February 14 – On February 7, Long Beach Unified School District Superintendent Christopher Steinhauser, pictured, led business and civic leaders, community educators and families in a rally opposing Gov. Jerry Brown’s budget proposal to eliminate transitional kindergarten. The rally, which kicked off a series of California visibility events organized by the Save Kindergarten coalition, brought attention to the displacement of up to 125,000 children from kindergarten through the program’s eradication. “Long Beach has seen firsthand how children benefit from an extra year of preparation through transitional kindergarten,” Steinhauser said during the rally held at George Washington Carver Elementary School. “Our district is moving forward with fully implementing transitional kindergarten, but statewide support for this program is vital.” For more information, visit www.preschoolcalifornia.org/savekindergarten. (Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)