Candidates debate Santa Barbara issues
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F R I DAY, S E P T E M B E R 2 4 , 2 0 21
NEWS-PRESS EXCLUSIVE
Female football player files Title IX suit Lawsuit alleges discrimination after Valley Christian Academy refused to play team with female player By ANNELISE HANSHAW NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
A Title IX lawsuit was filed Wednesday against Valley Christian Academy in Santa Maria, First Baptist Church and Joel Mikkelson, the school’s superintendent and lead pastor of First Baptist. The case is being brought by Sonya Herrera on behalf of her daughter E.H., a minor. The lawsuit alleges sex discrimination. Valley Christian refused to play a scheduled football game against Cuyama Valley High School after it realized a young woman, E.H., is
on the team. The alleged discrimination began March 13, when the schools played a scrimmage. E.H., a wide receiver, released her long chestnut hair from her football helmet as she walked away from the field afterward, and she heard whispers. Mrs. Herrera, who was walking beside her, assumed the high school boys thought her 14-year-old daughter was attractive. E.H. didn’t understand the glares — until her coach broke the news: Valley Christian refused to play the game planned for that weekend.
The team received a letter 30 days later from Joel Mikkelson, superintendent of Valley Christian Academy and lead pastor of First Baptist Church. “As we train our young men in this world, we want to train them rigorously to admire and value women as precious and worthy of respect. . . Football is a violent game, and we understand the value of such in training our young men within the boundaries of an organized sport. However, because of the nature of its contact, we will not play a team that has a female as part of its football team,” the letter said.
Mr. Mikkelson wrote that he did not realize a woman was on the team. E.H.’s name, a conventionally female name, was published on the roster and made available to all Coast Valley League teams. Mrs. Herrera struggled to show her daughter the letter. “I’m pretty tough, but I cried. When I first read that, I was just beside myself. I couldn’t believe that somebody exactly in this day and age would think that way,” she told the News-Press. Her friend told her about Title IX, and she thought about the possibility of raising a lawsuit. When she opened the letter, she
asked E.H. if she’d like to contact a lawyer. E.H. agreed with her mother. A local attorney connected them with Andrew Miltenberg, a leading Title IX attorney. “From the minute I read (the letter), it bothered me for a whole list of reasons. So I set out to find a way to bring it to light and ask the courts to deal with it,” he said. He had to find the connection between the private and public schools. Both are governed by the California Interscholastic Federation and participate in Please see LAWSUIT on A4
COURTESY PHOTO
Andrew Miltenberg, a leading Title IX attorney, is representing the plaintiffs.
Los Padres reopens Ban on wood and charcoal fires remains in effect
KENNETH SONG/NEWS-PRESS
The issue of whether to require COVID-19 vaccines for Santa Barbara Unified School District staff led to much public debate Thursday night.
SB Unified considers vaccination mandate By DAVE MASON NEWS-PRESS MANAGING EDITOR
KENNETH SONG/NEWS-PRESS PHOTOS
Los Padres National Forest reopened to the public Thursday after three weeks of being closed due to wildfire conditions.
By MADISON HIRNEISEN NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
Los Padres National Forest officially reopened to the public Thursday morning, ending a three-week closure that was enacted due to high wildfire danger.. The reopening will allow visitors to once again enjoy the forest’s campgrounds and trails, though certain restrictions remain in place. According to the forest website, fire restrictions that ban wood and charcoal fire remain in effect. Some restrictions have been lifted in the reopening, which will allow visitors with a California Campfire Permit to use portable lanterns and stoves with a shut-off
valve in developed campgrounds and dispersed sites, according to the forest website. The forest was closed as part of a regional order that went into effect Aug. 31, which closed 20 million acres of California’s national forests due to severe wildfire conditions. In addition to Los Padres, three other national forests — Angeles, Cleveland and San Bernardino — also reopened Thursday. Andrew Madsen, the public affairs officer for the Forest Service, told the News-Press that local residents can help to ensure the forest stays open by following the current restrictions and guidelines in place for fire safety. Please see RE-OPENING on A4
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A pair of deer and a flock of wild turkeys were spotted near Paradise Road in Los Padres National Forest.
Hours of lively public debate went on Thursday evening when the Santa Barbara Unified School District board considered a vaccine mandate for all staff. Board members hadn’t voted on the resolution by the time the News-Press went to press. (See the updated version of this story at newspress.com.) The resolution would eliminate the option of COVID-19 testing for those who choose not to be vaccinated. There are exemptions allowed for medical and religious reasons. The change was supported in a letter that the board received from Dr. Henning Ansorg, the Santa Barbara County public health officer, and Dr. Van DoReynoso, the county public health department director. A spokeswoman for county Supervisor Das Williams said Mr. Williams supports the vaccine as an important part of keeping schools open for inperson instruction. About two-thirds of the 70-plus public commentators Thursday opposed the measure, noting that they have the right to make personal health choices. Some of those were district employees (including teachers), and others included parents of
schoolchildren and students, mainly of high school age. They cautioned against policies based on fear and noted that vaccinated individuals can still get and transmit COVID-19. They questioned the need for vaccines as well as the safety and effectiveness of vaccinations. Some said the mandate would be unconstitutional. One opponent got right to the point. “You are on a slippery slope, and you are just plain wrong,” Celia Campbell-Lemere told the board during the virtual meeting. But some commentators, including parents of schoolchildren and a student, urged the board to adopt the mandate for the safety of all and to ensure in-person instruction. They noted that staff should get vaccinated for the sake of students, especially those 11 and younger who currently can’t get vaccinated. “In order to protect those who cannot be vaccinated and those for whom the vaccine does not result in a strong robust immune response, they need to be surrounded by folks who are vaccinated,” said Dr. Charles Fenzi, CEO and chief medical officer of the Santa Please see VACCINES on A4
INSIDE
L O T T E RY RESULTS
Classified................. B4 Life...................... B1-2 Obituaries............... A4
Wednesday’s SUPER LOTTO: 4-6-26-39-41 Meganumber: 12
Wednesday’s DAILY 4: 1-3-8-7
Tuesday’s MEGA MILLIONS: 36-41-45-51-56 Meganumber: 13
Wednesday’s FANTASY 5: 5-9-22-32-37
Wednesday’s DAILY DERBY: 03-01-09 Time: 1:47.53
Wednesday’s POWERBALL: 20-40-47-55-63 Meganumber: 5
Sudoku................... B3 Weather................. A4
Wednesday’s DAILY 3: 4-9-7 / Wednesday’s Midday 1-6-0