Jeff Pelline's Sierra Foothills Report

Sierra College confirmed on Wednesday that has its academic accreditation has been reaffirmed, a major step forward for the institution.

Trustee Aaron Klein sent out a “tweet” about the decision, and spokeswoman Sue Michaels at Sierra College confirmed this for me.

She added that Sierra College received the “highest ranking.”

The accreditation comes from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.

Sierra College had been on a “warning list” for its accreditation and some candidates for the Board of Trustees had made it an issue during the election.

Sue said she would send along the letter when she sees it. (And she confirmed she is a reader of this blog when I called. Thank you Sue).

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I was glad to see a letter from Jason Rainey, executive director of SYRCL, confirming that the Wild & Scenic Film Festival had no plans to move the event to Grass Valley.

The rumor got started in The Union — of all places. “Liz Kellar’s Jan. 18 article took a quote from a volunteer and suggested that SYRCL plans to move the festival to Grass Valley,” the letter pointed out.

I was asked about this rumor when the story ran, since our family was a sponsor of this year’s Film Festival. I said “no,” it won’t happen, adding that The Union should have known better than to publish the information as a “throw away line” at the end of the story without digging further. It’s why you need a good Editor.

As Rainey confirmed: “While there may be ways to share Wild & Scenic films in Grass Valley venues (such as screenings during other times of year), everyone in the current leadership of SYRCL is thrilled with the support we receive from Nevada City, recognizes the town as a key ingredient to our success, and wouldn’t consider abandoning this winning formula.”

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•Sierra College President Leo Chavez earns $237,227 annually. He last received a 6 percent COLA raise in 2008-2009. Chavez’ salary would drop to $219,910 under a cost-cutting plan being considered.

•The Nevada County Campus Executive Dean earns $135,707 annually. This is less than the $148,217 earned by the retired predecessor. The dean’s salary would drop to $125,801 under the proposed cost cutting at Sierra College.

The figures do not include health and retirement benefits.

Thanks to Trustee Aaron Klein and VP-Human Resources Ron Martinez for providing the information as Sierra College considers cost-cutting plans.

Yuba College, meanwhile, is under fire for giving its district leader a double-digit pay raise while layoffs are occurring.

Here’s what Aaron wrote on his blog about last night’s meeting of College Trustees:

“For now, here’s a quick update: the meeting went from 4 p.m. to 11:30. The board voted 6-1 to issue the layoff notices required to balance the budget, but instructed staff to prepare options for saving the automotive, construction and agriculture job training programs.”

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A memorial ride will be held on Feb. 13 in honor of Jim Rogers, who died in a bicycling accident on Sunday.

MEMORIAL RIDE: A positive, fun bike ride will be held in Jim’s honor on Saturday, February 13th at 10 a.m. We’ll meet in the Safeway Parking Lot before and after the ride at 867 Sutton Way, Grass Valley. There will be a ~10 mile beginner ride (some hills) and an intermediate local loop ~20+ miles.

SERVICES: Services are open to the public and will be held Sunday, February 14th at 2 p.m. at the Sierra Presbyterian Church at 175 Ridge Road Nevada City. A public reception will be held that same day at 4 p.m. at the Miner’s Foundry at 325 Spring Street in Nevada City. Please bring a beverage and a meal to share.

MEMORIAL FUND: A fund has been established in honor of Jim Rogers, benefiting the college education of his son Nate. Contributions may be sent to: “The Nate Rogers Fund in Memory of Jim Rogers”, c/o Wells Fargo Bank, 757 Sutton Way, Grass Valley, CA 95945.

CARDS: Your thoughts and wishes may be sent to Allan and Betty Rogers, 210 Spring Street, Nevada City, CA 95959.

More information is here.

Here are some reader responses to this blog’s report of the tragedy:

•
Thank you for sharing the very sad news of Jim’s death. We are his cousins and fellow cyclists and are devastated by this terrible tragedy. Thank you too, to the local cycling community for lending his parents, wife, and other family members your support. The burden of this loss is lifted by your kind gestures. 
— Aurelia d’Andrea and Jeff Rogers, 
San Francisco

•How tragic. Jim was one of the true “good guys” of cycling. A wonderful teammate and great mentor. I’m so sad to hear of his passing. —Fritz Knochenhauer
, former PenVelo member with Jim

•My husband, Allyn, and Jim were riding buddies for many years before my husband passed away (from melanoma) four years ago. Jim had one of the kindest hearts of any one we ever knew. He will be dearly missed by those of us who loved him. My prayers are with his children, Nate and Gina, his wife, Carolyn and his parents. —Brenda Hodges

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A letter to Sam Aanestad — as well as ones sent to 27 other California lawmakers from the California Fair Political Practices Commission enforcement division — was obtained by the Associated Press through the California Public Records Act.

It’s the same sort of work that groups such as Calaware and The First Amendment Coalition support when I wrote in “Journalists who fight for open government.” The California Public Records Act is here.

The AP reported last month that among unreported gifts by other legislators included meals at Ella’s, a high-end Sacramento restaurant; tickets to Billy Joel, Keith Urban and George Strait concerts and tickets to Sacramento Kings basketball games.

The Union followed up on the AP story on Wednesday.

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