Education

Out-of-work teachers in California would be able to collect unemployment benefits while training in high demand subject areas under a bill lawmakers are considering. The bill’s author says it’s designed to help the nearly 20-thousand unemployed teachers.

Democratic Senator Noreen Evans authored the bill that she says would help unemployed teachers who want to get credentialed in science, math or special education. Under current law, if out-of-work teachers want that training, they lose their benefits. Evans says that’s not fair.

California State University and its faculty union have reached a tentative agreement on a four-year contract.

Professors, counselors and other members of the California Faculty Association won’t be getting raises. But if the state-funded university system somehow gets an influx of cash, there’s an option to re-open salary talks. Claudia Keith is with C-S-U:

“Essentially, the tentative agreement calls for no salary increases for the first two years with the opportunities to re-open in the last two years of the contract.”

Fresno Pacific University has a new leader for the first time in a decade.

Dr. Pete Menjares officially became the university's new president on Saturday at an event in Omaha.  He replaces the retiring Dr. Merrill Ewert, who led the college for the past 10 years. He is the 11th president at the private, Mennonite affiliated Fresno based university since 1944.

Menjares was hired earlier this year, and has spent the past two months in Fresno working with Ewert on the school's leadership transition.