By Paula Lloyd and Lewis Griswold / The Fresno Bee

Valley police agencies won millions of dollars in federal grants Tuesday to hire — or at least keep — scores of officers.

The money comes from the U.S. Department of Justice Community Oriented Policing Services program. Nationwide, $1 billion in “COPS” money is being handed out. California’s share is more than $211 million.

By Andy Boogaard / The Fresno Bee

Sean Silva, a Bee All-Star pitcher/outfielder from Clovis West High, has signed a letter of intent to play baseball for UNLV.

Petite Fleur Designs & Company (www.petitefleurdesigns.com), a creator of elegant handcrafted boutique hair bows, headbands, flower hair clips, baby and toddler hats, girl’s shirts and baby sets that started in Clovis back in 2004, is proud to announce that its baby layette line is now available in Von Maur, an upscale specialty department store chain with 24 locations in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa,

Win a set of 4 tickets plus a parking pass to see the Fresno Grizzlies take on the Colorado Springs Sky Sox on Friday, July 31, 2009. Attendees can also enjoy post-game fireworks.

Clovis West Senior Alex Tavlian was one of 23 high school journalists to complete the 58th Annual California Scholastic Press Association Workshop. The Workshop took place July 12-24, 2009 on the campus of the California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.

New commandments for federal employees. If you’re skedding a conference: Pick a travel hub. Make it low cost. And avoid resorts.

So, the Wall Street Journal reports, to avoid any potential appearance of having fun, some federal agencies are telling staff NOT to go to Reno, Las Vegas or Orlando –”unless you can provide robust justification.”