3+ week, 5+ day ago (383+ words) Marin County's library system will purchase a bookmobile to expand services to rural residents in West Marin. County supervisors unanimously approved the $311,884 expenditure on Oct. 21. The library plans to have the bookmobile in service by the summer. "This new bookmobile represents our commitment to ensuring that every community in Marin, no matter how remote, has access to the resources, learning and sense of community that libraries provide," said Ahmad Merza, county library services manager. Andre Clemons, the Marin County Free Library's media manager, said the vehicle is intended for "hard-to-reach areas." Aside from providing books, the services will include story times, "digital library workshops," community events and activities involving science, technology and math, he said. The library also has plans to partner the bookmobile with schools and early childhood programs. The bookmobile service will particularly focus on underserved communities, low-income…...

5+ day, 14+ min ago (699+ words) The Novato Unified School District has approved a plan to cut $4.5 million in costs to stabilize the general fund budget for the 2026-27 school year and beyond. The reductions in staffing, supplies and services grew from $3 million in estimated cuts when the district adopted its $131.5 million 2025-26 budget in June. The district will need to "identify at least $1.5 million in one-time savings through expenditure deferrals, position vacancies, or other cost-containment measures" to add to the $3 million in cuts already earmarked for 2026-27, according to a resolution approved by trustees on Nov. 18. Joshua Braff, the district's chief financial officer, said the plan was mandated by the Marin County Office of Education for the district to maintain its positive budget certification in the first 2025-26 reporting period in December and for two years out. Braff said the county told the district that it needs to make…...

1+ week, 1+ day ago (649+ words) Lauren Rahlson has spent much of her life moving from place to place. But, when she came to Marin with her husband, Lukas, five years ago, something felt different. "We are not people who put down roots lightly, just because of our backgrounds. We've just moved around a lot. We always said, if we found the perfect place, we would put down roots. And we knew that it was Marin," said Rahlson, who has since bought a house in San Rafael. "We have our son now, and we plan to be here forever." Being in Marin during the pandemic was a "lifeline" for her. Every day, after spending her days on Zoom as an educator, she would go for a walk through the Marin Headlands or the hills of Sausalito, where she lived at the time. Rahlson pays homage to…...

3+ week, 1+ day ago (277+ words) This is the best day of my life." Today is my favorite day of school." These are just some of the things we heard from kids who recently left the Book Exchange of Marin with free books and new book bags in hand. Our students were buzzing with excitement on the bus ride back," said Gina Maddalena, a second-grade teacher at Bahia Vista Elementary School in San Rafael. The Book Exchange of Marin promotes child literacy, encourages a love of reading and works to ensure that children from under-resourced Marin communities and low-income households have access to good books. The work of the Book Exchange of Marin addresses this sad equation by focusing on raising the literacy levels of our most under-resourced students, thus helping them progress through their educational opportunities and beyond. The most significant challenges to the Book…...

1+ day, 8+ hour ago (150+ words) San Rafael nonprofit 10,000 Degrees raised more than $410,000 at its 2025 Alumni Changemakers Celebration on Nov. 13. The event, which took place at the Julia Morgan Ballroom in San Francisco, was attended by more than 250 people, including Sandy Donnell, of Belvedere; Alaina Baum Erlin, of Corte Madera; Virginia Bria and Jessica Link, both [] San Rafael nonprofit 10,000 Degrees raised more than $410,000 at its 2025 Alumni Changemakers Celebration on Nov. 13. The event, which took place at the Julia Morgan Ballroom in San Francisco, was attended by more than 250 people, including Sandy Donnell, of Belvedere; Alaina Baum Erlin, of Corte Madera; Virginia Bria and Jessica Link, both of Fairfax; Suzanne Badenhoop, Eric Bindelglass, Guy Lampard, Gabrielle Tierney, Justine Corey Whitehead and Paul Whitehead, all of Mill Valley; Vanessa Burnside and Anna Schlegel, both of Novato; and Caroline Silverstein, of San Rafael....

3+ day, 8+ hour ago (567+ words) Marin is one of the most expensive places in California to own or rent a home. Much of the region's workforce including teachers, school staff and county employees can't afford to rent or buy in Marin. If they want to continue with that employment, the only option is to make the long commute from affordable Contra Costa, Solano or central Sonoma counties. The need to provide market-rate quality housing at workforce rates of affordability is a challenge. It's one thing to recruit teachers to coastal California. It's a challenge to retain them when they and their families move here and discover our sky-high cost of living. The development is located on congested Sir Francis Drake Boulevard between Highway 101 and the renamed San Quentin State Rehabilitation Center. It is on a portion of the land that is a defunct gunnery range…...

3+ week, 5+ day ago (434+ words) As we look back over the past nine years and reflect on our early childhood education system, I am continually struck by "what if" questions. In 2016, Marin County had the opportunity to pass a funding measure designed to strengthen early childhood education. Unfortunately, it was not the right time. But what if our county had invested in our early childhood education system at that time? We could have significantly expanded and improved early learning opportunities across Marin County. With sustainable funding, we could have: " Enhanced the quality of child-care programs by providing on-site coaching, mentoring and professional development for early educators " Increased access to infant and toddler care through scholarships and family support services " Invested in our early childhood workforce by providing financial incentives to recruit and retain dedicated educators, and by offering dignified wages " well above the $23.50 average cited…...

2+ hour, 28+ min ago (738+ words) The number of students enrolled in Marin public schools declined nearly 2% this school year compared to 2024-25, according to the Marin County Office of Education. The figure fell from 30,077 students last year to 29,524.John Carroll, the county superintendent of schools, said the dip was part of the regular ebb and flow of student populations. "A drop of 553 students is not statistically significant " using 30,000 students as the starting population " and could be attributed to normal fluctuations," Carroll said Monday. "I believe it is also consistent with the modest decline in the overall population of Marin." Unlike California's overall population, which grew by an estimated 0.28% from January 2024 to January of this year, Marin's population has continued to decline since the pandemic, according to the state Department of Finance. Other than Marin's population decline, Carroll said he didn't want to speculate on other factors…...

1+ week, 5+ day ago (1067+ words) Students, teachers and parents are denouncing proposed cost-cutting measures at two Tamalpais Union High School District campuses. The plan involves Tamiscal, an alternative school in Larkspur that offers programs such as independent study and career paths, and San Andreas, a nearby continuation school that helps academically struggling students graduate. Nearly 100 people attended the district board meeting Tuesday at Tamalpais High School. Many speakers said the changes will harm the programs that helped them succeed in high school. A few graduates said their San Andreas experiences saved their lives. Dominique Uskert, a social studies teacher at San Andreas, told trustees about the staff's work for students. "Most often, we are their last stop and their last chance in the district," she said. Trustees reviewed the proposal and are scheduled to vote Dec. 9. "I understand and appreciate people's advocacy for their kids,…...

1+ week, 6+ hour ago (367+ words) The Marin County Office of Education has released the first-round results of its 2025-2026 "mathletes" competition. The event at Hall Middle School in Larkspur on Nov. 18 involved 140 seventh- and eighth-graders from 15 schools, the agency said. Students solved five problems individually and five in teams. The seventh-grade winners were Marin Country Day School in first place, Del Mar Middle School in second and Brandeis Marin in third. The eighth-grade winners were Mount Tamalpais School in first place, Marin Country Day School in second and Kent Middle School in third. The next round is scheduled for Jan. 13 at Hall Middle School. Police arrested a Novato man in a standoff at his residence after he allegedly attempted to hit a person with a hammer. The incident was reported around 3 p.m. Sunday on a sidewalk along Tamalpais Avenue. A bystander interrupted the alleged assault and called…...