In CA: UC’s first Black president, a killer rabbit disease and Cowboys stay away

Arlene Martinez, USA TODAY
·4 min read

It's Arlene with news to catch you up this Wednesday.

But first, ride the roller coaster, hold the scream. Japan made the rule to keep coronavirus droplets to a minimum. So ... is Space Mountain next?

In California brings you top stories and commentary from across the USA TODAY Network and beyond. Sign up here for weekday delivery right to your inbox.

Could school reopenings be delayed?

Classrooms may sit empty longer, following spikes of coronavirus cases.
Classrooms may sit empty longer, following spikes of coronavirus cases.

Surging coronavirus cases mean classroom instruction in public schools, originally targeted to resume next month, may not happen in the nation's most populous county. That was the message from Los Angeles County, where more than 10% of people being tested for the virus end up having it, a rate not seen since late April.

Gov. Gavin Newsom said school districts will decide for themselves whether it is safe to open. But he said those decisions will be based on whether people can slow the spread of the virus by changing their behavior.

“I would like to think that we have the capacity to make better decisions in the next few weeks where we don't have to make the decision to delay the school year,” said Newsom, the father of four young children who has echoed other parents' frustration at having to manage schooling at home during the pandemic.

$4 million to treat two patients, and other money the state has spent on "surge facilities." That is, the 20% it can account for, reports the Associated Press.

Cowboys cancel CA and Chik-fil-A cancels free food, so make your own iced coffee

FILE - In this Monday, July 29, 2019, file photo, Dallas Cowboys practice at the NFL football team's training camp in Oxnard, Calif. The coronavirus pandemic forced the NFL to abandon, at least for 2020, the fading but still time-honored tradition of teams traveling to training camp. (AP Photo/Michael Owen Baker, File)
FILE - In this Monday, July 29, 2019, file photo, Dallas Cowboys practice at the NFL football team's training camp in Oxnard, Calif. The coronavirus pandemic forced the NFL to abandon, at least for 2020, the fading but still time-honored tradition of teams traveling to training camp. (AP Photo/Michael Owen Baker, File)

The Dallas Cowboys may not be returning to Oxnard this year for training, but the city's mayor is confident the boys will be back in town soon.

Chick-fil-A's annual Cow Appreciation Day has been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Because putting regular coffee over ice doesn't work: How to make your own cold brew (Video).

Money, transparency and a killer rabbit disease

See which California businesses got Paycheck Protection Program loans.
See which California businesses got Paycheck Protection Program loans.

Explore our database to see which California businesses got more than $150,000 in loans through the Paycheck Protection Program, which Congress passed to help companies keep their doors open during the coronavirus pandemic.

Watchdog groups are questioning why Ventura County elected officials are observing their typical summer break for public meetings, but still meeting privately. Others wonder why Gov. Gavin Newsom at the onset of the pandemic suspended some requirements of the state's open meetings laws in the first place.

A deadly virus that targets rabbits is spreading throughout SoCal and other parts of the Southwest and Mexico, officials say. It is unrelated to COVID-19.

The prestigious UC system names its first Black president

Dr. Michael Drake has been named president of the University of California, the first Black leader in the system's 152-year history.
Dr. Michael Drake has been named president of the University of California, the first Black leader in the system's 152-year history.

Dr. Michael V. Drake was chosen Tuesday as president of the University of California, the first Black leader in the 280,000-student system's 152-year history.

He comes to the system a week after retiring as president of Ohio State University, but he's no stranger to the Golden State: The UCSF medical school graduate was president of UC Irvine from 2005 to 2014.

At OSU, Drake implemented a comprehensive tuition freeze for in-state students, the first in decades, and the university broke records for graduation and retention rates, research expenditures, annual fundraising, and academic talent and diversity among incoming classes.

Drake said he was ready to face the university system's challenges, including the coronavirus pandemic, and “the wounds of social injustice,” in addition to long-term threats like climate change.

Death Row death; NAACP calls for SD officer's firing, Marine dies following self-inflicted shot

California authorities are struggling with a widespread coronavirus outbreak at San Quentin State Prison.
California authorities are struggling with a widespread coronavirus outbreak at San Quentin State Prison.

A death row inmate convicted of a 2004 Palm Springs murder died from complications possibly related to COVID-19, authorities say.

A San Diego County law enforcement officer is under internal investigation after allegedly sharing a "vulgar image" of George Floyd, the Black man whose death sparked worldwide protests against racial inequality and police brutality. The local NAACP branch described it as an "altered photograph" of a "naked black male porn star kneeling on Mr. Floyd" with the words "Quit resisting."

A Marine taken to a Palm Springs hospital for a self-inflicted gunshot wound after a two-hour interaction with police at the Marine base at Twentynine Palms has died.

In California brings you top news and analysis from across USA TODAY Network newsrooms. Also contributing: Associated Press, San Francisco Chronicle.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: California, baby formula, UC system, COVID-19, NAACP, rabbit: Wed news