Good morning. It’s Wednesday, and I’m reading about Hawaii’s volcano erupting for the second time this year. Onto the five Cal Poly, SLO and California stories you need to know for today.

1.

One candidate remains in the race for superintendent of San Luis Obispo County schools, and that’s current SLO County Office of Education executive Joe Koski. Another man who announced his run in January just dropped out, saying continuing that work is the “greatest impact I can make right now.” The current superintendent announced he would retire at the end of this year after over a decade at the helm.

Sadie Dittenber / The Tribune

2.

Three SLO County cities were nominated for USA Today’s Reader’s Choice Awards. Paso Robles is in the running for the best main street award, and Pismo and Morro Bay are going head to head for the best coastal small town — which Pismo won last year. Each category has 20 cities. People can cast one vote per day for each race, which ends in late March and early April.

Sadie Dittenber / The Tribune

3.

The California Democractic party chair urged candidates running for governor without a “viable path” to win the primary election in June to drop out of the race. The candidates who receive the top two shares of votes in the primary advance to the general election, regardless of party, and the Democrat’s chair wants them both to be Democrats. One candidate who polls toward the bottom said the letter is racist becuase the bottom candidates are people of color. 

Felix Broach / Mustang News

4.

Foster care agencies are unable to get insurance in the state after a key insurer backed out, forcing California’s agencies to seek unregulated insurance costs elsewhere. Premiums increase 200-400% yearly, up to a $350,000 cost hike for the agencies. If these nonprofits that place and manage cases for foster children close, the state would have to deal with the fallout. Insurance premiums rose after California lifted the statute of limitations in 2019 to allow foster children to sue agencies for allowing sexual abuse.

Cayla Mihalovich / CalMatters

5.

Cal Poly’s men’s basketball team is headed to the Big West Tournament in Nevada this weekend. The Mustangs need four wins in four days to pull of a win, and they are entering the tournament seeded in last place at the No. 8 spot. Their first game is against No. 5 seed UC San Diego. The top two teams in the league received double-byes, meaning their first game will be in the semifinals and would only have to win two games to win the tournament.

Joslen Jimenez / The Tribune