YONKERS, N.Y., Sept. 13, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The Consumer Reports Index , an overall measure of Americans’ personal financial health, found that Americans reported a sharp rise in financial difficulties and a weaker view of their overall financial health in the past 30 days. The Consumer Reports Index’s trouble tracker climbed to 46.0 in August from 34.7 the prior month. [...]

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 12, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — On average, Americans have more than $225,000 in debt and less than $500 in emergency savings, according to a new GoBankingRates.com investigation. GoBankingRates.com examined the average American — coined ‘Mary Smith’ — in terms of earnings, savings, and credit card, student loan, auto loan, and mortgage debt. “While every individual is unique, Mary Smith is our ‘prototype’ of [...]

FRESNO – Fresno County Farm Bureau and ValleyPBS have announced the debut of ‘Valley’s Gold,’ a weekly series that will present a behind-the-scenes look at the economic engine that drives our region, agriculture. The show will premiere Wednesday, Sept. 18 at 7 p.m. only on ValleyPBS. The program will re-broadcast each weekend on Saturday at 6:30 [...]

ALEXANDRIA, Va., Sept. 11, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Consumers are more pessimistic about the economy than they have been all year – and gas prices may not be the primary cause. For the first time this year, consumer pessimism increased over a 30-day period when gas prices fell. More than three in five consumers (61%) say that they [...]

TULARE – The International Agri-Center will host its annual golf tournament on Friday, September 27, at the Tulare Golf Course. The event benefits AgVentures!, an agricultural learning center which hosts thousands of visitors each year-including many local schools and community groups. “AgVentures! is an important part of the International Agri-Center, and we ask for the [...]

FRESNO – Fresno City Council President Blong Xiong has officially announced the launch of his campaign for Fresno County Supervisor, District 1, and will file papers at noon today as he launches his June 2014 campaign. District 1 includes Fresno’s West Side and the towns of Kerman. Firebaugh, Mendota and San Joaquin.  Xiong was first [...]

VISALIA – On May 25, 2013 the Leadership Visalia class of 2013 organized Fingerprint Visalia, an event in conjunction with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s 2013 Take 25 Campaign. More than 1,800 communities hosted unique events as part of the National Missing Children’s Day this year. Leadership Visalia received a letter of [...]

WASHINGTON, Sept. 10, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ – Growth in women’s share of science, technology, engineering and mathematics occupations – commonly referred to as STEM jobs – has slowed since the 1990s, according to a U.S. Census Bureau report released today. Women’s employment in STEM has slowed because their share in computer occupations declined to 27 percent in 2011 after [...]

FRESNO – Fresno County Farm Bureau, The Big Fresno Fair and Friends of the Fair, the Fair’s non-profit organization, are proud to announce that Fresno County schools can now register for the ninth annual Farm & Nutrition Day, which invites all third graders from throughout Fresno County to the Fresno Fairgrounds on Friday, March 21, [...]

WASHINGTON, Sept. 9, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — More than a third of all primary-school age children around the world still cannot read or write, whether they attend school or not. The good news: Save the Children’s new report shows that teaching children early on how to read not only in school but also through activities outside the classroom [...]

FRESNO – The official announcement of the $15.9 million dollars from the U.S. Department of Transportation to bring vehicular traffic back to the Fulton Mall occurred at a celebration on the mall today. The project on Fulton Mall is just one of 52 across the country to receive a piece of a total of $474 [...]

FRESNO – Fresno State received four new patents for cultivated varieties of cactus plants that can be grown in areas of the Valley with high selenium levels and limited access to quality water. The patents are co-owned by the university, Red Rock Ranch and the United States Department of Agriculture. “Developing new salt- and boron-tolerant [...]

NEW YORK, Sept. 6, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – Someone light the candles! California, our nation’s 31st state, celebrates its 164th birthday next Monday. Clearly many Americans think its best years are still ahead of it – when asked where, excluding their current state, they would most like to live, The Golden State is at the top of the list; fellow oceanfront states Hawaii (2) [...]

FRESNO – The U.S. Department of Transportation is reporting that the City of Fresno will be the recipient of $15,924,620 that could open the downtown area’s Fulton Mall back up to traffic. The project on Fulton Mall is just one of 52 across the country to receive a piece of a total of $474 million [...]

FRESNO – Congressman Devin Nunes will be speaking at the Fresno Chamber of Commerce’s next Eggs & Issues Breakfast this Friday.  Attendees are encouraged to come to the event prepared with questions about key Valley issues.  The program is scheduled to begin at 7:30 a.m. at the University Square Hotel. At the event, Congressman Nunes [...]

WESTLAKE, Texas, Sept. 5, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – A new study from the Deloitte University Leadership Center for Inclusion and law professor Kenji Yoshino indicates widespread instances of “covering,” the process by which individuals downplay their differences relative to mainstream perceptions, in ways costly to their productivity and sense of self at work.  Three out of four (75 percent) research participants [...]

FRESNO – A large pipe near the Gottschalks building in downtown Fresno’s Fulton Mall has ruptured, causing an area of the Fulton Mall to be closed this morning. The mall’s eastern section north of Inyo Street was the area shut down.  The leak was supposedly caused when workers accidentally damaged a small gas line while [...]

IRVINE, Calif., Sept. 4, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – CoreLogic® (NYSE: CLGX), a leading residential property information, analytics and services provider, today released its July CoreLogic Home Price Index (HPI®) report. Home prices nationwide, including distressed sales, increased 12.4 percent on a year-over-year basis in July 2013 compared to July 2012. This change represents the 17th consecutive monthly year-over-year increase in home prices nationally. On [...]

FRESNO — Starting today, SCORE and SBA is launching the five class “Simple Steps” program in Spanish to teach aspiring Hispanic entrepreneurs how to start a business.  Bilingual SCORE counselors will train the Valley’s Spanish speaking future business owners how to write business plans, develop a cash flow strategy, market and finance their ventures. “After [...]

FRESNO – The medical field is constantly changing and so is the need for medical education. Community Medical Centers’ partners at Wells Fargo Bank met this need by again showing their support with a $100,000 commitment toward employees’ education at Community. “We both share the same vision and value in investing, supporting and understanding the [...]