November 3, 2006

ESUHSD board candidates meet at District 8 Roundtable panel

Three of five show up to air views

By Carol Rosen
Staff Writer

Three of the five candidates for the East Side Union High School District met at a panel hosted by the District 8 Roundtable on Oct. 27 at the Evergreen Valley High School theatre.

Three of the five candidates for the East Side Union High School District met at a panel hosted by the District 8 Roundtable on Oct. 27 at the Evergreen Valley High School theatre to explain their positions on various issues within the district. From left: Rueben Dominguez, Patricia Martinez-Roach, and Frank Beihl. Photo by Carol Rosen

Two incumbents, J. Manuel Herrera and George Shirakawa did not attend. Herrera explained that he had a conflict and would not be attending, while there was no word from Shirakawa, and a place for him remained vacant throughout the panel.

With about 75 to 100 people in attendance, Frank Beihl, Patricia Martinez-Roach and Rueben Dominguez explained their positions on various issues within the district. The three are seeking four seats, three up for election and one that will be vacated when trustee Craig Mann moves to the Santa Clara County Board of Education.

Beihl and Dominguez are newcomers, having served as presidents of their children’s school site councils, with Beihl at Evergreen Valley High and Dominguez at Yerba Buena and Overfelt. Martinez-Roach has served on the board for 12 years.

Religion in class?
Only Beihl approved the teaching of religion in social studies curriculum, but only if the study was done with a balanced approach. In other words, all religions should be taught and teachers should provide information on all of them, especially given the diverse make up of the district’s area.

“I believe in the separation of church and state,” he said.

Martinez-Roach said that such teaching was “not allowed,” while Dominguez said, “it shouldn’t be part of the curriculum, you need to teach other things.”

Budget issues
Turning to the budget, Martinez-Roach noted that she has been vigilant throughout her tenure with the budget, however, “there has been wasteful spending. There were $13 million in change orders during Evergreen High School’s construction. There are ways to save money. For example, the district has far too many copiers. We need to decide how much to spend before we spend it,” she said. “And we need to ensure we ask the right questions.”
Beihl also feels that money has been spent unwiswely.

“We need to make sure we spend every dollar as well as possible,” he said, adding that the board needs to be more cautious toward spending. In the long term, he wants to build “a bridge of trust between the district and the community. The best schools in the county have the best funding at the local level.”

Rapid growth
The district has grown rapidly and it’s too large now, said Beihl, in answer to what can be done to alleviate overcrowding. He suggested that with 25,000 students, the district could be divided allowing more local community representation. “The district feels large and disconnected with the local communities it serves,” he said.

Dominguez agreed, although he favors the district wide concept, breaking into specific areas for representation makes more sense, he said, because there seems to be a disconnect right now between the board and the community.

Martinez-Roach disagreed. She said that so far the district has done well managing the large number of students and that board representation is equitable.

As for the small school concept, Dominguez said that while each school was built for a smaller number of students, as the school population grows, the buildings expand and it turns into a vicious circle.

However, he noted that Overfelt is experimenting with a small school concept in taking a group of students for English, history and math and following them from ninth through twelfth grade.

“We tried the small school concept at Evergreen Valley High School,” said Beihl, “and it was not funded properly. The direction should be toward smaller schools.”

But Martinez-Roach said the school populations dictate the size.

“Each school is unique with different populations, ethnics and cultures, there has been tremendous growth,” she said, “and the board needs to do a better job of assessing space in the community.”

Trustee’s role
Each candidate was then asked to describe what they see as a trustee’s role.

Beihl’s take on the job is to hire a superintendent and establish direction, goals and standards. In addition, the board should plan for the future.

“You hire competent people and you pay them appropriately,” he said. He also concluded that trustees should select a liaison between themselves and the community to determine any problems.

Martinez-Roach has a different take on the job. The board is entrusted with the overall education of students, she said. But she added that recently the board members have “become too relaxed, and that there’s a real disconnect between what is going on at the schools and the trustees.”

Shifting boundaries
The potential shift in boundary limits for the different schools should only be done with the support of the community within that boundary, said Beihl.

“The real test will come after the public hearings,” he said. “If the community doesn’t support [the boundary shifts], then neither should the board.”

Martinez-Roach claims she doesn’t favor changing boundaries, although her bottom line comes with what is best for student safety.

“Some students are crossing the freeway to get to school. That compromises their safety and should not be done,” she said. “The district hasn’t done a good job of publicizing the community meetings and of making people aware of the planning and budgetary decisions that went into this particular idea.”

However, Dominguez said he is not happy with what he sees. “The district hasn’t made any sense during the boundary meetings. To take students who live right across the street from Mt. Pleasant High School and send them miles away to Overfelt doesn’t make any sense,” he said.

Necessary services
The final questions to the candidates dealt with what services the schools need most and their approach to working with others and dealing with conflicts.

Both Beihl and Dominguez were quick to mention safe schools and safety on the campuses. Beihl added that he saw the need to raise academic standards for all students as well as creating an atmosphere in which people can work and do their jobs.

“My sense is that people reach up to the level of their environment,” he said.

Martinez-Roach wants to see parents’ continuing involvement.

“It’s a diverse economy, but we need to get all the parents involved,” she said. In addition, she suggests that board members do a better job of meeting with students and the superintendent to bring new ideas to the table.

As for conflict resolution on the board, Martinez-Roach suggested that officers rotate on a yearly basis and that the group take mandatory retreats.

“The board will become more cohesive by respecting each others points of view,” she said.

Dominguez said it is important to talk through problems and show a willingness to work with people.

Three words exemplify a good board member, said Beihl, and those are “passionate, polite and respectful. A board member needs to be a good listener, to follow board members and communicate clearly with them as well as mobilize and serve the community.”