Cajon Valley School District

CAJON VALLEY SCHOOL DISTRICT MEETING GETS HEATED OVER YMCA CAMP CONTRACT

By Jessyka Heredia

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June 22, 2023 (El Cajon) – Last Tuesday, staff and parents with opposing views came to the Cajon Valley School Board meeting to be heard. With well over 200 people in attendance the Cajon Valley boardroom was overflowing with outrage and passion. LGBTQ  rights were at the forefront of the debate.


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CAJON VALLEY SCHOOL BOARD RACE: THREE SEATS ARE UP, BUT ONLY TWO WILL BE ON BALLOT – AND ONE HAS ONLY A WRITE-IN CANDIDATE QUALIFIED

By Robin N. Kendall

Photo: Board President Tamara Otero, the only candidate who returned ECM’s questionnaire of five candidates running in three districts.

October 27, 2022 (El Cajon) -- This election year, voters in the Cajon Valley Union School District may or may not see candidates on the ballot for school board trustees, depending on which area they live in. Unlike school districts with “at large” trustees, this big district is divided into five areas, with a balanced number of residents in each area. Trustees represent the area they live in and serve terms of four years. To ensure stability, not all seats are up for reelection the same year. In the last election (2020), trustees for areas 4 and 5 were chosen.


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CAJON VALLEY SCHOOL DISTRICT REPORTS 24 STUDENTS STRANDED IN AFGHANISTAN

By Chris Jennewein, Times of San Diego, a member of the San Diego Online News Association 

Photo:  District offices in El Cajon. Photo courtesy of the district

Update August 31, 2021 - At least 6 of the familes have escaped Afghanistan and three students are back in classes, district spokesman Howard Shen told the San Diego Union-Tribune yesterday. Two other families were still awaiting evacuation at the time.

August 25, 2021 (El Cajon) - The Cajon Valley Union School District said Tuesday that as many as 24 of its students are stranded in Afghanistan and haven’t been able to make it back to the Untied States.


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HINTON CHALLENGES CLARK-MEJIA FOR CAJON VALLEY SCHOOL BOARD TRUSTEE, AREA 4

CVUSD Election, Part One
 
By Robin N. Kendall
 
Photo: Karen Clark Mejia, left, and Monica Hinton, right
 
October 19, 2020 (El Cajon) - Cajon Valley Union School District (CVUSD) is the largest school district in East County. Two of the five seats for Governing Board Member Trustee are on the ballot this year with the incumbents facing one challenger each. Current board member Karen Clark-Meija represents Area 4 and faces behavioral health specialist Monica Hinton on the ballot. Jim Miller represents Area 5 and is challenged by Stacie Hoover, a retired paralegal. 
 
In this part one of our election series on the Cajon Valley School Board race, we will cover Area No. 4. In part two, we will cover Area No. 5.  

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FEDERAL COURT DENIES CAJON VALLEY REQUEST TO DISMISS BARTO LAWSUIT

By Paul Kruze, Contributing Editor 

April 10, 2020 (El Cajon) -- The Cajon Valley Union School District was handed a major defeat on Monday when the United States Southern California District Court refused to dismiss a federal civil rights lawsuit against the district.


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CAJON VALLEY AND OTHER EAST COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICTS ANNOUNCE COVID-19 POLICIES AND CLOSURES

CVUSD provides multi-lingual updates

By Paul Kruze, Contributing Editor

 

Photo: Superintendent David Miyashiro, EdD, screenshot off video

 

March 15, 2020 (San Diego’s East County) -- In line with worldwide concern over the COVID-19 Coronavirus pandemic, Cajon Valley Union School District Superintendent David Miyashiro, EdD outlined a policy Tuesday night on plans to cope with the growing health crisis.


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HEAD-ON COLLISION CAUSED BY CAJON VALLEY SCHOOL DISTRICT DRIVER INJURES THREE

By Miriam Raftery
 
October 4, 2019 (Rancho San Diego) -- A Cajon Valley School District Ford pickup towing a trailer veered into the path of an oncoming Ford Fusion sedan this morning on Avocado Boulevard near Mount Helix, the California Highway Patrol reports. The head-on collision sent the vehicles careening into the front yard of a home, injuring both drivers and an infant in a child safety seat.  

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ANDREW OTERO IN HIS OWN WORDS

By Paul Kruze, Contributing Editor
 
July 3, 2019 (El Cajon) - Andrew Otero on Tuesday released a long written statement on his involvement in a construction contracting scheme. Otero was sentenced Friday in federal court after being found guilty of defrauding the federal government to obtain funds allocated for businesses owned by disabled veterans. Otero states, “I make no excuse, and take full responsibility for what I was convicted of. When you bend rules sometimes you have not even the slightest idea of what the consequences can turn out to be.”

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JUDGMENT DAY FOR LOCAL CONTRACTOR ANDREW OTERO

A U.S. District Court judge fines and sentences Otero to federal prison for fraud

 

By Paul Kruze, Contributing Editor

 

July 3, 2019 (San Diego) -- Friday was judgment day for Andrew R. Otero, owner of A&D General Contracting and husband of Cajon Valley Union School District president Tamara Otero.  

 

Otero, a San Diego building contractor, was sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge John Houston after a federal jury convicted Otero last November of fraudulently obtaining over $11 million dollars in government contracts through his company which had been set aside for small businesses owned by disabled veterans.


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SUPERINTENDENT MIYASHIRO BLASTS STORY ON OTERO CONTRACTING CONTROVERSY, DECLINES TO TAKE ANY ACTION TO ADDRESS DISCLOSURE OR CONFLICT OF INTEREST ISSUES

 

 

By Miriam Raftery, Editor, East County Magazine

 

May 6, 2019 (El Cajon) – Cajon Valley Union School District Superintendent David Miyashiro, Ed.D., sent a blistering editorial in an e-mail to East County Magazine, board members and others blasting our article on board President Tamara Otero’s failure to disclose that her son owned a company that received a $665,000 contract.   He did not list any actions planned to address Otero’s lack of disclosure and transparency.


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CAJON VALLEY SENDS RESPONSE TO CALAWARE, ADDS OPEN GOVERNMENT ACTION TO APRIL 30 AGENDA

 

 

By Miriam Raftery 

April 2, 2019 (El Cajon) – Cajon Valley Union School District’s board president Tamara Otero has sent a formal response letter to Californians Aware (CalAware) agreeing to comply with demands in a legal cease and desist order that the watchdog organization had sent the district on East County Magazine’s behalf. The board’s April 30, 2019 meeting will include the compliance issue on the agenda, the letter added.  


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CAJON VALLEY UNION SCHOOL DISTRICT NAMED 2019 DIGITAL CONVERGENCE NATIONAL SHOWCASE DISTRICT

 

 

By Miriam Raftery 

February 5, 2019 (El Cajon) -- Modern Teacher has named Cajon Valley Union School District the 2019 Digital Convergence National Showcase District. 


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CAJON VALLEY RECEIVES GRANT FROM KAISER PERMANENTE FOR MENTAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES



 

 

East County News Service

December 3, 2018 (El Cajon) -- Kaiser Permanente Southern California announced a $6 million, five-year Community Mental Health and Wellness Initiative with an immediate Local Partnership Grant (LPG) grant allocation of $1.28 million to combat and improve access to mental health services. The initial grant allocation is funding a group of two-year grants to support 16 nonprofit community partners working to improve mental health and wellness in under-resourced Southern California communities. 


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ISLAMIC GROUP CALLS ON CAJON VALLEY SCHOOL BOARD TO FIRE PRINCIPAL MOVED TO ANOTHER SCHOOL AFTER ALLEGED BULLYING SYRIAN REFUGEE

 

 

By Rebecca Jefferis Williamson

Photo: Yusef Miller, CAIR-California 

October 3, 2018 (El Cajon) – Members of CAIR , the Council on American-Islamic Relations, called on Cajon Valley Union School District members  at the September 25th board meeting to  fire former Greenfield Middle School’s principal, Gregory Calvert over his handling of the alleged bullying of a Syrian student.  Calvert has since taken a position as assistant principal at Chase Avenue Elementary in the same school district. 


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FLYERS AT CAREER EXPO TAKE AIM AT JIM MILLER, CAJON VALLEY SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER

 

 

By Miriam Raftery

April 26, 2018 (El Cajon) – Flyers posted and distributed anonymously at a career expo at Cuyamaca College this week took aim at Cajon Valley Union School District trustee Jim Miller.  

The expo was co-sponsored by America's Job Center of Cailfornia and the East County Career Center. Over 50 employees were there to recruit employees for a wide variety of jobs including in healthcare, childcare, education, municipalities, county agencies, public utilities, nursing homes, nonprofits, law enforcement, gaming, landscaping, local legislators, San Diego's radio stations and more.

“As you know, the school district that you choose to work in will have an enormous impact on your classroom, your income, your career, your future, and the pride that comes with being associated with a good school district,” the flyer advises attendees, adding, “Due to the recent antics of one of the members of the Cajon Valley Union School Board, I feel obligated to give you a little background on the actions of this particular ‘loose cannon,’ named Jim Miller. We are also including a listing of other, nearby school districts, that you may consider while you make important decision.


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CAJON VALLEY SCHOOL BOARD UNDER FIRE FOR RESPONSES TO GUN VIOLENCE PROTESTS

 

By Jonathan Goetz and Miriam Raftery

Photo:  Standing room only crowd included dozens of gun control supporters as well as gun rights advocates

April 17, 2018 (El Cajon) – Actions of the Cajon Valley Union School District have become targets for both sides in the gun violence debate. At the April 10th board meeting, members came under fire over:

  • Hillsdale Middle School students put on lunch detention for participating in an on-campus walk out during the nationwide March for Our Lives, an event aiming to to prevent gun violence on campuses;
  •  Termination of a contract for counseling intern Margaret Katchur Morghen, who sat with students during detention as a “learning exercise on the First Amendment” and also spoke with media about the walk-out;
  • School board member Jim Miller firing off a derisive letter to a retired teacher who had written to the Superintendent asking for actions to reduce gun violence at schools. Miller responded on behalf of the San Diego Gun Owners Political Action Committee, and wore a National Rifle Association (NRA) hat during the school board’s April 10, 2018 public meeting.

Those actions got the public up in arms, figuratively speaking. Gun rights advocates and people concerned about gun violence packed the hearing room at the April 10th school board meeting.  Eight people testified during public comments, split evenly with four rounds on each side.


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WATER TESTING FOR LEAD COMES UP CLEAN IN CAJON VALLEY UNION SCHOOL DISTRICT

 

East County News Service

June 18, 2017 (San Diego’s East County) – A new state program authorizes school districts to work with local water districts to provide free lead testing of drinking water at all school sites.  The results are in for Cajon Valley Union School District campuses, which draw water from three water agencies: Helix Water District, Otay Water District and Padre Dam Municipal Water District.


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CAJON VALLEY DISTRICT SHUTS DOWN SCHOOL OVER TOXIC CONCERNS

By Miriam Raftery

June 1, 2015 (El Cajon)—Last week, we reported that parents in El Cajon have filed a lawsuit Ametek Aerospace & Defense, alleging that the company’s underground toxic waste dumping  is causing illness among children at Magnolia Elementary School next door. 

Now the Cajon Valley School District Board has voted unanimously to close down the school for the current school year.  All students and staff will be relocated to Bostonia Elementary School.


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CAJON VALLEY SCHOOL BOARD TO CONSIDER NEW BUDGET CUTS AT TUESDAY MEETING

 

February 22, 2010 (El Cajon) --Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s preliminary budget, released in January, will force more deep cuts for local schools. Tomorrow evening, Cajon Valley School Board will weigh how to cope with $3.5 million in new revenue reductions that the Governor’s budget would mean for the District---on top of a $6 million shortfall that the Board was already anticipating.


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