Beginning promptly at 7:40 a.m. on Friday, retired Police Lieutenant John Hohmann begins his criminal justice class with a “behind the scenes” tour of the Scotts Valley Police Station. As part of the regional occupation program, 32 students from Scotts Valley High School are offered an opportunity to learn about the criminal justice system with hands on experience.

After over 20 years of serving on Scotts Valley City Council, Stephany Aguilar has no desire to stop serving her community.

Rarely does a person give back so much to the neighborhood she settled in as Vicki Wees. Wees, now 64-years-old, first moved into a rented house in the Felton Grove neighborhood in 1979, when she was 25. Except for a few years here and there, Wees has lived in Felton Grove ever since. About 10 years ago, as something of a hobby, Wees began collecting historic photographs, documents and maps of the Felton Grove neighborhood.

A longtime educator is trying to “balance the board” of the Scotts Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees in the upcoming election. George St. Clair, who has worked extensively in education, as a teacher and a tutorial center coordinator among other roles, believes he has an inside look at how school administration works “at all levels.”

Scotts Valley City Council race is shaping up to be between two incumbent city council members and a political newcomer. Scotts Valley resident Derek Timm will be running against current city council member Stephanie Aguilar and Mayor Jim Reed for one of two available seats in this year’s election.

The race for three open seats on the board of directors of the San Lorenzo Valley Water District is shaping up as a contest between two, three-candidate slates- dubbed the “Incumbent Slate” vs.  “Challenging Slate.”  The Press Banner sat down with the “Incumbent Slate” of candidates- Chuck Baughman, Gene Ratcliffe, and newly appointed board member John Hayes for a wide-ranging conversation on what they have accomplished in the last four years, and what they hope to do in the next four years.