The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD) continues to inch its way toward an official bid for district separation and the creation of a Malibu Unified School District, despite new stumbling blocks that threatened to derail years of work done by Malibu-based nonprofit Advocates for Malibu Public Schools (AMPS).
During its meeting on Thursday, Nov. 19, the SMMUSD Board of Education determined district separation was a distinct possibility, despite a new report from the Financial Oversight Committee (FOC) that no longer supported separation based on financial concerns for the new Santa Monica Unified School District.
Though AMPS has secured what it claims is well over the required number of signatures to submit an official bid for separation and Malibu City Council has approved its own petition, the groups have not charged ahead of the SMMUSD Board of Education, instead opting to coordinate efforts with district officials.
“I’m convinced that we need to separate. However … the financial aspect is a really important point for me,” Board Member Maria Leon-Vazquez said.
FOC Chair Joan Krenik presented information to the board, stating that changes — largely due to property values in Malibu—that came from the State of California could leave Santa Monica students out of millions of dollars they could have enjoyed if they had stayed in the unified district.
“Given the change in state funding formulas … the FOC agreed unanimously that separation would have a significant negative impact,” Krenik told the board Thursday.
Separating would not result in a loss of funds, rather the loss of opportunity for an increase in funds.
The projected increase in money that could be heading to Santa Monica students in the SMMUSD would amount to a projected $3.8 million in the 2016-17 school year and $4.5 million in the 2017-18 school year. This money would not be available to an independent Santa Monica district.
FOC Committee Member Debbie Mulvaney put it more succinctly.
“For the question: ‘are both districts better off as independent districts?’ The answer, unfortunately, is, ‘no,’” Mulvaney told the board.
How exactly finances would be negotiated is just one of many unsolved questions the board will seek to answer when the item next appears on an agenda, which could be as soon as Dec. 10. On Thursday, the conversation was marked a “discussion item,” meaning no action was permitted to be taken. However, the words of many of the board members—all of whom were present at the meeting with the exception of Board Member Ralph Mechur—were in support of an eventual bid for separation.
“The community’s resolve for unification in Malibu is strong, and I don’t think it’s ever been stronger,” said Vice Chair Dr. Jose Escarce.
About 35 members of the public came to speak on the item, which lasted until almost midnight Thursday evening. About 30 of those who spoke logged support for the creation of a new Malibu district. Four of those were members of the Malibu City Council.
The arguments fell down the line of a need for democratic autonomy in Malibu versus a need for cash in Santa Monica.
“It’s not neutral. It’s Malibu’s democratic needs — Malibu’s need for local control — as opposed to Malibu’s property taxes that meet needs for Santa Monica,” said School Board Member and Malibu resident Craig Foster.
“Are you looking for alimony?” Malibu citizen Ryan Embree asked board members during public comment.
Leon-Vazquez nodded her head in agreement at the remark, later returning to that rhetoric in her own statements.
“This is like a divorce, and the negotiation is going to be financial,” Leon-Vazquez said.