Three Malibu candidates who lost their bids for open seats on the Board of Education last week said this is just the beginning of a battle for stronger Malibu representation in the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District. They also hope the board will spell out a clear Malibu inclusion in delegating funds from the newly passed school bond Measure ES.
“I think the election has changed our relationship with the school board,” said Craig Foster, one of the Malibu candidates. “They’re now clear that people in Malibu are going to take the school situation very seriously and that they need to be paying more attention to Malibu’s needs.”
Foster, Karen Farrer and Seth Jacobson ran for three open Board of Ed seats against three Santa Monica incumbents—Ben Allen, Jose Escarce and Maria Leon-Vazquez.
Farrer won the popular vote in Malibu with 2,578 votes, followed by Foster and Jacobson. But Allen, Escarce and Leon-Vazquez won the overall vote, respectively, between Santa Monica and Malibu. Foster came in fourth overall with 13,312 votes, 139 behind the third-place Escarce.
The result continued a lack of Malibu representation on the Board of Education. Kathy Wisnicki, the last Malibu resident to serve on the school board, chose not to run for reelection in 2008. Santa Monica residents Escarce and Leon- Vazquez have sat on the board for 12 years and Allen first won a seat in the 2008 election.
The Malibu candidates chose not to run separate campaigns, instead running on a districtwide reform platform. They have been constant advocates of Malibu separating from SMMUSD to form its own school district, which will not change with their loss.
“This is just the first step of many options we’re looking at,” Jacobson said. “We’re going to put our energy into continuing the effort for separation. We’re going to look at other options including the bi-trustee election option, which would include electing board members in specific districts.”
During the campaign season, Allen and Escarce said they were open to the idea of Malibu’s separation. Leon-Vazquez was the sole candidate who opposed it.
“There hasn’t been any factual arguments really made within Malibu to say that we have been unfair and the children of Malibu have not fared well under the direction of the combined school district of Santa Monica-Malibu,” Leon- Vazquez said during a candidates forum in September.
Some believe the passage of the local $385-million school bond Measure ES might also signify a turning point for Malibu’s role in the district. Measure ES passed with 68 percent approval on Nov. 6.
When district staff first presented the idea of placing a bond measure on the local ballot, the Malibu community was skeptical about the bond’s intended use.
The district has stressed the need for renovations at several Santa Monica schools, especially to the 100-year-old campus at Santa Monica High School. However, when key Malibu activists such as Jacobson and Foster spoke out asking that Malibu be allotted at least 20 percent of the bond money, Supt. Sandra Lyon eventually agreed to form a super site committee.
Malibu schools are guaranteed at least $77 million from the bond, and the district has promised the site committee will have the right to approve and revise any facilities plans set forth by the district for Malibu schools.
School board member Ralph Mechur was the only board member who voted against placing ES on the local ballot because he had concerns over the little time the district had to review the measure before submitting it to the L.A. County Clerk’s office in August. He went on to campaign for the measure during election season.
“I’m looking forward to the formation of the Malibu super committee and their review of how best to allocate the funds and start the work,” Mechur said.
The success of Measure ES will lighten the load on the district’s coffers. Officials plan to use the cash to bring much needed safety requirements like fire sprinklers to the campus at Santa Monica High, and purchase new technologies to assist in the next generation of standardized testing recently adopted statewide.
Ashley Archibald contributed to this report.
