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WEEKEND MARCH 19-20, 2011 Breaking news at: Local Food Guru Alice Waters USA Weekend www.redbluffdailynews.com See Inside RED BLUFF March Madness SPORTS 1B Showers likely 51/39 Weather forecast 8B By TANG LOR DN Staff Writer Teachers and the Red Bluff Union Elementary School District have ended negotiations and are moving forward toward finalizing a teachers’ contract for the 2011- 2012 year, but not everyone is happy with the tentative agree- ment. The school board ratified a ten- tative agreement with the Red Bluff Educators Association dur- DAILYNEWS TEHAMACOUNTY DAILY 50¢ T H E V O I C E O F T E H A M A C O U N T Y S I N C E 1 8 8 5 Agreement divides school employees ing a special meeting Thursday despite opposition from another employee group. Classified staff members were not happy, saying the proposal meant the teachers’ union would receive a greater share of the dis- trict’s money through the Medi- Cal Administrative Activities Pro- gram. She was shocked when she read the tentative agreement, said Barbara Ramey, president of the district’s chapter of the California ‘(The proposal) gives away more money than you have to give away, so you’re going to have to make it up somewhere, and that somewhere is going to be with (classified staff)’ Barbara Ramsey, Calif. School Employees Assoc. School Employees Association. All employees have equally shared the MAA money, but the proposal would change that, giv- Lullaby League Local support By ANDREA WAGNER DN Staff Writer This is the third article of three-part series looking at teen pregnancy in Tehama County. Local programs to sup- port and educate teenagers who become pregnant have been in place in the Red Bluff school districts for decades. In Red Bluff, as many as 40 students at a time, male and female, are part of the California School Age Fam- ilies Education, or Cal- SAFE, program, said Diana Geiger, the program direc- tor. It operates in a building next to Salisbury High School. Cal-SAFE, which became operational in 2000, is a community-linked school program for expec- tant and parenting students and their children, according to the California Depart- ment of Education website. It helps with educational support and availability of other support services and child care and development services for their children. Roughly nine children of Cal-SAFE teens at a time are cared for at the on-site child care facility. Geiger and at least two paid staff care for the children while their teen parents attend school. Students may attend Sal- isbury High School, or any program in the Red Bluff Union High School School District, Geiger said. How- ever, most prefer Salisbury ing a greater share of the money to teachers. “(The proposal) gives away more money than you have to give away, so you’re going to have to make it up somewhere, and that somewhere is going to be with (classified staff), and that takes away from those in the district who have the least to give, and I resent that,” Ramey said. MAA money is federal fund- See SCHOOL, page 7A Japan radiation no threat locally Staff Report Tehama County Public Health announced Friday in a press release that county residents do not need to be worried about safety from radiation. “The damage to nuclear reactors in Japan following their devastating earthquake has understandably led to concerns about safety from radiation here in Califor- nia,” said Tehama County Public Health Officer Dr. Richard Wickenheiser, M.D. “Some residents are wor- ried about a radioactive plume reaching the West Coast, and some are even trying to find supplies of potassium iodide in an effort to protect themselves from possible radiation. State Public Health officials are quick to assure Californians that no plume of radiation is expected to arrive, and there is no need to take potassi- um iodide.” The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has been and continues to monitor the situation and has stated that radiation from Japan is not expected to reach the West Coast, even with worsening conditions in Japan, the release said. “The safety of all Californians is our highest priori- Daily News photo by Andrea Wagner Corning couple, Rachel Johnson, 19, and Steven Cramer, 21, share a moment with their daughter Jasmine. Johnson gets weekly home visits and support from the Adolescent Family Life Program. because they can visit the children on breaks and at lunch, or be called in as needed. Other Cal-SAFE partici- pants get help in other ways, such as referrals, counseling and transportation services. They get as much or as little help as they need, Geiger said. Patting a round, glass bowl full of condoms on her desk, Geiger pointed out that preventing a repeat teen pregnancy is a priority. Her primary goal is to get the girls graduated, she said. A second goal is to provide or connect them with all the resources they need for a healthy pregnancy and child. Geiger refers about 90 percent of her students to the Adolescent Family Life Pro- gram, one of the programs that is overseen by the coun- ty Public Health division, she said. The Adolescent Family Life Program provides home visits, referrals to var- ious services, parenting edu- cation, transportation and support. Sometimes it can fill a need Cal-SAFE can- not. The program is designat- ed for teens, male and female, expecting a child or parenting, up to age 19, who live in the county. “We really want moms to stay in school and do the best they can,” said Linda K. Rose, the Maternal, Child See TEENS, page 7A ty, and we are in constant contact with the federal agen- cies responsible for monitoring radiation levels across the West Coast,” California Department of Public Health Interim Director Dr. Howard Backer said in the release. “There is no risk expected to California or its residents as a result of the situation in Japan.” Regarding potassium iodide, Backer urges Califor- nians to not take it. “Potassium iodide should not be taken unless there is a nuclear emergency,” said Ken August, spokesper- son for the California Department of Public Health. State health officials have warned that, though usu- ally benign, potassium iodide can present a danger to people with allergies to iodine or shellfish or to those who have thyroid problems. Taken inappropriately, it can cause nausea, vomiting and other side effects. While stocking up on potassium iodide is not rec- ommended, Tehama County Public Health officials would like to remind all residents to stock a basic emer- gency kit for earthquakes or any other disaster and to plan ahead with their family about what to do in the event of a disaster. “Remember that we live in earthquake, fire and flood country and need to be prepared at all times,” the release said. Tehama County Public Health has also released the following tips: • Prepare your family: Practice with your family what to do in the event of an earthquake or any other SACRAMENTO (AP) — A wet winter storm that began churning across Northern California on Fri- day unleashed a small tor- nado that tore the roof off a business and prompted flood warnings for low- lying areas. Another storm expected to pack a similar wallop was forecast to hit a wider swath of the state on Sunday, with high water levels projected as far south as San Diego. The National Weather Service issued a flood watch for much of the Cen- tral Valley through Sunday and a winter storm warning through early Saturday for the Sierra Nevada, where as much as 3 feet of snow is predicted by Saturday. ‘‘We’re kind of socked in for an unsettled wet peri- od,’’ National Weather Ser- vice meteorologist Eric Kurth said. State and federal agen- cies were dumping more Storm pounds NorCal Burrito Bracket — The Next 8 water from Northern Cali- fornia reservoirs to make room for mountain runoff, but officials said no major rivers were in danger of flooding. It helped that much of the precipitation was falling in the form of snow, said California Department of Resources spokesman Ted Thomas. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation increased the flow from Lake Shasta on the northern Sacramento River and Folsom Lake east of Sacramento. The state Department of Water Resources boosted flows from Lake Oroville 70 miles north of the state cap- ital. As a result, Sacramento River water was spreading into the Sutter and Yolo bypasses, low-lying areas north and west of the state capital that are set aside to handle excess water and reduce the danger of flood- ing. The high volume of 7 5 8 5 5 1 6 9 0 0 1 9 water covered portions of parks and bicycle trails through flood plains in Sacramento and Redding. The Elite Ate are set in the Munch Madness Bur- rito Bracket, though most of the contests were tight. Los Molinos Taco trucks are a play- er in the Los Molinos bur- rito scene. Tacos Las Koritas, off the west side of Highway Rancho Grande Taqueria Mexicana 99E, offers a burrito, with a choice of meat, for an even $4. Stuffed with rice beans, and mildly spiced meat, it was a little heavy on the cilantro. I declined the optional jalapenos on the side. Overall, it was juicy with a distinct flavor and filling. Across the highway and a little bit north, Taqueria Mexicana has a more permanent home with a bright yellow add- on where you can sit and watch Spanish-language television. There wasn’t much difference in the burrito, as far as content, beans, rice, cilantro, meat. The flavor was a pinch better with a tortilla that tasted homemade that was still warm when served. Burrito Bandito Pronto Market Carlito’s Los Mariachis Rancho Grande Ranch Grande Los Montez Los Amigos Sunshine La Nueva Taco Bell Los Amigos See MUNCH, page 7A For the taste and the Las Koritas Taqueria Mexicana Los Amigos La Nueva Taqueria Mexicana