Letter to the Editor: When Malibu parents fought the school district over toxic classrooms, Oscar de la Torre was always our side.
By Letter to the Editor · Sun Oct 18 2026
Dear Editor, In 2013, teachers and students at Malibu High School started getting sick, and parents like me started asking questions. What we learned was frightening. The caulking in the buildings at Malibu High and Juan Cabrillo Elementary contained extraordinarily high levels of PCBs, cancer-causing chemicals that were banned decades ago. My children, their classmates, and teachers were sitting in those toxic classrooms. Malibu parents asked the SMMUSD School Board to remove the contamination in compliance with federal law. The board chose to hire defense lawyers instead. The district spent tens of millions of dollars on public relations consultants and lawyers. They deemed parents and teachers who raised concerns troublemakers. Eventually, as president of America Unites for Kids, we joined with Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility to take the district to federal court to force SMMUSD to comply with the law and protect our children and teachers.
During those years, we could always count on SMMUSD school board member Oscar de la Torre to stand with us.Others on the school board treated worried parents as opponents. Oscar came to our town halls and spoke out at press conferences, "My position is very clear: We must prioritize the health and safety of our students and staff." He actively and continuously pressed for what Malibu was asking for: PCB removal. He asked the hard questions to his own board about why they were spending copious amounts of public funds on lawyers rather than PCB cleanup. He never backed down.
In September 2016, a federal court ordered the school district to remove the PCBs from the older buildings at Malibu High and Juan Cabrillo by the end of 2019 or stop using the buildings. In ruling on our case, Oscar's public statements weighed in the decision. He told the truth even when others on the school board would not. For years after, Oscar continued asking for up-to-date PCB data in the public progress reports. He did not stop paying attention once the cameras left.
I am writing this today because Oscar is now running for the Santa Monica College Board of Trustees and based on his proven leadership, I know what kind of trustee he will be. He supported the protection of our health and he supported Malibu’s right to self-governance of its public schools. We need representatives like Oscar that will stand with us in Malibu.
SMC is facing serious financial problems. Malibu residents pay the bonds that help build SMC. We need a trustee who will ask hard questions about where the money is going. I watched Oscar ask those questions when the other board members were spending millions on legal fees instead of removing toxicants from classrooms. Oscar is calling for a 2026–30 financial strategic plan to put SMC back on solid ground.
SMC needs a trustee who listens to students, faculty, and staff. Oscar has demonstrated over and over again that he will stand with the people, even when it costs him favor with the establishment in power. Oscar believes SMC needs:
A stronger support services to reduce the dropout rate
a resident retraining program for local workers
housing for students and staff
a campus that welcomes everyone
Oscar has proven himself worthy of our trust. Our community's children deserved better than what the school district gave them. Oscar de la Torre understood that from the beginning. I urge voters to support him for the SMC Board of Trustees in the upcoming election.
Jennifer DeNicola
Parent and President of America Unites for Kids