Jeremy T. Ringfield's Blog, page 127

PG&E CEO predicts bills won’t rise in 2025 and will fall in 2026

PG&E’s top boss says monthly energy bills should be flat or lower over the next few years — even as the utility has asked the state to authorize it to collect more revenue from its ratepayers.

The company said it has begun to rein in costs and improve efficiency to a greater degree than in previous years, allowing it can achieve that goal.

“This is not the old PG&E,” CEO Patricia Poppe said in an interview with this news organization. “This is a turnaround story in the making.”

On Thursday, the investor-owned utility asked the state Public Utilities Commission to approve additional revenue as part of the company’s general rate case, which PG&E files roughly every four years.

“Although there is a revenue increase, we are decreasing other costs,” Poppe said. “The other parts of the bill are coming down. We are passing along the savings to customers.”

This new proposal covers 2027 to 2030, according to PG&E.

“Based on current information, if the proposal is approved in full, PG&E expects residential combined gas and electric bills in 2027 to be flat compared to 2025 bills,” PG&E stated in comments the company released along with Thursday’s regulatory filing.

Consumer groups torched the proposal, saying any bill reductions arrive on the heels of massive increases in recent years. Over the five years that ended in January, PG&E bills have increased by 68.6%.

“PG&E can claim that customers might see slightly lower bills next year because current bills are artificially inflated due to the six rate increases last year,” said Lee Trotman, a spokesperson for consumer group The Utility Reform Network. “A slight decrease from these inflated rates does little to help customers experiencing an affordability crisis.”

The group has pushed a package of bills in Sacramento seeking more affordability, headlined by SB 254, which it said would reduce long-term ratepayer costs and provide immediate rate relief for users.

In January 2020, PG&E monthly bills were roughly $175 a month for combined services. In January 2021, the average monthly bill rose to $188.

The January 2022 combined bill rose another 17.6% compared with 2021, and then another 9% in January 2023 compared with 2022 for an average of $241 a month. By January 2024, monthly residential bills averaged $294, up 22% from the year before.

Monthly bills in January for customers who receive combined electric and gas service from PG&E were $295, a 0.3% increase over the one-year period.

Oakland-based PG&E predicted that the rest of 2025 will bring no further increases in electricity rates. In 2026, the typical residential customer who receives combined electricity and gas services should see lower bills compared to 2025, the utility stated.

“PG&E is requesting its smallest general rate case percentage increase in a decade, made possible in part by reducing costs and passing on savings to customers,” PG&E stated.

If the general rate case impacts were the sole factor, PG&E monthly bills would rise $10.64 in 2027, $9.94 in 2028, $10.50 in 2029 and $11.08 in 2030, according to the utility. The annual average increase over the four years is 3.4%, PG&E estimated.

Other factors are in play, however, which, when they materialize, will help curb the impact from the general rate case, the utility said.

“Our goal is to also stabilize bills through this period,” PG&E stated. “They could even go down.”

Public Utilities Commission decisions that authorized PG&E to recover prior costs are slated to expire and vanish from customer rates. The scheduled terminations of the cost recovery efforts, combined with PG&E’s push for greater efficiency and cost reductions, may help offset the revenue increases PG&E is seeking through the new general rate case, PG&E said.

There are other factors that could force costs lower, including a $15 billion U.S. Energy Department loan guarantee that enables PG&E to borrow money at sharply lower costs than the conventional market.

The state could also see higher energy demand, which would spread fixed grid costs.

Over the last three years, PG&E said it slashed operating costs and capital expenses by $2.5 billion.

PG&E on Thursday also identified several customer priorities:

Transform and modernize its power grid to meet what’s expected to be “historic growth electricity demand” from new homes, businesses, electric vehicles and data centers that are focused on artificial intelligence.Improve wildfire safety by replacing 760 miles of power lines with stronger poles and covered power lines, placing 307 miles of power lines underground in the highest fire-risk areas, installing an additional 114 weather stations, and improving tree trimming.Increase clean energy delivery by investing in lower-cost solar and battery energy storage, installing more microgrids in remote areas, modernizing existing clean hydroelectric plants and accelerating electric vehicle adoptions that could help them become mobile batteries during periods of peak electricity demand.Strengthen the gas system by replacing 164 miles of distribution pipeline and upgrading internal pipeline inspections. PG&E will also respond to more than 600,000 calls to locate and mark gas lines.

“We can do upgrades more efficiently as more and bigger customers are added,” Poppe said. “We will keep pushing and pushing to lower bills. We can lower people’s costs.”

How Hayden Birdsong, Jordan Hicks reacted to SF Giants rotation swap

SAN FRANCISCO — Hayden Birdsong of the Giants came to Oracle Park Sunday knowing he wouldn’t pitch in the final game of a three-game series against the Athletics.

And he’s fine with that.

Things are more uncertain with Jordan Hicks. While he doesn’t want to go back to the bullpen, he’s not going to make any waves.

Birdsong will make his first start of the season Tuesday night against the Kansas City Royals, the second of a three-game series to close out the homestand. The Giants then begin a nine-game road trip with stops in Washington, Detroit, and Miami.

Giants manager Bob Melvin announced the switch Saturday. Birdsong and Hicks discussed their role reversal for the first time Sunday before Justin Verlander took the mound to try and finish off a sweep of the A’s.

“I’m definitely excited,” Birdsong said. “It’s what I planned to do at the beginning of the year, but circumstances didn’t let me start. But our job here is to win games.”

As a volume innings reliever, Birdsong, 23, is 1-0 with a 2.31 earned run average with 10 walks and 25 strikeouts.

Melvin has said all season that Birdsong would be a front-line starter at some point, and now that time has come. And he’s hopeful the stint in the bullpen will pay off now that he’s back in the rotation.

“Just warming up and being ready to go all the time, it helps me learn that I need to bounce back as best I can,” Birdsong said. “I’ve learned a lot about recovery and stuff like that.”

Birdsong’s last outing was 65 pitches in an 8-7 loss to Arizona, and Melvin suggested he’d probably go 10 pitches or so beyond that Tuesday if things go as planned.

“We’re going to find out,” Birdsong said.

Melvin said Saturday Hicks accepted his switch with the right attitude, and the 28-year-old right-hander was philosophical when speaking with reporters.

“We have a real good ballclub here, and things just weren’t going the way we wanted as a starting pitcher,” Hicks said. “So I’ve got to turn the page now and do some bullpen work. Whatever the team needs. I’m not giving up on myself. I want to be a starting pitcher. That’s what I wanted to do in the big leagues.”

Hicks was 1-5 with 6.55 earned run average in five starts. Analytics would suggest he pitched with some bad luck, with a number of seeing-eye hits. He recovered from some early struggles in games to get better as they went along — his first-inning earned run average was 12.00, and batters hit .442 (19-for-43) in the first frame.

“I took pride in going deeper into games and getting past the five-inning mark,” Hicks said. “That’s the hardest part because that’s kind of how I was evaluating myself — how deep I can go into games, limit damage, keep us in games. In the bad ones, I felt like I had a bad innings, ground balls that got through the infield.”

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Schmitt making progress: Utility infielder Casey Schmitt has missed 27 games with a left oblique strain but could be nearing a return. He’s 1-for-8 with Triple-A Sacramento but was at Oracle Park working out Sunday.

“The reports have been good,” Melvin said. “We’re going to see how he gets through the day and evaluate tomorrow. Could be soon. Could be a couple more days, how he gets through today will have a lot to do with that.”

Infielder/outfielder Jerar Encarnación (left hand fracture) is scheduled to start his rehab next week.

Looking Back: Quite the sardine catch, 1957

Huihui-Martinez honored with prestigious award at St. Michael’s College

Nicole Huihui-Martinez earned one of the highest sports awards at St. Michael’s College in Vermont, as she was named the George Joc Jacobs winner.

The award recognizes individuals who make an outstanding contribution to athletics at St. Michael’s College.

Returning from an injury that kept her out her entire junior season, Huihui-Martinez helped lead St. Michael’s to the playoffs this past fall as a defensive specialist and team captain.

During her three-year career on the court, the former Notre Dame of Salinas multi-sport athlete collected 417 digs, averaging 2.10 digs a set. She also had 35 service aces and 72 assists.

A health-science major, Huihui-Martinez compiled a 3.92 grade point average at St. Michael’s, collecting 11 academic awards.

You can’t make this stuff up

Marlo Faulkner has had a long and rather illustrious career, and all it has had to do with well-chosen words.

For 33 years, she taught English, history and film at the high school level. One exercise, exploring how both music and black-and-white versus color affect the way we perceive a film, started with an interpretation of “Blazing Saddles,” followed by “Schindler’s List,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and “Victor Victoria,” among others.

Faulkner – no relation, although it helps – became a feature journalist, penning a weekly column in the San Mateo Times for 13 years about textiles and fibers. When asked what she could possibly write about to sustain an audience, she said, “The way Bob Mackie designed for Cher, how General Motors makes upholstery designs, the unicorn tapestries at The Met.” For starters.

Faulkner never missed a week, researching and writing enough “material” for 676 columns.

Aware that The Times had a long history of covering The Shakespeare Festival, Faulkner also had observed that the writer doing so was easily bored. So, she commandeered the assignment to become the critic for the festival, a gig she covered for 28 years.

“I never took for granted that I had comp tickets to the festival,” she said. “It was a fabulous opportunity.”

Then she wrote a book.

Leaning into London

Faulkner, on an article assignment, visited Jack London’s widow Charmian London’s “House of Happy Walls” in Glen Ellen, which had a secret compartment on the second floor. She pushed her hand against a rock on the wall, a door opened, and she entered a darkened stairway that went up eight steps and turned sharply to the right.

“I put my hand against a wall to brace myself and felt something there,” said Faulkner, but it offered almost no tactile sense, like running my hand over chinchilla. Turns out it was a red hunting jacket, made of newborn lambskin, which had belonged to London’s second wife, Charmian Kittredge.”

Realizing she had discovered Kittredge’s closet, still housing her clothes, her undergarments, her life via her intimate belongings, Faulker wrote a story about her, kind of a “characterization by clothing.”

She considered developing it into a screenplay until a writing coach said, “Do the book first, then the screenplay.”

Following a saga of considerable research and writing, on April 23, Luminare Press released “The Second Mrs. London: Charmian Kittredge shares her life with Jack London.”

Building the Back Story

Faulkner met a woman by the water fountain at the opera, who happened to be on the Board at the Huntington Museum in Santa Monica, which houses the Jack London Collection. This led to a meeting with London’s grandnephew, Irving Shepard, who gave her written permission to access the collection, which she studied for six years before completing her novel.

“While the storyline is, therefore, accurate,” she said, “I have presented it as historical fiction because I introduced dialogue. If it were a biography, it would have none.”

While Faulkner’s book focuses on Kittredge, this isn’t the first biography that characterizes London’s story.

“When (London) died,” she said, “(Kittredge) needed money. So, she worked with Irving Stone (think “Agony and the Ecstasy” about Michelangelo), who took London’s own title and gave it to his biography about the author. In his account, he claimed London committed suicide, which he did not and described his wife as a ‘buxom broad with an overbite,’ also not accurate.”

What is accurate, said Faulkner, is that London met his first wife, Elizabeth (Bessie) Maddern at Cal Berkeley, where she tutored him during his single semester on campus. He went on to marry her, Faulker said, because he thought she would anchor him, give him a foundation that enabled him to write.

“London, who wanted sons, described Bessie as ‘having great hips,’ so she could easily birth children, hopefully sons,” Faulkner said. “She had two daughters, and the family came to Carmel. Jack was a great swimmer, which was important to him. But Maddern couldn’t swim. He wanted a life partner and realized she wasn’t going to be that.”

Kittredge, “The Second Mrs. London,” felt guilty that her relationship with London began before the divorce, said Faulkner. Maddern felt horrified he was leaving her – a scene Faulkner portrays in her book – and became very bitter.

And this is just the crest of the wave. Dive into all 460 pages of “The Second Mrs. London” to see how it plays out.

“My first draft had 1,500 pages,” Faulkner said. “There is enough to the story to warrant that but, as Australian author Thomas Keneally said, ‘Do it in three books.’ Perhaps.”

This first edition follows the tradition of Paula McLain’s “The Paris Wife” and Therese Anne Fowler’s “Z,” a novel of Zelda Fitzgerald, said Faulkner. “The Second Mrs. London” combines “first-person insights with intimate and emotional revelations by an unheard historical figure at the center of a great romance with a major American writer.”

Faulkner, who holds membership in the Historical Novel Society of America, Women Writers of the West and the Central Coast branch of the California Writers Club, will formally launch her book on June 3 at 7 p.m. in the Auditorium at Canterbury Woods in Pacific Grove.

Final Top 5 boys and girls lacrosse rankings

Final Top 5 boys and girls lacrosse rankings

Boys

1. Stevenson:

2. Los Gatos:

3. Salinas:

4. Palma:

5. Aptos:

On the bubble: Pacific Grove, Monterey, Carmel.

Girls

1. Stevenson:

2. Scotts Valley:

3. Salinas:

4. Carmel:

5. Aptos:

On the bubble: Santa Catalina, Monte Vista, Soquel.

States are telling sheriffs whether they can — or can’t — work with ICE

By Tim Henderson, Stateline.org

Local sheriffs are on the front lines in deciding whether to participate in the Trump administration’s mass deportation plans. But states increasingly are making the choice for them.

More and more, sheriffs’ hands are tied no matter whether they do — or don’t — want to help with deportations, though they often get the blame when conservatives draw up lists of sanctuary cities.

“‘Naughty lists,’ as we call them, are not super helpful here,” said Patrick Royal, a spokesperson for the National Sheriffs’ Association. “We all know there are places like Colorado where you can’t [help with deportations], and places like North Carolina where you have to.”

Cooperation between sheriffs and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement lies at the heart of the Trump administration’s immigration detention policy. The administration plans to punish noncooperative jurisdictions with funding cuts— though many legal experts agree that cooperation is voluntary unless state or local laws say otherwise.

Sheriffs, who typically run local jails, must decide what to do when faced with immigration detainers— requests from ICE to hold onto incarcerated people up to two extra days so ICE officers can show up and arrest them. ICE issues those detainers when the agency reviews fingerprints sent electronically for background checks as part of the jail booking process.

Otherwise, arrested suspects who post bond or are otherwise released by a judge might go free despite their immigration status, prompting ICE in some cases to pursue them in the community.

In North Carolina, Sheriff Garry McFadden ran on a platform of limiting cooperation with ICE when he was elected in Mecklenburg County, home to Charlotte, in 2018. But today, McFadden must comply with detainers because of a state law passed last year.

In a now-retracted Facebook post, U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis in late April Mecklenburg and several other North Carolina counties of “shielding criminal illegal immigrants” as sanctuary jurisdictions. Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, said in the post he was writing federal legislation to prosecute sanctuary jurisdictions.

“You can’t say we’re a sanctuary county and have state laws that say we have to work with ICE. You can’t have both,” McFadden said. He added that he’d like more choice about whether to comply with detainers. A federal funding cutoff would endanger important jail programs such as rape counseling, he said.

“Everybody’s focused on immigration like that’s the biggest fire, and nobody wants to address the other things. The losers will be the prisoners who need all these services we provide,” McFadden said.

Conservative sheriffs in Democratic-controlled states also can be frustrated by state policy on detainers. Sheriff Lew Evangelidis of Worcester County, Massachusetts, said he’s been criticized for releasing prisoners wanted by ICE but sometimes has no choice: A 2017 state Supreme Court ruling prohibits holding prisoners based on detainers.

“If they [ICE] want this person and consider them a threat to public safety, then I want that person out of my community. I want to keep my community safe,” said Evangelidis. He supported a Republican-sponsored effort in the state legislature to allow 12-hour holds for ICE if a judge determines the prisoner is a threat to public safety, but the amendment was voted down in April.

States act on detainers

Many experts agree that ICE detainers can be legally ignored if states allow sheriffs to do that.

“That detainer request is just that, a request, it’s not a requirement,” said Cassandra Charles, a staff attorney at the National Immigration Law Center, which is opposing Louisiana’s lawsuit to reverse a court-ordered ban on cooperation between Orleans Parish and ICE.

The general counsel for the North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association, Eddie Caldwell, agreed that the detainers are voluntary under federal law.

The association supports a state bill now under consideration that would require not only the 48-hour detention but also a notice sent 48 hours before release to let ICE know the clock is running. The proposal has passed the House.

The notification matters, Caldwell said, because there can be criminal proceedings that take weeks or months, so ICE in many cases doesn’t realize the 48-hour window has started.

Tillis’ office said the senator’s disagreement with McFadden, a Democrat, and other sheriffs is about that notification.

“It’s not necessarily that [sheriffs] are breaking the law, but rather making it as difficult as possible for ICE to take prisoners into custody by refusing to do some basic things. Notification is important,” said Daniel Keylin, a senior adviser to Tillis.

States including California, Colorado and Massachusetts ban compliance with the ICE detainers, on the general principle that it’s not enough reason to hold people in jails when they’re otherwise free to go because of bail or an end to their criminal cases. Those three states have made recent moves to defend or fine-tune their rules.

California’s attorney general also has issued guidance to local jurisdictions based on a 2017 state law limiting cooperation with immigration authorities. That law withstood a court challenge under the first Trump administration.

Colorado has a law against holding prisoners more than six hours longer than required, and a new bill sent to Democratic Gov. Jared Polis last week would specify that even those six hours can’t be for the purpose of an immigration detainer.

Iowa, Tennessee and Texas are among the states requiring cooperation with detainers.

And Florida has gone further, requiring sheriffs to actively help ICE write detainers though official agreements in which local agencies sign up to help enforce immigration laws.

Cooperation boosts arrests

Such cooperation makes a big difference, experts say — jails are the easiest place to pick up immigrants for deportation, and when local sheriffs and police help out, there are more arrests.

“A larger share of ICE arrests and deportations are happening in places where local law enforcement is cooperative with ICE,” said Julia Gelatt, associate director for the Migration Policy Institute’s U.S. Immigration Policy Program, speaking at a recent webinar.

“A declining share of arrests and deportations are happening from places like California, where there are really strict limitations on local law enforcement’s cooperation with ICE,” she added.

ICE is making about 600 immigration arrests daily, twice the rate as during the last year of the Biden administration, said Muzaffar Chishti, an attorney and policy expert at the Migration Policy Institute, speaking at the same event.

Reports on deportations are incomplete, Chishti said, but he estimated the current administration is on track to deport half a million people this year and is trying to get that number higher.

“The Trump administration has not been able to change the laws that are on the books, because only Congress can do that,” Chishti said. “It’s going to take congressional action for the Trump administration to achieve its aim of higher [arrest and deportation] numbers.”

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President Donald Trump has added more pressure, last month requesting a list from Attorney General Pam Bondi and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem of sanctuary cities, which he says would face funding cuts. The administration also has sued some states, including Colorado, Illinois and New York, over their policies.

Asked for comment on the legality of funding cutoffs for sanctuary policies, Bondi’s office referred to a February memo in which she promised to “end funding to state and local jurisdictions that unlawfully interfere with federal law enforcement operations.” The memo cites a federal law saying local officials “may not prohibit, or in any way restrict” communication about immigration status.

Local jurisdictions in Connecticut, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington joined a February lawsuit led by the city and county of San Francisco and Santa Clara County in California against a Trump administration executive order calling for defunding cities with sanctuary policies, calling the order “illegal and authoritarian.”

In April, a U.S. district court in California issued a preliminary injunction in that case preventing any funding cutoff over sanctuary policies to the cities and counties in the lawsuit. And on Friday, the federal judge, William Orrick, ruled that the injunction applies to any list of sanctuary jurisdictions the administration may target for funding cuts.

Trump’s new executive order seeking the list cannot be used as “an end run” around Orrick’s injunction, the judge wrote, while he decides the legality of detainer policies and other issues.

“The litigation may not proceed with the coercive threat to end all federal funding hanging over the Cities and Counties’ heads like the sword of Damocles,” Orrick wrote.

Stateline reporter Tim Henderson can be reached at thenderson@stateline.org.

©2025 States Newsroom. Visit at stateline.org. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Horoscopes May 18, 2025: Tina Fey, stay focused on what’s purposeful

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Violett Beane, 29; Tina Fey, 55; George Strait, 73; Reggie Jackson, 79.

Happy Birthday: Stay focused on what’s purposeful; discard anguish, annoyances, arbitrary thoughts, offers and pursuits. It’s your life — your choice — and it’s up to you to take responsibility for what happens next. Sitting back and waiting for things to fall into place will lead to disappointment. Take it upon yourself to work secretively toward your dreams until you feel comfortable sharing without having to ward off interference. Your numbers are 3, 14, 24, 27, 35, 43, 46.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Let your intuition take you on a journey. Follow the path that leads to people who offer new possibilities. Participate in events that push you to challenge yourself physically and stretch your imagination to the outer limits, and you’ll connect with someone who shares your dreams. Romance is favored. 4 stars

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Lead the way. Worry less about those who oppose you and more about reaching what matters most. Choose intellectual banter over a shouting match, and you’ll gain the respect and confidence of those sitting on the fence waiting and watching to see what you do next. Change looks promising. 2 stars

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Keep an open mind but a closed wallet. Don’t be tempted by any hype from someone eager to part you from your cash. Discover your niche instead of buying into someone else’s. Keep your finger on the pulse, engage in events and notice who pays attention to you. Romance is in the stars. 5 stars

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Keep life simple, conversations civil and intentions honorable. Strive for peace and enjoy what life has to offer. Refrain from taking risks with your health or physical well-being. Choose to incorporate healthy alternatives and a positive attitude into whatever you do, and success will follow. Let tolerance, dedication and intelligence be your mantra. 3 stars

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Evaluate relationships and gravitate toward purposeful connections while distancing yourself from those who hold you back. Make room for new beginnings, and fulfill your dreams. Learn from experience, listen to your heart and choose peace and love. Your success is attached to those you collaborate with and what you do next. 3 stars

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Prioritize travel, learning, reconnecting with old friends or associates, or an adventure that sparks your imagination and encourages you to take responsibility for your happiness. A change to your environment or routine will help you find inner peace. Pool your resources and invest time, money and effort into living your dream. 3 stars

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Uncertainty signals that something has run amok. A thorough investigation will help you find solutions. A partnership will give you the strength and courage to take on something you wouldn’t do on your own. Divide the workload evenly to avoid inconvenience and disappointment, and get what you want in writing. Romance is favored. 5 stars

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Be careful when dealing with emotional situations. Arguments will make matters worse. Be patient, listen attentively and size up your feelings and wants before responding. A change is imminent, and strategy is crucial to the outcome. Leave nothing to chance; present your needs openly and honestly. Choose brains over brawn. 2 stars

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Excitement will fuel your fire. Be the instigator and paint a picture that is hard to resist. Engage in challenges that depend on physical and emotional courage and strength, and rise to the occasion. Be the one to light the way and discover new possibilities and beginnings. Personal gain, love and romance look promising. 4 stars

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Compensations will help level the playing field and ensure stability as the living costs increase. Communication will be misleading, making fact-checking necessary before you make promises or get involved in joint ventures. When in doubt, take a break and do something that makes you happy, and you’ll gain perspective regarding your next move. 3 stars

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Push for the changes that will end the blockages you face. Deal with people who are causing you grief and set boundaries that show you mean business. Once you take control, you’ll find out where you stand and what you can do to ensure a brighter future. Nurture relationships that soothe your soul. 3 stars

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Lock into what works for you and rid yourself of uncertainty. Changing your environment will offer a unique perspective regarding what’s possible. Avoid unnecessary domestic expenses. Look for ways to lower your overhead and give yourself some financial relief. Refrain from arguing over loss when pursuing compensation, upgrading and new beginnings are best. 3 stars

Birthday Baby: You are forceful, engaging and clever. You are impeccable and passionate.

1 star: Avoid conflicts; work behind the scenes.2 stars: You can accomplish, but don’t rely on others.3 stars: Focus and you’ll reach your goals.4 stars: Aim high; start new projects.5 stars: Nothing can stop you; go for gold.

Visit Eugenialast.com, or join Eugenia on Twitter/Facebook/LinkedIn.

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Students reflect diverse backgrounds, education journeys in CSUMB graduation

SALINAS — An overcast morning turned bright and sunny as thousands made their way to Salinas Sports Complex Rodeo Arena for the Cal State University at Monterey Bay graduation.

More than 2,200 students took part in the 29th annual CSUMB commencement. The group  represented dozens of majors and certifications.

“It feels like walking in a dream, it’s been a really nice ceremony and I’m just taking it all in, excited to see what’s coming next,” said Gauri Chabukswar, a graduate and computer science major.

Students of all ages and backgrounds were adorned in the traditional blue cap and gowns, many with stoles recognizing their organizations, groups, affiliations and even religion. Hundreds of caps had messages and designs on them reflecting the students’ excitement and pride.

“This is such a surreal feeling, it was only a few years ago when I started this journey, now I’m here,” said Ibrahim Cheena, a graduate and computer science major. “I want to get into Silicon Valley, so I’m most excited to find a job and move out there.”

CSUMB President Vanya Quinones led the procession, giving a speech before keynote speaker David Stivers, the CEO at the Pebble Beach Co., took the stage. Stivers also received an honorary degree Saturday.

Quinones acknowledges that every class has been special to her since she took over the position in 2022, but she lauded the Class of 2025 for their strength and perseverance throughout their education.

“A lot of these students were in school during the height of the pandemic, I’m just in awe of their resilience and hard work,” Quinones said.

Ralph Bailey, a graduate who majored in human development and family science, worked full-time while earning his degree. He planned to look for a new opportunity after graduation, but was recently promoted and now has more options.

“I’m feeling great, just really relieved,” Bailey said. “It’s taken me about 10 years to get this degree, and I’m just happy to be done. Now I can come home and relax a little, focus more on work and family.”

Following the celebration, students and their families were invited to celebrate and take pictures outside the arena.

“At CSUMB, diversity is our strength. Many of our students are first generation (graduates), we have a lot of Spanish-speakers, and a lot of different cultures reflected,” Quinones said. “I am a Hispanic woman, and there’s not many of us in college leadership positions, so when I woke up this morning I was excited. When I saw all the students gathered with their decorated hats and stoles, I was filled with so much pride.”

Pro Soccer: Second half struggles continue in Union’s loss to Phoenix

PHOENIX — Unable to maintain second-half leads over the previous two weeks resulted in Monterey Bay FC playing to ties.

This time it came back to haunt the Union, who surrendered two second half goals after the 65th minute Saturday in a 2-0 loss to Phoenix Rising.

The setback, coupled with New Mexico prevailing, knocked the Union out of first place in the Western Conference for the first time in two weeks.

Monterey Bay FC (4-3-4), which sits two points in back of New Mexico, is locked in a three-way tie for second with 16 points with San Antonio and El Paso.

The Union, who are 0-2-3 in their last five matches, have scored just two goals during the span, and have not produced a goal in the second half in their past five matches.

The two conference rivals were meeting for the second time this year, with Monterey Bay FC having posted a 3-1 win over the 2023 United Soccer League Championship winners.

After having allowed just one second-half goal in their first eight USL matches, the Union have now given up four in their last three, failing to hold 1-0 leads in their previous two games.

The Union’s struggles aren’t just on offense. Playing away from Cardinale Stadium continues to be challenging as they fell to 1-3-3 on the road, as compared to 3-0-1 at home.

Monterey Bay FC will embark on its longest homestand of the season, playing the first of four straight home matches next Saturday, hosting Louisville FC — the only unbeaten team remaining in the USL at 5-0-4.

Three of those matches will come over a seven-day span as Monterey Bay FC competes in the USL Jägermeister Cup on May 26, hosting Spokane. It will mark the third time this year the franchise has played three matches in seven days.

The Union are 0-2-1 this season against teams currently with a winning record. With the setback, Monterey Bay FC is 3-3-2 lifetime against Phoenix.