KPBS Midday Edition

San Diego Unified School District Superintendent Cindy Marten was questioned by senators in a confirmation hearing for the position of deputy U.S. Secretary of Education Wednesday morning. Meanwhile, a group back in San Diego protested her nomination. Plus, UCSD Assistant Professor Christen Sasaki, Ph.D., joined Midday Edition to talk about the intersection of racism and sexism against Asian American women. And five candidates are now vying for the 79th Assembly District seat. Then, as public health authorities try to convince reluctant Californians to get a COVID-19 vaccination, powerful allies in that effort could be religious leaders. Plus, a recent audit of the Industrial Wastewater Control Program suggests that outdated methods and staffing concerns are the key reasons behind a failure to properly identify polluters. Finally, the podcast “Blood on Gold Mountain” tells the story of the 1871 L.A. Chinatown Massacre through the eyes of a young female Chinese refugee.

As the nation mourns another mass shooting less than a week, we ask a mass shooting survivor about the psychological consequences on a nation already in the midst of a mental health crisis. Plus, the San Diego Convention Center will be used to temporarily house unaccompanied migrant children seeking asylum in the U.S. Also, a South Bay health care leader is being recognized for her work during the pandemic during Women’s History Month. In addition, a new exhibit at the San Diego History Center shows how archaeology played a role in learning about the life of San Diego's first Black homesteader, Nathan Harrison, and is challenging ideas about local history. And, activists are again demanding the removal of former San Diego Mayor and California Gov. Pete Wilson’s statue in downtown San Diego, citing his support of anti-immigrant legislation and his stand against gay rights as the reasons. Finally, how a cross-border love story has endured despite extended separations because of the pandemic in an excerpt from the latest episode of KPBS' “Port of Entry” podcast.

San Diego State will open a COVID-19 vaccination site at Viejas Arena Tuesday. Plus, Jacumba Hot Springs residents are fighting back against a solar panel installation project that would take up 650 acres at the edge of town. And lawmakers are considering ending protections for the critically endangered vaquita porpoise after an altercation between conservationists and fishermen turned fatal. Then, a proposed legal settlement will force the Army to review the discharges of recent veterans with mental health issues. Plus, San Diego master gardener Maria Mata joined Midday Edition to answer questions about growing your own food. Finally, a new Institute of Contemporary Art has formed in San Diego, merging the San Diego Art Institute in Balboa Park with the Lux Art Institute in Encinitas.

Researchers at UC San Diego estimate that the SARS-CoV-2 virus was likely circulating undetected for at most two months before the first human cases of COVID-19. Plus, distance learning during the pandemic has only worsened students' achievement gap from marginalized communities and those growing up in privilege. But could there be some long-term benefits to this experience? And this weekend in the arts: Cauleen Smith at the San Diego Museum of Art, outdoor Afro-Cuban jazz at Queen Bee’s, a year of virtual civic organ concerts and "There's Something About the Weather of This Place," at Best Practice gallery in Barrio Logan.

The IRS is delaying the 2020 tax filing deadline until May 17. How will provisions in the latest stimulus bill will affect your taxes? Plus, Moderna has begun testing its COVID-19 vaccine in children under 12, another step to getting everyone protected. Then, San Diego’s freeways and public transportation were empty in the early days of the pandemic. Traffic and transit ridership are now recovering, but will they ever come back all the way? And, Carlsbad’s GenMark Diagnostics, developer of rapid COVID-19 testing kits, was sold for $1.8 billion — a testament to the San Diego region’s biotech industry innovation during the pandemic. Also, the controversy over how to safely move millions of pounds of nuclear waste from the shuttered San Onofre power plant is back in the headlines. And, efforts to improve the environment around the Salton Sea were widely expected to begin at Red Hill Bay in 2015 but the project remains undone. Finally, KPBS arts reporter Beth Accomando speaks with Turner Classic Movies host Eddie Muller about contextualizing classic films that might be problematic and often downright offensive for contemporary audiences.

The repercussions of a shooting rampage in Atlanta Tuesday are being felt in Asian-American and Pacific Islander-American communities across the U.S. including in San Diego County. Plus, COVID-19 has not only crushed many small San Diego businesses, but in some cases, destroyed family wealth meant to sustain future generations. And an infectious disease specialist at UC San Diego Health describes how our understanding of how the COVID-19 virus affects the body has changed. Then, local arts organizations weigh in on the last 12 months of art and music during the pandemic and face continued uncertainty and adaptation as we move towards reopening. Finally, San Diego Latino Film Festival kicked off last week and continues through the weekend. We hear from two filmmakers whose work will be showcased.

San Diego County will move back into the less restrictive red tier of the state's COVID-19 reopening blueprint Wednesday. Plus, our series on the one-year anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic continues with a look at how major health care organizations responded. And we speak to the founder of UC San Diego Health's post-COVID-19 clinic about what we are learning about the lingering effects of COVID-19 long after the infection is gone. Then, almost a month after the Biden administration launched a program to process some asylum-seekers, hundreds of people are now camped outside of the San Ysidro Port of Entry. Plus, how will the pandemic change the future of work? Finally, author and oceanographer Kim McCoy combines science and adventure in his new book, "Waves and Beaches: The Powerful Dynamics of Sea and Coast."

It’s been just over a year since COVID-19 was officially declared a pandemic. A year of anxiety, hardship, confusion and loss. A year like no other.

Supporters of the San Pasqual Academy in Escondido are calling on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors to help the school for foster youth stay open. Plus, artificial tide pools may help keep rising sea levels from flooding the land around San Diego Bay. And our weekend arts picks: City Ballet, Philipp Scholz Rittermann, a dance film reflection on a year of closures and the acoustic rock of Grampadrew.

President Joe Biden on Thursday signed into law the $1.9 trillion relief package that he said will help the U.S. defeat the coronavirus and nurse the economy back to health. Plus, protesters gathered outside the San Diego Police Department headquarters Wednesday night after a video surfaced that appears to show an officer pointing his gun at a young boy during a traffic stop in Hillcrest this week. And San Diego Unified School Board changed the name of Junipero Serra High School in response to a student-led movement. Then, the City of La Mesa will soon accept food waste from residents. The waste will be processed at EDCO's new anaerobic digestion facility in Escondido. Plus, Sally Ride’s story is being told along with 12 other inspiring women profiled in the "She Persisted" young adult book series. Finally, the third episode of the Parker Edison Project looks at how customs impact our culture, and examines how they even play a part in our imaginations.