Ashiah Scharaga, Author at Chico News & Review

University enrollment down

Dipping to the lowest level in at least 20 years, fall enrollment at Chico State was 13,850 at the start of the semester. In the past two decades, the university’s enrollment has ranged between 15,500 […]

Off to the (council) races

With four of the seven Chico City Council district seats up for grabs in the Nov. 8 election—each with a conservative and a progressive candidate—there is potential for a shift in the balance of the […]

A place to heal

Aaron Singer and Jess Mercer both have experienced homelessness—Mercer lived out of a hotel as a teen, Singer out of his car about a decade ago. During these times, each turned to local community recreational […]

Foundation of compassion

Over the 40 years that Cindy Lares has been with Sunseri Construction, she’s hard-pressed to recall a grand opening that she’s missed. Without a doubt, resident speeches are her favorite part. Since Sunseri was founded […]

Community strong

Darlene Lightcap wrapped her arms around her husband, Mark, and smiled as she looked at the tapestry depicting the ashen rubble of their former home. The Lightcaps lost everything they owned in the Camp Fire, […]

Covered in stardust

Hurricane Fran was born between the racks at the Thrifty Bargain. Lulu Fatale was kind of an accident. Ryan Rulet came alive in a spirited living room dance. And if you ask Starlett Eve’s parents, […]

Drier and dire

Domestic well users will be hit the hardest as Northern California continues to suffer from severe-to-extreme drought conditions in 2022. That is one of the key takeaways from a Drought Impact and Analysis Study being […]

Sound of transformation

This feature is part of the Chico News & Review’s 2022 Arts & Music special issue. When Chloe Brandii is pissed off, she’ll either kick the hell out of a sparring bag or write a […]

‘Antidote to hopelessness’

When Katie Worth began working on her book about climate change education in America, she did not anticipate ending up back in her hometown of Chico. But shortly after the deadly 2018 Camp Fire, she […]

Sound of community

It was a sight to behold: dozens of customers with their trucks and vans loading up all of the tools for making music—keyboards and large amplifiers, down to each drumstick and music-lesson book—to help their […]

Better together

This feature is part of a CN&R special report: Entrepreneurs 2022: Reinvention. The orange building at 1710 Park Avenue has undergone quite a transformation since 2020—it’s now a one-stop-shop art gallery, coffee shop and native […]

Visual storyteller

This feature is part of a CN&R special report: Entrepreneurs 2022: Reinvention. COVID-19—and the controversy around masking—inspired Nicole Coffield to create a collage, an image of a 1960s couple sharing beers and pizza while masked […]

‘Not alone’

Sometimes lost in the conversation about COVID-19 infections and ICU capacities is the impact the pandemic has had on our collective mental health. For this special Health Issue, the CN&R reports on the help that […]

Done deal?

According to Butte County Supervisor Debra Lucero, the board majority’s final decision on a new district map was both predictable and illegal. “What this board has done is draw lines according to political purposes,” Lucero […]

Then there were three

After another long, contentious meeting, the Butte County Board of Supervisors decided to move forward with three draft district maps on Tuesday (Dec. 6). They’ll be considered at next week’s meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 14, […]

Chico News & Review

Articles by Ashiah Scharaga