Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District Board of Education candidates cover issues ranging from waste in district spending to promoting early literacy to the relevance of charter schools to the district.
By Jonathan Friedman / Assistant Editor
The five candidates for four seats on the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District Board of Education shared their views in a forum last Tuesday in Santa Monica. There was little disagreement among the participants at the forum, which was hosted by the Santa Monica League of Women Voters, and was mostly focused on issues relevant to the Santa Monica schools.
On the issue of school equity, incumbent Oscar de la Torre called the SMMUSD “a leader in the nation.”
Two years ago, the district created what it calls the Equity Fund policy, which requires 15 percent of all donations made to a particular school be placed into a fund. The money in that fund is then distributed to all the district’s schools, with more being given to certain schools based on a formula that takes socioeconomic standing, student populations and education abilities into consideration.
De la Torre compared the issue of equity in the school district to feeding two children, one who lives in a home full of food and the other living in a home with no food.
“You can’t split the bread 50-50, you have to find a way to bring a little bit more resources to the young man who has nothing at home,” de la Torre said. “We need to put the resources where they are needed most to have the biggest impact on our society.”
Fellow incumbent Emily Bloomfield took a strong stance against the relevance of charter schools in the district. There are currently no charter schools in the SMMUSD, although attempts have been made to transform Santa Monica Alternative School House, or SMASH, into one.
“At this time I don’t see any role for charter schools in our system,” Bloomfield said. “There are a number of constraints of making them viable… we have excellent schools here that do serve the needs of many of our children. That is not to say that we can’t offer alternative options for students.”
On the issue of prioritizing district spending, incumbent Shane McLoud said he believed there was some waste in the district, although he said the limited amount of time he had to speak at the forum prevented him from going into specifics.
“We have some inefficiency in our district,” McLoud said. “We have some programs that could be run better. We have some policies where we don’t always put the best person at the best job. It’s not a matter of how much money [the district has], it’s how we spend that money.”
Kelly McMahon Pye, an education activist and former newspaper sales executive, said she is concerned the school district is “not doing enough to promote early literacy, and is weak on elementary school intervention.” She said the district needs to hire more reading specialists.
“We need to intervene early and often, and this will pay handsome dividends as our children move up through school,” Pye said.
Barry Snell, a single parent of three children in the district who is a certified public accountant, also spoke at the forum on various issues, including the need for the district to ensure a rigorous education for its students.
Snell’s candidacy became controversial last month when it was revealed in the Santa Monica media that he is on probation with the California State Board of Accountancy. Because he had not kept up with continuing education requirements, Snell’s license expired earlier in 2000. And in 2001 he was placed on a three-year probation. Snell was also ordered to pay a $2,500 fine for the violation, and the check to the state bounced. He was later placed on an additional three-year probation because, according to the Board of Accountancy Web site, “While on probation, Mr. Snell violated the terms of his probation in that he failed to obey all federal, state, and local laws, including those rules relating to the practice of public accountancy in California. He also failed to maintain an active license and failed to make scheduled cost reimbursement payments.”
Snell said in an interview this week that there are continuing education requirements to keep a CPA license, and it was an oversight that he was not up to date with that. He added that he did not knowingly sign a bad check, and blamed that on his moving offices at the time, and the check came from the wrong account.
Snell’s fines, which included an additional $3,500 to pay for the state’s investigation and prosecution costs, have since been paid. He has also not had any further disciplinary issues, and continues to practice. He is on probation until December of next year.
“The situation is something that I regret having happened,” Snell said. “But I am now a CPA in good standing and I have all my education requirements.”
Snell’s situation has not affected his endorsements. He has support from Santa Monicans for Renters’ Rights, or SMRR, and the Santa Monica education activist group, Community for Excellent Public Schools, or CEPS.
SMRR has also endorsed de la Torre, Bloomfield and Pye. CEPS’ additional endorsements include Bloomfield and Pye.
Several of the candidates have received endorsements from various Santa Monica organizations and individuals from Malibu and Santa Monica. This Wednesday, the Malibu Democratic Club is meeting to make its endorsements for this race and the one for four seats on the Santa Monica College District Board of Trustees. The meeting takes place at 7 p.m. at the Point Dume Clubhouse, located at 29500 Heathercliff Road.