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KELSEYVILLE, Calif. — Thousands of people came out to Kelseyville on Saturday to take part in the annual Pear Festival, which brings together friends, neighbors and visitors in a celebration of Lake County’s farming life.
The 29th annual event saw thousands of people packed into the downtown throughout Saturday, starting with the parade and lasting into the evening.
There were entertainers, classic cars and tractors, contests, the annual horse fair, and Mexican music and dancing horses behind the St. Peter’s Catholic Church.
And there was plenty of food. The highlight was everything pear — from pears in their whole form to all sorts of pear treats, from popovers and pies at the California Women for Agriculture booth to pear milkshakes, which made their return at Kelseyville Presbyterian Church after a four-year hiatus.
The festival once again gave a proper kickoff to fall in Lake County.
The weather was cool, overcast and comfortable, with steady rain falling later in the afternoon and evening, as much of the event was starting to wind down.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
Ever since the Soviet Union launched Sputnik into orbit on Oct. 4, 1957, America has been struggling to recruit and retain STEM teachers in its public middle and high schools.
In the 2017-2018 school year, approximately 100,000 teacher jobs in STEM – or science, technology, engineering and mathematics – went unfilled at the high school level. At the middle school level, there were about 150,000 unfilled STEM educator jobs.
The situation has been getting progressively worse over the past decade or so. For instance, in the 2011-2012 school year, 19% of public schools were unable to fill a teaching position for biology or life sciences. By the 2020-2021 school year, that number had grown to 31%. The situation was similar for other subjects, going from 19% to 32% for mathematics, and 26% to 47% for physical sciences, such as physics, geology and engineering.
Science shortages were a problem even before Sputnik, but the launch served as a wake-up call. Three months afterward, President Dwight D. Eisenhower stated during his Special Message to the Congress on Education that federal action was necessary to educate more science and mathematics teachers.
As a professor of education policy – and also as a former state secretary of education in Virginia – I have examined the STEM teacher shortage from multiple vantage points. In a September 2023 policy paper, a colleague and I recommend that in order to solve America’s STEM educator shortage, elected officials and education leaders should adopt something that is widely used in higher education – an endowed chair position for STEM teachers.
We think endowed chairs have the potential to retain and attract more STEM educators at the K-12 level, but it requires a willingness to rethink the ways that schools employ STEM educators.
What’s behind the gap?
Two factors contribute to so many unfilled vacancies in STEM education:
1. There are fewer college students graduating with a bachelor’s degree in education that ever before.
Between 1959-1976, bachelor’s degrees in education were the most popular college major in the United States, and they accounted for about 20% of all degrees. Between 1975-2021, the percentage of students majoring in education fell from 17% to 4%.
2. STEM graduates can earn more money outside of education.
When STEM majors go into a STEM career, they will earn, on average, US$101,100. When STEM graduates become a math, computer science or science teacher, they will earn, on average, only a fraction of that amount – roughly $60,000.
This salary gap between STEM professionals and STEM educators is what is known as the STEM teacher “wage penalty.”
According to a national survey of teacher salaries in 2017-18, average teacher salaries never exceeded $100,000,, regardless of years of experience.
But this only tells a portion of the STEM teacher salary story. In 2021, K-12 teachers’ weekly salary was only $1,348 – about $660 less than the $2,009 earned weekly by other college graduates.
Prior efforts to close the gap
Since developing a strong STEM workforce is vital to the nation’s security and economic well-being, several U.S. presidents have used their position to advance a STEM education agenda.
For example, when the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, Eisenhower and Congress came to realize that the nation needed to focus on what takes place in the classroom space – not just outer space.
The Senate and House passed the National Defense Education Act of 1958, and Eisenhower signed it into law on Sept. 2, 1958.
This set in motion a national STEM education agenda for American colleges and K-12 schools for decades to come.
Fifty-three years later, President Barack Obama utilized his 2011 State of the Union address to advance the national STEM agenda. “This is our generation’s Sputnik moment,” he said. “And over the next 10 years, with so many baby boomers retiring from our classrooms, we want to prepare 100,000 new teachers in the fields of science and technology and engineering and math.”
Through the leadership of 100Kin10, now named Beyond100K, the initiative exceeded the goal in 2021.
But the goal of the 100,000 STEM teacher campaign was to narrow the gap, not end it.
A shortage of STEM teachers remains. According to a survey of 53 states and territories, 39 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands had teacher vacancies in all subjects, STEM disciplines included, as of Feb 9, 2023. One additional reason for the current shortage is that public schools lost approximately 7% of their teachers – 233,000 instructors – between 2019-2021, which included STEM teachers.
Currently, President Joe Biden is promoting STEM education programs for teachers, the Department of Education has dedicated $120 billion to support STEM, and the National Science Foundation is supporting teacher fellowships.
The endowed chair as a potential solution
Federal investments in programs and fellowships to produce more STEM teachers are good. But those alone will not be enough to retain and attract the quality STEM educators we need.
That’s why a colleague and I recommend endowed chairs for K-12 educators.
Traditionally, an endowed chair is a prestigious faculty position funded through annual spending from a university’s endowment fund.
The interest earned on the endowment will partially or fully fund the salary of the position for as long as the university exists. Endowed chairs are awarded to those who are the best in their field.
The benefit of an endowed chair is that it will be paid for decades to come by the interest on investment. In our paper, we suggest that K-12 schools could use endowed chairs to support a K-12 STEM teacher’s salary, benefits and professional development, all the while saving money for the district and state.
If structured right, the interest on the endowment will pay a teacher’s salary and benefits, something the district would subsequently not have to pay. The endowment can be used to purchase STEM supplies. The money saved by the district can be used to invest in another teacher. The money could come from private individuals, corporations or foundations.
An endowed chair could also provide funding for teachers and students to have access to state-of-the-art learning technology. As part of the endowed chair contract, a teacher can participate in a fully paid externship at a STEM-focused public or private sector company during the summer months. The goal would be to bring to the classroom the experiences and insights the teacher learned from the externship.
An endowed STEM chair salary may never outpace what educators could earn if they entered the private market. But it can potentially help elevate their position and, perhaps, enable educators to make a salary that would be higher than what it would otherwise be.
Gerard Robinson, Professor of Practice in Public Policy and Law, University of Virginia
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
What's up for October? Some great Moon-and-planet pairings, a mission to a metal-rich world, and a partial eclipse of the Sun.
On Oct. 2, the Moon rises a couple of hours after sunset, appearing super close to the Pleiades star cluster. Look for them low in the east after around 10 p.m.
They travel across the sky together that night, leaving another opportunity to see them the following morning. In the predawn sky on Oct. 3, the Moon appears a couple of finger widths apart from the Pleiades, having moved a bit in its orbit around Earth during the night. Look for them high in the southwest, flanked by Jupiter and the bright, red giant star Aldebaran in Taurus.
On Oct. 10, look for Venus in the east before sunrise, accompanied by a slim crescent Moon. And in between them, the bright heart of Leo the lion, bluiush-white star Regulus.
On Oct. 23, look toward the south an hour or two after sunset to find the Moon, about 70% illuminated, hanging just beneath the planet Saturn. Their close proximity in the sky will make for some easy telescope viewing of these two skywatching favorites. The following evening, the Moon will still be nearby, having moved to the east of Saturn.
The full moon on Oct. 28 rises together with planet Jupiter. These are two of the brightest objects in the sky, and seeing them so close should make for quite an impressive sight.
When you gaze up at Venus, Mars, Mercury (or even down at Earth beneath your feet), do you ever wonder how these planets formed out of stardust? That's how planetary scientists think, too. And this month, NASA's launching a spacecraft to seek new insights into how the "terrestrial" planets developed. NASA's Psyche spacecraft is planned to launch in October on its multi-year journey to an asteroid of the same name. It's the first mission to a metal-rich asteroid, which could be part of the interior of a planetesimal – a building block of a rocky planet.
Asteroid Psyche could also turn out to be a different kind of iron-rich object that's not been seen before. Whatever its story turns out to be, it's hoped the mission might show us how Earth’s core and the cores of the other terrestrial planets came to be.
On Oct. 14, skywatchers in the Americas will have an opportunity to see a special type of solar eclipse called an annular eclipse. Along a path about 125 miles wide, the Sun will appear as a narrow ring of light, which is often called a "ring of fire." This narrow circle shape is also known as an annulus, giving this type of eclipse its name.
Solar eclipses happen when the Moon comes between Earth and the Sun, and covers at least part of the Sun in the sky. When the Moon covers the Sun completely, we get to observe a total eclipse. But sometimes the Moon is a bit farther away in its orbit when an eclipse happens, making it look a little smaller in the sky, and just a bit too small to completely cover the Sun. When that happens, it enables us to see an annular eclipse.
The path of this partial eclipse sweeps across the Americas, beginning in Southern Canada and crossing the Western U.S., before moving across Central and South America. Outside the annular eclipse path, those within the viewing zone will still see a partial eclipse. The maximum amount of the Sun that will be covered by the Moon depends on your location.
Now, eclipse fans won't have to wait long for more excitement. Next April, a total solar eclipse will sweep across the U.S. Check out NASA's eclipse resources online for info about both eclipses, where they'll be visible, and tips for safe viewing.
Stay up to date with all of NASA's missions to explore the solar system and beyond at nasa.gov.
Preston Dyches works for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
LOWER LAKE, Calif. — After seven years of planning and work, a new upscale camping experience is open and welcoming visitors to Lake County.
Huttopia Wine Country, located at 13444 Spruce Grove Road in Lower Lake, is the newest hospitality offering in Lake County.
It’s located at Six Sigma Ranch and Winery, owned by Kaj and Elise Ahlmann and their family, but run by Huttopia, a company based in France with locations worldwide.
Six Sigma, tucked into the oak woodlands between Lower Lake and Middletown, can feel like a world apart, with its rolling hills and valleys, and unique microclimates.
Now, the 4,300-acre property, home to winegrapes and cattle, is also now dotted with new tents that are part of Huttopia's particular style of camping.
These aren’t the tents of old, but modern creations, with names like “Trappeur Pacific,” “Trappeur Pacific” and “Canadienne Pacific” that recall the history of French trappers in the American West.
The tents are specially fabricated in France to quality specifications and then brought to the site for setup “like Legos,” Kaj Ahlmann said.
Ranging in size from 350 to 425 square feet, they can house two to five people, with full-sized beds and, in some units, additional bunk beds, plus a sitting area with a ceiling fan, kitchenette, and a deck with a barbecue.
They are self-contained, featuring rooftop solar panels that run lighting and, in some of the tents, refrigeration units.
Some of the tents also feature their bathrooms, and so have accompanying septic tanks. Other tents share communal bathrooms.
“It fits the ranch so well,” said Ahlmann.
Huttopia Wine Country features 63 upscale tents; a main lodge situated on a hilltop with events, games and food; hiking and biking trails; bikes for rent; a brand new large swimming pool and playground; and a bistro with a pizza oven. It’s a pet-friendly facility with access to all of the winery’s existing amenities.
It also includes plenty of Six Sigma’s cows, some of whom like to wander through the campsites, grazing on the knee-high wild grasses. Some have been known to mosey in to join the move night held in a field near the main lodge.
Seven years of effort
Ahlmann said bringing Huttopia to Lake County was an effort seven years in the making.
Now, “All of a sudden, it’s standing here — right in front of me,” he said to a group of community leaders and visitors who came for a Friday grand opening reception at the main lodge, a brand new structure with an American West feel.
On hand for the reception were Philippe and Celine Bossanne, who founded Huttopia in 1999, setting up their first camping facility focusing on families in the Alps. Later, they came to North America, first opening camps in Canada.
When they came to the United States, their first camping facility was at Paradise Springs in Los Angeles County.
Today, they have 1,800 employees across 104 camps in nine countries. The newest country to join the Huttopia fold is Sweden, where a new camp has been set up in the north of the country.
Six Sigma is the second Huttopia site in California. Philippe Bossanne said they think California loves their way of camping.
As a result, Bossanne said a third site is in the works on Catalina Island.
District 1 Supervisor Moke Simon, who Ahlmann credited for his support of the project, attended the reception, taking time to come and offer his support before heading off to fulfill his coaching obligations at a high school football game.
“I love visionaries,” said Simon. “I love people who follow through with a dream.”
He recalled first hearing about the idea and, hearkening to his tribal heritage, likened the project to taking a piece of obsidian and turning it into a spearhead to provide for one’s family.
Simon said it’s necessary to embrace and understand new ideas, and he thanked Ahlmann, whose stewardship of the land he also lauded.
“Lake County is the most beautiful place in California and you couldn’t tell me any different,” Simon said.
He added, “Lake County is putting a stake in the ground and staying, ‘We’re here, come and see us.’”
He said he’s looking forward to bringing his two grandchildren for a stay at the camp.
Asked how he thinks they’ll like the pool, he said, “They’ll love it.”
Making a change
In 1999, the same year that the Bossannes started their glamping adventure, Ahlmann — a Danish native who came to the United States with his family — began his own search.
He had built a respected career in the quality management industry and rose to the top of the corporate leadership of General Electric’s Reinsurance division. However, he decided he wanted to make a change, one that would ultimately lead him to apply Six Sigma quality principles to winemaking.
Ahlmann said he began looking for land in Napa, Sonoma and Mendocino counties, but didn’t find what he wanted.
Then a real estate agent called him and asked if he would like to see a ranch in Lake County. He said, sure, but he didn’t know where Lake County was.
Ahlmann came to see the property, and there he met the owner — Russell Rustici, a bachelor rancher who had owned the property for 33 years.
Rustici took him for a three-hour tour of the land before asking if he would like to take it. Ahlmann said he needed to know if wife Elise would approve; when imaging a piece of land, she had been thinking more like 10 acres, not 4,300 acres.
Elise Ahlmann clearly approved, because they purchased the land. Rustici moved to Clearlake but, according to a story on the Six Sigma website, he kept a few cattle on the ranch so he could remain chairman of the Cattlemen’s Association.
Rustici, who died in 2008 at age 84, also was a philanthropist. His legacy includes donations to the University of California that established a scholarship program, a rangeland and cattle research and outreach support program, and three perpetually funded rangeland faculty positions.
Closer to home, he donated $300,000 to Carle Continuation High School. Today, the county park at 16375 Second St. in Lower Lake is named in his honor.
Finding a special place
Like Ahlmann’s search years before, about seven years ago the Bossannes were on the lookout for a special place in California for another glamping site. They sent one of their staffers to find that location, and he came to Lake County. When he came across Six Sigma, it was exactly what they wanted.
Within three weeks, the Bossannes had come to meet the Ahlmanns to begin discussing plans. “Working with Huttopia is a special experience,” Kaj Ahlmann said.
Philippe Bossanne said they want to set up in beautiful, natural places. When they found Six Sigma, he said, it was, “like, wow!”
Even with the COVID-19 pandemic landing in the middle of the work, and the heavy rain and snow earlier this year, the project moved forward.
Bossanne also spoke of the partnership with Six Sigma, which is unlike the company’s efforts elsewhere.
“This is an adventure,” Bossanne said.
Both the Ahlmanns and Bossannes have businesses in which family is important.
At Six Sigma’s camp, Huttopia has appointed the husband and wife team of Fabrice and Emmanuelle Masson to manage the site.
The French natives joined the company in 2018, working first at sites in France and, more recently, at East Coast locations in Maine, New Hampshire and New York.
Emmanuelle Masson said they were looking forward to coming to California. “We were waiting for this one,” she said of Huttopia Wine Country.
Masson said she and her husband are enjoying the friendly atmosphere of Lake County and looking forward to exploring it more in the months ahead.
Hospitality is an important part of Huttopia, and the Massons exemplify that. On Friday evening, they were busy serving at the reception, taking people on golf cart tours of the property and stopping in to check on campers.
As the evening drew on, and more visitors showed up for a camping weekend — some with children in tow, some with dogs, some with both — Emmanuelle Masson was busy loading suitcases into her golf cart to help people to their campsites, as cars are not allowed to drive into the clusters of tents.
While the opening reception was Friday afternoon, Huttopia opened on June 30. Masson said they have received very good feedback from visitors in these first three months of operation.
Huttopia will remain open for another month before it closes for the winter, she said.
Ahlmann said that, over the winter, they plan to give staff a break.
While Huttopia is on its winter break, the next phase of construction will take place.
Additions will include a conference tent that will seat up to 52 people. It’s being manufactured in South Africa by a company that makes such tents for safaris, Ahlmann said.
He said there also will be another 40 or so tent units constructed for visitors which will open up next year.
On a tour of the property, Masson pointed out the area where the next phase of tents will go, across the winery’s interior road from the current tent sites.
Ahlmann said Six Sigma’s contract calls for a full capacity of 150 tent units.
“So far, so good,” he said.
For more information
Huttopia Wine Country
13444 Spruce Grove Road, Lower Lake, CA 95457
Telephone: 707-461-0740
Web: https://canada-usa.huttopia.com/en/site/wine-country/?gclid=CjwKCAjw69moBhBgEiwAUFCx2Lj4wIRzmYdaGFVOhUYND029GROZmPqVQfKqYiceG38n_coiT_9pOhoC4kIQAvD_BwE
Rates depend on size of tent and bathroom amenities, and days of the week.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
Greg Restani, 74, was found at around 2 p.m. Friday.
Restani, who has dementia, had last been seen at around 3 p.m. Thursday driving his white 1999 two-door Honda Accord on Highway 29 in the area of Butts Canyon Road near Middletown.
His disappearance led to a Friday search by the Napa County Sheriff’s Office along Highway 29.
Family and friends reported early Friday afternoon that a California Highway Patrol plane spotted the Honda on the Old Lawley Toll Road, which splits off Highway 29 near the Calistoga Grade.
Restani’s vehicle was found crashed about a fourth of a mile off the highway.
A search and rescue team found Restani huddled in a barn.
Family members posted a picture of him safe and on the way home on Facebook a short time later.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-04) honored Feinstein, who died at age 90. She was the longest serving woman in the U.S. Senate.
“Sen. Dianne Feinstein was a legendary and iconic public servant and a champion for California and our nation. She put her heart and soul completely into serving her beloved San Francisco, California, and our nation, and we owe her a debt a gratitude for the incredible work that she has done throughout her career. Dianne broke many glass ceilings, from serving as the first female president of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, the first female mayor of San Francisco, to the first female senator from our state. She was a trailblazer in every meaning of the word,” Thompson said.
“Dianne earned and held the love and trust of both her constituents and her colleagues because of her tremendous work ethic, deep knowledge of issues, and her willingness to work across the aisle to get things done. She would study the issues to make sure she was making the most informed decision possible for her constituents. As chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and Intelligence Committee, she tirelessly fought for our country, no matter how difficult the challenge or complex the issue.
“Dianne and I worked closely together on projects that have improved the lives of the people of in our state, particularly on the Northern California Coastal Wild Heritage Wilderness Act that protected hundreds of thousands of acres and will ensure these pristine lands and opportunities for outdoor recreation will be enjoyed for generations to come. She was a champion for gun violence prevention issues and was a tireless advocate for keeping our communities safe. Her legacy will never be forgotten.
“Dianne Feinstein was an outstanding public servant, and her voice and advocacy will be sorely missed. Jan and I send our thoughts and prayers to her friends, family, and staff during this sad time,” Thompson said.
Gov. Gavin Newsom is now tasked with naming a successor to temporarily fill Feinstein’s seat until a special election can be held to fill the remainder of her term, which continues until January 2025.