Local

(EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK—ENN)— SAN BERNARDINO, CA—- Bullying and violence in our communities were top concerns on Monday night. Over 200 community members joined with Assemblymember Reyes and Chief Joseph Paulino of the San Bernardino City Unified School District Police at Arroyo Valley High School to share their frustrations and concerns on important community issues in San Bernardino. 

The goal of the Community Healing Forum was to provide a safe space for the community to express their concerns to community leaders. The main topics discussed were bullying and student safety.

“It was clear to me that bullying is a main concern to parents and our community. When parents drop off their children at school they expect them to be safe from bullying and other trauma that impacts their children,” said Assemblymember Reyes. “These conversations are difficult, but they are the first step to healing and finding solutions to the community’s concerns.”  

The Community Healing: Protecting the Next Generation event was the first in a series of community healing events that Assemblymember Reyes is planning throughout the 47th Assembly District. These events will tackle issues of poverty, gun violence, student safety, homelessness, government transparency and more.

Many partners joined to ensure the community was heard including: Moderators Dr. April Clay, Clay Counseling Solutions and Mary Valdemar, Ch.I.C.C.C.A.A. The panelists in attendance included: Abigail Medina, SBCUSD School Board President; Gwen Rodgers, SBCUSD School Board Vice-President; Jason Anderson, San Bernardino County District Attorney; Horace Boatwright, Deputy Chief San Bernardino County Sheriff; Michele Mahan, Lieutenant San Bernardino City Police Department; Sergio Luna, Director of Organizing Inland Congregation United for Change; and, Terrance Stone, Executive Director Young Visionaries. 

(EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK—ENN)— SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY—- About 1,200 county residents registered to vote last week, pushing the total number of registered voters in San Bernardino County past the one million mark for the first time ever.

More than 75 percent of eligible county residents are now registered to vote.

The Registrar of Voters processed the registration records submitted last week and determined which were new voters and which were updates to existing voter records.  The Registrar of Voters confirmed today that the one million registered voters’ milestone was achieved on Wednesday, September 25, 2019.

“It’s great to see this level of interest in voting in our county. Voter participation increases our community’s influence on regional, state and federal issues,” said Board of Supervisors Chairman Curt Hagman.

As the County celebrates this milestone, we encourage voters to share their thoughts on social media about why it is important to register.

The registrar may share or retweet non-partisan posts that tag the Registrar of Voters and use #VoteReady and #SBCountyCounts in an effort to reach more than 330,000 potential voters in San Bernardino County still not registered to vote.  

Eligible citizens may register or re-register online at SBCountyElections.com. Voter registration applications are also available at the Registrar of Voters office in San Bernardino and throughout the county at post offices, city clerks’ offices, county libraries, and the Department of Motor Vehicles. A map of these locations is available on the Registrar of Voters website.

Likewise, 16 and 17 year olds may now pre-register to vote if they meet all other eligibility requirements. On their 18th birthday, they will be automatically registered to vote so they will not miss an election.

Finally, the Registrar of Voters encourages voters and potential voters to be #VoteReady for the upcoming Presidential Primary Election on March 3, 2020.

Voters can verify their registration status by visiting SBCountyElections.com and logging into the My Elections Gateway application. Any voter who wants to update their name, address, or party affiliation will need to re-register to be #VoteReady.

For more information about registering, re-registering or pre-registering to vote, visit the Registrar of Voters website at SBCountyElections.com, or call (909) 387-8300.

Fontana, CA — Zeta Sky today announced its commitment to National Cybersecurity Awareness Month (NCSAM), held annually in October.

To mark the occasion, Zeta Sky will be hosting the Inland Empire Cyber Security Summit on October 17th, 2019 at the InTech Center in Fontana.

Click Here to Register (Please RSVP by October 15th as catered lunch will be provided)

Attendees will hear from the FBI – Cyber Crime Unit about the latest and greatest threats against businesses and employees, how to avoid being the next victim, and simple ways to build awareness in your company.

You’ll also hear from Guest experts from Datto, representatives from Citrix, and Cyber Insurance specialists.

This will be a great opportunity to learn from industry professionals, network with your peers, and bring actionable steps to help secure your business!

“Cybersecurity is important to the success of all businesses and organizations. We are proud to have such a strong and active community helping to encourage proactive behavior and prioritize cybersecurity in their organizations – Adrian Francoz, CEO of Zeta Sky”

Photos by John Coleman

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Thanksgiving is a time for reflecting on what we have been blessed with, and giving back. On Wednesday, November 27^th – the day before the annual turkey feast – local non-profit Project Boon and over 25 other local businesses, non-profits and government organizations will be teaming up in Fontana’s Seville Park to help give thanks and bring the spirit of the season to the Inland Empire’s underserved communities. Beginning at 11:00am and running until 3:00pm, the 8^th Annual Eat and Be Well event will provide families with a traditional Thanksgiving meal, access to health services, fun and entertainment for the whole family to enjoy.

Eat and Be Well will enters its 8^th consecutive year of bringing the Inland Empire community together for the common good. The annual Project Boon event draws thousands of people together for a fun-filled day of feasting, entertainment, and health services. Most importantly, it helps people in need stretch their budgets while still enjoying all that the season has to offer.

Although providing a free bountiful meal to those in need is a reward in and of itself. Eat and Be Well also serves up health and wellness by partnering with both non-profits and for-profits businesses that have programs that provide vital resources. To be able to serve up to 2,500 attendees, Eat and Be Well relies on donations to cover costs and food items. In past years, this has included free dental exams, provided by In motion Dentists, health exams from Bloomington Community Health Center, and bus passes provided by Omnitrans to help people without transportation get to and from the event.

“Last year, after having my house-call dental practice volunteer at Project Boon’s Thanksgiving Health Fair, I was able to see what type of impact they were making in the lives of so many people in Southern California,” said Dr. Wade Banner, In Motion Dentists. “It was because of their mission, vision and overall heart to help their local community that I found a desire to continue helping Project Boon in any way I could, I look forward to many years of a close volunteering relationship to support our local community.”

You can contribute to Eat and Be Well by dropping off turkeys, canned food; such as sweet potatoes, gravy, and cranberry sauce at The Hitch Burger Grill in Rancho Cucamonga, California or visit our website for a complete list of items needed and drop-off locations.

Excess perishables will be donated to help support recovery homes, churches, soup kitchens, veterans and missions the next day on Thanksgiving.

For more information on how to volunteer, donate, sponsor or for a complete list of items needed and drop-off locations visit eatbewell.org

During the tour, Torres visited eight homegrown businesses in Fontana and Ontario to highlight the strength of local manufacturers

EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK—ENN— (ONTARIO, CA)—U.S. Representative Norma J. Torres (D-Pomona) recently concluded her annual “Made in the 35^th” tour of manufacturing businesses in the 35^th congressional district. The tour included meetings and site visits with manufacturers in a wide range of industries, including metal fabrication, aerospace, cargo, and defense in Fontana and Ontario.

“The 35^th Congressional District is home to manufacturers that support everything from the military to the roofing on our homes. My annual ‘Made in the 35^th‘ tour highlights our local businesses and provides me with an opportunity to hear directly from them about how we can grow the Inland Empire economy,” said Torres. “As a member of the Appropriations Committee, I will continue to push for increased funding to help manufacturers find new markets to sell their products and bolster efforts to train and prepare the workforce to fill the jobs these businesses are creating every day. That’s how we ensure that Inland Empire manufacturers and workers can continue to compete and thrive for decades to come.”

In the 35^th congressional district, a total of 36,955 people are employed in the manufacturing industry. The average wage for manufacturing employees in California is $83,000, which is nearly the double wage of all sectors in the 35th district at $48,797.

As a member of the House Appropriations Committee, Torres worked to secure $14,000,000 in additional funds for the Manufacturing Extension Partnership in the fiscal year 2020 Commerce-Justice-Science appropriations bill. The funding will help small and medium-sized manufacturers improve production processes, upgrade technological capabilities, and facilitate product innovation. Since her first term in Congress, Torres has held district-wide Job Creation Listening Tours, where she brings together area business owners, community leaders, educational experts, and employees to get their views on the local economy. She released a white paper outlining a legislative plan based on the listening tour and a one-year update on the progress made on the plan.

The 35^th Congressional District is one of the hardest to count in the country

The town hall brought together representatives from the U.S. Census Bureau, local elected officials, community-based organizations, educational institutions, the business community, and members of the public  

ONTARIO, CA — U.S. Representative Norma J. Torres (D-Pomona) recently convened a town hall at the Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters, Local 909 to discuss the importance of the upcoming 2020 Census with representatives from the U.S. Census Bureau, the NALEO Educational Fund, the Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters, the County of Los Angeles, The Community Foundation, the Warehouse Workers Resource Center, First 5 San Bernardino, the County of San Bernardino Preschool Services Department, and members of the public. California’s 35^th Congressional District is one of the hardest to count in the country, with approximately 231,300 people or 31 percent of the district living in hard-to-count neighborhoods. This is the second town hall Torres has held on the 2020 Census. The first forum connected community partners with resources to promote participation in the 2020 Census.

During the town hall, Torres and the participants discussed how information collected by the Census is protected under U.S. Code Title 13. In light of concerns over the Trump administration’s proposed citizenship question in the census, U.S. Code Title 13 requires the Census Bureau to keep any information collected from respondents confidential and strictly used only for statistical purposes. This information may not be shared with any government agencies, including law enforcement. The town hall also touched on challenges surrounding the undercount of children, resources to increase access to online questionnaires in Los Angeles County and the Inland Empire, and employment opportunities available with the Bureau.

“I’m committed to making sure that every person in our community is counted in the census—just as the Constitution mandates. The census determines so much for the hard-working families in my district and throughout the Inland Empire. From how many federal dollars go to improving our schools, to access to affordable, quality healthcare and strengthening the roads we drive on and the availability of affordable housing,” said Torres. “This town hall helped connect residents with the resources and knowledge they’ll need to be prepared and engaged for the 2020 Census. I’m grateful to all of our partners for their participation. It’s up to all of us to make sure every Californian is counted.”

“The 2020 Census is important, and partners are critical to its success. The goal of the Census is to count everyone once, only once and in the right place,” said Julie Lam, Census Bureau Los Angeles Regional Director. “By mid-March 2020, every home will receive an invitation to participate in the 2020 Census with three options for responding: online, by phone, or by mail. It’s against the law for us to publicly release your responses in any way that could identify you or your household.”

“Latino children suffered a 7.1% undercount rate, which is significantly higher than the 4.3% rate among non-Latino children. San Bernardino county had the fifth largest percent of undercounted very young Latino children of any county in California during the 2010 Census,” said Adan Chavez, Regional Census Campaign Manager in the Inland Empire for the NALEO Educational Fund. “When young children are not counted, our families and communities cannot get important resources and services like the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), Head Start, and the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Supplemental Nutrition Program. NALEO Educational Fund’s Hazme Contar campaign will help our communities avoid a devastating undercount of Latino children and we are going to continue to work closely with NALEO Member and Congresswoman Norma Torres to ensure the best count possible.”

“The Southwest Carpenters want to thank Representative Torres for her leadership on this important issue,” said Dan Langford, Executive Secretary-Treasurer, Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters. “Representation matters for working people, and the Carpenters will continue to be part of the solution by educating our members and their families about the importance of participating in the 2020 Census.”

Article 1, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution requires the Census Bureau to conduct a census every ten years to count every resident in the U.S. The data collected by the census determines how billions in federal funds are distributed to local communities, as well as the number of seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives. The 2020 Census will begin on April 1, 2020.  

As a member of the Appropriations Committee, Torres helped pass legislation that blocked the Trump administration’s proposal to add a citizenship question to the 2020 Census. She also worked to increase funding for the Census Bureau to $8.45 billion in the Fiscal Year 2020 Appropriations Funding Bill to ensure that the Bureau can conduct a thorough and accurate census that counts all persons, as required by the Constitution. This funding enables the Bureau to carry out the largest and most technologically advanced decennial census in its 230-year history.

ONTARIO, CA— – The Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship (IECE) will be hosting the 2019 Spirit of the Entrepreneur Awards Judging reception on, Wednesday, September25^th where our official 2019 Spirit of the Entrepreneur Semi-Finalists will convene with our judges face-to-face at the Spirit Judging reception (by invitation only). From this event the finalists will be determined. Once they have been determined, the 2019 Spirit Finalists will be featured at the Spirit Awards gala on November 13^th at the Riverside Convention Center. Finalists to be announced September 26^th, 2019.

The Spirit judging reception event is generously sponsored by Roorda, Piquet & Bessee, Inc. (http://rpbcpa.com) who have been providing tax, audit, and accounting and advisory services in the Inland Empire area for over 35 years.

THE JUDGING PROCESS (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/the-judging-process)

All nominees are initially screened and evaluated by the Spirit of the Entrepreneur awards staff to ensure that they meet the basic eligibility requirements. Those companies that pass the initial screening are eligible to participate in the judging reception.

Judges for the event are selected by the Spirit of the Entrepreneur producers and work independently, evaluating each nominee.  Each judge is chosen based on their prior business experience, integrity and willingness to dedicate a significant amount of time to review and evaluate the nominees.  The judging panel is almost exclusively made up of past Spirit award recipients and business leadership professionals that have been vetted to serve as our esteemed judges.  

Each eligible nominee provides extensive company information that is used in the judging process. Judging is based on financial metrics as well the nominee’s accomplishments, innovative approaches and their entrepreneurial spirit.

This year selecting the 2019 finalists from a vast field of over 220 entrepreneurial nominees will be a very difficult task! 

VIEW Our Chosen 2019 Spirit of the Entrepreneur Semi-Finalists (https://spiritawardsie.com/newsMgr/index.php?newsId=56&page=)

LEARN MORE About the Judging Process… (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/the-judging-process)

MEET OUR 2019 SPIRIT JUDGES (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/the-judges)

SECURE Your Tickets to the gala – this event is sold out every year! * (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/ticketing)

More information about sponsorship & volunteer opportunities please contact Mike Stull (909) 537-3708 or via email mstull@csusb.edu.

Ticketing

Attendees can book tickets online with direct seat selection for the 2019 Spirit of the Entrepreneur Awards gala event at https://spiritawardsie.com/content/ticketing. Attendees have the selection choice of pre-show standard reception or our VIP reception Ticket prices for the black-tie event range from $135 to $175 each. Full-table discounts are available. Details are located below:

Spirit Awards Event Features:

• Commencing at 5:00 p.m. on November 13th, attendees can experience either a Gala or VIP reception, three course dinner, stellar event entertainment, awards presentations, and for select parties, an exclusive after party! (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/spirit-schedule)
• The “Best of the Best” award. Sponsored by Best, Best & Krieger (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/best-of-the-best-award)
  One company from among the award recipients that best exemplifies the entrepreneurial spirit will take home the additional 2019 Best of the Best award.
• The Garner Holt Student Fast Pitch Competition (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/garner-holt-fast-pitch-competition)
  Witness featured business pitches from the Top 5 student finalists. Audience members cast their votes for the best business idea through a live voting poll to determine which students will win the cash prizes. These Top 5 students will have competed in a semi-qualifying event that is held one week prior to the Spirit Awards gala in order to gain those top positions. A truly unique aspect to our awards program that celebrates and supports student growth and involvement.
• Entertainment
  Upcoming entertainment guest stars are always an anticipated reveal during the gala. Past events have included top flight entertainment such as: Rock Legend Eddie Money, Ekenah Claudin-Transcending Box, and Greg Adamson- Facing the Music Performance Art.
• VIP Reception Sponsored by City National Bank, an RBC Company (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/vip-seating)
  Treat yourself to a luxurious experience only available to VIP ticket holders. The 2019 Spirit VIP Experience includes access to the exclusive pre-show VIP reception with hosted wine bar, hors d’oeuvres, entertainment, and preferred access to showroom seating for the gala presentation as well as top section seating for the main event while you enjoy specialty selected cuisine for your 3-course dining experience.

Proceeds from the Spirit of the Entrepreneur event benefit the Spirit of the Entrepreneur Scholarship established by Dr. Mike Stull, Director of Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship at California State University, San Bernardino. (https://spiritawardsie.com/content/spirit-scholarship)

About the Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship (IECE) (https://entre.csusb.edu/)

Established in 1999, the Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship (IECE) supports and celebrate Entrepreneurship & Small Business through innovative programs and educational resources. IECE coordinates academic programs that lead to business degrees in Entrepreneurship for undergraduate and graduate students as well as delivering experiential learning and student support programs such as the Fast Pitch Competition.  In the local community, IECE offers existing and aspiring entrepreneurs a wide array of business advisory and mentoring services and entrepreneurial training programs that help them achieve greater levels of success in their business ventures.

IECE was recognized internationally by The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) and received the Entrepreneurship Spotlight Challenge award for demonstrating leadership in creating (and incubating) cutting-edge business innovations through enriched student learning and experiential education; which ranked them among the top 35 entrepreneurship programs globally.

California State University, San Bernardino is a preeminent center of intellectual and cultural activity in Inland Southern California. Opened in 1965 and set at the foothills of the beautiful San Bernardino Mountains, the university serves more than 20,000 students each year and graduates about 4,000 students annually. CSUSB offers 48 undergraduate, 35 graduate, and 1 doctoral degree programs and 14 academic programs with national accreditation.

The Upland Unified School District will tap into a $140,000 grant to create a teacher-residency model in partnership with Cal Poly Pomona.

The district received the funding from the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing and will work on developing the model with the College of Education and Integrative Studies’ Educational Specialist Credential Program, which prepares teachers to work with students with disabilities.

Associate Professor Joanne Van Boxtel, CPP’s project lead, said the grant will provide financial assistance to education specialist teacher residents and their mentor teachers as they participate in a one-year residency program with UUSD. The candidates’ time in residency will satisfy their clinical practice requirement.

“I am thrilled to partner with Upland Unified School District to design an innovative and effective model for teacher preparation,” said Van Boxtel. “Through the residency model, education specialist candidates will engage in powerful hands-on learning in the field from experienced and supportive mentor teachers—it’s a perfect fit with Cal Poly Pomona’s learn-by-doing philosophy!”

The teacher-residency program will formally launch in Spring 2020. Van Boxtel, along with co-project lead Associate Professor Heather Wizikowski, will be working with UUSD to recruit residents until then.

“One of the most exciting features of this grant is the ability to work with Upland to train teachers right in the district’s own classrooms. It’s a win-win in that Upland is able to train high-quality special education teachers and CPP is actively involved with meeting the needs of our surrounding communities,” said Wizikowski.

In order to qualify, candidates must hold a bachelor’s degree in a related field and be accepted into the Education Specialist Credential Program. All qualified applicants will be considered for the residency program through a joint vetting process with Upland USD. Each candidate must commit to teach in Upland once they complete the program.

For more information, email jmvanboxtel@cpp.edu or hewizikowski@cpp.edu.

This year’s forum will be held at Ecclesia Christian Fellowship, 1314 E. Date Street, San Bernardino, CA 92404.  Check-in and Continental breakfast start at 8 a.m.  The program starts at 9:00am and ends at 3 p.m.

Speaker:  Brette Steele serves as the Director of Prevention and National Security at the McCain Institute for International Leadership.  Prior to joining the McCain Institute, Steele served as the Regional Director of Strategic Engagement for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Terrorism Prevention Partnerships.  In that role she advised the State of California in the development of a statewide Preventing Violent Extremism Strategy and partnered with counties, cities, and nonprofit organizations to develop and implement Preventing Violent Extremism programs.

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