United States
Cara Nixon is a reporter and graduate journalism student currently living in Berkeley, Calif. She graduated in June 2022 with an honors bachelor's degree in political science and applied journalism from Oregon State University and has over four years of print and digital journalism experience. She now attends University of California, Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism and just finished up an internship with California education news site EdSource. This last school year, she also worked on the Richmond Confidential education beat and the Investigative Reporting Program's Aging in America project.
Prior to coming to California, Nixon worked in both reporter and editor positions at local Corvallis, Ore. newspapers, The Corvallis Advocate and The Daily Barometer. At those publications, she produced hundreds of stories ranging in topic from homelessness and a scandal involving OSU's president to community events and arts and entertainment. While at OSU, she also participated in a photojournalism internship with Chris Johns, former editor-in-chief of National Geographic—an experience which birthed a detailed, longform story about a local homeless man and his daughter.
Nixon's main journalistic passions are covering education and issues which affect low-income and/or rural communities. She is expected to graduate from Berkeley Journalism in May 2024.
Californians who return to their rural hometowns and get involved in public education find satisfaction in reconnecting with their roots.
Researchers have found that farmers experienced a deep sense of connection to and responsibility for their properties and that their land provided opportunities for community involvement and family traditions.
Geographic distance from college campuses can often make it difficult for Modoc High School's 233 students to even dream about attending university after graduation. The staff members at Modoc Joint Unified School District are trying to change that.
The University of Southern California and Caltech have joined the STARS College Network, alongside 14 other schools across the country, with hopes of improving rural students' access to information about college and increasing enrollment on campus.
Shayne Bertrand and his young daughter, Rumour, have struggled to find a home while navigating a fraught shelter system.
A potential strike and district-wide shutdown has likely been avoided after West Contra Costa Unified School District and the United Teachers of Richmond reached a tentative three-year contract agreement Friday, the union said in a newsletter Monday.
"Thirty-eight schools have better stuff than us - why do y'all always put us in the bottom?" "Can you please help the school? Because we really need a good school because I think having a good school helps me learn." "I feel like you guys don't care about our school."
Fourth grade dual-language immersion teacher Wendy Gonzalez has been fighting for bilingual education since 1998, often feeling that the school district treated it as more of an afterthought. A teacher shortage in the West Contra Costa Unified School District has exacerbated the problem, she said, leaving dual-language immersion in a precarious place.
Parents protested and teachers rallied against West Contra Costa Unified School District on Wednesday, expressing frustrations with how the teacher shortage is being handled and communicated to the community.
With just a few weeks left, the Virginia gubernatorial election between Democrat Terry McAuliffe and Republican Glenn Youngkin is getting tighter. While in August McAuliffe held a 6- to 8-point advantage over his opponent, in several recent polls, the difference between the two candidates is within the margin of error.