The following organizations or individuals deserve either CHEERS
or JEERS this week:
The following organizations or individuals deserve either CHEERS or JEERS this week:
CHEERS: For all of the people who made this year’s Relay for Life a success. This year’s event included 44 teams and raised more than $100,000 for the American Cancer Society. Organizer Gabe Nino deserves a special pat on the back; only a day after the relay he was already coordinating how to make next year’s event bigger and better.
CHEERS: For all of the high school students who have decided to spend valuable hours of their vacation in summer school. Nearly all of the 150 students enrolled in remedial summer school classes have chosen to remain in them. Also, an even bigger cheer goes out to the district for continuing to offer the remedial classes despite the cancellation of the state high school exit exam. The district employees went the extra mile when they personally contacted the parents of these students to make sure they knew summer courses were still being offered.
JEERS: For the lawyer representing the Day Road residents who oppose the Gilroy Unified School District’s decision to build a second high school in their neighborhood. Attorney Bruce Tichinin told Council members the property’s developer was pressuring the school district to agree to purchase the property. Tichinin should base comments like this – made at a public meeting, in particular – in fact and not what appears to be rumor or his own assumptions.
CHEERS: To members of the Service Employees International Union 715, which represents about half of Santa Clara County’s 16,000 workers. These union members agreed to defer a 2.5 percent of 3.5 percent pay increase in order to temporarily avoid layoffs. The move buys the county time as it waits for the bad news from the state budget.
JEERS: To state lawmakers who are so entrenched in their positions that they can’t find a way to compromise. The state budget is now weeks overdue and local governments and school districts are hanging on by their fingernails waiting for details on how much they’ll have to cut. It’s past time for Sacramento politicians to make some difficult decisions and get a budget passed.
