”
Today’s newsletter was edited by Danielle Bergstrom.
