When we vote for a school board member, we usually look for friendly faces, neighbors, or people who tell us exactly what we want to hear. We do so because we don’t always understand the brutal realities of school district governance. But after 14 years as a Pasadena Unified School District (PUSD) parent and serving in roles from PTA and ELAC to School Site Council chair, district-level CAC chair, and chair of the district’s LCAP Parent Advisory Committee, I can tell you definitively: being a “nice” person is not a qualification for office.

School board members are the ultimate stewards of our children’s education, our tax dollars, and our community’s future. They manage multi-million dollar budgets and hire, fire, and evaluate the superintendent. It is a grueling, unpaid job. Yet, we frequently treat these critical local races like a high school popularity contest.

True integrity on a school board means prioritizing the right decision over the comfortable one. To do that, a board member needs remarkably thick skin. Candidates often make narrow promises to the specific neighborhood parents who lift them up. But once in office, they must have the courage to look past their immediate base, stand up to their own voters, and make the tough choices necessary for all students to succeed.

They don’t have to be “nice,” but they do absolutely have to be effective. We need leaders with the spreadsheet literacy to dissect complicated budget files and hold the superintendent strictly accountable for academic outcomes. They must be skilled negotiators who can build strong partnerships with the city and local organizations, and they must possess adaptable minds to navigate shifting funding and legal requirements.

We must also follow the money. Campaigning costs money, and financial disclosures tell you exactly who a candidate will answer to. Are they backed by a grassroots network of local parents giving small amounts, or is an outside special interest group pouring money into the race with a rigid agenda? Board members must remain financially independent to effectively serve our children.

Stop accepting generic talking points. I urge Pasadena voters to study candidate websites, attend upcoming forums hosted by organizations like the Pasadena Education Network, and demand real answers to targeted questions:

* “When a decision benefits the whole district but hurts your home school, how will you vote?”
* “How will you use complex budget data to actively evaluate the superintendent’s performance?”
* “How will you guarantee your votes stay independent of your financial backers?”

These politicians hold the future of our community in their hands. Stop voting for charm. Vote for independent, thick-skinned, and courageous leaders who are entirely free to do what is right for PUSD.

Sincerely,

Laura Diaz Allen
Pasadena, CA

[Eddie Rivera / Pasadena Now]

LA Fire Justice reports January 7, 2027, is the cutoff for personal injury, emotional distress and wrongful death suits

LA Fire Justice, a coalition whose attorneys are suing Southern California Edison on behalf of Eaton Fire survivors, will hold a free town hall tonight at the Pasadena Masonic Temple, 100 days before what the group says is the deadline to file certain claims against the utility.

The group says that deadline — January 7, 2027, two years after the fire began — applies to personal injury, emotional distress and wrongful death claims. California law generally allows two years to sue over an injury or death caused by another’s wrongful act or neglect.

The town hall runs from 6 to 8 p.m., with dinner at 6 p.m. and the presentation at 6:30 p.m., according to LA Fire Justice.

Attorneys Mikal Watts and Doug Boxer and LA Fire Justice CEO Chris Holden, a former Pasadena mayor and former state Assemblymember, are scheduled to walk through where the litigation stands and what families need to know before January 7.

Topics listed by the group include why Edison’s compensation program “may be a bad deal,” what a claim could be worth, “how the lawsuit helps Altadena rebuild,” the group’s path to settlement and how to get a free case evaluation.

Many displaced survivors still do not know the deadline exists, the group said.

“They deserve to have that information so they can make their own decision about whether to hire a lawyer and sue Edison,” the group wrote.

The group also wrote that Edison offers victims “a small fraction of what their claims are worth” through the utility’s Wildfire Recovery Compensation Program.

Edison describes their alternative to lawsuits, the Compensation Program, as voluntary and says its offers are designed to be comparable to settlements reached in past wildfire litigation, through a process intended to deliver compensation faster than litigation.

In August, the Los Angeles County Fire Department released the reports of an investigation it conducted jointly with Cal Fire. The reports concluded that arcing from Edison electrical equipment near a transmission tower in Eaton Canyon sparked the fire. The fire killed at least 19 people and destroyed close to 10,000 homes and businesses, most of them in unincorporated Altadena.

According to LAist, an Edison spokesperson said at the time that the company was “currently reviewing” the report, and spokesperson Scott Johnson said Edison “believes it is likely that its equipment was associated with the ignition of the Eaton Fire.”

Writing ahead of Tuesday’s Town Hall, LA Fire Justice CEO Chis Holden said “Every person who has a claim must sign up for the lawsuit while the path is still open. And every one of us must pick up the phone, reach out to the people we know, and make certain no one who belongs in this fight is left behind.”

NEED TO KNOW:

Eaton Fire Town Hall

Host: LA Fire Justice; When: Tonight, Tuesday, September 29, 6 to 8 p.m.; dinner at 6 p.m., presentation at 6:30 p.m.; Where: Pasadena Masonic Temple, 200 S. Euclid Ave., Pasadena; Cost: Free; dinner included; Parking: Free at 187 S. Euclid Ave. with validation. Attendees pull a ticket, tell the attendant they are with LA Fire Justice, then validate at the event by scanning the ticket and a QR code provided there; RSVP: lafirejustice.com/events; Information: (626) 684-3315.

In the final 100 days, we face a choice that will define whether Altadena rises again—or fades into memory.

I can still recall the night of the fire. Families fled in the dark with only what they could carry. Neighbors stood outside waiting for alerts that never arrived and elders who had spent lifetimes building homes, churches, and family legacies watched those foundations turn to ash in hours. Our community had no say so in what was lost, but what returns is up to us.

We have 100 days. After January 7, 2027, our community will lose certain rights. Forever.

One hundred days to secure the rights of every survivor still waiting for justice after the Eaton Fire. One hundred days before the door closes on the largest opportunity this community will ever have to hold Southern California Edison fully accountable—and to bring home the billions required to rebuild what was taken away.

If we miss this window, the deeper cost will not be measured only in dollars left on the table. It will be measured in families who cannot return and in a community that slowly loses the power to shape its own future. That is exactly what Southern California Edison is counting on. They are advertising their compensation program at every turn, hoping residents will reach a point of desperation and give up their rights for a fraction of what a full lawsuit could deliver. Edison knows the difference. Having already victimized this community, they now want to shortchange the people still fighting to come home.

We will not allow this injustice to vanish into silence. We will not allow utilities to treat the destruction of a community as simply another cost of doing business—something they can absorb, settle quietly, and move past.

I joined LA Fire Justice a month after the Eaton Fire because they prioritized proof over advertising. They released the 3D photogrammetry video that broke news of Edison’s role in starting the fire before ever launching a commercial or campaign. Our attorneys invested in bringing truth to power. That commitment is why this fight still has a chance—and why the next 100 days demand everything we have.

Every person who has a claim must sign up for the lawsuit while the path is still open. And every one of us must pick up the phone, reach out to the people we know, and make certain no one who belongs in this fight is left behind.

Time is short. The urgency is real. Yet the hopeful truth is this: it is not too late. The same spirit that carried families through that terrible night—the determination, the care for one another, the refusal to disappear—is still here. If we move together, we can still write a different ending.

We can do this. One hundred days. Starting now. With resolve and respect,

Chris Holden

Chris Holden is CEO of LA Fire Justice and former Pasadena Mayor and California Assemblymember

Los Angeles County supervisors will receive an update Tuesday on the county’s earthquake preparedness efforts, while the public will have an opportunity to experience simulated shaking from a major earthquake at Grand Park.

Seismologist Lucy Jones and county officials involved in emergency preparedness and response will make a presentation to the Board of Supervisors beginning at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration.

The presentation will address the readiness of county employees and facilities, gaps in preparedness and plans to ensure continued services to residents and businesses following a major earthquake, according to Supervisor Kathryn Barger’s office.

The presentation stems from a motion authored by Barger in August that noted Los Angeles County has not experienced a large-scale, damaging earthquake since the magnitude 6.7 Northridge earthquake in 1994.

The motion cited a media report indicating that tectonic strain has accumulated on segments of the San Andreas and San Jacinto faults near the Cajon Pass, with current stress levels surpassing those calculated before significant historical earthquakes on both faults.

“These findings are not a prediction that a major earthquake is imminent,” according to Barger’s motion. “However, the finding that these fault systems are now more heavily loaded than at any point in the historical record warrants serious attention. The County has an obligation to ensure its residents, infrastructure and emergency systems are prepared for a disaster of this scale before it occurs.”

The motion also cited a 2008 U.S. Geological Survey scenario that modeled a magnitude 7.8 earthquake on the southern San Andreas Fault.

Barger’s motion also directed county officials to develop an emergency earthquake readiness public awareness program, including an online “Know Your Risk” portal and a multilingual education campaign surrounding the Great ShakeOut on Oct. 15.

The motion called for “sustained, year-round public engagement strategies that move beyond annual preparedness events and establish earthquake readiness as an ongoing public safety priority for Los Angeles County.”

A mobile earthquake simulator known as the Big Shaker will be available to the public and Civic Center employees from 8 to 11 a.m. Tuesday in the food truck area of Grand Park, 200 N. Grand Ave.

Barger is scheduled to ride the simulator at 8 a.m.

The earthquake preparedness events are being held in recognition of National Preparedness Month, according to Barger’s office.

[From a photo by Eddie Rivera / Pasadena Now]

Aguiñiga will serve as artist-in-residence with the LA County Cultural Climate Commons: Community Memory Lab & Living Archive, a community archiving initiative intended to document experiences stemming from the fires and explore creative approaches to recovery from climate-related disasters.

During the residency, Aguiñiga will develop a series of collective memory and art-making workshops for Altadena residents and others affected by the fires, according to the Department of Arts and Culture.

The workshops will provide opportunities for participants to share stories and create artwork reflecting their experiences. Art created during the workshops may be added to a new LA County Library digital archive, county officials said.

The initiative is led by LA County Library and the LA County Library Foundation in partnership with the Department of Arts and Culture, Altadena Library District, Altadena Library Foundation, Los Angeles Public Library and Library Foundation of Los Angeles.

County officials said the project is intended to preserve community history and provide opportunities for creative expression and social connection following the wildfires.

Los Angeles County residents were being warned Tuesday to take precautions against West Nile virus amid elevated activity, with positive mosquito samples and infected dead birds surpassing levels recorded at this time last year.

The Greater Los Angeles County Vector Control District said West Nile virus activity is also trending above the five-year average, although the abundance of native Culex mosquitoes within the district remains below the five- year average.

Culex mosquitoes can transmit West Nile virus and are most active from dusk to dawn.

The district has detected 384 West Nile virus-positive mosquito samples and 78 infected dead birds so far this year, compared with 104 positive mosquito samples and two positive dead birds at the same point last year.

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health has reported more than 100 human cases and five deaths this year.

“West Nile virus is cyclical, and the level of activity we see can look different each year,” said Steve Vetrone, the district’s assistant general manager of Vector Management Services. “This year, we have seen increased disease activity across the region, with activity beginning earlier than usual. An extremely mild winter where rainfall was interspersed with unusually warm weather earlier in the year are among the environmental factors that have contributed to these conditions.”

The district said it increased mosquito inspections and control efforts, monitoring and public outreach after detecting increased virus activity early in the season.

“After seeing increased activity early in the season, we stepped up inspection and control efforts along with mosquito monitoring, and public outreach,” Vetrone said. “The control efforts have helped keep WNV transmitting Culex mosquito populations low. With WNV activity high, our work continues, and residents can do their part by preventing mosquito bites and eliminating standing water.”

There is no human vaccine for West Nile virus. Officials urged residents to use insect repellent containing at least 15% DEET, Picaridin, IR3535 or oil of lemon eucalyptus, wear loose-fitting long-sleeved shirts and pants, and remove standing water around their homes.

About one in five people infected with West Nile virus develops symptoms, which can include fever, headache, body aches, nausea and skin rash, according to the district. About one in 150 infected people will require hospitalization, and severe cases can involve high fever, muscle weakness, neck stiffness, paralysis, coma or death.

Dead birds can be reported to the California Department of Public Health at 1-877-WNV-BIRD. Residents seeking mosquito control information can contact the Greater Los Angeles County Vector Control District at 562-944-9656.

[LA County]

The season, which began Aug. 24, is paid for with a one-time grant from Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, according to her office’s Aug. 6 press release.

The pool, at 3330 N. Lincoln Ave., offers recreational swimming, lap swim, water exercise and swim lessons, Barger’s office said.

Free morning lap swim is available for adults 65 and older and for people with disabilities.

“Access to safe, affordable recreational opportunities is especially important as our Altadena community continues to recover and rebuild,” Barger said in the press release.

“I was pleased to provide the funding that made this extended pool season possible so children, families, seniors, and residents of all ages can continue enjoying this valuable community resource,” she said.

The Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation told the Altadena Town Council on July 21 that Loma Alta Park had reopened.

At that meeting, department officials said they had raised about $64 million in philanthropy and grants toward recovery of Altadena’s fire-damaged parks but had received no money from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for Altadena projects, according to a summary of the meeting. Officials also said Charles White Park was in active design, with a groundbreaking planned for September.

Loma Alta Park reopened in May of last year after a $3.4 million renovation following the Eaton Fire, according to Barger’s office.

Last year, funding from Barger’s office kept the pool open through Oct. 31.

Pool hours during that extension were 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays, according to the press release her office issued last September.

Wednesday, Sept. 30. Loma Alta Park Pool, 3330 N. Lincoln Ave., Altadena. For more visit parks.lacounty.gov.

Xavier Becerra, nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services, at the start of a break during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Finance Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 24, 202. Photo by Greg Nash-Pool, Getty Images

Angela Chang says the sticker shock never gets easier. Clients call her Southern California health insurance brokerage in disbelief, asking how much their insurance costs will jump again.

A hospital bill would hurt far worse, she tells them. But Chang, chief strategy officer at KCAL Insurance, also knows there’s only so much left in people’s pockets, especially with food and gas prices rising too.

In hard times, people want reassurance, Chang said. “I think that the general public would like to see our next governor … find a way for Californians to be able to remain covered affordably,” she said.

Nearly two in three Californians worry about unexpected medical bills, and six in 10 report they or a family member skipped care due to cost, according to a California Health Care Foundation survey. As Californians drown in medical debt and worry about losing coverage, the two candidates running for governor have given voters little indication of how they’d help.

Democrat Xavier Becerra says he wants everyone to be insured, but hasn’t spelled out how he’d pay for it. Republican Steve Hilton wants to overhaul the system, but can’t say how much it’ll cost or save consumers and the state.

Becerra has pitched himself as California’s next “healthcare governor” but did not make himself available for an interview for this story. He has also repeatedly refused appeals from the media and consumer interest groups to lay out substantive policy positions. As a result, much of what we know about his plan is drawn from his campaign’s own published materials rather than any direct response to questions. Becerra instead sticks to broad talking points — working toward universal coverage, prioritizing primary care, eliminating “administrative waste” — without offering much detail about how they’ll happen.

Hilton unveiled his own plan, the “Working Class Healthcare Guarantee,” only last week — proposing greater price transparency alongside plans that likely would flounder in the state’s Democratic-controlled Legislature, including replacing part of Medi-Cal, the insurance program for low-income people, with personal health spending accounts.

“They (voters) want a clear vision for how you’re going to help,” said Rachel Linn Gish, with the consumer advocacy group Health Access California, describing what she heard this summer at a series of healthcare affordability town halls in communities with particularly high health costs, including Santa Barbara, Salinas and Gilroy.

The stakes are urgent. California workers pay some of the highest premiums in the country, and many will see another spike during this fall’s open enrollment. Meanwhile millions of people who get free and low-cost care through Medi-Cal are expected to lose coverage as major federal rule changes go into effect on Jan. 1, regardless of who succeeds Gov. Gavin Newsom.

“Healthcare almost has to be like one of the first things that you [the governor] are tackling,” Gish said.

Becerra’s record

Becerra likes to tout his wins — as California’s attorney general he helped defend the Affordable Care Act against federal lawsuits. He also secured a major antitrust settlement against Sutter Health, which his office accused of using its market power to drive up prices.

But with greater experience comes greater expectations. Advocates and health researchers say they’d like to hear Becerra talk more specifically about how he’d tackle one of the key drivers of surging health costs: hospital prices. That’s one thing they’ll be watching for when Becerra and Hilton debate Wednesday on CNN.

“There’s plenty of blame to go around” for expensive healthcare, said Miranda Dietz, director of the Health Care Program at the UC Berkeley Labor Center. But hospital costs make up the largest share of premium spending – about 40 cents of every premium dollar.

“To fix the underlying cause of the affordability problem, I think is going to take really sustained effort and continued focus,” Dietz said.

Becerra’s policy agenda promises to “center affordability in every decision.” In it he says he’ll work closely with employers and other health purchasers to figure out ways to bring down premiums and out-of-pocket costs. He promotes ideas such as prioritizing screenings and primary care to keep people away from more expensive emergency care that results in larger bills. He also wants to expand on Newsom-era programs to bring down the cost of popular but expensive prescription drugs.

Perhaps his boldest promise is to continue covering every Californian affected by budget cuts and changes to Medicaid brought on by the federal spending plan that Congress passed last year. Becerra has not explained how he would pay to keep people covered. The price is steep: State officials project the federal health cuts could cost California up to $30 billion annually.

In August, when asked by reporters how he could promise continued coverage at such a high price tag, Becerra said: “Because I know how much we misspend in the health system, and because you and I know that we can’t leave people without healthcare, because if we do, not only will they get sicker, but it will cost you and me as taxpayers even more when they finally do access care.”

Some of that money may come from his promises to crack down on fraud and abuse in the Medi-Cal program through a special task force. But it’s unclear how soon that work would result in savings and how much — the same vagueness advocates are criticizing elsewhere in his agenda.

Becerra’s campaign has raised over $33 million, including major contributions from the healthcare industry. A health insurer (Blue Shield of California), a clinic system (AltaMed), a drug manufacturer (Genentech), several physician associations, and individual hospital executives have each donated the maximum $78,400 to Becerra’s campaign, according to CalMatters analysis of campaign finance data. Four branches of a group that lobbies for nursing homes have donated $313,000 combined.

Political strategists say the industry’s backing of Becerra is expected. The latest Berkeley IGS Poll shows the Democrat receiving 58% of the support from likely voters and Hilton receiving 33%.

Hilton’s campaign has raised more than $21 million, but campaign finance records show no significant organized contributions from the healthcare industry.

Hilton’s ‘healthcare guarantee’

Hilton crafted his plan, he says, in response to what he hears from voters. “I call it the Working Class Healthcare Guarantee because those are the people who are really, really screwed by what’s going on right now,” he told CalMatters.

Among his ideas, Hilton wants hospitals, physician offices, and pharmacies to show patients prices before providing nonemergency care. Some of that information is already gathered today, but Hilton says he will put together one website where patients and employers can make comparisons.

For California’s lowest-income earners, Hilton is proposing replacing part of their Medi-Cal coverage with health spending accounts of $8,000 to $10,000 a year. He’d keep people’s regular coverage in place for emergency care.

That is a substantial proposal attached to a very large population: roughly a third of Californians — more than 13 million people — are enrolled in Medi-Cal. Asked how much this would cost or save the state, Hilton couldn’t say. He framed the goal instead as giving people more control in choosing their doctors and reducing bureaucracy in the program.

Some states, like Arkansas, have experimented with health spending accounts. Arkansas officials found the program administratively burdensome and discontinued it.

Hilton also wants to reduce the number of people who rely on Medi-Cal, in part by making the individual marketplace, or Covered California, more affordable. He’d do that by establishing what’s known as a “reinsurance” program — insurance for insurers — that would help pay for the most expensive claims and keep those costs from driving up premiums for everybody else. It’s an idea Vice President J.D. Vance has also previously promoted.

States such as Alaska have reported some success in keeping premium increases down. But researchers have also found that premium savings weren’t always significant enough to make a difference for consumers.

One of the few ideas where Becerra and Hilton overlap is in their support for making and negotiating lower cost medications. Through its CalRx program – a signature Newsom program – California has started to distribute $55 insulin. It also distributes albuterol inhalers and naloxone.

Hilton says expanding on that program is a good idea. “I think we should do more of it.”

Whether any of this reaches voters

Political strategists say how much detail either candidate provides may matter less than party affiliation come November. Becerra’s lead over Hilton, 25 points in the most recent Berkeley IGS survey, has widened.

“Someone like Hilton could have some amazing policy positions, but he still has a lot of problems just because of the atmospherics of being a Republican in a Democratic state,” said Andrew Acosta, a Democratic political strategist.

As the frontrunner, Becerra may feel less pressure to provide more details about his policy agenda, Acosta said. Instead, he can point to Washington. “The beauty of the world we live in for Democrats is they can just point to Donald Trump and say, ‘Look at all the chaos he’s caused.’ It is a little bit of a get-out-of-jail-free card for Becerra.”

That dynamic is exactly what worries advocates like Gish, who say vagueness shouldn’t be cost-free for either candidate given how many Californians are struggling right now. Both campaigns’ unanswered questions will need real answers well before either man is sworn in.

“Let’s be clear and honest as Californians about what we want and what we value,” Gish said. “We need to make policy decisions that actually help people now.”

CalMatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.

[Shutterstock]

Free Wednesday evening session at the Southern California Children’s Museum covers test scores, school ratings and Pasadena Unified options

Parents weighing where to send a child to elementary school can hear an overview of Pasadena Unified’s options on Wednesday evening, when the Pasadena Education Network holds its free program “PEN: Choosing an Elementary School” at the Southern California Children’s Museum.

Jennifer Miyake-Trapp, a parent and education expert, provides an overview of what Pasadena Unified has to offer. She will explain what test scores and school ratings do and don’t tell a family about a school, and how a family’s own values, along with insights from school visits and parent perspectives, can contribute to the decision.

The presentation is followed by a chance to meet and chat with parents of children currently attending elementary schools across PUSD. A parent representative from the Community Advisory Committee for Special Education will also be on hand to answer questions about accessing special education services in the district.

This is an in-person program. PEN will share Miyake-Trapp’s presentation on its Facebook page, but the interactive portion of the program will not be recorded.

PEN was founded by parents, for parents, in 2006, and it is now a network of more than 2,000 parents who support and send their children to Pasadena Unified schools. The independent grass-roots nonprofit promotes family participation in public education to benefit all students in Pasadena, Altadena and Sierra Madre, and its services include School Fact Sheets, school tours, Parent Ambassadors and a weekly e-newsletter.

The session runs from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the museum, 459 East Colorado Boulevard in Pasadena. Admission is free.

Come with a short list of schools and specific questions for the parents in the room. Families with a child who receives special education services should bring those questions to the Community Advisory Committee representative.

PEN: Choosing an Elementary School will run on Wednesday, September 30 at 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Southern California Children’s Museum, 459 East Colorado Boulevard, Pasadena. For more information, call (866) 216-7334 or visit https://www.penfamilies.org/calendar/2026/9/30/pen-choosing-an-elementary-school. Admission is free.

Courtesy Pasadena Convention Center Facebook Page

Pasadena Unified School District will hold its annual College & Career Fair Tuesday, Oct. 6, at the Pasadena Convention Center, opening it to students from elementary through high school and their families. 

The free fair is open to the entire community. 

The district says it gives students and their families an opportunity to explore higher education options, discover career pathways and connect with programs and organizations that can help them plan for their futures. 

More than 100 colleges and universities from across the United States are expected to take part, the district said. They include local community colleges, California State University and University of California campuses, historically Black colleges and universities, private institutions and Ivy League schools. 

The fair runs from 4 to 7 p.m. at the convention center, 300 E.

Green St. In addition to the colleges, students and families can learn about career certificate programs, local job opportunities and resources offered by community organizations, the district said. 

Students can learn about different colleges, ask questions, explore programs and majors, and begin thinking about their future after high school, said Lanisha Mckenzie, principal of McKinley School of the Arts and Eliot Arts Magnet 

The Pasadena Educational Foundation is presenting the fair with the district. 

To help students prepare, the district’s College & Career Academies department publishes a list of suggested questions for college representatives. The questions cover admission eligibility based on grade-point average and test scores, financial aid and scholarships, and student housing. The same department runs the district’s career academies, which give students a choice of more than nine academies across its four high schools. 

NEED TO KNOW 

Event: Pasadena Unified School District’s Annual College & Career Fair. When: Tuesday, Oct. 6. Time: 4 to 7 p.m. Cost: Free. Where: Pasadena Convention Center, 300 E. Green St., Pasadena. Parking: Convention center garage, entrances on Euclid and Marengo avenues between Green and Cordova streets; flat daily rates of $18 to $25, varying by event. For more, call (626) 396-3600 or visit https://www.pusd.us/departments/college-career-academies/department-home