News Briefs

Locals head to government summit
Scotts Valley City Councilwoman Stephany Aguilar and school trustees Sue Roth, Allison Niday and Mike Shulman are in Sacramento for a weekend summit of local officials aimed at fixing the state’s flagging fiscal and governance systems.
The gathering, sponsored by the Cities Counties Schools Partnership, a collaboration of city, county and school leaders, expects to develop strategies to address budget, energy, water, education and health issues.
“The system is broken, and as a result, our communities and local schools continue to endure devastating consequences,” explained Scott Plotkin, executive director of the California School Boards Association, one of the participants.
Low-income kids get supplies
The Santa Cruz County Office of Education is launching its annual drive to provide backpacks filled with school supplies for students in homeless and low-income families.
The goal is to provide 4,000 backpacks through community donations and a partnership with Costco in Santa Cruz.
The county office will accept cash donations, new solid-color backpacks, school supplies, bus passes and gift certificates for shoes and clothing.
For information: 466-5710 or nm*****@**************ca.us.
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