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Reedley (Fresno County) CA 93654 | 50 cents Harder takes reins as restorative justice director
‘Guys and Dolls’ to open Feb. 10 at Immanuel Schools
Panorama
Reedley native succeeds Swenning in local position
By Jon Earnest
jon@midvalleypublishing.com
Jake Harder’s desire to help young people get on the right path in their lives is a driving force in his new job as director for restorative justice with the Reedley Peace Building Initia- tive.
“We all make mistakes. And if you can learn earlier in life that it doesn’t have to define you, you can have support and a second chance in the community,” said Harder, a Reedley na-
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Vol. 129, No. 6 | Thursday, February 8, 2018
tive who started in his new position Jan. 2. Harder, 36, succeeds John Swenning, who left the post after more than six years to be- come Restorative Justice program director at Fresno Pacific University. There, Swen- ning will work to establish a similar program in Fresno high schools and middle schools as well as work with young people in the juvenile
court system.
Harder has prepared for his new job with
two years experience as a restorative justice case manager with Reedley-based Community Youth Ministries. He was responsible for re- storative justice cases at four Reedley junior high and middle schools in the Kings Can- yon Unified School District. All the while, he worked alongside Swenning.
“Working with John was something that re- ally allowed me to glean from his wisdom and experience,” said Harder. “Benefitting from his experience and wisdom has been a great help.”
Reedley’s restorative justice program has become a model for other cities. During Swen- ning’s tenure as director from 2011-2017, there were 291 cases involving 388 juvenile offend- ers with only 21 re-offenders. Of that total, 12 didn’t complete their contracted agreement with the peace building initiative. That results in a total success rate of nearly 98 percent.
“I get to step into [a program] that in many ways is a well-oiled machine,” Harder said. He
See HARDER on page A2
Jon Earnest / The Exponent
Jake Harder is pictured at the West Coast Mennonite Central Committee office in Reedley on Jan. 26.
County Youth Summit at RC
Contract approved to build RMCHS
By Felicia Cousart Matlosz
felicia@midvalleypublishing.com
A permanent campus for Reed- ley Middle College High School is one step closer to becoming a reality.
The Kings Canyon Unified School District trustees at their Jan. 23 meeting unanimously approved an agreement with Durham Con- struction Company of Clovis to build the structure at Reedley College.
Reedley Middle College High School, or RMCHS, is a charter high school that opened in August 2012 in rooms at Reedley College. The pro- gram combines high school courses with a college environment, so stu- dents can earn a high school diploma and college credits. (And, in another plus, there are no fees.)
By doing this, RMCHS strongly encourages students to develop real- world career skills and to continue their educations at colleges and uni- versities. The school is a collabora- tive effort of KCUSD, Reedley Col- lege and local businesses.
The estimated cost is a little more than $8 million for Phase I of the structure, which will include eight classrooms, an administration office, a staff room, a sheltered eat- ing area, and a recreational area. The first phase will accommodate approx- imately 300 students. A second phase, which would be the full build-out of the school at a future time, would accommodate a total enrollment of about 600 students. Integrated De- signs by SOMAM of Fresno is the architect for the project.
John Quinto, KCUSD’s assis- tant superintendent for business services, said after the meeting that the district will use a combination of funding to pay for the project. This will include funds from the district’s general reserve and the
See RMCHS on page A8
Fresno State’s president, Reedley police chief speak to 250 students
Staff Report
Fresno State President Joseph Castro and Reedley Police Chief Joe Garza delivered words of encourage- ment Feb. 3 to about 250 high school and eighth-grade students attending the second annual Fresno County Youth Summit at Reedley College.
The free event — hosted by the California Health Collaborative along with various community part- ners throughout Fresno County — is designed to provide the teens ages 13-18 years with what organizers say is real world knowledge and skills to keep them safe, healthy and on the path to success. This year’s theme to the students was “Be the Light in the Dark.”
Castro shared with students his unlikely path to the Fresno State presidency. The grandson of farm- workers from Mexico, he was raised by his mother in Hanford in an apartment and public housing while his father traveled the country as a union truck driver.
Castro said that, in his senior year in high school, he and his moth- er joined about 100 other students at a program in Fresno sponsored by the University of California, Berke- ley. He said that a female counselor at the event reviewed his applica- tion, and what happened next trans- formed his life.
“She stamped it ‘admitted’ right there in front of me. Had that not happened, I would not be standing here in front of you,” he told the stu- dents.
At UC Berkeley, Castro earned his bachelor’s degree in four years and a master’s degree two years af- ter that.
Castro said he and many others were working as hard as they can to give the students the support they
See SUMMIT on page A8
ABOVE: Joseph Castro, Fresno State presi- dent, sits with Reedley College President Sandra Caldwell, right, and Renee Craig- Marius, vice president of student services at the college, during the second annual Fresno County Youth Summit at the college on Feb. 3. The free summit, hosted by the nonprofit California Health Collaborative, had a theme of “Be The Light in the Dark” and drew more than 250 high school and eighth-grade students from throughout the county. Castro gave a keynote speech to students in the college gymnasium.
LEFT: Joe Garza, Reedley police chief, speaks to students about their life goals and futures. Students participated in interactive workshops to provide them with real-world knowledge and skills to keep them safe, healthy and on the path to success.
California Health Collaborative / Photos Contributed
Volunteers install 718 smoke alarms in residences
Jon Earnest / The Exponent
Walter Louangrath, right, with the American Red Cross of Central California carries a step ladder Feb. 2 as he and other volunteers walk along East Jef- ferson Avenue to install free smoke alarms in Reedley homes.
Red Cross event
draws 90 volunteers
from Fresno County
By Jon Earnest
jon@midvalleypublishing.com
The American Red Cross Central Valley chapter’s latest drive to install smoke alarms — this one on Feb. 3 in Reedley — proved to be the organiza- tion’s most successful so far.
About 90 volunteers from Reed- ley, Sanger, Fresno and other cities teamed up to install 718 smoke alarms in 220 residences in portions of the city. Twenty volunteer crews of four to five people canvassed streets around Jef- ferson Elementary School and other neighborhoods to give homes smoke
alarms at no cost.
“I think this campaign aims to edu-
cate and make sure that families in our really vulnerable communities have the right tools and information,” said Barry Falke, executive director for the Red Cross Center Valley chapter. “And, of course, have the life-saving smoke alarms in their homes.”
This local event, part of the Red Cross’ national “Sound the Alarm” cam- paign, was based at the Jefferson School cafeteria. There, organizers trained vol- unteers about going door-to-door to offer the free smoke alarms.
“I am positive that all the efforts today will lead directly to the safety of our community and the potential to save many lives,” said Agustin Villar- real, principal at Jefferson Elementary. “Our district administration has always placed a premium on safety. This is just
one great example of our community partners helping to lead in this effort.”
Falke said in the past few months, programs to install smoke alarms oc- curred in Clovis and Bakersfield before coming to Reedley. More events will be planned throughout 2018 as available, depending on disasters that would take up Red Cross workers’ time and efforts.
“What we know by and large is that home fires — there are seven per day in the United States – are a number that should be zero,” he said.
“Two minutes, really, is all the time you have once a fire starts to get out of your house safely. We want to make sure that families here in Reedley have the right information to know and meet that time.”
Taylor Poisall, business operations
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