As 2016 comes to a close, we look back on some of the top stories of the year.
After more than a year of bitter arguments, the Morongo Unified School District and the Morongo Teacher’s Association union finally reached an agreement on a new contract. The teachers received a stepped pay increase retroactive to July 1, 2015, among other items.
The school board refused to renew the charter for Hope Academy, citing a fraud investigation of the school’s previous administrative staff.
Supporters argued that the school had severed relations with the school’s former executive director, his family, and his private company. The school board was not swayed by the charter’s supporters, however, and Hope Academy eventually joined forces with Inspire Charter Schools and Discovery of Learning in Orange County.
Yucca Valley High School was rocked by controversial photos that were published in its yearbook. In the Senior Superlative section of the yearbook, under the heading of “Teacher’s Nightmare,” a male student is pointing a gun at an American government textbook, and the female student is holding a knife at another textbook. The other photo, illustrating “Rule the World,” shows a male student holding what appears to be three sticks of dynamite while a female student tries to light the fuse. Yearbook advisor Scott Phillips later resigned.
Tomorrow, in part 4, we’ll continue with more of our top stories from 2016.
