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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — A south county contractor said he is running for the Middletown Unified School District seat that is the focus of a special election in June.
Bryan Pullman is seeking the seat, which was forced to go to a special election after a petition was filed against a provisional appointment made by the board in December. That special election has been consolidated with the June 7 statewide primary.
Also on the ballot for the seat is parent and school volunteer Charise Reynolds.
Both Pullman and Reynolds were among the 10 candidates the Middletown Unified School Board interviewed in December when it filled the seats vacated by Thad Owens and LaTrease Walker by appointing Allison Berlogar and Annette Lee, respectively.
However, Lee’s appointment was challenged by a petition, which resulted in Lake County Superintendent of Schools Brock Falkenberg calling the special election. Until that election takes place, the fifth seat on the board will remain vacant.
The proponents of the petition that led to the special election were Cobb resident LaTrease Walker, and Hidden Valley Lake residents Charles Green and Austin Pullman. Austin Pullman is Bryan Pullman’s son.
Bryan Pullman said he has lived in Middletown for many years, moving to the area in 1972 as an eighth grader.
He said he has lived in Lake County continually ever since, minus a stint in the Army.
“I am married to a local girl, and we raised four children, all of them also graduated from MUSD,” Pullman wrote in an announcement. “We now have 12 grandchildren, many of them living in Middletown. I am very much invested in this town!”
Pullman said he has many years of business experience, much of it as a public works contractor, while mostly working for cities, counties, universities, schools and the state.
“I understand budgets, have good people skills and know how to work through bureaucracies. I believe in negotiation and compromise but also believe that there are times when I need to hold the line,” he said.
Since last year, Pullman has been a frequent presence at the Middletown Unified School Board meetings, and has been critical of the district over its adherence to state COVID-19 mandates, including the requirements for masking that have since been relaxed.
“Education in our state is facing many challenges and that is certainly the case in our small town as well. I believe we need to bring control of our district back to the people who are raising families here. We need to attract and retain the best teachers, staff and administrators that we can. Budgets need to be controlled but they need to be balanced so that there are funds to attract people who are committed to educating the future members of our community in the best manner possible,” Pullman said in a written statement.
“We need to ensure that the curriculum is in keeping with the values of the parents in the Middletown area and not based upon what Sacramento thinks is needed for us based upon the needs of large cities in our state — or worse yet, Washington telling us what they want us to teach, holding us hostage by attaching funding to our level of cooperation,” Pullman said.
“We need to ensure that our students are free to experience school in a safe and healthy environment that also takes into consideration their freedoms and psychological health and growth. Students and staff also deserve to have medical freedom to make their own decisions about their personal safety and health. These challenges seem to be gone, but there will be other challenges that will come before us, and we need to be able to react to them in a thoughtful and responsible way that addresses our unique situation,” Pullman continued.
He said the board needs to listen to the people who come and petition them for change, and then they must act upon that information to improve the education environment in the schools.
“The students must come first, and I believe this is the main purpose of the board, to ensure the success of the students. Parents are responsible for their children’s education and the school needs to be responsive and sensitive to what the parents feel is important,” he said.
Pullman said funds need to be budgeted for keeping the school grounds and facilities in the best possible shape, for safety reasons as well as aesthetics.
Bryan Pullman is seeking the seat, which was forced to go to a special election after a petition was filed against a provisional appointment made by the board in December. That special election has been consolidated with the June 7 statewide primary.
Also on the ballot for the seat is parent and school volunteer Charise Reynolds.
Both Pullman and Reynolds were among the 10 candidates the Middletown Unified School Board interviewed in December when it filled the seats vacated by Thad Owens and LaTrease Walker by appointing Allison Berlogar and Annette Lee, respectively.
However, Lee’s appointment was challenged by a petition, which resulted in Lake County Superintendent of Schools Brock Falkenberg calling the special election. Until that election takes place, the fifth seat on the board will remain vacant.
The proponents of the petition that led to the special election were Cobb resident LaTrease Walker, and Hidden Valley Lake residents Charles Green and Austin Pullman. Austin Pullman is Bryan Pullman’s son.
Bryan Pullman said he has lived in Middletown for many years, moving to the area in 1972 as an eighth grader.
He said he has lived in Lake County continually ever since, minus a stint in the Army.
“I am married to a local girl, and we raised four children, all of them also graduated from MUSD,” Pullman wrote in an announcement. “We now have 12 grandchildren, many of them living in Middletown. I am very much invested in this town!”
Pullman said he has many years of business experience, much of it as a public works contractor, while mostly working for cities, counties, universities, schools and the state.
“I understand budgets, have good people skills and know how to work through bureaucracies. I believe in negotiation and compromise but also believe that there are times when I need to hold the line,” he said.
Since last year, Pullman has been a frequent presence at the Middletown Unified School Board meetings, and has been critical of the district over its adherence to state COVID-19 mandates, including the requirements for masking that have since been relaxed.
“Education in our state is facing many challenges and that is certainly the case in our small town as well. I believe we need to bring control of our district back to the people who are raising families here. We need to attract and retain the best teachers, staff and administrators that we can. Budgets need to be controlled but they need to be balanced so that there are funds to attract people who are committed to educating the future members of our community in the best manner possible,” Pullman said in a written statement.
“We need to ensure that the curriculum is in keeping with the values of the parents in the Middletown area and not based upon what Sacramento thinks is needed for us based upon the needs of large cities in our state — or worse yet, Washington telling us what they want us to teach, holding us hostage by attaching funding to our level of cooperation,” Pullman said.
“We need to ensure that our students are free to experience school in a safe and healthy environment that also takes into consideration their freedoms and psychological health and growth. Students and staff also deserve to have medical freedom to make their own decisions about their personal safety and health. These challenges seem to be gone, but there will be other challenges that will come before us, and we need to be able to react to them in a thoughtful and responsible way that addresses our unique situation,” Pullman continued.
He said the board needs to listen to the people who come and petition them for change, and then they must act upon that information to improve the education environment in the schools.
“The students must come first, and I believe this is the main purpose of the board, to ensure the success of the students. Parents are responsible for their children’s education and the school needs to be responsive and sensitive to what the parents feel is important,” he said.
Pullman said funds need to be budgeted for keeping the school grounds and facilities in the best possible shape, for safety reasons as well as aesthetics.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — This week Mendocino National Forest fuel managers are planning to conduct the Westshore Understory Burn, a low-intensity prescribed fire of approximately 90 acres west of Lake Pillsbury and north of the Eel River on the Upper Lake Ranger District.
Contingent upon safe weather and fuels conditions, fire managers will start ignitions on Wednesday, March 30, through Friday, April 1.
Crews will carefully monitor the burned area throughout the burn window into the weekend and the following week.
Fuels in the Westshore area were previously treated, and the unit is one of the remaining green stands that survived the 2020 August Complex and the 2018 Ranch Fire.
Reintroducing low-intensity fire can reduce buildup of hazardous fuels, restore forest ecosystems and improve safety of local communities.
Forest officials remind residents and visitors to avoid the project area. Smoke may be visible in the Lake Pillsbury basin and has the potential to impact roads at times.
Motorists are asked to use extra caution when driving in areas of smoke. Motorists should slow down, turn on headlights and watch out for equipment and firefighters working along roads.
Real-time updates on the Westshore Understory Burn will be posted on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MendocinoNF and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/MendocinoNF.
Contingent upon safe weather and fuels conditions, fire managers will start ignitions on Wednesday, March 30, through Friday, April 1.
Crews will carefully monitor the burned area throughout the burn window into the weekend and the following week.
Fuels in the Westshore area were previously treated, and the unit is one of the remaining green stands that survived the 2020 August Complex and the 2018 Ranch Fire.
Reintroducing low-intensity fire can reduce buildup of hazardous fuels, restore forest ecosystems and improve safety of local communities.
Forest officials remind residents and visitors to avoid the project area. Smoke may be visible in the Lake Pillsbury basin and has the potential to impact roads at times.
Motorists are asked to use extra caution when driving in areas of smoke. Motorists should slow down, turn on headlights and watch out for equipment and firefighters working along roads.
Real-time updates on the Westshore Understory Burn will be posted on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MendocinoNF and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/MendocinoNF.
Domestic migration’s role as the main driver of population change intensified between 2016 and 2021, resulting in population gains in some counties and declines in others.
New population estimates for July 1, 2021, allow us to look at recent trends in county population change.
Natural change (the difference between births and deaths), domestic migration and international migration all contribute to how an area’s population changes over time. Some have grown mostly through domestic migration while others have traditionally grown more through natural increase (more births than deaths).
However, in recent years the national pattern has shifted in substantial ways.
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to amplify existing trends of decreasing births, increasing deaths and slowing international migration, shifts in the remaining component — domestic migration — have become more prominent and are noticeably altering county growth patterns across the nation.
The maps below illustrate how widespread these differences are.
Between 2015 and 2016, counties gaining population (in dark orange, dark green, or dark purple) were located across the country, with concentrations in the West, in Texas metro areas like Dallas and Houston, and in most of Colorado and Florida (Figure 1).
There was also a cluster of gaining counties in Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina.
In 65% of gaining counties, net domestic migration was the largest contributing component of change in absolute terms.
Counties shaded light orange, light green or light purple lost population between 2015 and 2016.
As the map shows, many of the areas that lost population (in parts of the Great Plains, the Rust Belt, and the Mississippi Delta), also did so largely because of net domestic migration.
In some parts of the country like Maine, southwest Virginia and West Virginia in Appalachia, the biggest component was natural change.
Fast forward to 2020 to 2021, and you can see a widespread change in these patterns.
During this period, more than half of counties (58%) gained population; domestic migration was the major component of change in 90% of them.
The role natural change played in 2020-to-2021 population shifts is also clear: A large swath of counties that lost population mostly because deaths outnumbered births stretched through Appalachia from southwest Virginia all the way to upstate New York.
Although natural decrease (where deaths outnumber births) wasn’t always the largest component, it occurred in 73.1% of counties — a record high.
While this comparison only considers two points in time five years apart, it does show just how unique change was amid the pandemic.
Census demographers provide more information on natural change and domestic migration in other stories.
Luke Rogers is chief of the Census Bureau’s Population Estimates Branch. Kristie Wilder is a demographer in the Population Division.
New population estimates for July 1, 2021, allow us to look at recent trends in county population change.
Natural change (the difference between births and deaths), domestic migration and international migration all contribute to how an area’s population changes over time. Some have grown mostly through domestic migration while others have traditionally grown more through natural increase (more births than deaths).
However, in recent years the national pattern has shifted in substantial ways.
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to amplify existing trends of decreasing births, increasing deaths and slowing international migration, shifts in the remaining component — domestic migration — have become more prominent and are noticeably altering county growth patterns across the nation.
The maps below illustrate how widespread these differences are.
Between 2015 and 2016, counties gaining population (in dark orange, dark green, or dark purple) were located across the country, with concentrations in the West, in Texas metro areas like Dallas and Houston, and in most of Colorado and Florida (Figure 1).
There was also a cluster of gaining counties in Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina.
In 65% of gaining counties, net domestic migration was the largest contributing component of change in absolute terms.
Counties shaded light orange, light green or light purple lost population between 2015 and 2016.
As the map shows, many of the areas that lost population (in parts of the Great Plains, the Rust Belt, and the Mississippi Delta), also did so largely because of net domestic migration.
In some parts of the country like Maine, southwest Virginia and West Virginia in Appalachia, the biggest component was natural change.
Fast forward to 2020 to 2021, and you can see a widespread change in these patterns.
During this period, more than half of counties (58%) gained population; domestic migration was the major component of change in 90% of them.
The role natural change played in 2020-to-2021 population shifts is also clear: A large swath of counties that lost population mostly because deaths outnumbered births stretched through Appalachia from southwest Virginia all the way to upstate New York.
Although natural decrease (where deaths outnumber births) wasn’t always the largest component, it occurred in 73.1% of counties — a record high.
While this comparison only considers two points in time five years apart, it does show just how unique change was amid the pandemic.
Census demographers provide more information on natural change and domestic migration in other stories.
Luke Rogers is chief of the Census Bureau’s Population Estimates Branch. Kristie Wilder is a demographer in the Population Division.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — A well-known businesswoman with a long history of volunteerism and support of community causes has been chosen as the 2022 Lake County Woman of the Year.
On Monday, Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-05) announced that the honor had been given to Jennifer Strong.
Every year, Rep. Thompson selects inspiring women from California’s Fifth District to recognize their contributions and efforts over the last year.
After the 2015 Valley fire, Strong founded the Rotary Fire Relief Fund and raised more than $1 million to support fire survivors.
“Her efforts have made our recovery easier, and her leadership is inspiring,” said Thompson.
“As a member of the Lakeport Rotary Club, she is known for organizing the Konocti Challenge which raises millions of dollars for Lake County. I am proud to recognize her as the 2022 Lake County Woman of the Year and I look forward to seeing what she continues to accomplish for our community,” Thompson added.
Strong also is owner of Strong Financial Network.
The Woman of the Year Recognition Ceremony was started in honor of Women’s History Month to recognize the service of women in our community.
In addition to Strong, the women in the other counties in the Fifth District who Thompson has selected for Woman of the Year honors include Tina Wong, Contra Costa County; Betty Labastida, Napa County; Betty Rhodes, Napa County; Hazel Wilson, Solano County; Lisa Diaz-McQuaid, Sonoma County; and Elizabeth Quiroz, Sonoma County.
NORTH COAST, Calif. — A Ukiah woman died on Monday evening in a three-vehicle crash on Highway 20 near Lake Mendocino in Mendocino County.
The California Highway Patrol’s Ukiah Area office did not release the name of the 49-year-old woman — who was riding as a passenger in a Mini Cooper that was involved in the collision — pending notification of next of kin.
The crash occurred at 5:28 p.m. Monday on Highway 20 east of Potter Valley Road during rainy conditions, the CHP said.
Based on witness statements, statements from the parties involved and the dash cam footage, the CHP said that Rafael Esquivel, 60, of Ukiah was driving a blue 2004 Mini Cooper eastbound as Michael Schmuckley, 66, of Portland, Oregon, was driving a blue 2018 Toyota Tacoma westbound.
Kurt Jensen, 49, of Clearlake was driving a black 2019 Ford Explorer westbound just behind Schmuckley, the CHP said.
At the time of the crash, the roadway was wet. The CHP said Esquivel drove through standing water causing his Mini Cooper to lose traction with the roadway. The Mini Cooper began to spin and went into the westbound lane.
The CHP said the front of the Mini Cooper collided with the driver’s side of Schmuckley’s Toyota Tacoma, which caused the Toyota to lose control and spin.
The Mini Cooper continued to spin out of control into the westbound lane and the car’s right rear collided with the front of Jensen’s Ford Explorer.
Passing motorists stopped to assist and helped extricate the Mini Cooper’s occupants. The CHP said the female passenger was unresponsive and died of her injuries at the scene.
Neither alcohol nor drugs are believed to be contributing factors in this collision, the CHP said.
Esquivel suffered major injuries, Jensen had moderate injuries and Schmuckley had none, officials said.
The CHP said the crash remains under investigation.
Anyone with information about the wreck is asked to contact the CHP’s Ukiah Area office at 707-467-4420.
Email Elizabeth Larson atThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
The California Highway Patrol’s Ukiah Area office did not release the name of the 49-year-old woman — who was riding as a passenger in a Mini Cooper that was involved in the collision — pending notification of next of kin.
The crash occurred at 5:28 p.m. Monday on Highway 20 east of Potter Valley Road during rainy conditions, the CHP said.
Based on witness statements, statements from the parties involved and the dash cam footage, the CHP said that Rafael Esquivel, 60, of Ukiah was driving a blue 2004 Mini Cooper eastbound as Michael Schmuckley, 66, of Portland, Oregon, was driving a blue 2018 Toyota Tacoma westbound.
Kurt Jensen, 49, of Clearlake was driving a black 2019 Ford Explorer westbound just behind Schmuckley, the CHP said.
At the time of the crash, the roadway was wet. The CHP said Esquivel drove through standing water causing his Mini Cooper to lose traction with the roadway. The Mini Cooper began to spin and went into the westbound lane.
The CHP said the front of the Mini Cooper collided with the driver’s side of Schmuckley’s Toyota Tacoma, which caused the Toyota to lose control and spin.
The Mini Cooper continued to spin out of control into the westbound lane and the car’s right rear collided with the front of Jensen’s Ford Explorer.
Passing motorists stopped to assist and helped extricate the Mini Cooper’s occupants. The CHP said the female passenger was unresponsive and died of her injuries at the scene.
Neither alcohol nor drugs are believed to be contributing factors in this collision, the CHP said.
Esquivel suffered major injuries, Jensen had moderate injuries and Schmuckley had none, officials said.
The CHP said the crash remains under investigation.
Anyone with information about the wreck is asked to contact the CHP’s Ukiah Area office at 707-467-4420.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — In a brief special meeting on Monday afternoon, the Yuba Community College District Board voted to appoint a Clearlake resident to fill a board vacancy.
The board, which met at the Lake County Campus in Clearlake as well as online, approved the provisional appointment of Douglas Harris to fill the unexpired term of William Roderick, who resigned in early February.
Roderick, elected in 2020, represented Trustee Area 7, which includes a portion of Lake County running from Clearlake Oaks in the north to Middletown in the south, as well as parts of Colusa and Glenn counties.
While Roderick’s term ends in 2024, Harris’ provisional appointment will be in effect until the next regularly scheduled board of trustees election on Nov. 8, unless a petition is filed to challenge it, according to board documents.
After Roderick’s resignation, Board President Dennise Burbank appointed a Board Ad Hoc Committee that included herself and fellow trustees Susan Alves and David Wheeler to oversee the appointment process, board documents show.
Harris, the only applicant, has a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of Wisconsin, River Falls and a master’s degree in social work from San Francisco State University.
He’s worked as a part-time instructor in human services and sociology at Yuba Community College’s Lake County Campus, and has been a clients’ rights advocate and social worker, a paralegal and housing counselor.
Harris also has extensive volunteer involvement on the Lake County Campus site council, Habitat for Humanity, planning councils and care committees, and in community groups including the Redbud Audubon Society, the Middletown Arts Center, the Lake County Land Trust and the Anderson Marsh Interpretive Association.
He received support from District 2 Supervisor Bruno Sabatier, who was one of Harris’ students at the Lake County Campus; Dr. Annette Lee, who worked with Harris at the campus for 16 years; academic counselor Ingrid Larsen; and Dr. Laurie Daly, professor of Early Childhood Education, also at the Lake County Campus.
Email Elizabeth Larson atThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
The board, which met at the Lake County Campus in Clearlake as well as online, approved the provisional appointment of Douglas Harris to fill the unexpired term of William Roderick, who resigned in early February.
Roderick, elected in 2020, represented Trustee Area 7, which includes a portion of Lake County running from Clearlake Oaks in the north to Middletown in the south, as well as parts of Colusa and Glenn counties.
While Roderick’s term ends in 2024, Harris’ provisional appointment will be in effect until the next regularly scheduled board of trustees election on Nov. 8, unless a petition is filed to challenge it, according to board documents.
After Roderick’s resignation, Board President Dennise Burbank appointed a Board Ad Hoc Committee that included herself and fellow trustees Susan Alves and David Wheeler to oversee the appointment process, board documents show.
Harris, the only applicant, has a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of Wisconsin, River Falls and a master’s degree in social work from San Francisco State University.
He’s worked as a part-time instructor in human services and sociology at Yuba Community College’s Lake County Campus, and has been a clients’ rights advocate and social worker, a paralegal and housing counselor.
Harris also has extensive volunteer involvement on the Lake County Campus site council, Habitat for Humanity, planning councils and care committees, and in community groups including the Redbud Audubon Society, the Middletown Arts Center, the Lake County Land Trust and the Anderson Marsh Interpretive Association.
He received support from District 2 Supervisor Bruno Sabatier, who was one of Harris’ students at the Lake County Campus; Dr. Annette Lee, who worked with Harris at the campus for 16 years; academic counselor Ingrid Larsen; and Dr. Laurie Daly, professor of Early Childhood Education, also at the Lake County Campus.
Email Elizabeth Larson at