Author Archives: Jaime Shaw

K-8 Live Online Homework Help Available Now

Thanks to the Goleta and Santa Ynez Valley Libraries, students are now able to schedule free, online, one-on-one appointments with knowledgeable homework coaches to receive personalized help with their homework, all from the comfort and convenience of their homes!

Homework Help sessions are offered by appointment on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. Appointments are either 30 or 60 minutes long and can be scheduled through an online form on the Goleta Valley Library website’s Request Homework Help page. Once you schedule an appointment, a friendly library staff member will send a confirmation email containing your reservation details and a link to the secure meeting room for your session. Appointments are held using the free meeting platform Microsoft Teams, which allows students to video chat with homework coaches directly and share their screen for interactive help with assignments.

During their appointment, students receive the support they need to complete their homework with success, as coaches assist with math problems, look over English essays, and help with research. Although a library card is not required for Homework Help sessions, students can use their cards to access the library’s free online websites for additional research and learning, including BrainFuse HelpNow!, ProQuest Homework Central and Britannica School.

The library’s Homework Help coaches are caring volunteers who are excited to assist our area youth, and many are community members with years of experience in education and working with children. All our coaches have received training and background checks and are looking forward to helping students reach their goals.

If you would like to volunteer as a coach in the Homework Help program, please contact Goleta Valley Library Supervising Librarian Brent Field at bfield@cityofgoleta.org.

For more information on programs and services at the Goleta and Santa Ynez Valley Libraries, visit www.GoletaValleyLibrary.org.

The Homework Help program is funded by the California Adult Education Program grant.

New Online Catalog Launches at Goleta & Santa Ynez Valley Libraries

Over a million titles available with your library card!

The Goleta & Santa Ynez Valley Libraries now have a brand-new way to find your next great read with the launch of their new online catalog.

Brought to you by Aspen Discovery, this new catalog has many features that make searching, browsing, and borrowing easier than ever. One of the biggest improvements is that the library’s entire collection is now conveniently available in one place, including all physical items such as books and DVDs, as well as digital titles such as eBooks and downloadable movies.

Another exciting feature is that digital titles can now be borrowed directly through the catalog with the simple press of a button, so patrons no longer need to log into a separate site to manage their monthly digital borrows.

For patrons who wish to easily browse the library’s collection online, the homepage of the new catalog features popular categories and genres for all ages to choose from, ranging from New York Times Bestsellers to teen graphic novels to children’s picture books, with special spotlights including most requested and just added titles.

This new catalog from Aspen Discovery will eventually replace the current catalog altogether, but access to the previous catalog will remain available for the time being for patrons who wish to continue using it. Simply visit GoletaValleyLibrary.org and click the icon for Classic Catalog.

Staff at the Goleta Valley, Buellton, and Solvang Libraries are eager to share their new catalog with you! If you have any questions, please call one of the three library branches or ask for assistance next time you stop by.

For more information on programs and services at the Goleta and Santa Ynez Valley Libraries, visit GoletaValleyLibrary.org.

Pictured: New online catalog

Halloween Parking Enforcement Returns

As we now enter our second Halloween during the COVID-19 pandemic, the City of Goleta will continue our annual Halloween parking restrictions in coordination with the Isla Vista and University of California, Santa Barbara communities, who will also have restrictions this year.

Over the past several years, a temporary permit-only on-street parking program for residents near Isla Vista was implemented and deemed successful in dissuading partygoers from parking in the Goleta neighborhoods closest to Isla Vista and easing the impacts felt by residents. 

Parking permits are issued for the Goleta neighborhoods closest to Isla Vista: University 1 and University 2 neighborhoods, including the Cannon Green Condominium complex. The boundaries are: Cannon Green Drive to the west, Hollister Avenue to the north, Storke Road to the east and Whittier Drive to the south. This area is comprised of an estimated 1,250 dwelling units representing approximately 4,000 residents.

Each household will receive two passes in their mailbox by October 21. The parking permits are required to be taped to the inside of the vehicle’s driver’s side window during the restricted hours (see below). Signage will be posted on the streets in advance to remind drivers, and electronic message boards will be at several entrances to the University 1 and 2 neighborhoods. Vehicles not displaying the appropriate permit will be subject to ticketing and/or towing. Parking restrictions are for Friday and Saturday nights, when most party-goers are expected to be in the area:

  • 7:00 p.m. Friday, October 29, 2021, to 7:00 a.m. Saturday, October 30, 2021; and
  • 7:00 p.m. Saturday, October 30, 2021, to 7:00 a.m. Sunday, October 31, 2021

The overnight parking restrictions will not affect those visiting Girsh Park over Halloween weekend. If you live in the area designated to receive a parking permit, and do not receive yours by October 21, please contact the City of Goleta Neighborhood Services Department at 805.961.7554 or bramirez@cityofgoleta.org to make arrangements for a replacement.

For  additional information, please visit tinyurl.com/halloweenparking.

Are You Ready to ShakeOut on October 21?

The International ShakeOut Day, every third Thursday of October, is a day of individual and community events featuring the largest earthquake drill ever, organized to inspire others to get ready for big earthquakes, and to prevent disasters from becoming catastrophes. What we do to prepare now, before the next big earthquake, will determine how well we can survive and recover. ShakeOut will occur in houses, workplaces, schools, and public spaces on October 21, 2021.

Earthquakes may happen anywhere you work, live, or travel. Great ShakeOut Earthquake Drills are our chance to practice together how to protect ourselves, and for everyone to become prepared. The goal is to save lives and prevent disasters from becoming catastrophes.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, we have had to make many adaptations for home, work, and school — all while learning a lot. As you plan for ShakeOut this year, consider: When was the last time you checked on your disaster supplies? Have you “Secured Your Space” to prevent damage and injury? What changes are there to your emergency plans and contacts? 

During the self-led drill, participants practice how to “Drop, Cover, and Hold On”.  Endorsed by emergency officials and first responders, the safe response to an earthquake is to: 

DROP where you are, onto your hands and knees. This position protects you from being knocked down and also allows you to stay low and crawl to shelter if nearby.

COVER your head and neck with one arm and hand

  • If a sturdy table or desk is nearby, crawl underneath it for shelter
  • If no shelter is nearby, crawl next to an interior wall (away from windows)
  • Stay on your knees; bend over to protect vital organs

HOLD ON until shaking stops

  • Under shelter: hold on to it with one hand; be ready to move with your shelter if it shifts
  • No shelter: hold on to your head and neck with both arms and hands.

Learn more and register at https://www.shakeout.org/.

Learn about the first ever statewide public earthquake warning system, Earthquake Warning California, in last month’s Monarch Press article “Receive Earthquake Warnings with the MyShake App.”

Review County Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment

Public Comment Period Open Until 5 p.m. October 22

The County of Santa Barbara Planning and Development Department (P&D) has released a Draft Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment (CCVA) available HERE.

The County is accepting public comments on the draft assessment through 5 p.m. Wednesday, October 22. Comments can be submitted via mail.

The CCVA is the result of a multi-year effort to improve community resiliency by analyzing how climate change could harm our community. The CCVA provides an opportunity for a closer look at specific climate-related hazards, like extreme heat, wildfires, sea-level rise, drought, coastal and inland flooding, agricultural pests and diseases, landslides, and extreme weather events, and how these hazards are likely to affect our communities now, and in the future.

It is well documented that climate-related hazards may impact people and communities disproportionately. Housing, income, education, race and ethnicity, culture, health, ability, and access to services matter greatly when assessing the extent and likelihood of harm caused by climate hazards. For this important reason, the CCVA integrates equity into the technical analyses, identifying populations that are most at risk of harm.

Highlights from the Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment:

  • 13 applicable climate change hazards identified in the county
  • A wide array of community assets evaluated, including economic drivers, ecosystems and natural resources, infrastructure, buildings and facilities, and key community services
  • 16 “frontline populations” identified, e.g. those groups that experience the impacts of climate change earlier and/or to a more severe degree than others.
  • 106 of 138 populations and assets were evaluated as having a “high” or “severe” vulnerability to climate change.
  • Key findings to help guide work on the next phase of the project developing adaptation strategies

For more information, the public can visit the One Climate project website and sign up to receive e-mail updates specific to the CCVA, Climate Change Adaptation Plan, and Safety Element Update. For more information about the Safety Element Update, click here.

ATM Skimmers Strike Again – Follow Safety Tips

The Santa Barbara Police Department is reminding the community to remain vigilant when using automated teller machines (ATM) for account transactions. As released last month, there were nearly a dozen reports from Bank of America customers who have had their accounts compromised and have had unauthorized withdrawals occur. Detectives have recently discovered several more ATM “skimmer devices” on Bank of America ATMs throughout the City of Santa Barbara. It also appears these suspects have been targeting numerous communities up and down the coast of California.

Santa Barbara Police Detectives have continued to receive reports, with fraudulent activity occurring as recently as last week. Over $50,000 of fraudulent withdrawals have been confirmed to this date. The true loss amount is likely to be much larger, considering unreported cases and transactions at other Bank of America locations within the county.

It is believed these suspects purposefully target those customers using California Employment Development Department (EDD) debit cards. These cards generally do not have a EMV security chip. Bank of America manages and maintains accounts for all who use EDD.

The suspects obtain credit card account information embedded on the magnetic strip by “skimming” the strip on the back of the card when the card is inserted into the ATM. Simultaneously, a hidden camera aimed at the PIN-pad captures the victim entering their security PIN number. The suspects have been retrieving the skimmers within a day or two of installation, then downloading the video and “cloning” the debit card information onto a “blank” debit card. These devices are barely noticeable when using the ATM and are covertly concealed.

The safest alternative is to speak to a bank teller in person or to transfer the funds into an account protected with an EMV-chipped card.  Never use an ATM that appears damaged or altered. It is recommended to conceal the PIN-pad with your other hand or an object when you enter your personal identification number into any ATM.

If you or someone you know has been a victim of these types of ATM thefts, please file a report online https://www.santabarbaraca.gov/gov/depts/police/. Questions may be directed to Detective K. Rapp at 805-897-2331 or KRapp@sbpd.com

IVYP Launches First Diaper Bank in Santa Barbara

Isla Vista Youth Projects (IVYP) has recently become the first certified diaper bank in Santa Barbara County. As a place-based organization, IVYP provides comprehensive services to families in need, with an eye to strengthening families, preparing children to be successful in school, and addressing health and educational disparities. In February 2021, IVYP took a big leap to help families in the Goleta Valley Community.

“Many families in Santa Barbara County struggle to provide the basics for their children. The child poverty rate in this county is unacceptable. Approximately 1 in 5 children in our county are suffering. Diapers are a critical need. When we looked into it, we found that there are no diaper bank agencies in our county. Given that we already have systems in place to distribute other items like food we knew that this was something that we could and should take on,” said Lori Goodman, Executive Director of IVYP.

Ensuring that infants and toddlers have access to clean diapers helps lead to healthier families. In 2017 over 40,000 infants and children were treated in California’s public hospitals suffering from symptoms directly connected to diaper need. By providing diapers to parents IVYP is helping their children to stay healthy and safe and easing a financial burden that has only grown since the onset of the COVID pandemic.

Disposable diapers can cost as much as $100 per month per baby. Most babies go through 12 diapers per day which is a cost that adds up very quickly especially when the health of your child is at stake. Since February, IVYP have distributed more than 30,000 diapers to babies in need.

IVYP has a long history of connecting families in the Goleta Valley to the resources and concrete supports they need through the work of their Family Resource Center. Demands for services through the Family Resource Center have increased by over 500% since the pandemic began. More and more families in our community are experiencing extreme hardship and need our help. In order to support these families, IVYP has the opportunity to develop new and more creative ways to reach out to vulnerable families. The diaper bank serves as an entry point for families to receive additional support like parenting classes, housing support, food distribution, Medi-Cal and Calfresh support, and much more.

Now that the IVYP has become a certified diaper bank the next step in the process is to grow the organizational capacity to meet the need of the community.

“We don’t want to outgrow our funding but want to make sure that we are providing as much as we can for families. As we grow, we anticipate needing additional storage, increased staff, community outreach, and of course more diapers. All of this requires a financial investment. We are grateful for the support of local foundations and individual donors who have contributed to this project.”

To learn more about receiving diapers or to donate to the diaper bank visit IVYP’s new website: www.ivyp.org.

Our Water Our World: Controlling Yellowjackets Around Your Home

Learn how to control yellowjackets with these tips from the City of Goleta Environmental Services Division.

Yellowjackets can be annoying and intimidating pests at picnics and around the barbecue, especially in late summer. On the positive side, they prey on many other insect pests such as caterpillars and flies.

Before you take steps to get rid of yellowjackets around your house or yard, be sure the problem is yellowjackets! Less aggressive flying insects, such as paper wasps, mud daubers, and honeybees, are often mistaken for yellowjackets.

Yellowjacket or Paper Wasp?

Most often, paper wasps are mistaken for yellowjackets. Yellowjackets are shorter and rounder than paper wasps. A paper wasp’s body is longer and thinner, with long, dangling legs. Yellowjacket nests are round and are enclosed in a papery shell with a small entrance hole at the bottom. They build their nests in abandoned rodent burrows and other holes in the ground, in attics, in wall voids, and in shrubs and trees. Sometimes they hang their nests from eaves. Paper wasp nests usually hang from eaves or porch ceilings and look like tiny umbrellas filled with six-sided cells.

Getting Rid of Yellowjackets

If you often find several yellowjackets in your home, you may have a nest inside your walls. To protect yourself and your family from getting stung, call your local vector control district or a pest control company for help getting rid of the nest. Look for a pest control company that specializes in less-toxic pest control methods. The pest control professional should only need to use poison bait if you have very large numbers of yellowjackets.

Keep yellowjackets from building a nest in your house:

  • Seal holes and cracks in foundations, walls, roofs, and eaves.
  • Cover attic and crawl space vents with fine mesh insect screen.
  • Yellowjackets scavenge for meat and sweet foods and drinks in outdoor garbage and recycling bins. Clean recyclables before throwing them in the bin and keep garbage cans clean and tightly covered.
Trapping Yellowjackets

Trapping can help control yellowjackets if there aren’t too many. You can find both disposable and reusable traps in home and garden centers.

  • Follow label directions for setting traps, disposing of trapped yellowjackets, and cleaning reusable traps.
  • A few hours before you bring food outdoors, set traps around the edge of your yard. Make sure traps are well away from picnic areas, to lure yellowjackets away from people and food.

  • If one of the traps is not attracting yellowjackets, move it. If you see yellowjackets but none of the traps is attracting them, try changing the bait.
    • In the spring and early summer, yellowjackets are looking for protein. Use strong-smelling baits such as tuna-flavored cat food.
    • In late summer and fall, yellowjackets need sugar. Use grenadine, or the sweet-smelling bait that comes with the traps.
  • Putting out traps in early spring may capture queens and reduce the number of nests in the area.
Avoiding Yellowjacket Stings

If you have a yellowjacket in your house, do NOT make the yellowjacket mad by swatting at it! Wait until it lands on a flat surface, and then place a glass or plastic container over the insect. Slide a stiff piece of paper under the opening of the container and take the covered container outside and release the insect.

When a yellowjacket comes near:

  • Stay calm—or at least move slowly. Slow, gentle motions that mimic the movement of a branch in the breeze will be more likely to get the yellowjacket to leave.
  • You can brush a yellowjacket off with a piece of paper or some other object as long as you move slowly and deliberately.
  • Do not squash a yellowjacket. When crushed, many kinds of yellowjackets give off a chemical that can cause other nearby yellowjackets to attack.

Yellowjackets can be a problem in May and June, but they are most irritable and aggressive late in the summer. Follow these tips to help prevent stings:

  • Wear protective clothing when mowing grass if you think there might be underground nests nearby.
  • Outdoors, keep soft drinks or other sugary drinks in closed containers. Use cups with lids and straws, and always look before you sip. Do not carry snacks containing meat or sugar in open containers.
  • Do not wear perfumes. Use unscented products on your hair and body.
  • Avoid going barefoot, especially when walking on grass or another groundcover.
  • Always check for yellowjackets on wet towels or wet clothing left outside before you pick them up.
  • Wear light-colored clothing without patterns.
  • If you are allergic to yellowjacket stings, avoid outdoor cooking and eating, and wear clothing that covers as much skin as possible. Carry an epinephrine kit (available by prescription) at all times.

Find more information on controlling yellowjackets with eco-friendly products in our OWOW brochures in English and Spanish. 

The City of Goleta along with the Cities of Buellton, Carpinteria, Solvang, Santa Barbara, Santa Maria and the County of Santa Barbara have partnered with the OWOW organization to promote the use of less-toxic products in an effort to reduce pesticide pollution in our communities. By reducing pesticide use and the use of less-toxic products around the home, you can help reduce pesticides and other pollutants such as herbicides and fertilizers from being picked up while watering or when it rains and transported to the nearest storm drain inlet and into our waterways. The OWOW website is user-friendly and a great resource for finding less-toxic products to use around your home or garden.

Goleta EZ Bike Demo Days Continue in October

Have you ever used an electric bicycle? Do you want to try again or for the first time? Then check out Goleta EZ Bike Demo Days this month! EZ Bike is hosting exciting e-bike activities at the new Santa Barbara County Association of Governments (SBCAG) Regional Transit Facility at 6414 Hollister Avenue in Goleta. A number of successful events were held in September, but interested people can still try out an electric bike during Variety Hours/Bike Demos on Oct. 11 & 18 or make a Multi-Day Reservation for Oct. 7-11 or Oct. 14-18, where you can take a bike home Thursday and return it on Monday.

The EZBike Project is presented by (SBCAG), a county-wide organization with a mission to reduce traffic congestion and improve air quality by encouraging people to drive less and use sustainable transportation.

The project normally operates in Santa Barbara which makes Goleta EZ Bike Demo Days a unique opportunity for locals to participate in the activities without having to leave Goleta.

Check out the complete list of dates and events and book a reservation to ensure you get a ride.

Take advantage of EZ Bike’s awesome events and have fun out there!

If you want to stay up-to-date on reservations, new bikes, and even last minute openings join the EZ Bike email list.

New Goleta Valley Library Bookvan Rolls Into Isla Vista

Ribbon Cutting Held to Kick off Bookvan’s First Day of Service

Library Service is now rolling in Isla Vista. A ribbon-cutting was held on October 4, 2021, at the Isla Vista Community Center to unveil the new Goleta Valley Library Bookvan and kick off the first day of service. Local dignitaries, Isla Vista stakeholders and community members turned out to see the new custom solar powered van in person and cheer as the blue ribbon was cut marking the beginning of on-the-go library programming in Isla Vista. Watch a video of the ribbon cutting here.

City of Goleta Mayor Paula Perotte began by saying, “We are really excited to introduce our mini-library on wheels to the community. We hope that by bringing our knowledgeable library staff, books and materials to Isla Vista, our Bookvan will help remove barriers and increase access to library service.” The Mayor concluded her speech with, “We hope that today will be the beginning of many cherished Bookvan library memories in Isla Vista.”

Senator Monique Limón said, “In 2019, I worked to secure $200,000 in state funds to support the City of Goleta in delivering direct library services to the residents and families of Isla Vista. Library services are vital resources that serve as community hubs for people to gather, share information, and promote literacy. I am glad to see this project come to fruition and to see the benefits it will bring to our community for years to come.”

Santa Barbara County Third District Supervisor Joan Hartmann added, “Libraries are palaces for the people, and librarians the guardians. The Goleta Valley Library has thought in a different way how to bring the palace to the people. It gives community members a chance to establish a working relationship with the librarians and library. We are really excited with what is happening here and bringing the appropriate services to the Isla Vista Community, covering the whole span of ages.”

Isla Vista Community Services District Board President Spencer Brandt said, “This is the first time in our community’s over 70-year history that there will be library services accessible to all in Isla Vista. It is incredibly important not just for those students who live here in our community who are college students, but for those who are pre-school, elementary, middle school and high school students, to have services that are publicly accessible and are brought into the community.”

Isla Vista Recreation & Park District General Manager Kimberly Kiefer said, “The concept of bringing books and education in a public space and having it accessible is key. The disparity of people who don’t have access to internet, who don’t have access to books and online things, even on their phone, is real and happens every day.”

The Bookvan will provide library services to the wider Isla Vista community with the delivery of books, audiovisual materials, Library of Things items, technology, craft kits for kids, honor system books, free books, and more. Library cards will be issued to anyone who wants one. There will be WiFi available near the van so that people can download some of the more than one million items available through the Goleta Valley Library databases. The specialty van will be able to hold approximately 500 books and will be powered with Wi-Fi and a solar battery.

The Bookvan will operate Monday through Friday with stops throughout the Isla Vista area. A schedule is available here on the Library’s website. For more information on the Library Bookvan contact Library Director Allison Gray at 805-562-5502 or agray@cityofgoleta.org.

Pictures of the event below:

Local dignitaries and Isla Vista stakeholders ready to cut the ribbon

Senator Monique Limón cutting the ribbon

  

Mayor Paula Perotte speaking at the event