Good morning! It’s Thursday, Feb. 12. This is Rob.
Sunny skies and highs in the 60s today, with rain clouds expected over the weekend. NOAA
The Tehipite branch of the Sierra Club invites you to join to attend a presentation of “Big Trees, Big Impact” by local documentary filmmaker Lee Terkelesen at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 18 at the Woodward Park Regional Library. Fresno County Library
1. How Arts Council’s embezzlement probe emerged
Fresno City Manager Georgeanne White shared a basic timeline of how city leaders learned of the reported embezzlement of $1.5 million in public grant money from the Fresno Arts Council.
White told Fresnoland’s Omar S. Rashad that the Arts Council requested more funding last fall even though it never turned in mandated filings by a Sept. 30 deadline.
White said the group also provided shoddy paperwork in a report that the Arts Council ended up giving city officials three months late.
Additionally, the Fresno Arts Council’s executive director later went to city officials requesting copies of what her own staff had sent city officials in January, before reporting missing funds to the Fresno Police Department.
White: “It’s really disappointing, you know? There’s probably not a day or two that go by that I say something like, ‘You can’t make this up.’”
2. On-campus student protest today in Fresno
As pressure mounts on local schools to curtail student-led protests, Fresno Unified plans to host an on-campus student demonstration this morning at Computech Middle School.
The “We are Young, Not Silent” forum allows students an opportunity to express their opinions through respectful dialogue. Students wanted to demonstrate that student voices can be powerful, organized and able to bring about change, district officials said in a statement.
“This student-led forum at Computech provides a meaningful opportunity for students to make their voices heard while remaining on campus in a safe and supportive environment,” said Superintendent Misty Her in the news release. “This is exactly the kind of structured, student-centered platform our district encourages, and we hope to see similar efforts replicated across our other campuses.”
The student rally comes on the heels of numerous campus walkouts in recent weeks, especially in Fresno. Earlier this week, Fresno Unified students rallied in front of City Hall and the downtown ICE office. Police were called to break up a confrontation between students, but no arrests were made and no violence was reported.
The FUSD board faced more criticism late Wednesday either for not supporting the students enough or for supporting them too much, Fresnoland’s Diego Vargas reports.
Kristina Holmes-McIntyre, a community member, urged the board to embrace the ongoing student walkouts as an opportunity to teach students about civic engagement.
Holmes-McIntyre: “What we are witnessing is community becoming village and we ask that this board and this district join in the village.”
3. Clovis cracks down on truant protesters
Clovis police say misdemeanor criminal charges are in the works for at least two adults who police say encouraged and helped organize student walkouts this week.
In a joint media statement Wednesday, police and Clovis school officials said they are reviewing camera footage and recordings of the student protests from Tuesday and said additional adults could also face potential charges of contributing to the delinquency of minors.
“Adults who contribute to or promote truancy place minors at risk and interfere with their education. Clovis Police have identified two of the adults and are working to identify the others involved, with plans to file misdemeanor charges,” police said in the statement.
Today’s newsletter was editor by Fresnoland’s Omar S. Rashad.
Correction: An earlier draft of this newsletter incorrectly identified two adults under investigation for contributing to the delinquency of minors. Clovis police are focused on any adults who may have encouraged or promoted student truancy.
