This story has been updated. Please see editor’s note below.
The school year has come to a close in Malibu, and while students are out of class and working summer jobs, surfing and traveling with their families, Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD) staff is busy dealing with loose ends on the Malibu High School (MHS) campus, including a search for a new principal and the remediation of PCBs in several areas of MHS and Juan Cabrillo Elementary School (JCES).
PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, were first discovered in soil in the Malibu Middle School quad in 2009. These findings were not made public until October 2013, after several teachers expressed concern that cases of thyroid cancer among staff could have a causal link. PCBs were a common building material in the mid-20th century, but were later discovered to be hazardous.
In a letter that went out to MHS parents on Friday, SMMUSD Superintendent Sandra Lyon described the upcoming remediation efforts at the MHS and JCES campuses, in addition to continuing the regular cleaning of classrooms. There are not immediate plans for additional testing.
Since 2013, many parents have complained that the school board’s handling of the situation has been inadequate, as the District has agreed to test air and wipe samples, but not building materials such as caulk, where PCBs are mostly found. Parents have also complained that the school district is not testing every room, meaning that although PCBs are being removed from some rooms, others that may be contaminated are not being touched.
Malibu mom Beth Lucas, who was forced to pull one child out of Malibu schools in fall of 2014, wrote an open letter to Lyon as a letter to the editor of The Malibu Times this week describing her disappointment with the District’s plan.
“While I commend your plans for remediation this summer … they fall far short of what the SMMUSD should do, which is immediate full source testing tri-school campus-wide (and remediation from those findings),” Lucas writes.
The District also announced it will be replacing all light fixtures in MHS and JCES this summer “in an abundance of caution,” a step which Lucas said may or may not prove effective.
“I think it depends on how much testing they’re going to do of the building materials around the light fixtures, because PCBs leach and migrate into materials,” Lucas told The Malibu Times. “So if the PCBs exist in the surrounding materials, then the new light fixtures will become contaminated too.”
In addition to remediation of PCBs at MHS and JCES, Lyon’s letter also addresses the scramble to fill leadership positions at MHS.
Although they had hoped to scout a new principal by the close of the school year, which ended Friday, June 5, SMMUSD spokesperson Gail Pinsker said the District hopes to find a replacement for Interim Principal Dave Jackson by July 1.
Jackson, who came out of retirement to serve as MHS principal for only one year, will not be returning in the fall —much to the disappointment of MHS students and parents.
“Mr. Jackson restored confidence in Malibu High School … and put the well-being of students above all else,” said Mayor Pro Tem Laura Rosenthal, presenting Jackson with a commendation at Monday night’s City Council meeting.
The meeting drew dozens of students and parents to thank Jackson for his work at the school and wish him well as he goes back into retirement.
Lyon’s Friday letter also explained that the search for a new principal is taking time because the District is looking for a good fit.
“For the principal of Malibu High School, we are looking for an experienced educational leader who will embrace the Malibu parent and student communities, and continue to strengthen partnerships with the City of Malibu and other local agencies,” Lyon wrote to parents.
Lyon’s letter also mentions other positions looking to be filled, including the post of middle school assistant principal that will be vacated by Christopher Regan. Regan recently accepted the post of principal at Lone Hill Middle School in San Dimas.
Editor’s note: A previous version stated that no additional PCB testing will be conducted at MHS. District spokespeople clarify that any further testing will be conducted at the direction of the Environmental Protection Agency.
Additionally, July 1 is the District’s goal and not a deadline for finding Dave Jackson’s replacement.