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Despite Reform Gains, Partisan Interests Still Largely Control Redistricting Process
Despite Reform Gains, Partisan Interests Still Largely Control Redistricting Process
Editor's Note: This article originally appeared on The Fulcrum and has been republished on IVN with permission from the publisher. ‍ Next year's redistricting landscape is, at best, a mixed bag for good-governance advocates. Although the mapmaking process has become fairer and less politicized in a handful of states over the past decade, partisan gerrymandering will still have a profound impact on representation across most of the country. Democrats had high hopes of taking back enough power
24 Nov, 2020
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8 min read
Still Cooking: Some San Diego Entrepreneurs Open New Eateries During Recession
Still Cooking: Some San Diego Entrepreneurs Open New Eateries During Recession
When Dennis O’Connor co-purchased the vacated Fraser's Boiler Service building in 2015 — he had big plans for the historic Barrio Logan space. It began with creating a production space for his brewery, Thorn Brewing Co., and was meant to be completed with eateries and a speakeasy with an emphasis on environmental sustainability. Five years later, the space known as Acre of Awesome, is finally open but it’s looking different than O’Connor had anticipated. He, along with his partners, have pause
23 Nov, 2020
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4 min read
4 New Voting Methods to Unrig the US Political Process
4 New Voting Methods to Unrig the US Political Process
The movements to reform the electoral process in the US made significant and historic gains during the 2020 election. Voters in 5 cities approved the use of ranked choice voting, and Alaska voters combined the use of RCV in the general election with the first top-four nonpartisan open primary. And, in St. Louis, voters approved the first nonpartisan open primary combined with approval voting. Changing how voters elect public officials is at the core of the nonpartisan reform effort. The curr
18 Nov, 2020
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4 min read
Community College Enrollment Falls as Students Grapple with Job Loss, Online Learning
Community College Enrollment Falls as Students Grapple with Job Loss, Online Learning
David Lewis was just a few credits shy of earning his associate’s degree in journalism from Long Beach City College when the pandemic hit. Lewis, 29, was already encountering scheduling conflicts between his classes and a new job at Trader Joe’s. As the assignments for his online classes started to pile up, he struggled to keep pace. In March, he left school. It was a difficult choice because he’d returned to college just months before, determined to fulfill a promise he’d made to his mother b
18 Nov, 2020
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10 min read
Dictators Who Have Ruled in the Past – Is It Happening Again?
Dictators Who Have Ruled in the Past – Is It Happening Again?
Kenneth C. Davis joins host T. J. O’Hara on Deconstructed to talk about his new book, Strongman: The Rise of Five Dictators and the Fall of Democracy. Mr. Davis is a renowned historian and also the author of Don't Know Much About History, which spent 35 consecutive weeks on The New York Times bestseller list and gave rise to the expansive Don't Know Much About-series of books and audios. His books are well-researched and extremely informative. Mr. Davis discusses the origins of democracy before
18 Nov, 2020
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1 min read
Let’s Start A Homelessness Win Streak With the ‘Housing First’ Game Plan
Let’s Start A Homelessness Win Streak With the ‘Housing First’ Game Plan
Supporting homelessness causes can sometimes feel like rooting for the Los Angeles Chargers. Not that San Diegans should feel obligated to cheer for a greedy, mercenary NFL owner who unforgivably ripped the heart out of a faithful community by moving his team to L.A. Anyone still grasping on to Chargers loyalty, though, has watched recent squads master the art of unlikely last-minute losses. One pundit wrote that the team deserves “a black belt in snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.” I
16 Nov, 2020
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8 min read
How Educational Inequities Begin the Moment a Child Is Born
How Educational Inequities Begin the Moment a Child Is Born
This is the first in a two-part series. Check back with IVN San Diego next week for the next column More than 50 years have passed since the groundbreaking Equality of Educational Opportunity Coleman Report was published, yet it remains relevant today. The 750-page Coleman Report, led by James Coleman, was mandated by the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and – although not without controversy – is still the go-to document for evidence-based education policy. Before the Coleman Report was released,
16 Nov, 2020
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11 min read
Francis Parker School Fears Student Boycott Over Teacher’s COVID Resignation
Francis Parker School Fears Student Boycott Over Teacher’s COVID Resignation
A popular English teacher at Francis Parker School is resigning over pending in-person instruction rules, and officials of the elite private school in Linda Vista fear a student boycott. Chris Harrington, head of the English Department in the Upper and Middle schools and a faculty member since 1991, emailed students Thursday. “Because my wife is in a high-risk category for COVID complications, I wanted to wait until I felt like the risk was minimized,” he said, noting that a change in school p
13 Nov, 2020
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7 min read
To Pivot or Stay the Course? Catering, Events Professionals Seek Paths to Survive
To Pivot or Stay the Course? Catering, Events Professionals Seek Paths to Survive
The COVID-19-related private event cancellations started in February, reaching a crescendo in March as the pandemic closed down travel worldwide. Meetings, conventions and catered private events, including weddings, ground to an abrupt halt. By the time the state and county issued lockdown orders catering and event professionals' suspended businesses were already facing hibernation at best. San Diego’s tourism and events industry, which represents about $11.6 billion in annual total visitor spe
12 Nov, 2020
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6 min read
Now That the Election is Over, We Must Reform Our Politics
Now That the Election is Over, We Must Reform Our Politics
This is an independent opinion. Have one of your own? Email it to hoa@ivn.us In the recent elections, the U.S. came perilously close to re-electing a man who, after four long years as our president, made it clear that he was an incompetent, authoritarian conman. He presided over a failed pandemic response, greatly increased the budget deficit despite promising to reduce it and dismantled environmental protections that had been in place for decades. While we may all breathe a sigh of relief for
11 Nov, 2020
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3 min read