Since the contracts were terminated Monday, Feb. 5, physicians at Prime have reported prolonged, agonizing wait times for patients, the company’s president and chief medical officer said in a Friday letter to Dr. Mark Ghaly, California secretary of health and human services. In some cases, patients have walked out of emergency rooms in disgust and been refused transfers to other nearby CalOptima hospitals, wrote Dr. Sunny Bhatia.

“On behalf of patients, we ask that Department of Health Care Services hold CalOptima accountable to its responsibility to ensure access, continuity, and care to patients and include the safety net hospitals patients have relied on for decades,” states the letter. “These terminations are already negatively impacting patient safety, quality care, and outcomes for the vulnerable patients dependent on CalOptima, very literally putting their lives at risk.”

Ontario-based Prime operates 44 hospitals nationwide, including Garden Grove Hospital and Medical Center, Huntington Beach Hospital, La Palma Intercommunity Hospital and West Anaheim Medical Center.

In a statement Friday, Feb. 9, DHCS said Medi-Cal managed-care plans like CalOptima have the right to voluntarily terminate their contractual relationships with network providers with a 60-day prior notice.

Following termination of the Prime contract, the DHCS said, “emergency services and post-stabilization care continue to be covered” by the company.

CalOptima, which has 954,000 members and is the largest health insurer in Orange County, provides coverage to its members through three programs, Medi-Cal, OneCare, and the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly. Its contract with the four hospitals had been in effect for more than 15 years.

The termination of Prime’s contract has sent shock waves through physicians and patients at the four hospitals, some of whom protested outside CalOptima’s headquarters last week.

“Hundreds of patients, representing the tens of thousands cared for at these hospitals, pleaded with CalOptima to allow them to continue their care at these hospitals,” Bhatia said in the letter to Ghaly. “These were the hospitals they trusted, the care that provided them dignity, the quality that saved their lives, and the access and continuity they need and deserve. Despite their pleas, CalOptima unilaterally decided for them that they do not need these hospitals.”

CalOptima claims misrepresentation

CalOptima Chief Executive Officer Michael Hunn has cited under-utilization of the hospitals as a chief reason for the termination of Prime’s contract.

From Dec. 1, 2022, to Nov. 30, 2023, 15,604 members accounted for 26,290 visits to the four Prime hospitals, with 98.6% being emergency room visits, according to data collected by CalOptima. Many members went to the ER more than once. There were 2,800 CalOptima inpatient admissions and 364 visits for elective care at Prime hospitals during the year.

Additionally, CalOptima delegates the care of approximately 750,000 members to large, managed-care medical groups, but there is no evidence of Prime contracting with any of those providers, Hunn said.

Seven other CalOptima hospitals within five miles of Prime facilities can absorb patients, he told the Southern California News Group, adding that the termination of the contract should have little impact on patients.

“We stand against activities that detract from this focus, especially the misrepresentations related to CalOptima Health’s contract change with Prime hospitals,” CalOptima said in a statement Friday. “Those misrepresentations are not consistent with what is actually occurring with CalOptima Health members who have received care at Prime hospitals since our contract ended on February 5.”

CalOptima said it is providing Prime hospitals a clinical response within 30 minutes for those patients who may need post-stabilization hospital services.

“We are collaborating closely with our state regulators, who are aware of our unwavering commitment to quality care for members, delivered by our strong network that includes 39 acute and rehab hospitals across Orange County,” the company said.

Prime reports delays, angry patients

However, in the letter to Ghaly, Bhatia said Prime’s worst fears about delays and care for patients are being realized.

“Despite CalOptima CEO Michael Hunn’s assurances that he does not need these hospitals for network adequacy and can effectively transfer and care for patients requiring inpatient care, patients are suffering and denied the quality care and continuity they deserve,” Bhatia said.

According to the letter, in just three days following termination of the contract, documented evidence shows insufficient bed capacity at other CalOptima hospitals and the inability of Prime physicians to transfer stable patients. In some cases, Bhatia said, patients have reportedly left Prime hospital emergency departments, against the advice of doctors, with untreated medical conditions due to lengthy transfer wait times.

At least 37 Prime CalOptima patients have required transfers since Monday, with an average wait time in the ER of 30 hours, with some experiencing much longer delays, according to the company.

In one instance, a 57-year-old woman who went to a Prime ER with nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea waited 60 hours but could not be transferred to another CalOptima hospital because of a lack of inpatient beds and had to be admitted to the Prime facility’s intensive care unit, the letter says

Fourteen patients had clinical conditions that deteriorated while awaiting transfer, requiring urgent inpatient or ICU admission at Prime hospitals, the letter stated.

“This could have been avoided if these patients were allowed to be admitted promptly while stable and receive the quality, inpatient care that had always been provided,” the letter states. “Patient clinical outcomes have been unnecessarily and negatively impacted, causing irreparable harm as a result.”

A physician reported that a 45-year-old woman who had an acute flare of Crohn’s disease went to a Prime hospital and was denied a transfer to Orange County Global Medical Center.

Orange County Global Medical said Friday it could not comment because of patient privacy regulations and does not speak on behalf of decisions made by physicians who are independent contractors.

Dr. Kevin Truong, an emergency medicine physician at Garden Grove Hospital, said in a phone interview that earlier this week a man came to the ER complaining of shortness of breath and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. However, after waiting for 31 hours to be transferred to another CalOptima facility, the man angrily stormed out of the ER, describing the lengthy delay as the worst service he had ever experienced.

The man’s frustration is understandable, Truong said, adding the ER is a “loud, noisy environment and is not good for inpatient care.”

Lunar New Year is observed by cultures across Asia and, of course, here in Southern California as well. Here are 11 ways to celebrate the Lunar New Year in 2024.

Chinese New Year Festival at The Huntington

When: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Feb. 10-11

Where: The Huntington, 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino

Cost: $29

Information: huntington.org/event/chinese-new-year-festival

This event features lion dances by Northern Shaolin Kung Fu, mask making, martial arts demonstrations, music, Chinese floral arts displays and calligraphy demonstrations. Festivities take place in and around the Chinese Garden and other performance spaces.

Disney California Adventure

When: Through Feb. 18

Where: Paradise Gardens Park at Disney California Adventure Park, 1313 S. Harbor Blvd,. Anaheim

Cost: Park admission is required

Information: disneyland.disney.go.com/events-tours/lunar-new-year/

Celebrate the Year of the Dragon with the world famous mouse and his friends. The celebration will include Mulan’s Lunar New Year Procession, Disney characters dressed in special costumes, Asian food specials and a Wishing Wall made of ornamental lanterns.

Downtown Pomona Lunar New Year

When: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Feb. 10

Where: 197 W. Second Street, Pomona

Cost: Free

Information: downtownpomona.org/lunar-new-year

The city welcomes the Year of the Dragon with vendors, lion dances, a food court and even a karaoke and talent show.

Golden Dragon Lunar New Year Parade

When: 1 p.m. Feb. 17

Where: 943 North Broadway, Los Angeles

Cost: Free

Information: lachinesechamber.org

This is one of the biggest celebrations around with more than 100,000 spectators expected to line the parade route along North Broadway in Chinatown. The parade takes place from 1-4 p.m. and will include lion dancers, marching bands, dance troupes, music groups and more.

Historic Main Street in Garden Grove

When: 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Feb. 10 and 11 a.m.-8:30 p.m. Feb. 11

Where: 12987 Main Street, Garden Grove

Cost: Free

Information: ggcity.org/events/flower-street-historic-main

To mark the Lunar New Year Historic Main Street in Garden Grove comes alive with vibrant floral displays as part of the Flower Street Festival. There will be live music, lion dances, folk games, a flower fashion show, and more activities.

L.A. Chinatown Firecracker 

When: 8 a.m. Feb. 24-25

Where: Los Angeles Chinatown Plaza, 943 N. Broadway, Los Angeles.

Cost: $38-$75 to register for races, free to attend festival

Information: firecracker10k.org/

Now in its 46th year, the L.A. Chinatown Firecracker is one of the largest and oldest-running races in the country. It includes the Lunar New Year run, walk, cycling and dog walk events happening on Feb.24-25. In addition to the race, the weekend includes a Lunar New Year festival in Chinatown that celebrates the new year with lion dancers and the traditional lighting of 100,000 firecrackers.

Lunar New Year at USC Pacific Asia Museum

When: 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Feb. 10

Where: USC Pacific Asia Museum, 46 N. Los Robles Ave., Pasadena

Cost: Free

Information: pacificasiamuseum.usc.edu/

The USC Pacific Asia Museum celebration will include traditional lion dances, storytelling, calligraphy and food trucks.

Lunar New Year at Pacific Symphony

When: 8 p.m. Feb. 10

Where: Renee & Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa

Cost: $72-$79

Information: pacificsymphony.org

The Pacific Symphony’s annual Lunar New Year concert includes musical performances, dancers, chorus singers and fusions of musical traditions from the East and West.

Lunar New Year of the Dragon

When: 3-4 p.m. Feb. 10

Where: Baldwin Park Library, 4181 Baldwin Park Blvd., Baldwin Park

Cost: Free

Information: visit.lacountylibrary.org

This celebration is aimed at the young dragons ages 5-11. Kids will learn about the origins of the dragon and will create their own lunar dragon. Advance registration is required.

San Gabriel Lunar Lantern Festival

When: 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Feb. 17 and 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Feb. 18

Where: San Gabriel Mission District, 320 S. Mission Drive, San Gabriel

Cost: Free

Information: sangabrielcity.com/1517/Lunar-New-Year

Live music, a marketplace, kids zone and free lanterns for children make up this Lunar New Year celebration.

The Alhambra Lunar New Year Festival

When: 9 a.m.- 5 p.m. Feb 18

Where: Main Street between First and Third Streets.

Cost: Free

Information: alhambralunarnewyear.com/

The Alhambra Lunar New Year Festival includes vendors, kids zones, a Culinary Stage that showcases cooking demonstrations inspired by Asian cuisine and The Performance Stage for cultural performances that include Korean fan dancing, bands and a breakdance competition.

But Cutspec realized that marketing pet food and then running her own marketing and design company wasn’t going to give her the voice or the fulfillment she wanted in her life. You don’t get back to the other side of the fence plugging pet food or designing websites.

Which is where the Voice comes in. The Voice — her Voice — could get Cutspec back to the field. She’d literally talk her way back to the Santiago Canyon College softball field, back to the other side of the fence.

“I literally got to the point where I realized I needed softball back in my life,” she said. “I realized I do love it more than anything else and kept asking myself, ‘How do I get it back?’ Well, they needed an announcer, so I went back as an announcer. It’s me. Done. I would have gone back as a volunteer coach. I didn’t care how I got back to the field. I needed to be back on the field.”

And that’s how SCC found its next softball coach. Only the second one in school history.

One year after announcing lineups, Cutspec is making out lineups. One year after announcing who’s coming to bat, Cutspec is figuratively — if not literally —back in the batter’s box. She’s back on the field, back on the other side of the fence.

The first-year SCC coach has a big act to follow. She took over from her mentor, former coach and former boss, Lisa Camarco, who built the SCC program from scratch when it began in 2007. Camarco retired as coach after leading SCC to state championship appearances in 2014 and 2016. The 2016 team won SCC’s first state title, becoming the first team since 1996 to lose the first game in the double-elimination tournament and come back to win the title. That team also became the first team since 2005 to mercy-rule its final opponent, when it dismissed Sacramento City College, 8-0, after five innings.

During her initial four-season stint as an assistant coach (2014-17), Cutspec was a part of both teams. In fact, all four of those teams would reach the state Super Regionals and the 2016 team would earn National Fastpitch Coaches Association California Junior College National Coaching Staff of the Year honors.

Before then, Cutspec was an all-conference first baseman for the Hawks, who helped SCC make its first regional appearance in 2011. And before that, she was an all-league first baseman for Ocean View High, who powered the Seahawks to the 2008 CIF Division 4 championship via a fifth-inning grand slam off Bishop Amat’s Amy Lwin — one of the best pitchers in the division.

So yes, the bona-fides now established, Cutspec looks around her new digs and still finds reasons to pinch herself. Her voice now carries louder than the PA system that reopened the door to the other side of the fence.

“Honestly, of all the jobs I had, that was the hardest. I couldn’t be on the other side of the lines. It was tough for me,” she said. “I’ve been the athlete. I’ve been the coach. But when you don’t know what’s going on, and when you’re not on that side of the field, it’s hard. But had I not taken that job and done that, I don’t think I would be in the position I’m in today.”

And yet, even Cutspec’s infectious confidence, outgoing presence and electric personality that pulsates with every word found doubts. She left the sport in 2017 because of that pesky meager paycheck. Cutspec decided it was time to turn her natural curiosity, love of writing and designing everything from websites to brochures loose in the corporate world. After spending nearly every waking moment on a softball field since she was 4, Cutspec felt a different tug, one that included picking up an MBA at Chapman University and starting up her own marketing company.

But after flexing her voice and talking to Camarco, who recruited her out of Ocean View, then brought her into the coaching ranks, could Cutspec reinvent herself again?

“To be honest, I was nervous. Being away from it for a lot of years — five or six years — the game’s the same. But it’s been a while,” she said. “I felt nervous that I’d been away from it for so long that maybe I wouldn’t be as effective as I could be if I stayed in it the whole time. But I trust Lisa so much. She wouldn’t have handed the program she built over to me if she didn’t believe in me. There’s a big confidence factor that she believed in my ability to continue the legacy she built.

“I think I feel more pressure to continue the culture she built and continue what she’s turned Santiago Canyon College softball into. Being an athlete and a coach, I have a strong understanding of it and know how important it is to help the girls who come through our program.”

Cutspec’s outgoing personality helped the transition. So did the journals she’s kept since she was 7. For as long as she can remember, Cutspec embraced writing, using a journal. It provided power, release and growth when she was trying to figure out who she was as a person. Not only did it help Cutspec make sense of the world around her and build her writing voice, but it provided another side gig.

Cutspec sells her Daily Journal templates to “give people an opportunity to be able to do that and to find the same pleasure and growth from it that I’ve had.” These templates are brought to you by Cutspec.

But her journals? They’re more than a sidelight. They’re a guiding light.

“To this day, I haven’t told very many people this, but when I would feel lost in the mix of things, if I felt lonely or I didn’t feel like I belonged, I would take my favorite TV show and write myself my own character, so I could make myself feel like I belonged somewhere,” she said. “I could create myself wherever I wanted to be and throw myself into my favorite TV shows and oh my God, I felt perfectly safe there. That would make other parts of my life feel better.”

Those parts are feeling better these days. Cutspec found the other side of the gate, the side that allows her to mentor young girls, provide them those oft-told life lessons and navigate some of the trickiest, most stressful times of their lives. Her voice has the same passion, the same caring intensity it had before she picked up — and put down — the PA microphone.

“I see myself doing this for the foreseeable future. Right now, I only coach here, but I would love to teach at the college and be a professor,” she said. “I definitely want to grow in my role. And I don’t plan on leaving anytime soon.”

The unlikely mashup of foot soldiers — a dozen homeless individuals with chronic illnesses, health care executives, and doctors clad in white lab coats — held signs that read “Shame on you for taking away our care” and “Every patient matters” during a spirited 30-minute protest Thursday, Feb. 1, outside CalOptima’s high-rise headquarters in Orange.

The aim was to prevent the Medi-Cal insurance giant from terminating its contract on Monday with Ontario-based Prime Healthcare Services, which owns Garden Grove Hospital and Medical Center, Huntington Beach Hospital, La Palma Intercommunity Hospital and West Anaheim Medical Center.

“Garden Grove Hospital is my home away from home,” said Robin Wilson, 63, a CalOptima member who has diabetes and chronic colitis and lives just three stoplights away from the facility she has been using for 45 years. “I don’t feel comfortable going anywhere else. Garden Grove Hospital provides the best care. I can’t emphasize enough how much they do.”

Another CalOptima member, 53-year-old Wendy Bailes of Newport Beach, frequents the Huntington Beach Hospital’s emergency room and was most recently treated for broken ribs.

If CalOptima rescinds the facility’s contract, it will be a “major blow” to the community because medical providers take time to understand the needs of patients, Bailes said, adding, “They know me there.”

Created 30 years ago

CalOptima Health was created by the Orange County Board of Supervisors in 1993 as a county-organized health system and is the largest of six COHS in California.

It manages programs funded by the state and federal governments, but operates independently under the leadership of a board of directors made up of members, providers, business leaders and local government representatives that include Orange County Supervisors Doug Chaffee and Vicente Sarmiento.

“We are always concerned about a patient’s access to quality and timely care,” Sarmiento said. “We also recognize the importance of addressing concerns in the delivery of care and ensuring the rights of low-income patients are protected, throughout the process.”

With 954,000 members, CalOptima is the largest health insurer in Orange County, providing coverage for more than one in four residents through three programs, Medi-Cal, OneCare, and the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly.

In a last-ditch legal effort, eight CalOptima members filed a petition this week in Orange County Superior Court against CalOptima Chief Executive Officer Michael Hunn seeking a temporary restraining order to block the termination of Prime’s contract.

The petition request was denied Friday by Judge Scott Steiner.

“It is unfortunate that a single decision for no cause can alter the lives of so many in greatest need,” Prime said in a statement. “With this seemingly arbitrary decision, CalOptima is eliminating a significant percentage of the acute care hospitals in its entire network.

“While every person deserves expanded care and access, eliminating hospitals for no cause seems contrary to the best interests of patients, who are left wondering why their care can be limited and why they don’t deserve access to all hospitals willing and able to care for them, especially all safety-net hospitals.”

Reasons for termination given

Following Thursday’s brief protest, CalOptima members filed into the organization’s expansive boardroom, where for nearly 15 minutes Hunn explained why Prime Healthcare’s contract is being terminated, with approval from the California Department of Healthcare Services.

“It’s not helpful if there’s misinformation about the facts,” he told CalOptima’s board of directors. “It’s not helpful for our members to be frightened or worried. It’s not helpful for our members not to know what’s going on because they don’t understand, or they don’t speak the language. That’s not fair to vulnerable people.”

Hunn cited patient under-utilization as a chief reason for the termination of Prime’s contract.

From Dec. 1, 2022, to Nov. 30, 2023, 15,604 members accounted for 26,290 visits to the four Prime hospitals, with 98.6% being emergency room visits, according to data collected by CalOptima. Many members went to the ER more than once.

There were 2,800 CalOptima inpatient admissions and 364 visits for elective care at Prime hospitals during the year.

“We believe that our networks can certainly handle 364 cases, given the tens of thousands of cases here in our county,” Hunn said.

Within five miles of the Prime facilities are seven other CalOptima hospitals that can absorb patients, he told the Southern California News Group

Additionally, CalOptima delegates the care of approximately 750,000 members to large, managed-care medical groups, but there is no evidence of Prime contracting with any of those providers, Hunn said.

“We believe that our members are best off being in a managed-care environment with a primary care physician in a medical home, receiving coordinated care from both the doctor, their outpatient services, and any inpatient services they might need,” he told the board. “The state thinks they get better care, physicians believe they get better care, and we firmly support that.”

Prime learned only a month ago its lack of designated medical group contracts contributed to CalOptima’s decision to terminate its contract, according to company officials. The officials said they asked for time to pursue the contracts but were rebuffed by Hunn.

Little impact expected

Overall, the termination of CalOptima’s agreement with Prime should have minimal impact on members, Hunn said.

Members and anyone else in the community can go to any emergency room and receive medical screening and stabilizing treatment under federal regulations, he noted.

If a patient needs admission and no beds are available elsewhere, the hospital where they received emergency care — including the four Prime hospitals — can admit and treat them, he said. In that instance, CalOptima will cover medical costs for members based on the California Department of Health’s fee schedule.

“I just don’t want our members to think because of a contract change they can’t receive their medical care, they can’t go to the emergency room, or they won’t be able to stay in the hospital if they need to,” Hunn said. “They can go to the emergency room. They can be seen. They can be treated, and they can be admitted for care.”

Additionally, the termination of Prime’s contract will not affect members’ behavioral health care, outpatient services or the ability to keep their current physicians for elective care.

“That doctor will have privileges at other hospitals,” Hunn said. “And if they don’t, then we will work with them (CalOptima members) to find a primary care doctor that does have privileges at a hospital that they would like to attend.”

Hunn told board members that CalOptima works hard to ensure all members are treated with dignity and respect. “I will not allow us ever, ever to deviate off the mission of CalOptima Health,” he said. “And we will fight vigorously, and we will be unrelenting in making sure that message is clear.”

Patients, doctors fear worst

However, for some Prime officials at Thursday’s meeting, Hunn’s promises rang hollow.

Amy D. Searls, the company’s chief patient experience officer, chided Hunn, who appeared to look down as CalOptima members and medical providers shared their concerns during the meeting’s public comment period.

“I’m very offended that … Hunn hasn’t turned around and looked at one of them,” she told the board while standing at a podium. “These are people with hearts and lives who are trying to make a positive difference in their world.”

Mark Gamble, chief of advocacy and operations with the Hospital Association of Southern California, said the termination of Prime’s contract is fraught with problems and would tax Orange County’s already overburdened healthcare system. He asked the board to pause the contract cancellation

“Many hospitals in the region throughout Southern California, especially in Orange County, are reporting extremely high patient volumes, beyond normal capacity, and even higher than what we experienced during the height of the (COVID-19) pandemic,” he said.

The Orange County Health Care Agency did not immediately respond to a request regarding the potential impact on the EMS system.

Dr. David Ngo, an emergency medicine physician at Huntington Beach Hospital and LA Palma Intercommunity Hospital, estimated as many as 4,000 Prime patients a year will have to be absorbed by other acute care facilities faced with staffing shortages and low bed availability.

Brendan Barth, a patient advocate for Prime’s four Orange County hospitals, said members feel that CalOptima is attempting to eliminate their ability to choose which hospital they go to for treatment.

“They want to be at the hospital that is close to their home,” Barth said. “They don’t just want to be told to go somewhere else. They want to go where they get the best care, and denying them that would have a devastating impact on their social health, their mental well-being and their physical health.”

“We acknowledge that our students have a lot of demands on them,” said Jason Parks, vice president of academic affairs. “They’re working and they have familial responsibilities. When you think about a full load of 30 units a year, that’s four to five classes a semester—a big challenge for students who have a family, plus a job.”

The Hawks Flight Path was created to ease the burden.

Parks conceived of the program, but he is quick to credit a team of colleagues, including faculty and deans, who put it together. “The team got together and really thought it through about how we would work to benefit the students the most. I think it’s really well-designed. The spring is the soft launch for it,” he said. “Next fall we will target incoming freshmen who need all of their prerequisites.”

The first class is in public speaking (Feb. 12–March 24) followed by a class in nutrition (March 25–April 28), and, finally, an introduction to cultural anthropology (April 29–June 9).

“We have knowledge of what classes go well in those shorter times and where students thrive, so we’ll choose those classes (accordingly),” Parks said.

Since the Hawks Flight Path classes will fulfill General Ed requirements, students will be able to put more hours and effort into the classes that are part of their major. This is particularly helpful for students whose majors require a lot of time, for instance, if they must work in a lab.

“They can take those three classes and then take an overlying major’s course, something that they maybe need to spend quite a bit more time on, such as a calculus, chemistry or physics course,” Parks explained.

“The initial thought was let’s target our students who may be pre-nursing or health sciences,” he said. “For those students, the hope is that they would take those three classes and then maybe an anatomy and physiology class that would last the entire term. The amount of time you have to spend in the laboratory is a lot, so we would want to give them that opportunity to spend that laboratory time doing the work that is going to be most pertinent to their career as they move along.”

The plan is also designed to relieve exam stress. Rather than having five final exams at once, exams will be spread out over the semester.

And because the three GE classes are sequential, faculty members will be able to share with each other information about students who may be struggling or those who need more challenge.

“The idea is to create an ecosystem where those faculty members communicate with one another about the students who are incoming, Parks said. “This will be an advantage because most faculty members get students cold. You just walk into your classroom and you need to learn about your students starting on day one. But if one of your colleagues has said, ‘Hey, this group kind of needs help there, and this group is accelerating over here,’ then you’re not walking in cold.”

The ultimate intention of the Hawks Flight Plan is to make it easier for students to stay in college, Parks said. “We know that our most vulnerable students, we don’t lose them at the very end of completing their degree, we lose them at the beginning,” he said. “And so, we want to help them to persist.”

The number of students enrolling for credit programs at Santiago Canyon College recently jumped more than 12%.

“(They are) our target audience, absolutely,” Parks said. “This particular program is going to target more of the traditional college age, which is in the 18 to 24 range, because we are trying to get them in, get their associate degrees and out into a career. Or if they’re looking to transfer, we want to help them to transfer to a university to earn a bachelor’s degree.”

Santiago Canyon College also has a tutoring center that encourages students to support each other in their studies. “I’m just the old guy telling them college is good,” Parks said. “But if their colleagues are telling them that you can do this, and they encourage one another, that’s worth more than I could ever tell a student.”

Other forms of student support at SCC include a basic needs center, a food pantry, and financial aid. “We’re trying to hit them from all angles to make sure that they feel supported and they have everything they need to get through college,” Parks said.

But that attention was not important to Campbell.

“What was big for me was the fact that it was my hometown,” Campbell said. “To be able to be mayor of your hometown, there’s something really special about that. Everybody’s pretty much family and friends to me. And to be able to help people in my community and be mayor of my hometown was the greatest honor.”

Campbell’s family has strong roots in North Orange County, having lived here for more than 35 years. She attended St. Francis of Assisi Catholic School in Yorba Linda and then Rosary Academy in Fullerton.

She applied to colleges in the spring of 2011 and was accepted at University of Southern California for spring 2012 admission. Taking advantage of the extra time during the summer and fall after high school, Campbell took general education classes at Santiago Canyon College, credits which transferred over to USC.

“I really loved my experience at SCC, and it really set me on a great course for my college career,” she said. “I saved a ton of money and got to stay close to home, too.”

As a sports fan and an athlete, Campbell’s goal was to become a sports journalist. “I got to do that for a little bit, reporting from the sidelines for the football team and the basketball team,” she said. “I really loved that, but I thought I better broaden my journalism experience to something other than sports.”

A summer internship for C-SPAN in Washington, DC, fell through at the last minute, so Campbell scrambled and got another at a bipartisan nonprofit that was trying to get members of Congress to work together.

“We were working on some common sense legislation and thought we were doing all this great work, but then the government shut down. That was in 2013,” she said.

Returning to her hometown she discovered the same gridlock she’d seen in Washington was happening on the local level, too.

“In my hometown of Yorba Linda, our city council was in the midst of a recall. I was like, ‘What is happening in my local hometown? We are a great community.’ I found out that that wasn’t too uncommon for Yorba Linda. We had a number of potential recalls. I realized, ‘OK, if you want to see a change, be part of that change.’”

She decided to get involved and started serving on the city’s Parks and Recreation Commission while still in college. She added political science as a major and then went on to get a master’s degree in public administration at USC.

“By going to SCC and getting my GEs done, I was able to start my master’s courses while I was a senior at USC,” she said. “I got my undergrad and master’s at USC in five years.”

She credits Santiago Canyon College for giving her the early boost she needed.

“SCC really set me up for success down the line. It was a huge benefit for me. We have this great institution so close by where you can set your career — not just your education, but your career — in a great trajectory.”

Yorba Linda’s City Council members elect their mayor every year, and Campbell is starting on her eighth year on the council. The job has its challenges and conflicts, she said.

“I’ve tried to lead by example of being a problem solver and being able to engage and talk to everybody and hear all sides so that I can make the best decision for my community,” she explained.

Campbell’s style of leadership has earned the respect of her constituents, even those who don’t agree with her views. And her dedication to Yorba Linda is obvious.

“Yorba Linda is an amazing community because you still have that small-town feel, but you also have all the great amenities. We just built a beautiful, state-of-the-art new public library and cultural art center. We just built a town center. We just built Adventure Playground, which is now year-round.”

Campbell notes with pride that Yorba Linda has a balanced budget and a crime rate far below the average for a U.S. city.

“I might be biased because I’m the mayor, but I think Yorba Linda is a great place to call home, a great place to raise family, and one ranked in the top of the safest cities in California,” Campbell said. “There’s no doubt in my mind that I wanted to come home to this great community and help set it on a great course for generations to come.”

Beginning this fall, SCC will expand that support by offering credit courses and a full associate’s degree program specifically for youth offenders in Orange County Juvenile Hall. This will be possible thanks to a $1.5 million Juvenile Justice Program grant that was awarded to SCC through the California Community Colleges Rising Scholars Network.

In 2018, SCC formalized its support of incarcerated and formerly incarcerated students through Project RISE, a bridge program that removes the barriers of higher education for these members of society through credit and noncredit courses, vocational certificate training, education planning and counseling support. The campus has served nearly 3,000 students in the adult jails.

Project RISE also serves juvenile offenders, which in the state of California can include those through age 25. SCC has offered credit courses to that group of students since 2021. California recognized that this specific population has unique needs when it comes to higher education and created the Juvenile Justice Program grant.

SCC will begin receiving disbursement on the five-year grant award this month and will use the funds to build a full credit program that focuses on dual enrollment courses, as well as Career and Technical Education training and the Associate Degree for Transfer.

“With the dual enrollment program, we can get them that dual credit, so when they get their high school diploma, they’re already ahead of the game in college, whether they’re taking the college program inside the juvenile hall or they’ve been paroled and are joining a college outside of the hall,” said SCC Vice President of Academic Affairs Jason Parks, who will oversee the expansion of the program. “The CTE will give them a certificate in training to get a job after they are paroled, and then the ADT program guarantees them a spot in one of the CSUs.”

The students will be provided laptops, and a full suite of course offerings will be available either online or in person, hosted inside the facility. Counselors will guide students in meeting requirements for high school diploma completion, as well as degree advancement. Parks has a background working with the juvenile offender population and feels this approach will spotlight a path that many may not have considered.

“Inside juvenile hall, there is a lot of forced programming, and college is suddenly giving them agency,” Parks said. “We’re going into this space and we’re saying, ‘Tell us what you want to study. Tell us what you’re interested in, and we’re going to come back and provide options that cater to your interests.’ ”

SCC Dean of Instruction and Student Services Joanne Armstrong prepared the Juvenile Justice Program grant application and has seen firsthand how Project RISE can open the minds of the students it serves.

“The entire point (of Project RISE) is exposure and access,” Armstrong said. “It’s hearing them say, ‘I didn’t know I could learn until I learned. I didn’t know I was capable until I was in your class.’ It’s those kind of things where you’re planting a seed somewhere that somebody cared enough to be there to support them, regardless of where they’re at.”

Armstrong also notes the impact of higher education on the family unit and how these opportunities can work toward breaking a cycle.

“Incarceration impacts entire family systems, and so when you change even one degree of somebody’s trajectory, you change the path of their life,” Armstrong said. “We like to call it pivot points. If I catch you at just the right time, it may be a pivot point where we just shifted the direction of your life minutely now, but the trajectory is really going to make an impact on that whole family.”

The program currently serves 20-30 juvenile students with credit courses, but with the Juvenile Justice Program grant, Parks is looking to double that number. SCC will also be providing counselors who are specifically trained in the ins and outs of credits and transfer eligibility to further support these students on their academic journey.

Above all, Parks envisions a future that includes graduation ceremonies where these juveniles are dressed in regalia and able to celebrate their accomplishments and their commitment to a better path.

“We’re working with a population of human beings who didn’t come into life and live their youth with a lot of advantages,” Parks said. “This is an opportunity for them, while they’re paying their time, to find a way back into society and rejoin as productive citizens, without starting over.”

The U.S. Department of Justice in Los Angeles said George Arizon, 28, used a handgun to threaten store employees at all of the businesses, demanding cash, and in one case cigarettes, on Nov. 1 and Nov. 8, 2022.

Among the stores he targeted were a 7-Eleven, a hair salon and eight restaurants.

In all, Arizon made off with $2,480 and two packs of cigarettes, said a federal law enforcement affidavit outlining the robberies.

Police eventually tracked Arizon to his Corona home through cell phone location data, as well as surveillance camera footage showing Arizon taking off and dumping a sweater with a NASA logo on it soon after the final robbery. Federal investigators said they found Arizon’s Facebook page with a photo of him wearing the same NASA sweater.

Arizon was sentenced Monday after agreeing in 2023 to plead guilty to one count of each of interference with commerce by robbery and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, according to the plea agreement. In the plea he admitted to the robbery spree, prosecutors said.

At Arizon’s hearing, the judge and prosecutors lent significant weight to his history of drug addiction and a life spinning out of control by the time he decided to rob the stores.

U.S. District Judge Cormac Carney also considered Arizon’s admittance of guilt as a reason to accept the plea agreement.

“This is a difficult case,” Carney said, adding he was “troubled with the harm on the victims.”

But Carney said he “appreciated what (Arizon) admitted to in his plea agreement… and I think that a 12-year sentence is just punishment and does recognize the emotional harm he inflicted on these people.”

While they had asked for more prison time, federal prosecutors also acknowledged Arizon’s troubled upbringing in Monday’s hearing. The judge noted Arizon grew up in an abusive household and witnessed the stabbing deaths of two of his close friends as a teenager.

“I think there is significant mitigation in this case,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Jena MacCabe said.

Carney also ordered Arizon to pay $3,658 to the victims of his crimes on top of his prison sentence.

Arizon also spoke during Monday’s hearing, apologizing for the crime spree.

“I won’t make excuses for the crimes I committed,” Arizon said. “I’m ashamed of it. It’s embarrassing to look back and know I did this, so there’s no excuses… But I need you to take a chance on me. I’m a good person.”

Federal prosecutors said Arizon previously spent significant time in prison, but did not outline his previous convictions.

Another suspect in the robbery spree, Brandon Robinson, of Anaheim, who investigators accused of being Arizon’s getaway driver, was arrested the same day in 2022. But he has not been charged in the robbery case.

However, Robinson was indicted last year on suspicion of possessing three firearms at his home, despite an Orange County Superior Court order to forfeit any weapons after he was handed a restraining order telling him to cease threatening his child and an intimate partner in 2019.

City News Service contributed to this story.

Martinez’s accomplishments prior to RSCCD include improving outcomes for students, balancing budgets and overseeing millions of dollars in infrastructure upgrades.

With a new year just underway, Martinez is setting in motion an ambitious agenda for the future of the district, which includes new and upgraded buildings, the expansion of apprenticeship programs and programs serving specialized populations.

At RSCCD, Martinez leads a district with an enrollment of 50,000 students and 3,000 employees.

The district includes Santa Ana College, Santiago Canyon College, the Orange and Centennial learning centers and RSCCD headquarters.

Realizing the demand for skilled professionals in a variety of industries, State Chancellor Sonya Christian has called on Martinez to take the lead on the Apprenticeship Pathways Demonstration Project, an initiative established by Gov. Garvin Newsom to create 500,000 new apprentices by the year 2030.

With seven apprenticeship programs currently offered at Santiago Canyon College, Martinez has been tasked with allocating funds to enhance and increase the number of apprenticeships to 25 community colleges statewide.

The benefits of apprenticeships are two-fold, the chancellor said.

“We can convert all of the hours that you’re generating as an apprentice into credit,” Martinez said. “You get an apprenticeship, but at the same time, you get a degree.”

The associate’s degree attained through an apprenticeship can be the ticket to enrollment into a four-year university, he said.

The chancellor would also like to build on some specialized programs that cater to specific demographics.

One such program is the Project Rise Program, a statewide community initiative providing job training and educational opportunities to assist formerly incarcerated individuals in their transition into the workforce.

“A lot of formerly incarcerated people just don’t get the chance,” Martinez said. “If those populations couldn’t come to us, where would they go to?”

Amid the decrease in the number of students attending college right after high school, Martinez is hoping to build on the current adult and continuing education curriculums at Santiago Canyon and Santa Ana colleges.

“We needed to find other areas where our enrollments can come from,” he said. “That area became adults.

While it might not be widely known, RSCCD offers a bachelor of science in occupational studies at Santa Ana College.

Martinez would like to increase the number of bachelor’s degree programs to 10.

The total cost to attain a bachelor’s degree in the district would cost about $11,000, excluding textbooks, a fraction of the cost for a degree at a four-year university.

“Many of these individuals will probably be low income, middle income, or even higher income, but they’ll be able to go and get a degree, an accredited degree from an accredited college so they can move forward with their career,” the chancellor said.

Growing and forging new relationships with community groups is another goal.

The RSCCD currently enjoys symbiotic relationships with Santa Ana Unified School District, the Santa Ana Unified School District, the Orange County School of the Arts and other schools.

Martinez hopes to go deeper into the community to forge new relationships.

Orange County icons such as Disney, Anaheim Stadium and the Angels would make for beneficial partnerships to both sides, Martinez said.

One of Chancellor Martinez’s large-scale goals, albeit costly, is to implement needed infrastructure upgrades throughout the district, particularly at Santa Ana College, which was constructed 100 years ago, he said.

At Santa Ana College, a new facility is needed to house automotive technology, welding and culinary arts programs, which all utilize hands-on learning classes.

A new student services and student life building is needed at Santago Canyon College.

Some upgrades would likely require the passage of a bond measure, the chancellor said.

“We need to have the newest facilities and technologies so that we can prepare students for the jobs of today,” Martinez said. “We can’t do that on our own. So, we do need help from voters.”

An economic impact report recently published by the RSCCD showed that the district contributed nearly $2 billion to the Orange County economy.

“I believe in getting out there and supporting the needs of the local community,”  Martinez said.

“Flower Street on Historic Main” is modeled after the Nguyen Hue Flower Street festival in Vietnam, organizers say, a Lunar New Year tradition featuring cultural and entertainment events and elaborate floral designs that attracts more than 2 million visitors annually. The Flower Street celebration joins a vibrant tradition of Lunar New Year events in Orange County.

This year’s Flower Street festivities include a retooled Lunar New Year’s Eve countdown on Feb. 9 and day-long street festivals on Feb. 10 and 11 that aim to bring the Flower Street tradition to an American audience while showcasing the richness of Vietnamese culture.

Organizers reflected on last year’s inaugural festival and previewed plans for this year’s event during a recent press conference at the District 1 Deli on Main Street that featured Vietnamese food and drink, a mini fashion show and remarks by various stakeholders.

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“Our efforts paid off,” Phillip Ho, a member of this year’s organizing committee, told the crowd about the 2023 festival. “We saw the families of Garden Grove and surrounding communities laughing and smiling and taking lots of pictures. We hope to bring the same energy and joy to Garden Grove with each additional event.”

More than 15,000 people attended last year’s festival, organizers said. They are hoping to attract even more this year.

During the festival, Main Street will be closed to traffic from Garden Grove Boulevard to Acacia Parkway so that participants can freely visit shops, take photos with floral displays sponsored by community groups and businesses, and participate in a variety of programming.

The first day of the festival will run from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Feb. 10. Scheduled activities include an opening ceremony, traditional lion dance, performances and games. The second day will run from 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Feb. 11 and also features lion dances and a full day of activities and entertainment.

As 2024 is the Year of the Dragon, dragon statues fashioned from colorful flowers will be stationed near the Historic Main Street sign to welcome attendees, said Sophie Tran, this year’s emcee who likened the festival to another popular American New Year’s tradition.

“Imagine the Rose Parade, except you get to stay and take pictures with these beautiful arrangements,” she said.

While the festival may provide aesthetically pleasing photo opps on the surface, organizers say it also serves a deeper purpose: to highlight the fullness of Vietnamese culture while uniting people across ethnicities and generations.

Orange County is home to the largest Vietnamese population outside Vietnam, Tran said, and publicly celebrating the start of the Lunar New Year is a fitting way to introduce residents of all backgrounds to Vietnamese traditions and culture.

Tran said that while local Lunar New Year events abound – annual celebrations are typically held in Westminster, Costa Mesa and Santa Ana for example – Flower Street on Historic Main is unique in that it intentionally showcases both traditional Vietnamese and modern Vietnamese American arts and culture.

In doing so, Tran said, organizers hope to unify multi-generational Vietnamese families and get them excited to ring in the Lunar New Year together, and to bring into the fold younger Vietnamese Americans who may feel disconnected from traditional Vietnamese culture because they don’t speak Vietnamese or are growing up far away from their ancestors’ homeland.

“Just because they don’t understand the language does not mean that they are no longer members of our community,” Tran said.

“The committee wants to put together events like this for the next generation to feel like they can travel the world and go to where their parents were born to celebrate Lunar New Year,” she said, “but also to introduce our culture to other communities as well.”

During the recent press conference, organizers highlighted some of the new additions to this year’s festival that are designed to appeal to larger audiences and bridge the generation gap.

Little Saigon TV and the Vietnamese Creatives Collective are hosting for the first time a Lunar New Year’s Eve countdown show, “Harmony of the Dragon,” from 7 p.m. to midnight on Feb. 9 at the nearby Garden Amp outdoor amphitheater. The event will feature merchandise and food and will blend traditional and modern with a line-up that includes artistic performances, spoken word poetry, a DJ set, stand-up comics, and more.

Kids and families are also encouraged to work together to decorate wagons with flowers and items from their gardens during a children’s wagon decorating contest on Feb. 10.

And children and young adults will don floral-inspired áo dài – traditional Vietnamese dress – during a flower-themed fashion show on Feb. 11.

Flower Street on Historic Main is being organized by the Vietnamese Sport Association of Southern California in collaboration with Little Saigon TV, and with support from a network of residents, businesses and groups, including the city of Garden Grove and the Garden Grove Downtown Business Association.

City Councilmember Stephanie Klopfenstein was among those who spoke about how the festival benefits the whole community.

“In Garden Grove we really celebrate our diversity,” she said. “This is such a wonderful way to promote cultural harmony and all of us coming together. We are extremely excited to have this once again on Main Street.”

“We hope,” she added, “it becomes a tradition for many years to come.”

For more information, visit Facebook.com/Tetflowerstreet or www.vsasocal.org.