local news
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Election notebook: Former Hanford councilman joins Assembly race
Another candidate has entered the race for the newly drawn 32nd Assembly District seat -- former Hanford City Councilman Dave Thomas, who filed papers in Kings County last week.
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Grand jury highlights medicine errors at children's shelter
The Kern County Grand Jury this week called for sharp changes in how staff at the A. Miriam Jamison Children's Center deliver over-the-counter and prescription medications to juveniles sheltered there.
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Settlement could help Kern's beleaguered housing market
A historic settlement between 49 states and the nation's largest mortgage lenders could mean about $374.5 million for Kern County homeowners affected by the region's foreclosure avalanche, according to the California Attorney General's Office.
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The prescription drug shortage examined on Californian Radio
Executive Editor John Arthur is the host on "Californian Radio" today.
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Taft-developed stats app selling worldwide
At one point, students could use only pencil and paper to solve complex math problems. Then calculators and graphing calculators came along. Now there's TC-Stats, an application for the iPad that math professors and students are calling a breakthrough in math-solving technology.
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Kern probation concerned by plan for juvenile prisons
County governments have invested nearly a half-billion dollars over the past 15 years to modernize juvenile lockups and now have the capacity to absorb offenders currently housed in the state's youth prisons, if those facilities are closed, a new study contends.
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Education roundup: Bakersfield hosts state "We the People" finals
Kern County will host the state finals for the "We The People" constitutional education program Saturday for the first time in the contest's 25-year history. It's fitting, too, considering the area is host to two of eight high school teams competing for the title.
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Bakersfield College president stepping down to teach
The president of Bakersfield College since 2008 is resigning at the end of his contract this summer, but he won't be going far -- he plans to return to teach in the Computer Studies Department on campus, he announced Thursday.
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Worth noting in business: Dollar General looks to hire service members, veterans; more
Dollar General and the California National Guard are co-sponsoring a job fair for Bakersfield-area Guardsmen, service members and veterans from 2 to 6 p.m. today at the Bakersfield National Guard Armory, 2800 Gateway Blvd.
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These groups need your volunteer help
The Mayor's Freeway Cleanup is 8-11 a.m. Saturday. Volunteers help clean up the freeway on/off ramps, making our city a more beautiful place to drive. This opportunity is open to teens looking for class credit for volunteer hours. Vests, helmets, gloves, pickers and water are all provided. Call Keitha Turner at 326-3770 for more details.
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Governor's office signals support for transitional kindergarten
There finally appears to be some agreement in Sacramento about funding for transitional kindergarten, but whether schools implement it this fall is still a big question.
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Bakersfield's Amgen stage to test cyclists
A glance at the course profile for Stage 5 of the Amgen Tour of California would lead one to believe the 18.4-mile time trial which starts and finishes at Bakersfield College, will be a breeze.
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Animal shelter kill rates continue to rise
For years, aggressive efforts by nonprofit animal rescue groups have saved the lives of thousands of dogs and cats that Kern County Animal Control didn't have the money, space or staffing to shelter.
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Transportation Secretary LaHood talks high-speed rail in Fresno visit
FRESNO -- America's top transportation official offered a spirited defense of high-speed rail plans Wednesday, but said that he and other supporters are aware of "serious concerns that people may have."
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Former investigator sues county, top public defenders
A former Kern County Public Defender's office investigator is suing the county and several top public defenders alleging he was wrongly fired after he demanded overtime pay and blew the whistle on a deputy public defender who -- he said -- told a witness to lie.
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Q&A: Biggest Losers share their weight-loss secrets
Jerry and Estella Hayes were contestants on Season 7 of The Biggest Loser, collectively losing more than 262 pounds in eight months. The couple, both 66, were the oldest contestants on the show, which they say proves it's never too late to get healthy.
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County pension bill to grow by $11 million
Kern County's annual pension debt to the Kern County Employees' Retirement Association will climb by $11.3 million to a grand total of $210 million in the fiscal year that starts in July.
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Hondas targeted in Bakersfield College car thefts
It's been a rough week for Bakersfield College's Honda community.
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Education roundup: High schoolers to compete in videography contest
Thirty-five teams of local high school student videographers will battle Friday and Saturday at East High in a deadline-pressure video contest.
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VALERIE SCHULTZ: Blisters on my lip -- call it a cold sore-spot
Here's a brief diary of one of the more horrible cycles of life: