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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Dr. James Houpis, Ph.D., interim chancellor of the Yuba Community College District, will retire on May 31, following a 40-plus year career in higher education.
Dr. Houpis was appointed as interim chancellor in 2021.
The district’s new chancellor, Shouan Pan, Ph.D., will take the helm on June 15.
“We have been fortunate to have a seasoned leader like Dr. Houpis leading us over the past two years as our interim chancellor. His academic and leadership experience, focus on students, and new strategic initiatives have left an indelible mark on the District,” said YCCD Board of Trustees President Juan Delgado. “Our students, faculty, administrators and staff are forever grateful for his efforts which have positioned both the District and our new chancellor for future success.”
Topping the list of Dr. Houpis’ contributions during his tenure at YCCD was the launch of a fully online campus, which will expand access to courses that not only support career advancement for working adults but also degree and educational certificate completion.
At a time when most YCCD students work at least part time, the online campus will provide much-needed flexibility, putting a community college education within reach for those who might otherwise be unable to attend college.
Beyond expanding access to coursework through the online campus, he also led strategies to increase high school student participation in the dual credit programs offered at both Yuba and Woodland Community Colleges and supported expanded enrollments in apprentice programs to support local workforce needs.
As an environmental scientist, it is no surprise that Dr. Houpis championed and led the district in developing a Climate Change Resolution.
Since the passage of Measure J in 2006, the district has made a concerted effort to ensure that all new buildings and renovations support the goal of developing environmentally sustainable campuses.
Through Dr. Houpis’ leadership, the district has doubled down on its commitment to reduce its carbon footprint and to model responsible, sustainable business practices across all district operations.
Dr. Houpis also stabilized the district’s finances, advanced the development of a resource allocation model to promote cost management, advanced salary equity for administrators and classified employees by initiating the district’s first compensation study, improved employee morale by actively working to build a more constructive internal culture, and updated campus websites to make them more functional for students.
“I accepted the interim chancellor role with the goal of making YCCD my last career move before retirement,” Dr. Houpis said. “As I reflect on my career, I’ve enjoyed every step of my journey — from being a research scientist studying the effects of air pollution and climate change, to serving as a faculty member and advising students, to shaping curriculum and developing student success initiatives as a provost, to hiring and mentoring administrators, faculty and staff as a program director and department chair, to leading campuses and overseeing district operations as a university provost, college president and interim chancellor.”
He added, “I’ve enjoyed my time at YCCD, and I’m proud of the work that we have achieved together. It has been my honor to work on behalf of our students, to support our outstanding leadership team, faculty, and staff, and to work in concert with the Board of Trustees to build upon YCCD’s many successes.”
Before joining YCCD, Dr. Houpis held leadership roles at other community colleges, including serving as president of Modesto Junior College and dean of academic support and learning technologies at Skyline College.
He also had a long and distinguished career in the California State University, or CSU, system, holding leadership and faculty positions at both CSU East Bay and CSU Chico.
Across the past four decades, Dr. Houpis has earned many grants and awards for innovation and excellence including the Paul Simon Teaching and Research Award, Accessibility Services Award of Appreciation and the Associated Students Award: Model of Shared Governance for Exemplary Service to Students.
He also has been selected for a fellowship with the Wheelhouse Center for Community College Leadership and Research.
Because of his reputation in higher education and expertise in environmental and biological sciences, Dr. Houpis has been chosen to serve as a reviewer for prestigious initiatives such as the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences and the U.S. Global Change Research Program.
He also received special recognition from the California Senate recognizing his continued efforts on behalf of Latino students and his strong support of programs helping students complete their studies on their way to lifelong success.
He co-authored three book chapters and has co-authored more than 50 professional journal articles, proceedings, and scholarly reports based on his research in environmental and biological science.
Dr. Houpis holds a Ph.D. in forest science from the University of California at Berkeley, a master’s degree in biology from San Diego State University, and a bachelor’s degree in environmental sciences from UC Berkeley.
The vacancy the Office of Education is seeking to fill is for the Board of Education Trustee Area 5, which covers the Kelseyville area.
The Trustee Area 5 seat has been held by Anna Rose Ravenwoode, a credentialed public school educator and experienced grant writer who was first elected to the board in 2018 and reelected last year.
Ravenwood died April 26 at the age of 72.
The Lake County Office of Education is accepting applications to fill the vacancy by appointment. The term of this appointment is until December 2024.
If an individual wishes to continue to serve after the term has expired, they will need to run for election in November of 2024. That term will end in December 2026.
Applicants must be at least 18 years old, reside within the boundaries of Area 5, be a registered voter at time of appointment, and not be legally disqualified from holding civic office.
The application should describe the applicant’s qualifications and interest in serving on the board.
Individuals who are employees of the Lake County Office of Education, a Lake County school district, Mendocino Community College or Yuba Community College are ineligible to serve.
Online applications can be found on the Lake County Office of Education website. Paper Applications are available at the Lake County Office of Education Lakeport office at 1152 S. Main St. Lakeport.
The deadline to submit an application is 12 p.m. Friday, June 2.
The Board of Education will conduct interviews in person on Wednesday, June 14.
For information and to apply, visit the Lake County Office of Education website.
Forty-five people were killed in crashes in California during last year’s Memorial Day weekend, nearly a 30% increase from the same period in 2021.
The California Highway Patrol has a plan to help people arrive at their destinations safely, while reducing the number of deadly crashes on the state’s roads.
Beginning at 6:01 p.m. on Friday, May 26, the CHP will implement a statewide maximum enforcement period, or MEP, in anticipation of the increased traffic that often accompanies a holiday weekend.
The MEP will continue through 11:59 p.m. on Monday, May 29.
“The core mission of the CHP is to provide the highest level of Safety, Service, and Security to the communities we serve,” said CHP Commissioner Sean Duryee. “This holiday, motorists can expect to see additional CHP officers patrolling California’s roadways. All available uniformed members of this Department will be on patrol during this Memorial Day MEP. Our primary focus will be to enhance public safety, deter unsafe driving behavior, and when necessary, take appropriate enforcement action.”
In addition to assisting motorists and looking for traffic violations that often lead to serious injury or death, such as failure to wear a seat belt, speed, and distracted driving, CHP officers will be paying close attention to people who are suspected of driving under the influence (DUI) of drugs and/or alcohol.
CHP officers made nearly 900 DUI arrests during the Memorial Day MEP in 2022. Keep yourself and others who are on the road safe by designating a sober driver or using a ride-share service.
If you see or suspect an impaired driver, call 9-1-1 immediately. Be prepared to provide the dispatcher a description of the vehicle, the license plate number, location, and direction of travel. Your phone call may save someone’s life.
The CHP’s Memorial Day MEP coincides with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s ongoing Click It or Ticket campaign, which continues through June 4. Seat belts save lives. Take two seconds to secure your safety and buckle up.
Republicans and Democrats are again playing a game of chicken over the U.S. debt ceiling – with the nation’s financial stability at stake.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen recently said that June 1, 2023, is a “hard deadline” for raising the debt limit, currently set at US$31.38 trillion, to avoid an unprecedented default. The government hit the ceiling back in January and has been using “extraordinary measures” since then to keep paying its bills.
Last-minute negotiations between the White House and Republicans have been mostly fruitless as conservatives in the House push for big spending cuts and policy changes, while President Joe Biden has insisted on lifting the ceiling with no strings attached. They are expected to continue to meet in the coming days.
Economist Steven Pressman explains what the debt ceiling is and why we have it – and why it may be time to abolish it.
1. What is the debt ceiling?
Like the rest of us, governments must borrow when they spend more money than they receive. They do so by issuing bonds, which are IOUs that promise to repay the money in the future and make regular interest payments. Government debt is the total sum of all this borrowed money.
The debt ceiling, which Congress established a century ago, is the maximum amount the government can borrow. It’s a limit on the national debt.
2. What’s the national debt?
The U.S. government debt of $31.38 trillion is about 22% more than the value of all goods and services that will be produced in the U.S. economy this year.
Around one-quarter of this money the government actually owes itself. The Social Security Administration has accumulated a surplus and invests the extra money, currently $2.8 trillion, in government bonds. And the Federal Reserve holds $5.5 trillion in U.S. Treasurys.
The rest is public debt. As of October 2022, foreign countries, companies and individuals owned $7.2 trillion of U.S. government debt. Japan and China are the largest holders, with around $1 trillion each. The rest is owed to U.S. citizens and businesses, as well as state and local governments.
3. Why is there a borrowing limit?
Before 1917, Congress would authorize the government to borrow a fixed sum of money for a specified term. When loans were repaid, the government could not borrow again without asking Congress for approval.
The Second Liberty Bond Act of 1917, which created the debt ceiling, changed this. It allowed a continual rollover of debt without congressional approval.
Congress enacted this measure to let then-President Woodrow Wilson spend the money he deemed necessary to fight World War I without waiting for often-absent lawmakers to act. Congress, however, did not want to write the president a blank check, so it limited borrowing to $11.5 billion and required legislation for any increase.
The debt ceiling has been increased dozens of times since then and suspended on several occasions. The last change occurred in December 2021, when it was raised to $31.38 trillion.
4. What happens when the US hits the ceiling?
Whenever the U.S. nears its debt limit, the Treasury secretary can use “extraordinary measures” to conserve cash, which she indicated began on Jan. 19. One such measure is temporarily not funding retirement programs for government employees. The expectation will be that once the ceiling is raised, the government would make up the difference. But this will buy only a small amount of time.
If the debt ceiling isn’t raised before the Treasury Department exhausts its options, decisions will have to be made about who gets paid with daily tax revenues. Further borrowing will not be possible. Government employees or contractors may not be paid in full. Loans to small businesses or college students may stop.
When the government can’t pay all its bills, it is technically in default. Policymakers, economists and Wall Street are concerned about a calamitous financial and economic crisis. Many fear that a government default would have dire economic consequences – soaring interest rates, financial markets in panic and maybe an economic depression.
Under normal circumstances, once markets start panicking, Congress and the president usually act. This is what happened in 2013 when Republicans sought to use the debt ceiling to defund the Affordable Care Act.
But we no longer live in normal political times. The major political parties are more polarized than ever, and the concessions McCarthy gave right-wing Republicans may make it impossible to get a deal on the debt ceiling.
5. Is there a better way?
One possible solution is a legal loophole allowing the U.S. Treasury to mint platinum coins of any denomination. If the U.S. Treasury were to mint a $1 trillion coin and deposit it into its bank account at the Federal Reserve, the money could be used to pay for government programs or repay government bondholders. This could even be justified by appealing to Section 4 of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: “The validity of the public debt of the United States … shall not be questioned.”
Few countries even have a debt ceiling. Other governments operate effectively without it. America could too. A debt ceiling is dysfunctional and periodically puts the U.S. economy in jeopardy because of political grandstanding.
The best solution would be to scrap the debt ceiling altogether. Congress already approved the spending and the tax laws that require more debt. Why should it also have to approve the additional borrowing?
It should be remembered that the original debt ceiling was put in place because Congress couldn’t meet quickly and approve needed spending to fight a war. In 1917 cross-country travel was by rail, requiring days to get to Washington. This made some sense then. Today, when Congress can vote online from home, this is no longer the case.
This article has been updated to reflect ongoing negotiations and the expected default deadline of June 1.
Steven Pressman, Part-Time Professor of Economics, The New School
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — It’s time to mark your calendars for this year’s annual Lake County Home Wine and Beer Makers’ Festival at Lakeport’s Library Park.
The event takes place from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday, June 10.
General admission is free. Wine and beer tasters will pay $30 in advance or $35 at the gate to taste samples from home wine and beer makers.
There will also be some of Lake County’s finest commercial wines available for tasting this year from Six Sigma, Smiling Dogs and Rosa D’Oro.
As it has over the past several decades, the Winefest features wine and beer tasting, along with a large variety of booths with artwork, crafts, clothing, and agricultural products for folks to wander through.
Music will be provided by The Hip Replacements, and several musicians from the Lake County Symphony will also be on hand to entertain during the day.
Attendees at this year’s event can expect a variety of delicious food choices from local vendors: La Catrina Food Truck offers a selection of Mexican favorites; The Noodle Bowl will provide their popular ramen bowls with grilled meat and vegetables; and Bing’s Kitchen again brings their tasty Filipino food (lumpia). Ripe Choice Farm and Catering, Villa’s Snow Cones, and Danae’s Desserts will also be there.
Volunteers of the LCSA Wine Club organize this yearly event to benefit the Lake County Symphony Association, or LCSA.
Proceeds are used to support LCSA’s activities, including in-school music programs for students, scholarships, concerts and underwriting of the Lake County Symphony and the Community & Youth Orchestra.
John Parkinson, music director and conductor for the last 43 years, will again be manning the symphony’s booth.
Now in its 21st year, the Winefest was started by the late Connel Murray — with other amateur winemakers who were supporters of the symphony — to raise funds for the Lake County Symphony.
As the Winefest expanded over the years, amateur and commercial beer makers were included — a welcome addition for beer lovers.
All amateur participants are eligible to win gold, silver and bronze ribbons given for a wide range of varietals and brews in the popular “Peoples’ Choice” awards voted on by attendees.
Home winemakers also have the chance to enter their creations for blind judging by experts the evening before the Winefest. Local participating commercial wineries and breweries are not eligible for prizes, which only go to the amateurs.
Visitors to the Winefest who choose not to indulge in wine tasting, can show support for the LCSA by placing bids on silent auction items or buying tickets for the “Barrel of Wine” raffle.
The silent auction includes items like original artwork, trips, hotel stays, and gift items donated by local businesses.
Congressman Mike Thompson has regularly donated a U.S. flag from the Capitol, along with products from his Lake County vineyard.
The popular “Barrel of Wine” raffle goes on all day long and gives the lucky winner approximately 36 bottles of assorted Lake County wines. The actual barrel used for the wines in the raffle will be available for bidders in the silent auction.
Wine makers, home brewers, and all nonfood vendors have until June 3 to reserve a spot at the Winefest.
There is no booth fee for home wine and beer makers, or commercial wineries who offer their wines for tasting. More details and applications can be found online at https://lakecountywinefest.com/.
Advance tickets are available at several Lakeport locations: Watershed Books, Wine in the Willows, and the Lake County Chamber of Commerce. Tickets can also be found at Laujor Estate Winery in Kelseyville, and online, through Eventbrite.
See Lake County Winefest on Facebook for the latest information.
Debra Fredrickson is a member of the Lake County Symphony Association.
The event will take place from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, May 28, in downtown Lower Lake.
This year’s theme is “Then & Now.”
The day will feature a street fair from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. with vendors and artisans, food trucks and live music, and the chance to stop in at town businesses.
The parade takes place at 11 a.m., with Lonne Sloan presiding as grand marshal.
For more information and applications for both vendors and the parade, visit the Lower Lake Community Action Group’s website.