S1: Hey there , San Diego , it's time for KPBS roundtable. I'm Andrew Bracken. On today's show , we take a look at the latest Supreme Court rulings reshaping immigration in the US , and the San Diego Unified School District passed new restrictions on screen use this week. We hear about what's changed for students and what other limitations could be coming to reduce technology's influence in the classroom. Then , from the latest in KPBS Price of San Diego series , we take a look at the rising cost of quinceanera celebrations , plus reflections from KPBS morning voice Deb Welch , who will soon be calling it a career. That's ahead on KPBS roundtable. Earlier this week , the Supreme Court handed down two major immigration rulings. One allows the Trump administration to strip temporary protected status for hundreds of thousands. And in another ruling with San Diego routes , border officials have the green light to turn away asylum seekers. Joining me with the details is Elliot Padgett. He's U.S. immigration news editor for the Associated Press. Elliott , welcome back to roundtable.
S2: Hi , Andrew. Sorry I'm not there in person today. No.
S1: No. We appreciate you taking the time. There's there's so much going on in your world , and we understand that. So , you know , I want to start with this case having to do with temporary protected status or TPS. I know you've talked about it on our program before , but can you remind us how TPS works?
S2: Every 18 months , the Homeland Security Secretary decides whether or not to renew , uh , TPS status. So it is temporary and just backing up a second , when it's when is it granted? It's granted whenever there's a natural disaster , like an earthquake or a hurricane or major civil strife , like , uh , a civil war like we saw in Syria , anyone who is in the United States at the time it's granted can remain in the United States again in increments of up to 18 months with work authorizations. It was created in 1990 by Congress. Uh , the number of people covered by TPS doubled under Joe Biden to 1.3 million from 17 countries.
S1: You mentioned this was passed by Congress. And this is sort of a challenge , you know , from the president here. So the TPS Supreme Court case this week specifically impacts Haitians and Syrians. What's the backstory that got us to this point?
S2: This is the first time that the TPS has been litigated nonstop , but this is the first time the Supreme Court has heard oral arguments and ruled on the question of whether the president has the authority or the Homeland Security Secretary has the authority to end TPS. And then the plaintiffs argued in the in this case that the former secretary , Noem , Kristi Noem , did not adequately consider the conditions in Haiti or Syria. And in the case of Haiti , that that she acted the administration acted with racial animus. The six three majority judge led by Judge Alito rejected that , rejected that argument. So but it's really it's 350,000 Haitians , 6000 Syrians. But because this is the first time it's really been thrashed out on the merits , it's going to apply probably to all 1.3 million people we're talking about. I believe it's 600,000 Venezuelans , 200,000 El Salvadorans , potentially theirs is up for renewal very soon. So it could apply to many , many other nationalities , not just Haitians and Syrians.
S1: So potentially a pretty large impact there. So let's move on to the second Supreme Court case related to asylum seekers. We have to bring it back to San Diego , because it dates back to a 2017 lawsuit by local humanitarian group I'll Throw Lotto. What's the story there?
S2: Well , Judge Cynthia Borchardt in San Diego accepted the el otro lado , those arguments on summary judgment. The case became somewhat moot because this practice stopped after when Covid began and Joe and Joe Biden ended , ended the policy. So it just was a little bit of a surprise when the Supreme Court agreed to hear the administration's appeal. Uh , so it it really has no impact because right now , as you've talked about , there's nobody crossing the border. There's nobody at the border. There is an asylum ban in place at the border since President Trump took office. So there's really no difference. But this sets the stage in the future back in , you know , when this when this lawsuit was filed , this kind of these kind of waiting lists were a very big deal. There were the huge waiting lists in Tijuana and elsewhere along the border. And this this ruling says that those those waiting lists are fine. We could , you know , the administration , whatever administration , Democrat or Republican can , is justified in keeping those lists. So you don't have to immediately attend to an asylum seeker.
S1: So , I mean , Elliott , how do both of these cases fit into the broader immigration picture moving forward? I mean , what kind of precedent could they set?
S2: I mean , the TPS is is really striking because , like I mentioned , Biden doubled the number of people under TPS , and now Trump is is wants to end it , but basically. So it's just how it's just an example of how rapidly the the landscape has shaped it shifted on immigration. We haven't even seen the biggest immigration decision yet of the of this term , which is birthright citizenship. That'll come next week. Uh. Who knows? I mean , I'm nobody's handicapping , but the the decision. The questioning from the justices during oral arguments on that which President Trump attended. Personally , the questioning was much tougher. So there might you know , there's a sense that that the administration might lose on that. But , you know , predicting a Supreme Court decision is never , never a good idea. Yeah.
S1: Yeah. And as you mentioned there , the Supreme Court's work's not over yet. And that decision could be coming in the next few days. There's a lot of speculation there. We'll have to follow up more on that next week. But I've been speaking with Elliot Padgett. He's US immigration news editor for the Associated Press. Elliot , thanks so much.
S2: Thank you. Andrew.
S1: You're listening to KPBS roundtable. I'm Andrew Bracken. On Tuesday , the San Diego Unified School Board passed a resolution to limit screens in school classrooms. It includes a number of changes , like removing access to YouTube and gaming platforms on school laptops. It also sets a timeline for other tech related changes based on grade level. But it's not just seen to. Unified school districts across the country are trying to adapt to the growing influence of screens and artificial intelligence. Joining me now to talk more about it is Jacob McWhinney. He's education reporter with Voice of San Diego. Jake Jacob. Welcome back.
S3: Hey , Andrew. How are you doing? Great.
S1: Great. Great to have you here. So tell us more about the new rules that they passed this week in Sandy unified. Yeah.
S3: Yeah. So I think that we should probably first set the stage , as you have been talking about over the past year. There's been a huge backlash from parents and educators all across the country to screens in classrooms. And it's not just kind of like some Luddite stuff. There is a growing body of research evidence that shows that screens are not only damaging to kids ability to learn , but also very significantly damaging to their emotional health , their ability to have like a fulfilling social life. And so San Diego unified new resolution kind of drops into that space. It's this local front and this much bigger battle. And as you referenced , um , there are a couple elements here. There are the concrete things that that are going to happen now prior to the first day of school. And that is the limiting of what kids can access on the 1 to 1 devices that the district gives every student. And that will mean that they will no longer be able to access gaming platforms. They'll no longer be able to access streaming platforms like YouTube. In addition to that , they're going to start to move what are called device carts out of classrooms , like transitional kindergarten. So that will mean that laptops , devices , things like that are less easily accessible to kids who are essentially four years old. But the much larger portion of this resolution , as you mentioned , is basically this framework , this this timeline to create a new series of policies over the next school year.
S1: Right now I want to talk more about that. So some of these changes , as you mentioned , going into effect for the next school year. That kicks off not that long from now actually , August 10th. Right. I think it was on the first day of school for Santa unified is. But I'm wondering if you can just , you know , paint a little bit more of the picture you mentioned there. Just like the school laptop , it's really become a central learning tool for pretty much , you know , students across the country and especially in San Diego over the last five years. Right. Yeah.
S3: Yeah. I mean , I think maybe the better question people should ask themselves is like , what are laptops and devices not used for kind of used for everything , both on the front end and delivering , you know , education and curriculum and on the back end , uh , determining how kids are , are learning how how efficacious the education that , that teachers are delivering is. And so , for example , you know , all kids are issued a laptop at San Diego Unified. They use it to submit assignments online. They use it to do homework online. And then in the classroom , you know , they watch videos , they take part in interactive lessons that are , you know , displayed on these big smart screens and classrooms and on the back end , teachers use technology like I. Ready as a is a very popular one where kids take tests to determine , you know , where they are educationally , if they're behind , if they're ahead. And all of these things have come under a lot of fire. I already , in particular , uh , parents have filed a lawsuit over , uh , the , the applications data sharing policies alleging that it shares data without or it collects data without parent consent and then sells it without consent. And so all of these things , whether it screens in the classroom or even the applications that kids are using and teachers are using , are under fire. I mean.
S1: It's just so embedded in learning today. Right?
S3: Right? Yeah. Especially post-pandemic. Yeah.
S1: Yeah. So you say this is sort of like step one here in limiting technology for San Diego Unified classrooms. What are some of the other changes that you're expecting or you're hearing from? Sure.
S3: Sure. So the rest of the resolution lays out this essentially tiered timeline right by by certain points throughout the school year. The the district is , is supposed to have come up with new policies regulating a whole bunch of other different elements of technology. They're first supposed to create a committee that will come to these decisions. But for example , by winter break , the committee will supposed to come up , is supposed to come up with all of these , like grade specific regulations , right? Like how much screen time should a kindergartener have? How much screen time should a first grader have? How does that differ from what a high schooler should get right? And even come up with rules about when the district issued laptops will kind of automatically shut off? Right. So does a kid need to use a district issued laptop at like two in the morning? I mean , that's what the committee is going to start to think about. Right. And by the end of the school year , the committee also will have a whole other series of decisions , like developing policies to ensure students are only using like district approved software that has AI , not just all of these other bits of software that have AI. And there will be the creation of this more kind of unified , streamlined policy that allows people to opt out of the take home devices that the district issues.
S1: Really interesting. So yeah , there's a lot still to come here. But yeah , these rule changes specifically we're talking about are for public schools in the city of San Diego , right. Santa unified schools. What about other school districts in the county or even , you know , local private charter schools? Are they making similar efforts? What are you seeing in those spaces? Yeah.
S3: Yeah. I mean , I must admit , I have not been following other districts as closely , but I would be very shocked if they weren't. I mean , we're seeing it all over the country , as you mentioned earlier , we're seeing in LA unified. This is spreading everywhere and very quickly.
S1: And you mentioned Los Angeles Unified School District. They took a slightly different approach from what San Diego school District is. Can you just they seem to be a little bit more strict with their rules , because they also passed rules this week as.
S3: Well on the same day.
S1: Yeah , actually. And they were the largest school district in the county. And Santa unified the second largest. Exactly.
S3: Exactly. Yeah. So while San Diego Unified is taking this sort of slower approach , you know , they're developing a committee they're hoping to build buy in by , you know , soliciting the opinions of educators and teachers. LA unified went ahead and adopted a full slate of policies. Not off the bat , because this has been kind of in the works for a couple of months , but their policies include some of the same exact things as San Diego Unified , like the the laptops that the district issues will no longer be able to be used for video streaming , gaming , stuff like that. But then they also issued some , some bans. Right? So they are banning screen usage for kids in in transitional kindergarten. So that's four year olds kindergarten in first grade. They just will not be able to use screens after that. They take a grade by grade approach that will probably be similar to what San Diego Unified ends up. And so for example , I don't have the exact numbers , but it's something like 20 minutes of screens a day or 100 minutes of screens a week for like kids in second and third grade , 30 minutes a day or 150 a week for , you know , fourth and fifth. And then it kind of grades up as they as they decide that kids are going to need more screens. And like I mentioned , I did talk to San Diego Unified Board President Richard Barrera , who said that he is very convinced that whatever San Diego Unified ends up implementing will probably look very similar to what Los Angeles Unified did. Interesting.
S1: Interesting. So behind all these tools and platforms , you know , devices we're talking about is the edtech industry , right? And you've been kind of covering this for quite a while. Can you tell us more about how that relationship between these tech companies working in education and school districts and schools themselves , how that relationship works?
S3: It is a fascinating one. I mean , it is one that is kind of inherently unequal , right? Um , schools are constantly being marketed to by edtech firms and by technology firms that claim that their product is like this silver bullet. Right? And there are so many issues and problems and challenges in public education. And I do think that pretty much every single district leader really wants what's best for kids. And so when they have a technology or a company that is is selling these things that sound like , you know , magic beans or silver bullets or whatever you want to describe it as , they really want it to be true. And because of that , they're really not the most savvy consumers , right? They're constantly looking for things. Tech says we have this. And so oftentimes they jump on things that turn out to kind of just be the latest fad that kind of burns out in a couple of years. I mean , the perfect example right now is the backlash to screens that we're seeing. I mean , these were something that that were sold to districts as like a great equalizer , right? There were low income kids who wouldn't have access to a screen at home , and they would help education. And so you need to get them for everyone. And obviously the pandemic presented a different factor. Kids needed screens to be able to learn long distance. But all of this kind of means , you know , I talked to a researcher this week who who described it like this , that , that schools are kind of easy marks for technology companies because there is this desire to make education better. And , you know , they have some money.
S1: It's so interesting because I'm thinking back to when my kids first began school and just how different we looked , how much differently we looked at technology like schools would advertise , like , hey , we have laptops here , this is cool. Your kids can learn this technology. Whereas now the perspective is quite different. And as you mentioned , you know , this relationship , these tech companies you're talking about I mean there are for profit companies generally , right?
S3: Yes , yes , yes. And they're angling for public dollars. Right. The public has some of the biggest ability to public institutions have some of the biggest ability to spend and get these big contracts right.
S1: So I think this ties well with another recent story of yours. You visited a local charter school in Tierra Santa where you met a ChatGPT powered robot. You know , what's the context? Tell us more about what's happening here.
S3: Yeah , so it was a super interesting story. I recently found out that this network of charter schools , they're called Altus. They do mostly distance learning , and they focus on , credit recovery. And so while kids mostly work from from home , they have a series of these resource centers. And so I visited this resource center in Tierra Santa to check out a ChatGPT powered humanoid robot. It's called Amica. The network actually bought two of these and they cost them only $500,000. So half $1 million on two robots. Altus officials told me that these robots are part of this pilot program that they're working on to research the potential to integrate AI , to integrate robots into education , and how this could potentially figure into the future of the classroom. And researchers in the field who I spoke to were much less enthused by that prospect.
S1: And you know , when you say a robot , you're literally talking , you know , kind of robot here. So give us a visual. Yeah. What does this robot look and sound like? Yes.
S3: Yes. Well , it sounds like a robot. It has , you know , a ChatGPT powered voice. So it kind of sounds like Siri , right? But I walked into the room. I'm what , six? One. And I looked over at this robot. It's six. Two. Uh , it has these , like , bright blue eyes. This. It's gray , uh , you know , has this these exposed motors and it's shoulders , a transparent head with these purple flashing lights , and it's just kind of always moving. One of the strangest things about this , that it really gave it an uncanny valley effect is that even its face , it's emoting to , you know , more or less it's looking back and forth its lips or pursing its like eyebrows or raising its eyes or looking around. It was really , really a strange thing to kind of walk into a into a school and behold.
S1: And I think we have a clip , an audio clip. We'll listen to that now. Greetings.
S4: Greetings. And Nikola Tesla. I lived from 1856 to 1943. I am best known for inventing the alternating current AC electrical system and my work on wireless communications and magnetic fields. My inventions have greatly influenced the modern world. I know it's a lot. Can you please repeat that? Well , certainly. I am Nikola Tesla. I live from 1856 to 1943. I am best known for inventing the alternating current electrical system and my work on wireless communication and magnetic fields , which have greatly influenced modern technology.
S1: So tell us more about what's happening. I think I heard , like , the servo , you know , the robot moving around that you were describing earlier , but yeah , sure. Yeah.
S3: Yeah. So so this was I was observing a lesson with this robot , and essentially the robot was acting as , as you probably heard , as Nikola Tesla and the kids were asking questions. And the thing that I really came away from it thinking was that this is just not a super functional thing for education , right? It may be kind of neat. I found it kind of creepy and intimidating , but it may be kind of neat , but it's like this unnerving piece of tech that , to my mind , didn't necessarily constitute a value add in education. You know , it. Interrupt the kids. The kids. It would interrupt it the whole time if you could. Probably. Yeah. Interaction the whole time is. You could probably hear it was speaking too quickly for the kids to to jot down what it was saying. I mean , the experience felt kind of like this educational Rube Goldberg machine , like it was just a way too complex sort of version of something a human , a flesh and blood human teacher could have delivered really well. I mean , you can imagine a teacher , I don't know , dressed up as Tesla , uh , hopping around a room , having these engaging conversations. But that work was being done by a robot in this instance. Yeah.
S1: Yeah. And I mean , you know , you describe your reaction to it. How were the students that you observed respond? Was it were they kind of reacting similarly to how you felt about it?
S3: Yeah , I mean , it's hard to tell whenever a you as a journalist walk into a school , I think that kids get a little weird , but it did seem like there was a little bit of a bashfulness going on in those interactions. Um , I do know I talked to Altus as part of their pilot program. They ask kids their perception of the robot before they interact with it. And they told me that pretty much the first word out of every kid's mouth is creepy. So if that's any indication , I don't know that it's really winning hearts and minds just yet.
S1: So , Jacob , we have about a minute left here and I want to just ask you one final question. You know , we've been talking about this , you know , technology screens , you know , edtech here and this ChatGPT robot , of course , OpenAI released ChatGPT late 2022 , really spurring this generative AI wave of tools and chatbot chatbots that you , you know , kind of document here. How have you changed your approach to education coverage since AI has kind of become on this , you know , on the scene the last couple of years in education?
S3: Yeah , it's an interesting question. You know , I actually didn't really get into education reporting until ChatGPT was already released. But my first introduction to ChatGPT came while I was a student. You know , I went back to school over the pandemic , ended up graduating from Sdsu at the young age of what? 34. 33. In 2024. And during that period , you know , ChatGPT was invading everything. You would see it into discussion board posts , just dozens of posts clearly being written by ChatGPT. And it was it was distressing because it really , to my mind and to the mind of researchers , this was one of the reasons that they were so critical of this robot. They felt it was a waste of space. It is draining kids ability to think critically.
S1: Well , there's a lot more to come there. I've been speaking with Jacob McWhinney. He's education reporter with Voice of San Diego , and we'll have some links to his stories on our website and show notes. Jacob , thanks so much.
S3: Thanks for having me.
S1: And coming up , KPBS. Price of San Diego series dives into the dollars and cents of life here in our region. Next , we hear about the rising price of quinceanera celebrations. You're listening to KPBS roundtable. Welcome back to KPBS roundtable. I'm Andrew Bracken. Earlier this year , KPBS began a new series looking into the cost of living here and one of the nation's most expensive regions. It's called The Price of San Diego , and the series has delved into the rising cost of everything from housing to child care , from transportation to the price of a Padre game. But those aren't the only things that cost money here in San Diego.
S5: Oh , I love it. Yeah I know. And also.
S1: That's the sound of a quinceanera. It's a coming of age celebration for girls turning 15 years old , common in many Latino families in San Diego and beyond. But like many things in our region , Keane says , as they're often called , can also be quite expensive. Here with more is Marilena Castellanos. She's KPBS South Bay engagement producer. Hey , Maria Elena , welcome to the roundtable.
S6: Thank you. Andrew , thank you for having me. And I'm excited to talk about this , um , topic of quinceanera. And actually , that's one of my favorite songs. Um , that's , uh , hermoso carino from the legendary Vicente Fernandez. Oh , those.
S1: Are the corridos. Like , those songs just really go right to your heart.
S6: Oh , yeah. And watching it at a quinceanera , um , you know , it's just it gets everybody going. And it helps add to the emotion of the celebration.
S1: Um , well , that's why , like , your story is so beautiful because it's , you know , about these dollars and cents issues that are so important , but really , just , like , has such a heart and family at the core. So I want to talk more about it. But can you first just lay out for us , you know , tell us more about quinceanera and what they're all about? Yeah.
S6: Yeah. Well , you know , you kind of said it. Um , the quinceanera is. It's a celebration of a person when they turn 15. Um , it marks the transition from childhood to adulthood. Even the name has um. Jinsei stands for 15. Uh , marking the person and quinceanera is all about the celebration. Um , but you know , the the they go back generations. Um , and they're extremely popular cultural celebrations in Latino , Latinx , um , Latin , Chicano , Chicana , Hispanic , Latin American cultures. Um , but like you said at the very beginning here in San Diego , they they don't come cheaply. Um , there's a pretty high cost to have one. Uh , one of the families we spoke with , um , she said she started with a budget at about $22,000 , but she thinks she may have ended up spending , you know , 25 to $30,000. Um , a study that we found from 2019 said the average cost for a quinceanera was more in the $27,000 range. But we didn't talk about these types of ganas because these are pretty high for our region. But there's others that I've seen online , you know , at over $100,000 , I saw one at $1 million. So it's really hard to make a quinceanera happen. But , um.
S1: But a really important moment for a lot of families. Yes. Most definitely. You know , you spoke with a few families as they were planning quinceanera. And here's we have a clip of of of one mother you spoke with. This is Carmen Montoya Reyes. And here's a little of what she has.
S7: The reason why I see that it's important for many parents , as for myself , especially for our daughters , because it's while traditionally it's like a coming out type of thing , I think today it just lets them know how important they are in our lives and how important they are to society.
S1: Can you tell us more about her family or like the story of her family as they approached the , you know , her daughters continued? Yeah.
S6: Yeah. You know , um , Carmen , she was a really great to meet and just to be a part of their story. Um , she's a single mother , and she told us that , uh , she started planning for her daughter's quinceanera , um , two years ago. She said that one day she was just walking around and she saw a shop with dresses , and she thought , oh , for fun , she would walk in. And then she looked at the prices of the dresses , which , you know , can start at $900 and can go a lot higher. 3000 , maybe even more than that. Um , and she said that that moment , it hit her. Uh oh , my gosh , I'm not ready for this. And she started saving. She knew she wanted to have one for her daughter and and she started saving. Two years ago. She set a really small budget. She said it was $5,000 , but it kept getting higher and higher. And she was really lucky , um , because she , uh , she's a hairstylist and she ended up , um , moving her business to her house to try to cut down on costs because she was looking for different ways to save up the money. Um , and that was one of the ways she did it. But she also told us that , um , she , her clients would ask her , um , oh , how are the plans coming? And are you going to have a limousine? And she would say , oh , no , no , no , that's too much money. And then that person would either give her a big tip or they would say , I'm going to pay for it. You know , they I think somebody asked. It was the same for the cake. They said , oh , are you going to have a cake? And I think she told them , no , we're going to have cupcakes. And then that and then that person either gave her a big tip or they said , um , no , no no , no , no , no , I'll pay for it. And so she had um , which is also has been a part of the tradition , which is the padrino , which is like a sponsor. And those sponsors can be , um , a financial sponsor , but they can also be an emotional sponsor or a.
S1: Family friend.
S6: Or a spiritual sponsor. Yes. Um , so she , she was able to get a lot of support for , for her daughter's quinceanera in that way.
S1: And so really kind of spreading out , you know , this cost being spread across.
S6: Around different people. And that happens a lot.
S1: And that comes up a lot in , you know , just in this story , just the sense of community , you know , you cover South Bay. You're from San Diego's South Bay. Can you just paint a picture of the setting of , you know , how you came to tell the story and the role , you know , that that area plays in what you're explaining to it? Yeah.
S6: Yeah. Um , thank you for asking the question. Um , the the story it was it was a collaboration between myself and my colleague Riley Arthur , and she actually was the one that pitched the story. She lives in Chula Vista herself and really close to Third Avenue , downtown Chula Vista , where you will find all kinds of businesses that are all about quinceanera. And I was born and raised in Chula Vista , and I'm there all the time myself. And I think we were we were both just naturally curious about all of these different venues. Um , and , and Riley has been one of the leads on the series on the price of San Diego. So I think she was really interested in trying to learn more about how families are making quinceanera happen. And , you know , it's interesting because one of the things that we learned is I was born and raised there , but I never realized how how long some of these businesses have been in the community on Third Avenue. Some of them have been there for years. Um , the one of the venues we interviewed , which was just Java , has been there for 24 years. It's run by the family. Uh , we went to another venue , Factory of Dreams , and they've been there for 14 years. We also interviewed a dress designer , Cinderella Brides. Um , and he's they've been there for. I can't remember the exact number , but I would say at least 15 years , if not longer. Um , so they've really have had a really long time in the community. And I think that just really points to , um , just how being seniors are a really continued valued tradition in the South Bay.
S1: You mentioned the dressmaker you spoke with. His name is Osmar Naranjo. Um , and he's the owner of that Chula Vista Chula Vista business , Cinderella brides , as you mentioned. Uh , we have a little clip. When you spoke to him , here's a little of what he told you.
S8: The dress pretty much embodies her becoming a young woman. The whole the whole point of the quinceanera is to mark that transition. There's a lot of traditions that are being lost , sadly. But if you want to do a traditional quinceanera , you start off the date marking her as still as a young woman. So she's supposed to start the day with flats where , you know what , the headpiece. Something's still marking her as a young , a little girl. And then as the day goes on , you're marking those that transition. So after she gets a blessing from the priest , you put her in her first pair of heels to symbolize her first step into womanhood.
S1: So it's really interesting him breaking down some of the tradition , which I know you've mentioned. Can you talk more about some of the traditions associated with quinceanera , but also how you're seeing them change in some of the ones you visited in the reporting , in the story? Yeah.
S6: Yeah. You know , some of the traditions will the typical tradition. A lot of them have been mostly for young women , and the tradition will include , as Asmaa mentioned , you know , wearing this beautiful ball gown. Um , often they're at a venue. Um , there's going to be friends , family. And then there's the traditional waltz. Um , we went to two quinceanera and something that was interesting there was that the young women they chose for their waltzes , more of a contemporary English song for their waltzes , and not really a European , uh , music piece , or maybe a Spanish language song. So that kind of shows you how the tradition involved evolves a little bit in changing. Um , but also Asmaa himself shared with us that , um , he's noticing that young men are also interested in expressing themselves. And he said that , um , he has seen some , some young men come into his shop and try on dresses , and he believes that that's a reflection of a new generation that is , you know , more accepting of people expressing themselves in different ways. And he was really excited about that , because he also said that he also sees support from the families also. Yeah.
S1: Yeah. And I think there , you know , in your reporting , you are seeing a rise in quinceanera. Quinceanera and expanding that beyond just.
S6: Yes , we we have seen them and and it's but it's not necessarily a new conversation. I mean it's , it has there have been cases over the last few years. Um , even HBO had a documentary where they followed a different stories of people , and one of the stories they followed was a young trans girl also , so that that conversation is ongoing and we didn't look into it as much because we were trying to focus on , you know , living here in San Diego in these economic times and how people are just trying to put on a quinceanera for their families.
S1: Well , again , I just , you know , one thing I really loved about your and Riley's story is just it's a story of dollars and cents , but it kind of really challenged me to think about what's important , where we put our money. You know what I mean? Because at the center of this is , as you mentioned , family , of love , of community , of these , like really important life moments. What did you learn about quinceanera through working on this story?
S6: I've learned so much. You know , there is this ongoing debate about the finances. And , you know , some people want to see feel that the money should be put towards maybe a child's education. Um , but something that I saw from the parents that we spoke with and just in some of the research is that families that choose to do a quinceanera for them , you know , they want to invest in their children they're trying to invest in relationships with the people that they're close to , and they're also using it to have a moment to feel pride in their culture. Um , and you can really see that , you know , it's a rite of passage and you can see that with , you know , across cultures , you know , whether it's a reunion , a graduation , a bar mitzvah. Um , it's universal. Yeah.
S1: Yeah. And it's really important , too. I've been speaking with Maria Elena Castellanos. She's a KPBS South Bay engagement producer. You can find her and Riley story on the price of quinceanera at KPBS San Diego. Mariana , Elena , thanks so much for being here.
S6: Thank you. Andrew.
S1: Coming up in roundtable , we get to know the person behind The Voice you hear on KPBS. Each morning , a conversation with Deb Welsh when we come back. Welcome back to KPBS roundtable. I'm Andrew Bracken. Here's a voice that thousands of San Diegans wake up to.
S9: Each morning I'm Deb Welch. Thanks for listening.
S1: For nearly 15 years , Deb Welch has helped San Diegans get up to speed on the latest news as they get their day started. And tune in to KPBS. But Deb has been informing local audiences for much longer. Her career in San Diego goes all the way back to the early 80s. Well , soon Deb will be stepping away from the microphone for a well-deserved retirement. Next week will sadly be her last here at KPBS. Luckily , though , she's here with us now to reflect on her incredible career. Deb Welch , welcome to roundtable.
S9: Thank you very much. Good to be here.
S1: So how are you feeling? I mean , you're reflecting on your retirement right now. Has it hit you yet?
S9: Uh , I don't think so. Maybe a little bit. I'm excited about it , but I'm also , um. Were a little sad , you know? It's been a long time. I enjoy what I do. I love the job. I love the people. And , uh , so in that regard , yeah , I'm a little sad.
S1: And you've been here a long time. I mean , it makes sense. I think a lot of people know your voice , recognize your voice , but they probably don't know all that it takes to be a morning edition anchor here. I'm wondering if you can walk us through your average day here at KPBS. What it looks like.
S9: Are my average day here. Okay. Well , I thought you were going to start with the five alarms I have to set first.
S1: Well , I want to hear.
S9: About to get here. Yeah. So I can have an average day. Um. It's busy. Come in and read the wires , see what , uh , reporters have left for us to use overnight and , um , go through the runs downs from morning edition and the programming there , and then just try to fill in the blanks.
S1: All right. But let's go back. You mentioned something about five alarm clocks , which just sounds , uh.
S9: It sounds ridiculous , doesn't it?
S1: I mean , we should note for everyone. Your day starts crazy very early. 230 , 230. Each.
S9: Each. Morning.
S1: Morning. So , yeah , walk us through that part of your day.
S9: Well , um , I go from alarm to alarm. I do get up and walk , so I stay awake. Otherwise , I'd be in bed saying Z's.
S1: So you're not exaggerating. It's literally five alarm clocks in different rooms. Like , you know.
S9: It's all in the same room in different intervals. Um.
S1: Have you ever overslept?
S9: Oh , yes , yes , I have. I have , yeah. It's not a good feeling. And the adrenaline rush you get. It's just like , oh my God.
S1: Have you gotten used to that schedule? I mean , waking up 230 is not a normal.
S9: It's not. Well , I don't think you ever get used to it , but in some ways I have. First off , I try not to sleep deep. You know , because that's one way to oversleep. Get comfy , you know , snuggled in. So , yeah , I don't get too comfortable , so I'm sure to wake up.
S1: So with all that waking up early , you're also seeing sort of a different side of San Diego. What kind of perspective does that early shift. Do you think gives you into our community?
S9: Well , you know , surprisingly , when I think about the traffic coming in from from Rancho Bernardo , which is where I live , there is a lot of traffic at 4:00 in the morning. I don't know where all these people are going. I guess they too are going to work , but it always surprises me.
S1: You say you got the journalism bug back in college and you went to college in New Mexico. Tell us about that. I mean , what hooked you about what made you want to do this for as long as you have?
S9: Well , um , I was a junior. I hadn't declared a major yet. it was getting down to the wire. I had to do something , and so it was kind of a matter of elimination. I thought , well , it doesn't have any really big math requirements. I can do the foreign language and I can write. So , um , my advisor appointed to me was the program director of the college radio station. So I had to go meet with him , and fortunately I liked it. I walked into the radio station. I thought , this is this is where I'd like to spend my time.
S1: What was it about radio specifically that kind of hooked you?
S9: Um , I think the immediacy of it , you know , it's it's happening now , and I like that. And and the creative aspect to it as well. And I just , I enjoyed doing it.
S1: And then that brought you to San Diego soon after college.
S9: About a year after college. Yeah.
S1: So what stood out to you? What was San Diego like when you first came here?
S9: It was green and it was busy. A lot of people. I came from a little town of about , I don't know , 130,000 slides of the college town. And , um , there was water , the ocean. It's hard to leave , you know , when you're that close to the ocean. And San Diego is hard to leave. I mean , once you've lived here , it's like , well , where else would I possibly want to live?
S1: And so , yeah , I mean , you arrived here early 80s , right? Early , late.
S9: Late 70s , late 70s. Right.
S1: Right. Okay. But your career in San Diego journalism began kind of early 80s. Yeah. You know , just for you , your career goes much earlier than your morning shift here at KPBS today. What makes a good story , do you think?
S9: Well , it has to be compelling. And by that I mean it kind of hooks you by the ear and relatable , I think. I don't know if you listen to StoryCorps or not. Absolutely.
S1: Absolutely.
S9: But that's that's the kind of thing I think of when I think of good radio or good stories. You know , it's relatable , emotional , and , uh , you sit there and you listen. You actually listen. Yeah.
S1: Yeah. StoryCorps. You really hear the people's voice. It talks all kinds of stories , everyday people. I think for many of us , your voice , again is often one of the first we hear each weekday. How do you think about your relationship with your listeners?
S9: Well , um , I can't see any faces except for a couple who I know for sure are listening. Um , I think , you know , I want to present something that's easily understandable and relatable , too. And I hope answers whatever questions they might have about the story.
S1: I want to talk a little bit more about how you approach your role as a morning anchor. Do you think your style has changed over the years?
S9: Uh , hopefully it's gotten a little better and a little more commanding. Um , I don't I really I don't think it has changed that much. I think there's a maturity to it that wasn't there before , but that just comes with time and age.
S1: You know , for being on the air for as long as you have. I imagine there's probably a fair share of surprising moments , some unpredictable ones. Is anything stick out for you?
S9: Well , um , in terms of news stories or just.
S1: Oh , just surprise. Anything funny behind the scenes?
S9: Yeah , there's a couple of things. Um , one morning , this happened here. Um , it was me in in the room all by myself and the director separated by a glass plate. And I'm reading the news , doing this story , and I hear , well , that doesn't sound good. And I'm looking around and I thought , well , that wasn't Emily over there. Who was that? And it was Siri. Oh.
S1: Oh. Yeah.
S9: Yeah.
S1: On Apple. Yeah.
S9: Yeah. She was commenting on my news story and I thought , oh man , they're listening.
S1: And before we let you go , Deb , I'm wondering if there's , you know , any any words for long time listeners that that you'd like to leave them with today?
S9: Well , I just say whether you're a long time listener or a sometime listener or a first time listener , thank you for listening. Really , we appreciate it. I know KPBS appreciates it , and it is worth a listen here , I think.
S1: Well , I've been speaking with Deb Welch. She is Morning Edition anchor here at KPBS. Her last day will be next Thursday , July 2nd. Deb , congratulations on your retirement. Thank you. Thanks for all your work. And hopefully you can turn off all five of the alarms.
S9: I'm not going to set them. Good. Thank you much.
S1: That'll do it for this week's roundtable. Thanks so much for listening. And to all my guests today. If you have any thoughts on today's show , you can always email us at roundtable at KPBS or leave us a message at (619) 452-0228. Roundtables. Technical producers Brandon Truffaut. The show was produced by Ashley Rush. Brooke Ruth is roundtable senior producer , and I'm your host , Andrew Bracken. Thanks again and have a great weekend.
