May 25, 2004

LETTERS2theEDITOR

“Hey, hey, ho, ho—where did all the money go?”

Editor,
I believe that parents and students need to become more involved in learning about the upcoming decisions of the ESUHSD school board. This conclusion comes from my recent involvement in the California School Employees Association (CSEA) march on May 13.

As an Evergreen resident who attends Andrew Hill (AH) High School, I have the best of both worlds. I live in one of the most beautiful and diverse areas in the Silicon Valley and go to a school where the faculty and students are tremendously close knit and support each other in whatever decisions they make.

With this in mind, I was not surprised that the majority of the students who attended the “march on the ESUHSD school board” were from Andrew Hill.

The march was organized by the CSEA Union, which represented the career technicians and librarians who have received lay off notices. Flyers about the march were given to each of the12 district schools.

AH students were outraged that Mr. Jones (a career technician) was not coming back next year. They then learned about the march and quickly recruited other students to join them. Seniors Betty Tran and Rosa Nguyen encouraged their peers to become more politically active and support Mr. Jones. AH clubs such as CSF (California Scholarship Federation), Interact and Red Cross also encouraged their members to go.

When I drove up to the Target on McKee Road on the day of the march, I was pleased to see so many AH students gathering and holding signs. I also saw a mass of dark blue shirts, given freely by the union organizers.

By 6 p.m., all the protestors, myself included, entered the district office to attend the monthly board meeting. The room was completely filled as I walked in. Not one chair was empty, and students flooded every other available space. After 10 minutes, I was called up to speak.

In the beginning of my speech, I thanked Mr. Jones for being such a great help to Andrew Hill students, and then moved on to say that I was angry that the school board would even consider eliminating career tech and librarian positions, how they “only see the monetary benefits but do not consider the social costs.”

I then looked at Dr. Zendejas and told her that she received a $400,000 loan from the school district at a 2 percent interest rate and now wants to fill the void she helped create by eliminating vital positions. I also mentioned that certain school board members made irresponsible financial decisions in the past and were also trying to fill the void they helped create.

“If jobs must be eliminated or salaries reduced, eliminate or reduce the ones that do not directly influence the students,” was all I could get in before my three-minute time limit was up. If I had more time, I would have urged the board to reduce the salaries of district administrators, some of whom make $90,000+ a year.

Thankfully, on Friday the school district sent an e-mail stating that “career technicians and librarians were back on the budget and cuts would be taken from administrative areas.” The minute I heard the news, I began jumping up and down and screaming.

For once in my life I did not feel the typical adolescent urge to believe that “my actions do not matter.” The student effort at the march, the majority of them from Andrew Hill HS, had helped change the minds of the school board and helped preserve the career tech and librarian jobs in the 12 district schools.

Though the battle is won, the war is far from over. The ESUHSD will need to go make more cuts before the budget can be balanced, but deciding exactly what will be cut is very important. Eliminating as many low-level positions as possible should not be a solution.

If future decisions are made that have negative effects, more blame should fall on the ESUHSD parents and students who are not willing to become informed and active. We have let the district’s money become squandered from poor leadership, irresponsible decision making, and greed. Now is the time to become involved and fight for education to try and save whatever is left.

Rosanna Mannan
Senior at Andrew Hill High School

Evergreen resident learns what to do about doggie doo-doo

Editor,
I live in the Evergreen area, and it is heaven to walk a dog in this area. However, many dog walkers don’t clean up their dog’s excrement.

I can’t imagine accidentally stepping on those giant excrements. I would probably throw my shoes away. The flies and the smell are really bad and it is a hazard to the environment. The dog’s excrement could carry disease and worms.

I kept wondering, what could I do about it? Should I provide plastic bags for the dog owner? Keep hoping San Jose will have a Pooper Scooper Law someday? Put “clean up” signs on Mosher Drive? Get Neighborhood Watch to catch the irresponsible dog owner? Wouldn’t that be cool if cops could use DNA testing to determine which dog left what where? Hee-hee, this is going a bit too far.

I called the city of San Jose Customer Service Call Center, and here is how they responded:
“There is a city ordinance that requires dog owners to pick up after their dogs when they are walking them out in public places. If you know anyone who is not picking up after their dogs, you may report them to Animal & Care Services at (408) 654-5875.

If you don’t know who is doing it but may know around what time the people usually walk their dogs, you can still call 654-5875 and they will send an animal patrol officer out to monitor the specific area where the problem is occurring.
San Jose’s ordinance can be found on the Web site: http://www.amlegal.com/sanjose_ca/. Type the word “animals” into the search box. When the list of ordinances comes up, look under Title 7.”

Then I found more reasons, at the Web sites, to clean up after your dogs: http://www.dcr.state.va.us/sw/scooper.htm or http://www.bwsc.org/community/education/scoop.htm.

- Dog waste cannot be used as fertilizer. Never place dog waste near a tree or in soil—the bacteria in the waste does more harm than good and it also can end up in a local waterway.

- Storm-water carries pet waste and other pollutants directly into waterways. Animal waste adds nitrogen to the water. Excess nitrogen depletes the water’s oxygen, which is necessary for healthy underwater grasses, wildlife and fish.

- Animal waste may contain harmful organisms such as Giardia, Salmonella and E. coli that can be transmitted to humans and other animals by ingesting contaminated water.

- Roundworms and hookworms deposited by infected animals can live in the soil for a long time and be transmitted to other animals and humans.

Barbara Liao
Evergreen resident

The city of San Jose Call Center will assist you with city service questions or concerns (408) 277-4000.

Common dress will hurt student performance

Editor,
As a student, the ability to express myself and stand out from the crowd is one that I have always taken for granted. However, recently, the matter of common dress has been brought up, and I find myself appreciating each individual’s sense of style and individuality.

I believe that in a society in which many strive to be a part of the herd, to be conventional, the way we dress is one of the few things that acts as a distinguisher. The way I dress is unique and unlike other teenage girls; it motivates me to think differently and act differently.

The way we dress, believe it or not, plays a huge factor in the way we feel. If, on one day, I was dressed comfortably and felt at ease, I would be more motivated to try in school and volunteer in class.

And perhaps on another day, I would dress in an exotic outfit, in which I wore neon colors; that outfit would motivate me to think differently, and the comments I give in class would therefore be different from what I would normally state. The way we dress not only affects our attitudes, but it gives us a sense of individuality that we all strive to obtain.

If we were to have a common dress policy pressed upon us, the performance rate of our school would plunge steeply. I believe if we were all dressed the same, our ability to think as individuals would cease to exist.

If teachers and administrations are aiming to teach a herd of students all thinking conventionally, and have students NOT question the rationality of things, then common dress is the answer.

But as we all know, as humans, our ability to question others makes up the very core of our society. Common dress would only hurt, not enhance, the performance of students.

Jane Nguyen, sophomore,
Evergreen Valley High School

The positive impact of common dress

Editor,
I support Dr. Esperanza Zendejas’s proposal to have common dress across the 11 schools in the East Side Union High School District. Common dress does have its advantages. If common dress is passed in the district, there will be a larger sense of unity and equality among ESUHSD students.

Common dress increased attendance at Andrew Hill High School from 87.9 percent (1995-1996) to 94.5 percent (1999-2000). Since students must wear similar-colored clothes under the common dress code, on-campus gang-related fights have decreased.

Since common dress strictly regulates what students may and may not wear, more attention is focused on learning rather than fashion. With students wearing similar clothes, a more positive, unified learning environment is formed.
If common dress were enforced, I would definitely see a positive impact on my school. The amount of gang-related fights would be reduced, the attendance rate would increase, unity and equality would result, and there would be a more positive learning environment.

Michelle Nguyen, sophomore
Evergreen Valley High School