Hometown News Since 1916 Making Communities Better Through Print.™ VOL. CIV, NO. XXI
THURSDAY, JUNE 4, 2020
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CLASS OF 2020
EDUCATION
Teachers of the Year
Carol Leoni. Contributed photo
Atascadero High School senior Tyler Nunez and his family cruise by the Atascadero City Hall on Wednesday in the district’s senior graduation. Photo by Nicholas Mattson
Atascadero Graduates Cruise into the Future
D
ue to COVID-19 concerns and restrictions on California schools, the Atascadero school district seniors were treated to a vehicle parade on Wednesday in lieu of the traditional walk for graduation. The Atascadero Unified School District trustees met on the steps of
the Atascadero City Hall to greet the graduates as they drove by to receive their diplomas. Each vehicle filled with family, graduates exited one at a time to get a photograph in front of the iconic city hall. A fenced wall ran the length of the east end of the Sunken Gardens park, adorned with congrats and celebratory decor.
CITY OF ATASCADERO
By CONNOR ALLEN connor@atascaderonews.com ATASCADERO — Tuesday night via SLO-Span teleconferencing, the Atascadero City Council voted to unanimously add a one percent sales tax increase onto the 2020 ballots that will be voted on this November. The need for the tax increase was presented by Atascadero City Manager Rachelle Rickard that showed Atascadero’s deficiencies in funding in several areas but focused on public safety (more specifically police) and was echoed by a poll conducted in January of this year. True North Research conducted the study, and 65 percent of the selected persons polled stated they would vote yes on a one-cent sales tax measure. “We receive about 745 dollars per capita per person to provide police, fire, paramedic, streets, parks and all of those things”, Rickard said to the Council. “A city like Pismo Beach gets almost 3,000 dollars per capita to do it. Morro Bay, Paso CONTINUED ON PAGE A13
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LOCAL NEWS
was the steps graduates were taking into the next phase of their lives. They are tasked with shaking off the trauma of coronavirus and nationwide rioting over police brutality and systemic injustice that threatened to overshadow their rite of passage into adulthood on a sunny June morning. The class of 2020 faced a dramatic CONTINUED ON PAGE A13
Paso Robles Holds Peaceful Protest in Downtown Park By CONNOR ALLEN connor@atascaderonews.com PASO ROBLES — Monday afternoon from 12 until 2 p.m. Paso Robles held a peaceful protest in the Downtown Park in support of George Floyd, who died on May 25 after a Minnesota Police Officer knelt on his neck for over eight minutes on camera, and against police brutality and the killing of black Americans. The protest was peaceful and organized as over 100 people from all walks of life joined together with signs and marched around the park with each other after gathering in the gazebo and spreading their message. “It was in support of George Floyd and everyone else that lost their lives not just due to police brutality,” Porche Bailey, one of the two event organizers, said. “But also in support of people like Ahmaud Arbery, who was killed while jogging.” The protesters were met at the park by a few officers from the Paso Robles Police Department, who were not dressed in riot gear, and spoke with the protesters, and listened to their concerns. According to reports, PRPD police chief Ty Lewis addressed the crowd directly with a message of support and understanding. The Paso Robles Press has reached
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out to PRPD for comment and is still waiting for a reply. “It was amazing they came and introduced themselves, and we let, I believe it was the Chief of police, speak,” Bailey said after the protest. “And they were very attentive and asking people if they needed anything to let them know, and at that point in time, my heart felt very filled with joy because
Crowds packed around the parade route, which ran from Traffic Way down Palma Avenue to pass by the face of the Atascadero City Hall. AUSD trustees, administration, and principals met their students at a safe distance most of the time, although it was clear that the heightened concerns over COVID-19 had evaporated significantly. The overriding theme of the day
LOCAL NEWS
Council Adds Sales Tax Question to November Ballot
By CONNOR ALLEN connor@atascaderonews.com he Atascadero Unified School District, along with the Atascadero District Teachers Association announced last week that they would not select an individual teacher to be honored as the “Teacher of the Year” in the District but would instead give the award to all certificated staff for their work during these unprecedented times. The Atascadero School District moved to distance learning only on March 13, and from that moment, everything changed for not only how the students learn but how the teachers teach. “This year, the Atascadero District Teachers Association (ADTA), voted to recognize all Certificated Staff as Teachers of the Year,” Assistant Superintendent Curt Eichperger said in an email to the Atascadero News. “The decision was due in part to the dedicated effort all employees have made to support the students of AUSD during Distance Learning because of the school closures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The closures were felt all around the nation and affected the lives of kids and teachers in elementary school, middle school, high school, and up to universities. Each teacher had to his or her way to stay connected with their students and with those changes came difficulties and adversity. “Some of the challenges were just trying to get everyone a device,” Carol Leoni, a second-grade teacher in the District, said. “And the kids are little, and we don’t have them on the computers during the regular school day like we do now. They are on maybe 30 to 45 minutes a day in a normal class setting, and now they are doing most of their work online.” Not only were the students facing the significant learning curve that comes with switching to distance learning, but so did the teachers and the parents as they tried to support one another.
A vehicle parade carries seniors through downtown By NICHOLAS MATTSON nic@atascaderonews.com
AUSD honors all certificated staff with Teacher of the Year honors
Protest organizer Portia Hill, center, hugs an attendee during Sunday’s gathering at Paso Robles downtown park. Contributed photo
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Congratulations
to the 2020 graduating class!
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