Crosscurrents

Esther Goolsby is from East Oakland, and she is one of the people Carl Rist’s program might have helped if it were around back in the 90s. She was living in East Oakland, and at age 16 was already a mom. She told our community storytelling project, Hear Here, about the path she took to a college degree. 

At the Castro branch of Citibank in San Francisco, kindergartener Mat Larizadeh is making his very first bank deposit. Mat walks with his mom, Aoddi Attasara, up to the teller window. He’s much too short to see what transpires up there, but he knows the amount is $50 – and that it has something to do with his education. After the transaction, the two make their way over to a table where a plate of cookies, a stack of coloring books, and a clear plastic piggy bank await them.

The San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) is dealing, today, with news that six employees misappropriated $15 million of public funds. A three-year investigation by law enforcement and the District Attorney’s office resulted in charges including grand theft, embezzlement, forgery, and perjury. Jill Tucker has been covering the case for the San Francisco Chronicle. In her cover story this morning, she details how the money was spread between school services, outside non-profits, internal computer systems, salaries, and benefits. I reached Tucker by phone and asked her how $6.7 million were allegedly used on student programs that were not designated by grant funding.

Please support these local businesses and thank them for supporting KALW!

Angkor Borei ~ 3471 Mission (30th/Courtland) ~ 415-550-8417

Arizmendi Bakery ~ 1331 9th Ave (Irving/Judah) ~ 415-566-3117

BiRite Market ~ 3639 18th (Dolores/Guerrero) ~ 415-241-9760

Canyon Market ~ 2815 Diamond (Chenery) ~ 415-586-9999

Many three-strikes prisoners are getting a second chance in California since the passage of Prop 36. Back in November, 69 percent of Californians voted yes on the proposition to change the Three Strikes Law, which was enacted in 1994. It sentenced offenders with three or more felony convictions to 25 years to life in prison -- and comparatively minor crimes could qualify as the third strike.