Genesis Montalvo presenting at a faculty presentation about AI at Pasadena City College on Friday, Aug. 25, 2023.
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Veronica Lechuga
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for LAist
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Topline:
Colleges and universities in California are expanding the practice of awarding college credit to a student for knowledge they acquired outside a college setting.
Credit for prior learning program: The program awards college credit for skills and knowledge gained outside the classroom, whether on the job, through volunteering or even a hobby, such as photography or playing an instrument.
Why it matters: Many educators say this is an important step toward promoting equity in their institutions. It’s a way to recognize the academic value of work, particularly for students who may have left college to work or started college later in life. Proponents say it can save students time and money, making graduation more likely.
Read on . . . for more on how to determine if your skills might qualify for college credits.
Many colleges and universities in California are currently expanding the ways students can receive credit for prior learning, which is the practice of awarding college credit to a student for knowledge they acquired outside a college setting.
Proponents of the Credit for Prior Learning (CPL) program point out that Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate tests are very common ways that students receive credit for college classes before they attend college. But there is an effort to broaden the ways that students may be able to receive credit for what they’ve learned outside a college classroom, whether on the job, through volunteering or even a hobby, such as photography or playing an instrument.
In the past few weeks, Gov. Gavin Newsom praised credit for prior learning as an important way to recognize the skills that adults pick up in the military or even volunteering through the California Service Corps.
Many educators say this is an important step toward promoting equity in their institutions. It’s a way to recognize the academic value of work, particularly for students who may have left college to work or started college later in life. Proponents say it can save students time and money, making graduation more likely.
Does my college or university offer credit for prior learning?
Because this is an arena of education that is rapidly evolving, it can be difficult for students to figure out whether they may qualify for credit. Right now, that depends on the policies at any given institution or academic department.
College advisers or faculty members are a good starting point. Veterans may also want to speak to the department that supports veterans. Many institutions are currently refreshing their CPL policies and outlining them in their course catalogs.
How can credit for prior learning help students?
Students can fulfill general education or major requirements before even showing up to school. This means that they’re able to graduate with a degree or credential more quickly — which also means that they’re more likely to graduate. This can save students time and money.
The study found that 48% of students over 25 years old who had obtained credit for prior learning completed their degree or certificate within 7.5 years, compared with 27% of students who had no credit. The completion rate was even higher, at 73%, for credit received outside the military.
There are also important psychological benefits to students who start college with credit under their belts. These students begin their college careers with a sense of momentum and accomplishment, according to Tina Barlolong, a veteran and CPL counselor at Palomar College in San Diego.
Are there any drawbacks?
Taking a college course just for the sake of taking a course has risks, and the same is true for pursuing credit for prior learning. It takes a lot less time and money than a full course, but students on financial aid or veterans on the GI Bill, for instance, could run out of funding before they’ve attained a degree if they pursue unnecessary credit.
Proponents of credit for prior learning encourage students to discuss their best options with a counselor, adviser or a faculty member in a student’s field of study. They can ensure that the credit in question will serve a purpose, such as fulfilling a general education or major requirement.
What are some common methods of receiving credit?
It may be as simple as passing a challenge test required by a department. The College Board offers a way to test out of college-level material through its College-Level Examination Program (CLEP).
Portfolio reviews are common in the arts. That means a professor or committee may review paintings, photography or graphic design before deciding to award a student credit. A portfolio could also be used to assess a student’s business skills.
Playing music or acting out a scene may be a way to earn credit in the performing arts. Beginning piano is a popular course.
Some students may have obtained a certificate or license in their job that is the equivalent of what they would learn in a college course. Certifications offered by Microsoft or Google that allow students to receive credit for basic computing are common.
The American Council on Education offers many colleges and universities guidance on how to award credit. That can include deciding whether military or corporate training meets academic standards.
Are veterans eligible for credit for what they have learned while in the military?
Yes. In fact, the study by the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning found that 68% of students who received credit for prior learning earned it through the military.
CPL has a long history among veterans. The military offers service members extensive training that tends to be highly standardized. When they are discharged, veterans receive a Joint Services Transcript, which translates military experiences into civilian language. This can be used for a resume or for receiving college credit. Veterans can also receive credit for college through free examinations called DSST tests.
Every public university or college in California accepts the Joint Services Transcript — though whether any given course is eligible for credit may depend on the institution or department.
Veterans may be able to get credit for physical education requirements, for instance. Depending on their training in the service, veterans may also receive credit for courses in engineering, law enforcement, computer science or health care.
One branch of the military bypasses this whole process:The Air Force has its own community college, so most of its members simply receive a college transcript upon being discharged.
Can I get credit for job experience?
Not exactly. The idea behind CPL is that credit is awarded for learning and skills acquired, not just experience.
Someone working as an auto mechanic might have picked up a lot of knowledge and skills, but that experience may not correspond to everything covered in an automotive repair course, such as safety procedures, ethics and professionalism. Credit is granted for that knowledge and training — not just the years working in a given field.
How do California’s colleges and universities view it?
Thanks to legislation, community colleges and the campuses of California State University and the University of California all have policies on the books for credit for prior learning. But how those policies are implemented varies from system to system, school to school and even department to department.
All three systems will consider veterans’ Joint Services Transcript and offer credit for any equivalent courses that are offered on their campus.
California’s community colleges have perhaps the most generous guidelines for awarding these credits. Colleges may award credit for skills learned through work experience, employer-training programs, military service, government training, independent study or volunteer work, such as the Peace Corps.
The community colleges have set an ambitious goal of ensuring that at least 250,000 Californians receive credit for prior learning by 2030. The Mapping Articulated Pathways (MAP) Initiative supports community colleges in these efforts through training, technology and policy.
California State University overhauled its CPL policies at the systemwide level in 2023, and it has required each campus to have its own policies. The system does accept exams such as CLEP and DSST for credit. It will also accept any training or instruction that corresponds to American Council on Education guidelines.
The University of California has the strictest guidelines on credit for prior learning. Its guidance states that credit will only be offered for courses that meet the same high standards of the UC system — this stance is typical of selective universities. It does not award credit for vocational or technical training or CLEP or DSST tests. It will accept credit for courses on veterans’ Joint Services Transcript for any equivalent courses UC offers.
“The more traditional, the more selective an institution is, the more they tend to not have generous policies,” said Su Jin Jez, CEO of the nonprofit California Competes, a nonpartisan policy and research organization.
How much does getting this credit cost?
This is another factor that varies by institution. It might be free for students who have already matriculated. Many institutions charge a fee for tests or other assessments. Some might charge for each credit unit. Generally, it will be considerably cheaper than tuition. However, funding can become a barrier when financial aid does not cover these fees, according to a recent national survey by the American Council on Education.
Will this credit transfer from one institution to another?
Theoretically, it should, just like any other course. When a student receives credit for prior learning through an institution, their transcript will show that they received credit for a specific course number.
But no matter how a student earns credit, transferring credits can be potentially tricky. It largely depends on the institution or major a student is transferring into.
Does giving credit to students end up hurting college enrollment?
It may sound counterintuitive, but giving credit to a student actually means it is more likely that the student will take more courses. The CAEL study found that students with credit for prior learning actually tended to earn 17.6 traditional course credits more than students without.
EdSource is an independent nonprofit organization that provides analysis on key education issues facing California and the nation. LAist republishes articles from EdSource with permission.
Members of the Orange County Creek Team wait to speak to the Board of Supervisors about the county’s use of chemicals in flood channels.
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Jill Replogle
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LAist
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Topline:
The Orange County Board of Supervisors has directed its public works department to look into alternatives to using chemicals and pesticides to control overgrowth in flood control channels.
Why this matters: The chemicals clear overgrowth of vegetation, which helps prevent channels from backing up during storms. But critics say it poisons waterways and washes out into the ocean. Supervisor Katrina Foley said she wants to find a better way: “I remain encouraged by the overwhelming public support in exploring nontoxic solutions for our waterways."
What's next: The board will revisit the issue — and the public works department's findings — at a later meeting.
Biking on river trails, going on picnics and surfing in the ocean are activities California residents cherish every summer. But headlines about the use of toxic chemicals in flood control channels around Orange County have created anxiety for those looking forward to their favorite activities this summer.
Dozens of environmental activists and Orange County residents packed the Orange County Board of Supervisors meeting this week to urge the county to halt the routine use of toxins they say poison waterways and wash out into the ocean.
But several supervisors said it wasn’t that simple. The chemical prevents overgrowth in flood control channels, and that overgrowth could lead to backups and flooding, affecting neighborhoods and businesses during heavy rains.
Controversy over the chemical use led to an announcement last month by Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley, declaring that chemical usage would be halted for the moment. The issue then came before the board this week for further discussion.
Supervisors decided to study the issue and revisit it in the months ahead, and directed the OC Public Works department to evaluate methods for clearing overgrowth of vegetation that crowd flood channels, and look for alternate methods of doing so.
Brent Linas, founder of the Orange County Creek Team, which has succeeded in bringing the environmental issue to the public’s attention through salty Instagram posts and other social media tactics, blasted what he described as the board’s inaction.
He feels that the board is “deeply dysfunctional” and plans on using the meeting as momentum to spread awareness about the chemicals' negative effects on the environment. “There’s palpable outrage in Orange County right now around this and we fully intend to tap into that,” Linas said.
Foley also plans to reintroduce public noticing requirements at the next meeting June 23. The notices would alert residents to the planned use of any pesticides and herbicides. “Orange County residents deserve transparency to help make informed decisions about where their families recreate,” Foley said in a statement released the after the meeting. “I remain encouraged by the overwhelming public support in exploring nontoxic solutions for our waterways.”
How to watchdog your local government
One of the best things you can do to hold officials accountable is pay attention. Your city council, board of supervisors, school board and more all hold public meetings that anybody can attend. These are times you can talk to your elected officials directly and hear about the policies they’re voting on that affect your community.
The Orange County Board of Supervisors meets on alternating Tuesdays at 9:30 a.m. at 400 W. Civic Center Drive, Santa Ana. You can check out the O.C. Board of Supervisors full calendar here.
Cato Hernández
is covering all things election for this primary, including the often hard-to-choose judges.
Published June 11, 2026 3:51 PM
Judge Robert Draper has lost his reelection bid.
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Courtesy the campaign
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Topline:
In a rare rebuke from voters, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Robert Draper, who’s facing several allegations of violating ethics rules, has lost his seat to deputy district attorney Tal Khan Valbuena. While a small margin of ballots are left to count, Valbuena has maintained a comfortable lead with more than 50% of the 1.7 million votes cast.
The background: This was a challenging race for voters because the California Commission on Judicial Performance, the state watchdog of judges, hasn’t yet reached a decision on the allegations against Draper — some of which he denied and others he admitted to in an interview with LAist. Draper was appointed by former Gov. Jerry Brown and has spent 15 years in Office No. 2, while Valbuena’s career has focused on mental health court.
What the candidates say: On Thursday, Draper conceded over text, telling LAist that serving as a judge has been “the greatest honor and joy” of his career and that he congratulates Valbuena. He said he’s going to try to make sure that what the commission “did to me will not be done to Tal or any of the wonderful young and older Judges now serving of whom I am very proud.”
In a statement to LAist, Valbuena said he’s “deeply humbled” by voters’ trust and thanked Draper for his service. He said he’ll bring his lived and professional experience to the bench, where he’ll work to earn more of the public’s trust.
What’s next: The vote still needs to be certified by the California Secretary of State, which happens on July 10. The California Commission on Judicial Performance members could come to a decision before then, including to possibly remove Draper or clear him of wrongdoing. In the meantime, Valbuena is expected to take office in January.
Keep up with LAist.
If you're enjoying this article, you'll love our daily newsletter, The LA Report. Each weekday, catch up on the 5 most pressing stories to start your morning in 3 minutes or less.
A program dedicated to providing low-income California residents with extra money for fruits and vegetables is likely to go under this summer if additional funds are not allocated in this year’s state budget, according to concerned food justice advocates.
About the program: The CalFresh Fruit and Vegetable EBT Program provides CalFresh recipients with up to $60 a month of free produce each month, in addition to their benefits. In May alone, the program disbursed over $5 million and “served 95,520 California households,” said Grecia Marquez-Nieblas, senior manager at food policy nonprofit Fullwell, which has backed the program. The state budget is set to be finalized on June 15.
Why it matters: “Overwhelmingly, folks have been telling us that they want it to continue, that it’s made a really positive impact on them,” Marquez-Nieblas said. “Their diabetes is better managed; their high blood pressure is better managed.” The program’s end would come at a particularly stressful time for CalFresh recipients. This month, for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began, California has begun enforcing new and expanded federal guidelines that require some CalFresh recipients to work 20 hours a week, or an average of 80 hours a month — with a stark reduction in food benefits for those who don’t.
The CalFresh Fruit and Vegetable EBT Program provides CalFresh recipients with up to $60 a month of free produce each month, in addition to their benefits. In May alone, the program disbursed over $5 million and “served 95,520 California households,” said Grecia Marquez-Nieblas, senior manager at food policy nonprofit Fullwell, which has backed the program.
“Overwhelmingly, folks have been telling us that they want it to continue, that it’s made a really positive impact on them,” Marquez-Nieblas said. “Their diabetes is better managed; their high blood pressure is better managed.”
Those people are now at risk of losing access to that support as funds whittle down. The state budget is set to be finalized on June 15, and “as far as we know, there is no continued funding that has been proposed,” Marquez-Nieblas said.
“When this program ends, we’ll have less money to spend, [at] a time when groceries are incredibly more expensive. Gas is more expensive. Everything is more expensive,” she said. “It’s just, unfortunately, a compounding effect. There’s lots of stuff that’s impacting the same people.”
The program is simple to use: When customers purchase food at participating markets, like Arteaga’s Food Center in San José, they just swipe their EBT (electronic benefit transfer) card.
For every purchase of fresh fruits and vegetables with that card, customers receive an instant rebate each month, applied to their card. The rebate money can be spent on any food or goods covered by CalFresh, like meat, eggs and dairy — it is not limited to fruits and vegetables.
Marquez-Nieblas explained that the pilot program has been implemented in three phases — the latest of which received a limited, one-time allocation of $36 million from the state budget. That seems like a large number, “until we realize that there are hundreds of thousands of individuals across the state using the program.”
“It’s been proven many times that CalFresh — and programs like this that support people having more money for food — are incredibly impactful for lifting children out of poverty, for supporting seniors with limited incomes, for anybody,” Marquez-Nieblas said. “Foundationally, these programs are good. They’re good for public health.”
Food policy advocates said they are hoping for $100 million for the program to continue to operate year-round. Instead, it was reappropriated around $4.8 million — the remaining funds from last year’s budget cycle, in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s “May Revise” proposal, according to H.D. Palmer, spokesperson for the California Department of Finance.
“The program will operate until funds are fully utilized,” Palmer said in an email to KQED.
The program’s end would come at a particularly stressful time for CalFresh recipients. This month, for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began, California has begun enforcing new and expanded federal guidelines that require some CalFresh recipients to work 20 hours a week, or an average of 80 hours a month — with a stark reduction in food benefits for those who don’t.
“Not only does it add in the onerous work requirement — a lot of people who are already receiving CalFresh are working — but now they have this bureaucratic paperwork to provide,” said Kathy Saile, California director of national nonprofit No Kid Hungry. “There’s some real concern that people could lose benefits just because they couldn’t figure out the paperwork.”
H.R. 1’s impact, which also cuts food benefits for some refugees and asylum seekers, is apparent, according to federal data analyzed by the nonpartisan research group Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
The center estimated that nationwide, SNAP participation fell by almost 9% — more than 3.5 million people — between H.R.1’s start in July 2025 and February 2026.
Palmer said the state was taking proactive steps to maintain residents’ enrollment in the program.
“This includes leveraging existing data to determine possible exemptions from the new SNAP work requirements, implementing automation, and conducting client outreach,” he said.
He added that the latest budget revision has “a total of $38 million for the CalFood program — which funds food banks for the purchase, storage, and transportation of food grown and/or produced in California.”
In a time of rising bureaucratic barriers implemented by H.R. 1, Marquez-Nieblas said the CalFresh Fruit and Vegetable EBT Program is part of the state’s food safety net.
“This is not just about backfill,” she said. “It’s not just about responding to the impacts (of H.R. 1), which are incredibly awful. It’s also about setting ourselves up for success in the future, knowing we have to invest proactively.”
Marquez-Nieblas said CalFresh recipients should keep their eyes on the California Department of Social Services website for any possible updates and changes in the future.
Mariana Dale
explores and explains the forces that shape how and what kids learn from kindergarten to high school.
Published June 11, 2026 3:00 PM
Rising sophomores Leslie Martinez, Izzy Guzman and Khloe Carter were among the first students to take a one-semester ethnic studies class at Duarte High School. The street names are one of the few public reminders of what was once Rocktown.
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Photos by Mariana Dale, collage by Ross Brenneman
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LAist
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Topline:
While implementation of California’s high school ethnic studies mandate has stalled, districts across the state are rolling out classes that encourage students to explore the lesser-told histories of their communities.
Why it matters: Duarte High School’s inaugural ethnic studies class focused on local history, students’ personal identity, Indigenous, Latino, Black and Asian American Pacific Islander history. “Ethnic studies is providing space to hear from communities and from points of view that are not traditionally covered in our history classes,” said Casey Ramirez, who teaches the class.
The backstory: California lawmakers passed a law in 2021 that required all schools to offer the course by the 2025-2026 school year, but has yet to provide the funding needed to enact the mandate. Duarte Unified, like many other districts, passed its own one-semester ethnic studies graduation requirement ahead of the expected state deadline.
Uncovering Rocktown: Freshmen at Duarte High School this year unearthed the history of a San Gabriel Valley community that was all-but-erased by commercial development and the construction of the 210 and 605 freeways. Newspaper headlines often focused on incidents of violence and segregation in the majority Black and Mexican American community of Rocktown, but when the students interviewed former residents, they heard a different story.
Read on ... to learn more about Rocktown and the future of ethnic studies.
While implementation of California’s high school ethnic studies mandate has stalled, districts across the state are rolling out classes that encourage students to explore the lesser-told histories of their communities.
Freshmen at Duarte High School this year unearthed the history of a San Gabriel Valley community that was all but erased by commercial development and the construction of the 210 and 605 freeways.
Newspaper headlines often focused on incidents of violence and segregation in the majority Black and Mexican American community of Rocktown, but when the students interviewed former residents, they heard a different story.
“It was a great community for us,” said Alfred Hernandez Zamora. “We just don't want to be forgotten.”
The study of Rocktown was a central theme in the school's first ethnic studies course.
“Ethnic studies is providing space to hear from communities and from points of view that are not traditionally covered in our history classes,” said Casey Ramirez, who teaches the class at Duarte High in addition to government, economics, world and U.S. history.
California legislators passed a law in 2021 that required all schools to offer the course by the 2025-26 school year, but have yet to provide the funding needed to enact the mandate. Duarte Unified, like many other districts, passed its own one-semester ethnic studies graduation requirement ahead of the expected state deadline.
Ethnic studies is providing space to hear from communities and from points of view that are not traditionally covered in our history classes.
— Casey Ramirez, teacher, Duarte High School
Duarte High School’s curriculum is the result of a collaboration between educators, research into the region’s history and the students’ own interests.
“I've only seen one part of Duarte, and that's the Duarte that I was raised in,” said Leslie Martinez, a rising sophomore. “There's a lot of things that Ms. Ramirez is teaching me, and that's making me more curious to dig deeper [into] my city and where I grew up.”
An opportunity to create an ‘engaging class’
California’s model ethnic studies curriculum describes the field as an “interdisciplinary study of race, ethnicity, and Indigeneity, with an emphasis on the experiences of people of color in the United States.” Districts could develop their course based on this framework or from scratch.
“It was our opportunity to create a really engaging class that really speaks to our student body,” said Luis Haro, Duarte High’s principal for the last eight years.
The majority of Duarte High School’s population is Latino, but there are also Filipino, Asian, white, Black and multiracial students. Most students qualify for free-and reduced price lunches, a proxy for being low-income in public schools.
“In my experience, our students don't know our history, and they don't really have a true understanding of their own identity,” Haro said.
Haro joined a committee of administrators and teachers, including Ramirez, that collaborated with the UCLA History-Geography Project to develop the new course.
UCLA staff guided Duarte educators through reams of local history research and helped the team develop goals for the class, including a student-led civics project.
“Getting to learn and feel like a college student again,” Ramirez said. “It really did make me excited to teach the class.”
They also developed units on students’ personal identity, Indigenous, Latino, Black and Asian American Pacific Islander history. The committee also met with parents and presented their work to the district’s board.
“[Ethnic studies] gave us a path to this project to see people in our community that aren't really talked about,” Ramirez said.
From the late 19th century through the 1970s, Black and Mexican American families settled in the “Davis Addition,” a subdivision of the land grant that became better known as Rocktown.
Ramirez first read about Rocktown in the research UCLA gathered for the curriculum development process, but couldn’t find much else about the community online.
She started downloading news articles from Newspapers.com and sharing them with the class. Many of the stories often focused on crime and violence in the community, from police raids on drinking and gambling establishments, to fires.
The articles also alluded to the segregation of the early 20th century.
A 1928 article from the Monrovia Daily News described the schedule for a new municipal pool. Mondays were “reserved for the use of colored people.”
“ Why are we not allowing people to do things simply because of the color of their skin or like their origin?” said Khloe Carter, a rising sophomore who took the ethnic studies class.
Carter said it felt important to her, as a person of color, to learn about people’s experiences with discrimination in the past.
“I'd say that has made me smarter and more aware of other people's struggles and what other people have to deal with and other people's cultures and other people's traditions,” Carter said.
A brief history of Rocktown
These events, researched by Ramirez and the ethnic studies class, give an insight into Rocktown.
1841: Mexican government grants nearly 7,000 acres of land to soldier Andrés Avelino Duarte.
1870s-1890s: The rancho is subdivided and sold.
1924: A Monrovia Daily News article describes Rocktown as a “scattered settlement of Mexican and negro homes.”
1957: City of Duarte incorporated.
1960s: Construction of the 210 and 605 freeways.
1970s: Duarte City Council discusses redeveloping Rocktown into an industrial park .
1976: First resident relocated to make way for business center development.
The first wave of Rocktown displacement preceded the construction of the 210 and 605 freeways in the 1960s. The last several dozen families were moved to make way for a business complex in the 1970s. Stories referred to the area as blighted and “depressed.”
“ We took it as our job to dig further, deeper, to find out if it was true or not,” Martinez said.
With Ramirez’s help — and several volunteers from the Facebook group Rocktown Oldies Club — the students started to schedule interviews with former residents. The school’s film class volunteered to record the conversations.
The students heard stories about everyday life that were absent from the news coverage of time — Sunday barbecues, roller skating, fishing, picnicking and swimming near the Santa Fe Dam.
Zamora, who was born in Rocktown in 1949, offered a first-person history that isn’t available elsewhere — down to the community’s name: “ You could not even dig a, a foot into the ground without running into rocks,” he said. “ You could throw water on the ground and a rock would grow, you know?”
Many of the residents raised goats, pigs, pigeons and chickens in their backyards. Zamora said a routine car repair could quickly become a community gathering with neighbors joining in to help.
“That made it … so great to live there, 'cause everybody was like family,” Zamora said. “Even people that weren't related to you, it was really close friendships there.”
A typical gathering of Alfred Hernandez Zamora's family in an undated photo from their Rocktown days. Everyone gathered for Sunday dinners at his grandmother's house.
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Courtesy Alfred Hernandez Zamora
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Zamora's relatives Rayno Hernandez and Christina Hernandez Padilla as kids riding their bikes through Rocktown.
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Courtesy Alfred Hernandez Zamora
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Zamora said Rocktown offered a reprieve from the discrimination against Black and Latino residents in other parts of the San Gabriel Valley at the time.
“We played ball together. We swam together. We ate together,” Zamora said. “Even though there was different cultures there, we still were able to get along with everybody.”
These interviews gave the students new perspectives to consider.
“ People make a lot of stereotypes and a lot of guesses … like, ‘Oh, this community can be so ghetto,’" Martinez said. “But honestly, like I think if you haven't been in the community, you can't really say anything.”
Remembering Rocktown
The Duarte Historical Museum hosted a pop-up exhibition of the students’ capstone project.
“I was very impressed with the job that they did, being able to get all this history and the information and the interviews with people,” said Liz Reilly, president of the Duarte Historical Society and Museum and former mayor. "I thought that was really fabulous.”
Reilly, who moved to Duarte in 1987, had heard of Rocktown, but knew little about the neighborhood.
Izzy Guzman, another student who took ethnic studies at Duarte High, said the account she heard from the three women she interviewed differed from these Rocktown headlines. "They've all seemed really nice and really genuine," Guzman said. "I just feel like people should understand, even if they don't know what Rocktown is, they should understand that, it was just a basic community, and that they should be treated with the same respect as everyone else."
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Mariana Dale
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LAist
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The exhibition included a map of Rocktown (still the subject of some debate) and dozens of historical photos, often provided by the people they interviewed.
“ I found it so amazing how much people showed up for our project and how much the community of Rocktown has shown up for our project,” Carter said.
Former residents, including Zamora, were among the dozens of people who attended the exhibition’s grand opening in mid-May.
“For them to recognize places that were forgotten, that meant a lot,” Zamora said. “ Nobody seems to remember it. I mean, except the people that lived there.”
Ethnic studies faces growing challenges
While the school’s principal, students and former Rocktown residents have embraced the ethnic studies class, Ramirez said she’s also heard criticism.
During Duarte High’s open house, Ramirez said a parent voiced her disagreement with the class and threatened to file a grievance even though her child had yet to enroll at the school.
“ I'm a parent, so I understand, especially if it's something that you're not familiar with and your kids are learning something different from what you learned, it can be scary,” Ramirez said. “My approach is never to impose my viewpoints. It's to provide alternative perspectives.”
Some lawmakers have also criticized school offerings that intersect with race and ethnicity.
In the last five years, 20 states have banned or restricted teaching critical race theory, an academic concept that race is a social construct and that racism is embedded in specific societal structures.
Teacher Casey Ramirez said teaching students to view history from multiple points of view and form their own opinions is a key feature of the ethnic studies class.
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Courtesy Oscar Ramirez
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California school districts from Los Alamitos to San Francisco have faced pushback over their ethnic studies curriculum despite passage of the state mandate.
Daniel Diaz, director of the UCLA History-Geography Project, said there was a flood of interest when the ethnic studies mandate was first passed, but now fewer districts are paying for related professional development.
“Which in turn then impacts what happens to our project and … who we're able to support in terms of staffing,” Diaz said.
In June, UCLA laid off one of the educators instrumental in helping Duarte develop its ethnic studies curriculum.
In a statement, John McDonald, director of media relations at the UCLA School of Education and Information Studies, said the History-Geography Project has laid off four staff members total after funded projects ended in the last year.
“UCLA Center X is committed to the work and actively seeking new funding for similar efforts,” McDonald said.
What that means for other districts looking for assistance with ethnic studies programs remains to be seen.
Ramirez said her UCLA collaborator was “phenomenal” and continued to support the project even after the contract with the district formally ended.
“ I don't think that this year and this project would've been what it was without having that support,” Ramirez said.
A business center now stands south of the 210 and west of the 605 where part of Rocktown once was. Some of the street names, including Evergreen and Flower, remain the same.
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Mariana Dale
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LAist
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The Rocktown Project’s future
Duarte High School will continue the ethnic studies class.
More former residents have already contacted Ramirez hoping to be interviewed by next year’s students. She also plans to publish the students’ work on a website and a future goal is to memorialize Rocktown with a physical marker in Duarte.
“You need to know whose land you're on and who was there,” said Sylvia Gonzales Youngblood, who was born in Duarte in 1967 and grew up visiting the home her maternal grandfather built in Rocktown.
She said when she was a student there wasn’t an opportunity to learn about her family’s Ohlone Mission Indian and Mexican heritage and she was discouraged from speaking Spanish.
“Now as I'm older, I realize just how much history and of ourselves we lose,” Youngblood said.
Carter, the rising sophomore, said after taking ethnic studies, she feels more connected to the city she moved to about a year ago.
“It's important that we know this side of history so a community like Rocktown doesn't get lost again,” Carter said. “Every voice should be heard, including Rocktown's.”
