At the start of this year’s spring semester, Southwestern College English professor Elizabeth Smith felt good about the two classes she was offering. Both classes were fully enrolled and their waiting lists were maxed out.
There was only one problem: Almost all the students were fake.
In an alternately heartbreaking and infuriating story, our education reporter, Jakob McWhinney, reveals a troubling trend at Southwestern and other California community colleges.
A wave of fraudulent students, known as bots, is taking advantage of remote learning by signing up for online classes and trying to stick around long enough to collect financial aid payments.
Professors are left to sort out the mess. And legitimate students who actually need to take the classes are getting aced out.
Widespread Problem: The bots are often managed by professional fraud rings. Last year, fraudulent students at California community colleges swindled more than $11 million in state and federal financial aid. The state chancellor’s office estimated 25 percent of community college applicants were bots.
Sacramento Report: Trump’s Slash-and-Burn Climate Strategy Imperils San Diego Programs
San Diego organizations are grappling with President Donald Trump’s plans to claw back federal climate funding and attack state greenhouse gas reduction laws.
San Diego cities, and the county, have adopted (though not always followed) ambitious plans to reduce pollution and switch to alternative forms of energy. Now, many of those plans are in doubt as Trump freezes environmental grants and threatens to attack California’s climate action strategy.
One local organization, the Environmental Health Coalition, already is feeling the squeeze. Last year, the coalition received a $20 million grant from the Environmental Protection Agency to improve air quality, build green spaces and add electric transit to some of San Diego’s most polluted neighborhoods.
On Jan. 28, Trump froze the grant, along with countless others nationwide.
“We’re considering layoffs, we’re considering furloughs and staff time reductions, because we cannot sustain that big a hit,” Amy Castañeda, policy co-director for the coalition, told our Deborah Sullivan. “We are incurring costs, but we are unable to tap into the funds that are contractually obligated to us.”
Taking aim at climate action: Also in Trump’s sights: California’s cap-and-trade market for reducing greenhouse gases. Trump failed to kill the policy during his first presidential term but is trying again. He signed an order last week taking aim at multiple states’ climate programs, including California’s.
Environmental leaders say the assault on environmental programs could throw a monkey wrench into local efforts to slash greenhouse gas emissions, which are already behind schedule.
“This is more of a bullying tactic than anything else, meant to silence, to intimidate, to chill any new actions on climate,” said Nicole Capretz, CEO of Climate Action Campaign. “California is going to have to invest more into climate solutions and backfill what the federal government will say it won’t fund.”
Read the Sacramento Report here.
Politics Report: South Bay Mayors Face Off
In the latest Politics Report, our Scott Lewis recaps what we learned about the battle to replace former Supervisor Nora Vargas now that the primary election is over. He also offers a look at what we might learn soon as two South County mayors face off.
There’s no doubt mayor Paloma Aguirre and John McCann are heading toward a brutal battle for the only open seat. Read more in the Politics Report here.
The Politics Report newsletter is available exclusively to Voice of San Diego members. Become a member today.
VOSD Podcast: On the latest episode, our hosts explain why the developer of Liberty Station is not happy about a proposed homeless safe parking project near the airport and what he’s doing to stop it from happening.
Listen to the full episode here.
You’re Invited to Our Beer Launch Party
In honor of our 20th anniversary, we collaborated with 3 Punk Ales Brewing Company to create a limited edition Voice of San Diego beer!
Be the first to try it at our official launch party next week. Let us pour you one on Thursday, April 24, at 5 p.m. at 3 Punk Ales in Chula Vista.
Click here for more info.
In Other News
- The Prebys Foundation on Friday bought the 24-story Wells Fargo Plaza office tower in downtown San Diego for $40 million, pledging to upgrade the building as part of an effort to revitalize the city’s troubled downtown core. One possible future tenant: San Diego city employees. (Union-Tribune)
- It was hot last week, but persistent coastal fog delayed and even grounded flights at San Diego International Airport. On Friday morning alone, fog delayed 119 flights and forced another eight to cancel. (CBS8).
- Escondido’s Indigenous Culture and Art Festival will go forward as planned, after City Councilmembers decided last week they did not have to revisit an earlier vote to help fund the festival, despite a potential conflict of interest. Councilmember Judy Fitzgerald earlier revealed she had received a campaign donation from one of the festival’s organizers. Fitzgerald apologized and returned the donation, saying she was still learning the Council’s conflict-of-interest rules. (Union-Tribune)
- Cute (but worrisome) alert: KPBS’ Kori Suzuki reports that Imperial County is home to more than 60 percent of California’s burrowing owls, a diminutive species that, unlike most birds, lives in burrows in the ground. But numbers are dwindling and state wildlife officials are considering stepping up protections.
The Morning Report was written by Jim Hinch and Andrea Lopez-Villafaña.