ROTC wins big at national training

Author

Carly Heltzel
October 13, 2025

Good morning. It’s Monday, and I’m watching the terrifying video of a helicopter crash in Huntington Beach this weekend. Onto the five Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo and California stories you need to know for today.

1.

Cal Poly’s ROTC cadets earned several top awards at national military training this summer — the six cadets who were sent collectively placed highest in the nation. One cadet won the Top Female Army Fitness award. The 36-day camp brings together 5,000 ROTC cadets from across the country and tests them on various skills. The head of the military sciences department said it was a “tremendous affirmation of the hard work” they’ve put in. 

2.

Downtown SLO is hanging on by a thread. Business owners are struggling to pay the rents, navigate parking issues and maintain customers in an increasingly unaffordable local economy. SLO strikes a delicate balance between local resident, student and tourist customers, with stores vying for the limited dollars people are willing to spend. “At all levels, small businesses are just being squeezed out,” one downtown business owner said.

3.

Diwali is now an official state holiday after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed it into law. It won’t go into effect until Jan. 1, 2026. Employees for the state government will get the option to take Diwali off with pay and if school boards and teachers unions agree, public schools and community colleges can vote to close for the day. Public schools can also give out exercises to acknowledge the “meaning and importance” of Diwali. Courts will stay open.

4.

Farmworkers are increasingly sounding the alarm about exposure to pesticides when pregnant, saying it leads to dangerous conditions, potential birth defects and even autism in their children. Still, many need the income and choose to stay in the fields. After one woman experienced several allergic reactions to pesticides, was hospitalized for exposure during pregnancy and gave birth, her son was diagnosed with autism at 6 months old. She said she loves him for who he is, but he, now 14 years old, is persistently bullied and needs lifelong support. 

5.

An OnlyFans model who pretended to be romantically interested in older men on dating apps and social media was actually just stealing from them. Police found at least 10 victims in Los Angeles so far, and are searching for more. She took cash, credit cards, designer handbags, jewelry, clothing and more from the men who took her on dates in exchange for posing as their girlfriend. They just didn’t know that part of the deal.