School board to address special education issue, budget Thursday
At its meeting on Thursday, the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District Board of Education will vote on a reorganization of the district’s central office as the first step in its response to the Lou Barber & Associates’ review of the district’s special education program. The reorganization proposal comes before the board at its first meeting since the controversial resignation of Deputy Superintendent Tim Walker.
The plan, outlined by Superintendent Dianne Talarico in the meeting agenda, calls for the elimination of the deputy superintendent position, with there simply being two assistant superintendents and the chief academic officers working directly under the superintendent.
Also, Talarico has called for a full moratorium on confidentiality clauses in settlement agreements on individual education plans, or IEPs, for students; the use of mediators when necessary to decide disputes between the district and parents on IEPs; and the use of an external monitor to provide quarterly progress reports regarding the implementation of the district’s “comprehensive three- to five-year plan” to change the district’s special education program.
Talarico wrote that the three- to five-year plan is in development.
Developing a plan is in response to the Lou Barber report, a document that praised some features of the SMMUSD’s special education program, but also blasted various elements, including what it considered the excessive use of confidentiality clauses. The report has been applauded by many in Santa Monica, but was called into question by many Malibu parents, who say it excluded positive comments made by them in interviews and ignored positive things about the district’s program.
Also on the agenda is a review of the budget for the upcoming fiscal year, a vote on changes to the district’s Equity Fund and a proposal to end the requirement for the Pledge of Allegiance in the classroom. There will also be a discussion in response to the recent arrest of a Lincoln Middle School teacher on charges of child molestation. For more on that issue, see the story on page A1.
The meeting will take place at Santa Monica City Hall, located at 1685 Main St. It begins at 5:30 p.m. The agenda can be accessed online at www.smmusd.org.
Chamber removes school musical sign
A sign at the corner of Webb Way and Pacific Coast Highway advertising the Malibu High School Theatre Department’s upcoming presentation of “Urinetown-The Musical” has been the cause of controversy between the Malibu Chamber of Commerce and the school.
Late last week, the chamber, which is in charge of the various signs displayed at the street corner, took down the advertisement. Pam Eilerson, a Malibu High parent in charge of promoting the musical, said she was told by a chamber official the sign was removed because several complaints were made about the advertisement. However, two days later, the sign was back up. Eilerson said this was because approximately 26 Malibu High parents called the chamber office asking for it to be restored.
“I was absolutely shocked,” said Eilerson regarding the sign being taken down. “This is Malibu. I don’t know when we moved to Kansas.”
Chamber CEO Rebekah Evans declined to comment on the issue.
“Urinetown” is a Tony Award-winning satirical musical first performed on Off-Broadway in 2001. It pokes fun at small town politics and capitalism. The MHS performance will take place May 29-31 at 7 p.m. and June 1 at 1:30 p.m. Tickets are $15 for students and seniors and $20 for adults. They can be purchased in advance at malibuhigh.smmusd.org. More information can be obtained by calling 310.457.6801.
Culver City suspects in Corral Fire to be arraigned this week
Eric Matthew Ullman and Dean Allen Lavorante, the Culver City teens charged in connection with the November Corral Fire, are scheduled to be arraigned in Van Nuys Superior Court on Friday. They have appeared in court twice, but the arraignment has been delayed both times because their lawyers have asked for extensions so they can go through the large amount of written evidence.
The other three suspects charged with causing the fire-city of Los Angeles residents Brian Alan Anderson, William Thomas Coppock, and Brian David Franks-pleaded not guilty in December. They are scheduled to return to court on June 10 for a preliminary hearing to determine if there is enough evidence for a trial.
The five suspects are charged with felony counts of recklessly causing a fire with great bodily injury and recklessly causing a fire to an inhabited structure. The District Attorney’s Office says the blaze was started “during and within an area of a state of emergency,” which would require a mandatory state prison sentence if the suspects were convicted. Attorneys for Coppock and Franks have said they do not believe there was a state of emergency in effect when the fire began.
The Corral Fire burned 4,900 acres and destroyed 86 structures, 53 of them homes. Also, 37 vehicles and a mobile home were destroyed. Another 45 structures, including 33 homes, were damaged. Six firefighters were injured, including one who received second-degree burns to the face.
City response to environ-mental suit due this week
The city of Malibu must submit a response to U.S. Federal District Court Judge Howard Matz by Wednesday of this week regarding a lawsuit filed by the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Santa Monica BayKeeper. The suit, which was filed in March, accuses the city of continuously violating rules added to the federal Clean Water Act in 1991 that set limits on the amount of pollutants that can enter the watershed through storm water runoff. The county has also been sued by the environmental groups for the alleged violations
The environmental groups claim the city and county are not doing enough to curtail the pollution. City officials have said the construction of the storm water treatment facility in the Civic Center area and the Legacy Park project are evidence they are looking to solve the problem.
“We’re sorry the lawsuit’s there, and to some extent it is a waste of money to do litigation activities that are unrelated to water quality when we are spending a bulk of the city’s resources toward developing a clean water program,” City Attorney Christi Hogin said earlier this month. “But if we have to, we’ll re-allocate our resources and just litigate.”
An article on the city’s response can be found online at www.malibutimes.com later this week.
Angels step forward to green Malibu
Kelsey and Camille Grammer, and Victoria Principal have recently contributed $50,000 each toward the Malibu Green Machine’s beautification project on Pacific Coast Highway. The $1.5 million median enhancement venture starts at Cross Creek Bridge and extends 1.4 miles to Malibu Canyon Road.
“This recent $100,000 donation comes at a perfect time,” said Jo Giese, president and founder of Green Machine. “We’re submitting design/engineering plans to Caltrans now for final approval, and we’re starting construction Sept. 25.”
Fundraising Chair Steve Soboroff who, along with the Green family, contributed the first $100,000 to jump-start the design process, said, “It’s crunch time. We’ve achieved what money cannot buy-approvals and permits. Now we’re down to what money can buy.”
To begin construction on schedule, Soboroff is encouraging other angels to step forward to help raise the final $700,000.
“We’re on the five-yard line, and we just need a few more angels to help us kick this across to the goal,” Soboroff said.
Malibu residents for 10 years, the Grammers have been following this community project since it began two years ago. Kelsey Grammer said, “There is one common thread in every conversation: Malibu could use a little face lift when it comes to PCH.” He added that his family’s gift is a direct challenge to other civic-minded individuals to step forward. “Hopefully more of our locals will feel inclined to match what Victoria and Camille and I have done.”
Principal, a longtime Malibu resident, has been a conscientious green gardener since the 1970s, using drip systems, and other environmentally friendly techniques.
“Malibu is my home, and this planet is my home,” she said. “The Indians have a saying, ‘You don’t own the land, the planet, you borrow it.’ It is your obligation to return it in the condition you borrowed it. This is my opportunity to return the planet in better shape.”
With the assistance of Malibu Country Mart owner Michael Koss, the GreenMachine is also launching a business-to-business campaign, urging every business that is part of the Malibu family to contribute now to make Pacific Coast Highway safer, more environmentally friendly and more beautiful.
The business-to-business campaign stresses that a landscaped highway is good for business because it creates an enhanced “entrance experience” to the business district.
Alexander Leff has offered the Malibu Pier for a ground-breaking party on Sept. 27 to celebrate the GreenMachine’s beginning work on the highway. Tommy Funderburk, a local music producer, is organizing the music for the party, which will honor and acknowledge donors and feature live music and dancing on the pier.
For more information or to contribute, go to www.MalibuGreenMachine.org.
-Jonathan Friedman