The Desert Sun
Results from the Desert Pickleball League playoffs
Women's Elite 3.5 Division Playoffs:
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Iconic moments from 25 Coachella fests
The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival is celebrating its 25th iteration this month, and boy has this annual gathering given us plenty to talk about. What started as a modest idea at the end of the 20th century morphed into the hottest event of...
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Pulling some strings
The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival lineup boasts a robust variety of artists, including pop princesses, música urbana stars, moody male performers and a loveable troupe of marionette puppets. h No, you don’t need to get your eyes checked. h...
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‘Open to anybody who needed help’
A Palm Springs-based nonprofit that provides social services to transgender people has filed a civil rights complaint accusing Riverside County of discrimination for withholding $132,000 in federal funding. The county says it withheld the funds because...
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SIGNS OF FESTIVAL SEASON
It's almost time for the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, which can only mean one thing: Artist billboards have taken over Interstate 10. As has been tradition for several years, drivers on I-10 east and west can now spot several colorful,...
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Artemis II photos show views before lunar flyby
More breathtaking images released over the weekend from NASA’s Artemis II mission showed both the moon and Earth in all their cosmic glory as four astronauts headed toward our celestial neighbor. The three Americans and one Canadian have captured some...
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EXPANSION STILL UP IN THE AIR
As local officials ramp up their effort to expand the Palm Springs International Airport, questions on how the growth in visitors will impact the community are arising. The $2.2 billion endeavor, meant to facilitate a predicted increase in the number...
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WAGE GAP WIDENS
From manicured golf courses and luxury resorts to internationally attended events like the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, tourism powers much of the Coachella Valley’s economy. h And that economy mostly runs on Latino labor — workers who...
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Public defender shortage ripples across legal system
The Oregon Supreme Court on Feb. 5 issued a ruling that will have a wide impact. More than 1,400 criminal cases had to be dismissed, the justices ruled, due to lack of adequate counsel available for defendants. Like other states, Oregon must provide...
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Golfers are playing more, paying more
Nearly six years after the start of the COVID-inspired surge in golf across the country, the question is how long the surge in golfers and rounds played can last. At PGA West in La Quinta, the answer seems to be that the surge is still surging. “At...
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Trump says Iran asked for ceasefire
President Donald Trump, ahead of his scheduled prime time address to the nation, signaled the United States may soon end its part in the Iran war but sent conflicting messages on his strategy. In a social media post on April 1, Trump said Iran’s “new...
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‘It means something’
There have been many “firsts” in Dolores Robinson’s life and career, such as earning the title of first Black female entertainment manager in Hollywood, but she never planned it that way. h Her story includes integrating her college and becoming one of...
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BUILDING EARTH’S AMBASSADORS
Billions of miles away from Earth — already farther than any other manmade objects and still going — are two spacecraft that Frank Locatell helped bring to life. Locatell, who’s now 90, spent much of his career as a project engineer for NASA — a...
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‘Authoritarians can be stopped’
Thousands of people turned out to at least five protests held across the Coachella Valley on Saturday as part of the latest wave of nationwide No Kings demonstrations. The protests are aimed at what critics say are authoritarian behavior and...
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Hottest festival tickets this year
The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival is one of the hottest festival tickets every year — for both everyday music fans and big-name celebrities — but that kind of notoriety comes with a price. h So how much does Coachella actually cost, and how...
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Artist felt ‘compelled’ to cover Chavez image on her mural
California artist Marina Aguilera says she isn’t a political person. h But the moment she learned about the recent sexual abuse allegations against César Chávez, the morning of Wednesday, March 18, she said something “compelled” her. Aguilera dropped...
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SHOOTING FOR THE PLAYOFFS
The Coachella Valley Firebirds’ offense is perking up at the perfect time and the wins are following as they continue to climb the Pacific Division standings in the season’s final month. The Firebirds took down the Calgary Wranglers 5-2 on Wednesday...
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FESTIVAL SEASON
Hippie Death Cult’s Laura Phillips (from left), Harry Silvers and Eddie Brnabic thank the crowd after a set during the inaugural Mojave Experience music festival in Joshua Tree on March 21.
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Debate canceled amid controversy
USC canceled a debate for the California governor’s race after an accusation that it purposefully left out candidates of color has cast a shadow over the event for days. ABC/KABC-TV Los Angeles and the USC Dornsife Center for the Political...
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Trump postpones strikes on Iran
President Donald Trump on March 23 said the United States has engaged in “very strong talks” with Iran and reached “major points of agreement” that could end the war – claims Iranian officials quickly denied. Trump said U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and...
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UNMATCHED SUCCESS STORY IN SOCCER
The Coachella Valley High girls’ soccer team was feted Saturday morning with a parade to honor their unmatched success on the field this year. The Arabs won the Southern Section Division 5 title, then the Division 4 state regional title which put them...
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TOURISM SURGE
Fears in Palm Springs of an economic downturn due to the decline of tourism, especially from Canadian visitors and snowbirds, appear to have been allayed so far this season. However, both businesses and city officials remain cautious over the long-term...
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AI school flips learning on its head
Matt Shenker recently witnessed a group of fourth and fifth graders at Alpha School Scottsdale doing what he said boys that age do: calling each other fat and making jokes at each other’s expense. At most schools, a teacher or staff member would step...
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THE LEGACY OF CÉSAR CHÁVEZ
The legacy of César Chávez has long been celebrated in Coachella — from a local elementary school and a city street named for him to a monument honoring him. Now, newly revealed allegations of sexual abuse against Chávez, including against young...
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Gov. hopeful Steyer stresses affordability in Palm Springs
Affordability is a key theme in the gubernatorial campaign of Democratic candidate Tom Steyer, and he put that on full display at a town hall held in Palm Springs the evening of Tuesday, March 17. After appearing in Los Angeles a few days earlier,...
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EXTREME HEAT COMING FOR VALLEY
The Coachella Valley will see “dangerously hot conditions” from Wednesday, March 18, to Saturday, March 21 as a late winter heat wave that could be without peer in recorded American history reaches its zenith, according to the National Weather...
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Aryna Sabalenka, Jannik Sinner wrap Indian Wells with singles titles
Two weeks of tennis in Indian Wells was capped Sunday with top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus and secondranked Jannik Sinner of Italy claiming titles at the BNP Paribas Open. Sabalenka, a 27-year-old four-time Grand Slam champion, had lost in two...
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Trump looks for loyalty from his ambassadors
Just before Christmas, President Donald Trump fired more than two dozen career ambassadors. The action was unprecedented, providing a clear signal that when it comes to diplomacy, Trump values loyalty above all else. All ambassadors face a persistent...
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A SECOND RING?
World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, who got engaged on March 3 in Indian Wells and had fun working out in a veil a few days later, will look to end her stay in the desert with a second ring as she will face No. 3 seed Elena Rybakina for the BNP Paribas Open...
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How to find ‘superblooms’
Longing to see the sea of wildflowers predicted to overtake California this spring, but not sure where to look? Hipcamp — an app used to find and book camping sites — has you covered: The company created a superbloom forecasting tool, complete with an...
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Karen, Tony Barone open up about art, legacy in new film
There are three questions that Rancho Mirage artists Karen and Tony Barone don’t answer in interviews: how old they are, how long they’ve been married, and whether they rent or own. Filmmakers Jon and Mary Orlin had to work around these rules while...
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Behind a ‘self-deport’ sign
A new sign at the Palm Springs International Airport security checkpoint urges undocumented immigrants to “self-deport” with their families, threatening they could be arrested if they don’t. The sign was placed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection,...
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BREAKING POINT
Taylor Fritz breaks his racket during his BNP Paribas Open third-round loss to Alex Michelsen on Stadium 2 at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in Indian Wells on March 9. read more about how Indian Wells could see triple-digit heat during BNP Paribas Open,
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Keeping desert rock alive
The high desert is getting a new music festival, but the most notable artist on the lineup is rooted in the low desert. Palm Springs resident John Garcia, a founding member of desert rock band Kyuss, is scheduled to perform on the second night of the...
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‘It just amazes me’
In 1981, shortly after earning his degree from San Diego State University, Jimmy Steinfeldt bought a $100 Minolta camera and set off on a cross-country drive, filling a dozen rolls of film. h Even though he’d majored in business management, something...
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WHAT IT TAKES TO BE IN THE BALL CREW
Sure, tennis players are the main reason why people come to see matches, but often the real stars, and the ones who keep things running smoothly, are members of the ball crew. You can spot them walking in unison on the Indian Wells Tennis Garden...
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Speculation surrounds trampled Calla Lily Valley
Big Sur’s rugged cliffs and postcard views have long lured camera-toting crowds to landmarks like Bixby Bridge and Pfeiffer Beach. h But visitors and road-trippers along Highway 1 have been met with a jarring sight at one of the area’s viral spots in...
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Tennis and tunes
“American Idol” winner and Indio native Abi Carter got the BNP Paribas Open crowd moving and grooving on Wednesday, March 4, ahead of the first evening session of the tournament. h Carter, who earned the “Idol” crown nearly two years ago, was among a...
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Meet ‘Transfer Man’
Scott Cooper is wrapping up an interview for his podcast with a former student from College of the Desert when he asks him to leave listeners with a final message. “If you’re planning on transferring, take the risk and do it scared,” said Zach Perez,...
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Trump criticizes top U.S. allies over war
President Donald Trump slammed top U.S. allies, including the United Kingdom, as the war with Iran expands and warned Americans that they may have to deal with “a little high” oil prices as crude costs soared and the stock market tumbled. “If we have...
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Amazon shows off its huge new warehouse
Amazon celebrated the opening of its new warehouse in Desert Hot Springs with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and facility tour on Wednesday, Feb. 25. h The warehouse, known as an “Inbound Cross Dock,” is 635,000 square feet and “will receive and consolidate...
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‘YOU HAVE A WHOLE LIFE TO LIVE’
Jean Stewart is the living embodiment of “two things can be true.” Sure, she’s 96 years old. But she’s also been known to plank for two minutes or deadlift more than 150 pounds — leading to a viral internet photo. On a recent Tuesday afternoon,...
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The ‘first in line’
Amy Belshin had just pulled her car up to her new home at Cotino, the Disney-branded development in the Coachella Valley, when she and her husband Joe saw their next-door neighbor strolling by on a sunny day in mid-February. They hadn’t met her yet. h...
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Push to automate science with AI has constraints
Consistent with the general trend of incorporating artificial intelligence into nearly every field, researchers and politicians are increasingly using AI models trained on scientific data to infer answers to scientific questions. But can AI ultimately...
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Home with rumored Marilyn Monroe ties is for sale
A classic mid-century modern home long rumored to have been the Palm Springs getaway of Marilyn Monroe has been put up for sale for $3.3 million. Not surprisingly, the Realtor selling it is sticking by the Monroe story, though there’s never been solid...
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‘He reports from the heart’
Legendary Desert Sun golf writer Larry Bohannan, whose unmatched career has included interviews with the likes of Arnold Palmer and Bill Clinton; coverage of 40 iterations of what’s now the American Express golf tournament; and surely more writing...
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‘FIRES EVERYWHERE’
Jim O’Keefe was about to leave for the grocery store Sunday morning when he noticed the light outside his apartment had changed. The sky had turned gray, something the forecast hadn’t predicted. “I stepped outside and smelled it. I knew it was not...
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Unrest in Mexico after narco killing impacts travel, airports
The killing of a Mexican drug trafficker during a military operation in the state of Jalisco set off flight disruptions in Puerto Vallarta — a city popular with Palm Springs residents and often ranked among the world’s top destinations for LGBTQ...
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Why now is a special time to go hiking in Palm Springs
There are few places around the country for outdoors enthusiasts and avid hikers quite like the Coachella Valley during the winter and early spring months. h The valley, fortunately, doesn’t require the need to take a respite from the cold, there’s...
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DISNEY DESERT DREAMS
Cotino, a new Disney-backed development in Rancho Mirage, has started going from vision to reality over the past two years as homes and splashy amenities emerged from a massive open plot of desert. In recent months, a swimmable lagoon marketed as...
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STUDY: PLANET IS IN WATER BANKRUPTCY
The world is now using so much fresh water amid the consequences of climate change that it has entered an era of water bankruptcy, with many regions no longer able to bounce back from frequent water shortages. h About 4 billion people – nearly half the...
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Big dreams turn into a legal war
A prominent cannabis cultivator in Palm Springs has collapsed into a complex web of fraud allegations and lawsuits. The Kings Garden cultivation facility no longer operates after the breakup of its senior leadership team. The site had been scheduled...
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Avalanche in Sierra Nevada mountain range kills 8
Eight of the nine missing skiers caught in an an avalanche in California’s Sierra Nevada mountain range are dead, Sheriff Shannan Moon of Nevada County said on Feb. 18. Moon said crews were battling harsh weather conditions in a continued search for...
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Storm soaks valley, brings snow to mountains
A storm system moving across Southern California brought rain to the desert and snow to the nearby mountains Monday with more precipitation expected into mid-week. Cloudy skies and steady rain arrived around midday Monday, Feb. 16, in western parts of...
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HISTORIC MISSION
The United States military is leading a major push for nuclear energy, and it took a big step toward accomplishing one of President Donald Trump’s goals in Riverside County on Sunday, Feb. 15. On that day, three C-17 transport airplanes airlifted a...
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New on desert dining scene: Upscale tacos, Italian deli
When the family owners of Olga’s Tacos in Cathedral City started to think about opening a new spot in Palm Desert, their initial idea was for another taco shop. h But they soon started to sense that the area was evolving in a direction that would make...
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Indio restaurant named one of the best in the US
Situated in the California desert about half an hour east of Palm Springs, Indio, California is famous to outsiders as the home of the iconic Coachella and Stagecoach music festivals. But anyone who spends time in the city also comes to know Indio for...
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AI COMPANIES GEAR UP TO SELL ADS
Eighteen months ago, it was plausible that artificial intelligence might take a different path than social media. Back then, AI’s development hadn’t consolidated under a small number of big tech firms. Nor had it capitalized on consumer attention,...
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140,000 waiting for affordable housing
The need for affordable housing in Riverside County is now so great that there’s not only a waiting list for subsidized housing, but no one can even get on that list any longer. The county has stopped accepting new applications for housing assistance...
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MODERNISM WEEK MINDSET
There’s plenty to enjoy in Palm Springs: Sunshine all throughout the year, pools as far as the eye can see and the city’s famous mid-century modern architecture. h As the annual architecture showcase Modernism Week approaches, taking place Feb. 12...
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What’s behind student anti-ICE walkouts?
Abriana Pelayo has developed a new morning routine. As she’s getting ready for school, she sometimes finds herself reaching for her cellphone to scroll through social media, searching for something she hopes not to find. “In the morning, I’ll check to...
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Calif.’s early wildflower blooms are here
Thanks to fall and winter’s onslaught of rain, some California parks are starting to see early wildflower blooms. Visitors can expect to see “moderate-to-strong wildflower blooms this spring in desert state parks,” California State Parks said in a Jan....
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DESERT GRIT
King of the Hammers has come far from its humble beginnings. Just 20 years ago, Dave Cole brought together a dozen racers, including himself, to try to push the limits of rock crawling. Now, drawing as many as 100,000 to the otherwise sleepy lakebed...
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FROM MEXICO TO THE IVY LEAGUE
Erik Huerta noticed the college decision email from his dream university on his phone while riding the bus home from Desert Mirage High School. h He definitely wasn’t opening it there. Once home, he ran straight into his bedroom and shut the door. He...
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Trump actions worry free-speech advocates
The FBI search of a Washington Post reporter’s home on Jan. 14 was a rare and intimidating move by an administration focused on repressing criticism and dissent. In its story about the search at Hannah Natanson’s home, at which FBI agents said they...
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5 spas in Desert Hot Springs worth a look
There is serenity in Desert Hot Springs. h No outside noise bleeds through the expansive nature enveloping Two Bunch Palms, a luxury spa hotel located in the desert city. h Just the rustle of leaves as wind sweeps over palm trees and undergrowth. h...
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SERIOUS PLAY
Indio native Jacob Clause is heading to the Bay Area with the New England Patriots for a shot in the world’s biggest football matchup this week — not at Super Bowl LX, but on the virtual “Madden” gridiron. The 22-year-old will be competing in the...
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HAZY SHADE OF WINTER
The full moon, dubbed the Snow Moon, picks up an abundance of color from the atmosphere as it rises above the Little San Bernardino Mountains north of the Coachella Valley on Feb. 2.
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100 palm trees scorched by Prescott Preserve fire
A 3.5-acre fire at the Prescott Preserve in Palm Springs burned roughly 100 palm trees and forced a partial road closure Sunday, Feb. 1. Fire crews contained the blaze within a couple hours. Police and firefighters were still at the scene as shortly...
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‘Hear our voice’
Hundreds of students across the Coachella Valley walked out of class to participate in a nationwide “ICE Out” strike on Friday, Jan. 30, even as students at several schools planned another walkout for Feb. 9. h Responding to growing discontent over the...
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Ratings, ticket sales soar as event shows its value
What golf fans saw at The American Express PGA Tour event in La Quinta last week was perfect weather, big crowds and an impressive win by world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler over a strong field. h What Frank Marzano saw was the other side of the tournament,...
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Consumer-driven future seen for GLP-1 drugs
LONDON – Ask executives in the health care industry about the future market for weight-loss drugs and the analogies are telling: monthly GLP-1 medicine subscriptions like a streaming video membership; dose decisions managed on a smartphone app; access...
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City says spider sculpture can stay
A famous roadside attraction in Palm Springs has caught new attention recently, with people worried it’s going to be torn down because of a demolition order posted on the property. Fear not, spider fans: The 28-foot-tall black widow sculpture off...
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AI GOES TO SCHOOL
Many students are already using artificial intelligence — at home, on their phones and on their laptops — often without adult guidance. That reality is driving Palm Springs Unified School District to bring AI into classrooms, but in a more structured,...
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Killings by federal agents in Minneapolis spur protest
A quickly organized protest over federal agents’ recent killings of nurse Alex Pretti and poet Renée Good in Minneapolis drew several dozen people to downtown Palm Springs the afternoon of Monday, Jan. 26. Although under 100 people attended, the...
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Some students may be moved to ease school crowding
Palm Springs Unified School District is evaluating school boundary adjustments in Desert Hot Springs as part of a long-term effort to address overcrowding by the 2027-28 school year. During the Jan. 13 study session, the board reviewed three...
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