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One step up
Oscar Mondragon is one of those Malibu residents who is seemingly everywhere … from promoting Malibu Labor Exchange workers, working with local schools and civic organizations to judging the annual pie festival at the Malibu Country Mart.
Even with all that, Mondragon is now busy with a new project. Every Friday evening, he meets in a small office in St. Clement’s Catholic Church in Santa Monica with 14 immigrants from Mexico and Central and South America. His goal is to help them fulfill their dreams of building a business.
Mondragon, 53, is helping to organize and operate the Always Ready Co-operative, Inc. (ARC), a small business that supplies home services that include housecleaning, gardening and general maintenance. Co-op workers provide services to private homes and small businesses in the West Los Angeles and coast cities areas. The workers actually own the business with a policy of one person/one vote. “It’s a small company,” says Mondragon. “All the workers have a say in how it’s run and a responsibility for how it’s run.”
Twelve St. Clement’s parishioners came up with the basic idea of the co-op in 1998, with the help of St. Clement’s priest, the Rev. Juan Romero. Romero has known Mondragon since 1973, when Mondragon served as a board member of the United Farm Workers with Caesar Chavez. “I’ve known him for a long time,” says Romero. “With his expertise, his background in labor and his altruistic spirit, I thought he would be excellent. I was hoping he would get the members started but he did much more than that. He has continued with them.”
Mondragon, who has been with the Labor Exchange since it was formed in 1993, takes no salary from ARC.
Of the co-op, Mondragon says, “It would be difficult for many of the members to start a business on their own. But, after some discussions, it became clear that, by pooling financial resources, education and experience, creating their own home services enterprise was a reality.” Mondragon says the co-op can expand to accommodate any number of members.
Mondragon describes ARC as a step beyond the Labor Exchange, which serves as a hiring site for skilled and unskilled workers. The Labor Exchange is a nonprofit organization while ARC is a limited liability corporation. It is small, but the goal is to earn a profit. “They [workers] cannot expect to be given [work],” Mondragon says. “They must produce or they cannot compete.”
Unlike the Labor Exchange, once the co-op is up and running, the workers will have benefits that include health insurance, disability coverage and workman’s compensation.
“Here, at the Labor Exchange, if people get sick, tough luck,” says Mondragon. “There, if there are profits, you can do something about it.”
Mondragon says this will protect employers as well as workers since many employers don’t have workman’s compensation to cover the workers they hire.
Each of the current members brings 5 to 10 years of experience to the table, which they apply to all aspects of the business. They take part in long-term planning; they determine operational policy and carry out job requests.
ARC office coordinator Beverley Zamarripa says, as far as gender goes, membership is evenly divided.
“We have some very strong female leaders here,” says Zamarripa. “People assume that, coming from a Latino background, these women may be quiet and deferential to men. But these women are not afraid to speak their minds and voice their opinions. No one is overshadowed.”
Without a large budget, word of mouth and printed flyers do much of the advertising. “There is not much ad money,” says Sinesio Flores, vice president of the ARC board. “I talk to friends and I’m making flyers.”
Flores says the first batch of flyers will target Malibu homeowners during the current brush-clearing season.
Mondragon and Flores say friends and other clients have referred most of the clients they have served so far. “More jobs are coming in but we have to do a lot of training and goal setting, and learning how to work together as a group,” says Mondragon.
“This co-op will help families socially, economically and culturally.”
City Council adopts new home occupation standards
Given that the City Council met on Tuesday night, too late for this week’s publication deadline, specifics about the council’s decision on the items listed below will be reported on in next week’s issue.
- One year after the controversial home occupation rules that currently exist in Malibu were loudly disputed at City Council meetings by residents who thought they were too restrictive, a revised set of home office regulations came back to council for approval on Tuesday.
“We debated it extensively last July and this is just the ordinance resulting from that debate,” said Councilmember Tom Hasse in an interview before the meeting.
The home office ordinance was under fire because it was thought to be too cumbersome for businesses, and residents organized in an effort to request that the rules be relaxed. The rules prohibited employees or even occasional customers in a home office setting, which addressed such professions as lawyers, CPAs, psychiatrists, therapists, Web designers, writers, editors, artists, designers and others.
Last summer, a code enforcement task force was set up to review current code enforcement methods, including enforcement on home businesses. The task force deciphered the interim zoning code in an attempt to suggest simplified rules that would be easier to comply with and enforce. The Planning Commission unanimously agreed to amend the zoning text as proposed by staff.
Ordinance No. 222, which revises home office criteria, is in front of the City Council awaiting approval.
Among other things, home businesses that employ less than six employees, or home-based educational facilities that serve six students or less at a time, will be able to operate without a permit.
- In other matters, the City Council listened to public comments on a Local Coastal Plan that was revised by Interim City Manager Christi Hogin, based on a document that was drafted by an advisory committee over a six-year period.
The California Coastal Act requires that each local government within the coastal zone, prepare a local coastal plan. But Malibu has not created an LCP in a timely manner and the state assigned the California Coastal Commission to draft one for the city.
Last week, in an effort to keep the coastal plan local, Malibu officials went to Sacramento to ask several legislators to intervene, hoping to get a favorable response that would allow the city drafted LCP, which is now being finalized, to be certified by the state.
Once the city’s LCP is certified, Malibu will be able to issue coastal development permits and the Coastal Commission will only consider appeals from certain types of projects.
- Council discussed the possibility of authorizing the city manager to hire an environmental consultant who would prepare an Environmental Impact Report for the La Paz office and retail project in the Civic Center area.
- Council also discussed a $15 million parks and open land bond measure, focusing on the process and clarifying what steps need to be taken so that the measure can go onto the November ballot.
- Discussions on the Civic Center guidelines, a comprehensive set of design guidelines for public spaces and private projects in the Civic Center area, and a proposed budget for the fiscal year 2001-2002 totaling $19.5 million were continued because Mayor Pro Tem Jeff Jennings was not present at Tuesday’s meeting.
- Council reviewed a professional services agreement with Hatch and Parent, the law firm that has provided legal services for the city over the past year but was recently terminated in favor of Interim City Manager Christi Hogin’s law firm, Jenkins and Hogin, which will take over the job as of June 2001.
If the council approves the professional services agreement with Hatch and Parent, drafted under the substantially same terms as the city’s current agreement, present City Attorney Steven Amerikaner will be able to continue to serve as special counsel to the city when necessary.
- Council reviewed a claim for damages filed by Malibu La Costa Owners Association. Staff recommended that the council deny the claim, which was filed against the city alleging that the city was negligent and bears responsibility for property damage.
In a letter to council, Frank Thomas, treasurer for Malibu La Costa Owners Association, said that a grading permit issued in 1999, allowing a builder to place a mobile home in the street over a storm drain, caused uncontrolled flooding and erosion, thereby damaging property owned by the association. Total damages were estimated at $13,290.
The associations requested the city pay for the damages and take appropriate action to prevent a repetition of the occurrence, but the claims management company hired by the city suggested the city reject the claim.
- In closed session the council reviewed a proposed contract and hired Katie Lichtig as assistant city manager.
‘Sober graduation saves lives’
When a teenager is handed a high school diploma, the future is bright and full of promise. It is exciting not only for the graduate but also for his or her family and friends as well. It is also the time of year for graduation events.
Unfortunately, however, all too often graduation festivities bring with them an alarming increase in teen deaths due to drunk or drug-impaired driving. The magnitude of the tragedy of losing young lives senselessly due to drunk driving is overwhelming.
I was pleased to support a resolution designating May 31 to June 30 as “Sober Graduation Month” in California. This formal designation affirms the importance of protecting our children from alcohol and drug-related accidents and encourages schools and community organizations to sponsor alcohol- and drug-free events where young people can safely celebrate graduation.
Please keep in mind that not only is it illegal for persons under 21 years of age to possess or use alcohol, but that adults can be held responsible for any minor’s injury caused by the minor’s use of alcohol in the adult’s residence.
Sober graduation saves lives. I urge parents, schools, law enforcement, and businesses and community leaders in my district to do whatever is in their power to have students celebrate safely and to make June a month free of alcohol- or drug-related motor vehicle deaths or injuries.
Fran Pavley
Assemblymember, 41st District
Council selects assistant city manager
Katie Lichtig, currently serving as Santa Monica’s assistant to the city manager for management services, was selected by the council to be the assistant city manager at Tuesday night’s City Council closed session meeting.
If all goes as planned, Lichtig will later become city manager, replacing Christi Hogin, who is currently the interim city manager.
After a council-appointed subcommittee, with the help of former Malibu City Manager Ray Taylor, reviewed 47 resumes from potential applicants and made recommendations narrowing a first round of interviews with four candidates down to two, Lichtig came out as a clear winner.
As a result, the City Council reviewed and approved a contract proposal with Lichtig Tuesday night and she will begin her work in Malibu on June 11.
“She is wonderful, bright, enthusiastic, and community minded,” said Hogin. “She is process oriented and I think she will be a great match.”
Lichtig will become acting city manager immediately upon her appointment. The process, while a little unusual, will give council an opportunity to know her before they make a final commitment, said Hogin.
After a series of trial and error situations in the past, and hoping to avoid any more changes in the near future, the city developed a process specifically tailored to give the council and the potential city manager an opportunity to know each other, explained Hogin. Sort of like an engagement before marriage, hoping that the relationship will work out.
But on the surface, Lichtig’s professional abilities appear to be a clear match.
Lichtig worked in Santa Monica for a little over nine years and started her career in public service about 17 years ago.
Lichtig already has relationships with representatives of this area, said Hogin, aware that her position with the City of Santa Monica has given a head start to the chosen applicant.
Working for Santa Monica, Lichtig was responsible for a variety of things related to internal operations of the city. These included the administration of the city’s capital improvement budget, the coordination of earthquake recovery, emergency preparedness and managing the city council agenda and the policy documents relating to that.
Lichtig also worked on the implementation of the city’s performance measurement program.
Before coming to Santa Monica, Lichtig worked with the federal government. She started as a presidential management intern, a highly regarded competitive program for 200 people entering the federal government service.
She was then assigned to the Federal Office of Management Budget and she ended her federal career with the department of education as a special agent conducting criminal and civil investigations.
Lichtig received her bachelor’s degree in political science from UC Davis and went on to earn her masters in public administration from the University of Syracuse in New York.
Lichtig is well acquainted with the region; she grew up on the West Side and currently lives in Marina Del Rey with her husband of 15 years.
She said she decided to apply for the post of assistant city manager in Malibu because there are many challenges facing the city and from a professional perspective, she thought she could assist the community.
“I hope to meet the needs and expectations of the public,” said Lichtig.
“I just think that the community is going to find her to be very confident and interested in achieving the community’s goals,” said Hogin.
The prez is coming to town.
The president is coming to California, his first visit since his election and he’s going to meet with our governor, Gray Davis. They’re going to put their heads together and try and figure out how we solve California’s energy problems. That, at least, is the party line that both sides are putting out. And if you believe that, I have a bridge to sell you.
Reality, however, is something significantly different.
California is a solidly Democratic state. The governor, both U.S. senators, the congressional delegation and both houses of the state Legislature are Democratic, and, in the last election, Al Gore killed George Bush.
That was the status quo until the energy crisis came along. After a period of time, when the people of California held their breath to try and decide who was responsible, they appear to have concluded that Gov. Davis is not too impressive and his popularity has begun to sink. Most recently, polls show that L.A.’s mayor, Richard Riordan, who is not yet even a declared candidate for governor, is only one point behind Davis in the polls, which in political terms is a disaster for an incumbent. Worse yet, Davis’ negatives are higher in the polls than his positives, and the Republicans, at least the national Republicans, are beginning to smell blood in the water.
Davis has always been a cautious, not very dynamic politico, and distinctly risk adverse. He never moves until he’s ready and until his coffers are full. His greatest strength was not that people loved him; it was that no one hated him. He was always blandly acceptable and safe.
In good times that was more than enough. But it’s becoming clear that these may not be such good times, and as a potential war time leader for an economic war, Davis appears to be a pale, bloodless overly cautious individual who has been unable to articulate the problem clearly, and is fearful of telling us that we’re going to have to bite the bullet if we’re going to solve the energy shortage. He’s also made some clumsy moves. Initially, he said he would not approve a rate hike, which was an absurd position to take, and one he ultimately had to abandon which didn’t do much for his credibility.
That’s not to say that life is fair. Davis did not create this crisis. It was created by former Gov. Pete Wilson, a bipartisan action of the Legislature, the environmentalists and the utilities that managed to get deregulation all wrong and ultimately got themselves eaten by a bunch of barracudas out of Texas. Those are the same barracudas that control federal energy policy and have no intention of doing anything but sucking up every dollar they can out of us.
Even though Davis didn’t create this situation he has been singularly unimpressive in his inability to fix it because, I suspect, we all know we need a “war time Don” and he certainly isn’t it.
On the other side of the coin, the national Republicans are playing a bit of a dangerous game because California makes up 12 percent or 13 percent of the U.S. economy. If the Republicans overplay their hand and the biggest richest state in the Union plunges into recession, the rest of the country is probably not far behind. If that happens, they will take the blame.
Local California Republicans are also in a dilemma, because what’s good for their party nationally most probably is not good for their state. So Bush is going to be getting pressure from the California Republicans who want him to help their state and their districts. I suspect in the period ahead their loyalty is going to be sorely tried and many may have to choose between state and party.
In the meantime, about the only thing we can be sure of is that gas at the pump is going up, electricity is going to be scarcer and more expensive, the California economy is going to take a nasty hit, and we’re all going to be very angry.
Natural preserve dedicated finally
More than four years after a heated dispute developed between the City of Malibu and the California Coastal Commission over the Point Dume headlands, the two agencies came together Friday morning at the dedication of the Point Dume Natural Preserve.
The Coastal Commission and the city were once at loggerheads “in a costly legal struggle” over the city’s alleged violations of the Coastal Act of 1972, which resulted in diminished public access to the Point Dume coastal area.
As part of the costal access improvement, the City of Malibu will fund the “Nature Bus,” a shuttle, which will be available daily to transport residents and visitors from Westward Beach to the Pointe Dume Natural Preserve free of charge.
The cost to operate the bus per year, for the first two years, is $50,000, according to city officials. At the end of two years, the contract to operate the bus is to be renegotiated, which may or may not result in higher costs.
The total cost of the designated work at the Point Dume Natural Preserve and adjacent area is approximately $200,000, according to city officials. The California Coastal Commission, State Parks and the City of Malibu jointly funded the project. The California Coastal Commission’s approximate contribution is $100,000, while State Parks contributed approximately $50,000 to the effort.
A Point Dume resident celebrated the revitalized preserve Friday, noting that protected land secures the tranquil site from being purchased by developers, while another resident bemoaned the installation of a shuttle bus in particular, fearing it will bring in “more transient traffic to the community.”
Rusty Areias, director of California Parks and Recreation, praised the community, the City of Malibu, the California Coastal Commission and the work of State Parks for their “passion and for answering our call to resolve these issues” before a crowd of community residents, participating concerns and local government.
In 1997 the City of Malibu received a cease-and-desist order from the California Coastal Commission directing it “to remove all parking restrictions, signs and boulders, and to restore the shoulder along Cliffside Drive’s south side between Birdview Avenue and Dume Drive, adjacent to the Point Dume Preserve.” The order reportedly ended when the city and the commission agreed to work together to provide public access improvements to Cliffside Drive and the bordering preserve.
Areias, who mediated the settlement agreement between the city and the Coastal Commission, added, “We had some spirited conversations and meetings, traded a lot of ideas and concerns, but in the end, we were successful and we achieved our goals.”
Sara Wan, chair of the Coastal Commission, acknowledged Areias’ vision in bringing the City of Malibu and the commission together stating, “Each of us compromised a little bit. In the end, the public, the residents of this area and the citizens of this state are the big winners.”
Specific improvements to enhance the preserve and provide better public access now include 10 parking spaces, restoration of preserve vegetation, boulder removal, the installation of a decomposed granite walking path now surrounded by a new boundary fence, and the implementation of the shuttle.
It is hoped that the shuttle will reduce traffic in addition in providing access to the preserve.
As to the commission’s views on monies allocated to this project, Wan said, “State money is spent to purchase property like this to keep it maintained and to restore it. We cannot expect the state to expend funds without giving the public an opportunity to use that land. Public access and coastal protection go hand-in-hand. If you don’t have the money set aside for coastal protection, you wind up with an area like this being developed. I don’t think anyone here wants to see that happen.”
The Point Dume Natural Preserve is designated a state historic landmark by State Parks.
The area is also said to contain a significant Chumash Indian site and, accordingly, Alan Salazar, of the Malibu Native America Cultural Resources Advisory Committee, conducted a Chumash blessing.
Areias reported that California State Parks has assigned Craig Sap, a State Parks lifeguard, to work at the Natural Preserve full-time, whom he said, “has already developed a team of 63 volunteers who have begun caring for the preserve by working on trail improvements and native plant restoration.”
The Nature Bus will operate seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. during the summer, shuttling from Westward Beach to the Point Dume Preserve, and is scheduled to run 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. weekends and holidays during the fall and winter.
Malibu’s richest
The past year may have been a bust for many mere mortals, but for most of the 50 richest moguls of Los Angeles County, it was a year of bounty. Together, their net worth at the end of last year was $75 billion, nearly 20 percent higher than the year before.
Eleven of the county’s richest are Malibu residents, or at least own residential property here. Their total net worth was reported as slightly more than $22 billion.
The figures come from an annual survey conducted by the Los Angeles Business Journal.
Tops among Malibu’s wealthy was Eli Broad, second only to Kirk Kerkorian in the county as a whole. Broad’s net worth was reported as $6.5 billion, up more than 18 percent from the year before. Broad founded the extremely successful residential development company Kaufman & Broad, now KB Home, as well as financial services giant SunAmerica, Inc. Broad is also highly active in civic affairs and philanthropy. In 1999, the Eli & Edythe L. Broad Foundation donated $100 million for education programs.
Other billionaire Malibu homeowners on the top 50 roster are:
- David Geffen, $3.3 billion (4). Founding partner of DreamWorks SKG, with Stephen Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg. Started show business career in the mailroom of the Philip Morris Agency. Founded Asylum Records in 1970, sold it to Warner Communications, Inc. and became vice chairman of Warner Bros. Pictures. Founded Geffen records in 1980, sold it to MCA in 1994.
- Jerrold Perenchio, $2.8 billion (5). Rose from family vineyards in Fresno to Hollywood talent agency MCA and to Embassy Communications with Norman Lear, which they sold to Coca Cola for $485 million. Now chairman and controlling shareholder of giant Univision, the nation’s largest Spanish-language TV network and principal owner of the Malibu Bay Company, Malibu’s largest landowner.
- Stephen Spielberg, $2.2 billion (8). One of the first of modern Hollywood’s young director phenoms. Youngest ever to be signed to a long-term contract with a major studio. Studied film at California State University, Long Beach in 1969. Directed first movie, “The Sugarland Express,” in 1974. Best picture and best director Oscars for “Schindler’s List.”
- Haim Saban, $1.5 billion (12). First time on the billionaire’s list. Created children’s TV programs based on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Owns 49.5 percent of Fox Family Worldwide network.
- Donald Sterling, $1.3 billion (14). Owner of the Malibu Beach Club, the Beverly Comstock Hotel, the Los Angeles Clippers basketball team, and many apartment buildings in Beverly Hills.
- Bradley Wayne Hughes, $1.2 billion (20). Owns one-third of Public Storage, a company he founded in 1972.
- Arnon Milchan, $1.1 billion (22). Early success in Israel with family fertilizer business and later as an arms dealer in Israel. Turned to film and stage production in France. Movies included “The King of Comedy,” “Brazil,” and “Once Upon a Time in America.”
Other Malibuites who made the county’s top 50 list, but who missed the billion-dollar mark are:
- Jeffrey Katzenberg, $890 million (29). President of Paramount Pictures at age 31, joined childhood friend Michael Eisner at Disney as head of studio division, became DreamWorks SKG partner after breaking with Eisner, who passed him over for the number two spot at Disney.
- Marcy Carsey, $660 million (42). Only woman among the top 50. Started as a tour guide at NBC in New York, came to Hollywood with husband, John Carsey, a writer for Rowan & Martin’s “Laugh-In.” Went to ABC as vice president for prime-time programming, but left when ABC rejected her idea for a sitcom with Bill Cosby. Huge success with “The Cosby Show” at NBC, produced by Carsey-Werner Productions.
- Michael Eisner, $585 million (47). One of the few net losers on the list, down 17.4 percent from last year. Head of Walt Disney Co. since 1984. Came up through the ranks of ABC Entertainment and Paramount Pictures, where he oversaw “Saturday Night Fever,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” and “Beverly Hills Cop.” Loss in net worth caused by 25 percent slump in Disney stock last year.
The one-year rise in net worth for most of these wealthiest of Malibu denizens helps account for the fact that income for the top one-third of households in Malibu was more than $150,000 last year, 10 times the percentage for California as a whole. According to figures published recently by the City of Malibu, the average income of all the city’s 6,704 households as of last March was $149,795.
Actor Joe Mantegna turns activist for autism
There is a terrible fear that all parents harbor before the birth of their child: What if my baby is handicapped, disfigured, or limited in some way? Will I be able to handle it? Do I want to handle it?
For Joe Mantegna, gifted and successful actor, that fear became a reality when his daughter was born 14 years ago with autism. He and his wife were placed in a daunting and terrifying position, raising their child with a mental disability. Mantegna said they felt very alone.
“There is not a lot of [information] out there,” he said. “It’s not out in the mainstream so that people know about it and know how to deal with it.”
Achievable Foundation, a fundraising arm for H.O.M.E, an organization set up to assist people with autism to lead independent lives, approached Mantegna to host its golf tournament fundraiser on May 7 at the Malibu Country Club.
Organizers may have known that he was father to a child born with autism; they may have known he had previously lent his name to several fundraising events; but there is no way they knew the compassion and energy he would bring along with his clubs to the course.
He was all over the place, talking with other celebrities about the Dodgers, joking with fat-wallet-golfers about the hazards he expected to drop in and doing interviews with journalists. He shifted gears seamlessly, the way he does in the movies.
For Mantegna, a Tony and two-time Emmy award winner, it was less about “celebrity responsibility,” the supposed debt that a famous name owes to society, less about his personal relationship to autism, and more about the problem itself.
“I don’t do this for, you know, the personal side of it,” he said. “It’s gotta be done. There is this hole, and if I can add to the solution by coming to play golf, or making phone calls, putting my name on whatever, then, great, that’s what I’m here for.”
But Mantegna is resolved to the truth that there is currently no cure for autism and probably no way to prevent the disease. He understands that and still finds hope.
“For my daughter, who will never see the end of this thing, the scientists working on all this [research for cures] aren’t going to help. It is about finding for her an independent life, getting her into the mainstream so that she can live just fine when I’m gone.”
Bob Steiner, a board member for both Achievable and H.O.M.E. organizations, and also a father to a child born with autism, agreed with Mantegna.
“It is the mainstream that we’re going for here with this event, and those like it,” said Steiner. ” We’re trying to get these kids to a place where they can function in society as independent people. And organizations like H.O.M.E. are the best avenues toward that.”
The pragmatic approach Mantegna and Steiner are championing is also a hopeful one, a theory that takes into account the harsh realities of any handicap and the limits one must live with under those circumstances.
Mantegna, subtly highlighting his own personal ties with autism, pushed this point throughout his conversation: “It would be so great to get the information into the mainstream, of course, with opportunity for help,” he said. “But especially the information, so that people know that there is some help that exists, so that they know they’re not alone.”
Steiner said that he hoped Achievable could raise upwards of $60,000 and noted, “There is no absolute goal we’re shooting for. And there is no ceiling on what we would like.”
The ceiling disappeared at $85,000 in donations to spread the word about autism.
School district readies strategic plan to deal with fiscal abilities
While the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD) faces budget shortfalls on many fronts, including increased utility costs, over-budgeted construction due to escalating building costs and inadequate state funding, the school board attempts to prepare a strategic plan as they simultaneously tackle current fiscal dilemmas.
Art Cohen, assistant superintendent of business and finance, said the board would begin to address fiscal issues when they meet tonight.
“A lot of things are still up in the air,” said Cohen. State funding has remained consistent, but not enough to help the schools, he said.
To prevent fiscal problems in the coming years, the SMMUSD school board has decided to work on a long-term strategic plan that will connect the needs and priorities of the school district with its financial ability to accomplish those goals.
“It’s a transition time,” said school board member Mike Jordan, who hopes to work on plans for the district.
In the past the district developed goals, mission statements and the like. “A strategic plan,” said Jordan, “is something the district has never done before.” The district will need to start from scratch and figure out what an excellent public education system looks like from the foundation on, he said.
One of the board’s priorities is to stop the cycle of having budget shortfalls every year, said Jordan. “That’s a big endeavor.”
In a memo to the board, newly hired superintendent John Deasy said, “I am fully prepared to lead the community through a rigorous strategic planning process and deliver a living and working document, which will serve as our strategic plan within the first seven months of my administration.”
Though he is still in Rhode Island district, Deasy is getting acquainted with the district’s issues in an effort to be prepared when he takes over as superintendent in July.
In his memo, Deasy urged the board to postpone discussion of the strategic plan process until he can join them on May 30.
But despite the challenges, Deasy said he is particularly pleased with what he has seen so far. “The depth of involvement from parents is exciting and encouraging,” he said.
The most pressing issue, said Deasy, is the fiscal issue.
“The strategic plan will help the district three to five years down the road,” said Deasy. But the district still needs to work on reducing the fiscal deficit in the meantime.
Though it’s fairly generic in nature, the approach of the plan will help the district understand and identify the needs of the schools and connect them with the community and businesses.
As for the funding, Jordan said, “Once we develop our priorities then we can match the funding and resources with the priorities of the strategic plan, putting budgeting in sync with the goal we’ll have set for ourselves.”
The board realizes they have to pick priorities. “You can’t be everything to everybody,” said Jordan.
“That doesn’t mean we are not going to try to expand and fund programs,” he continued, “but first we need to identify what is most important to us — then we will update it every year.”
Part of the process will include the academic plan. The board wants to align the curriculum and instructional materials with state standards. This is important because it enables students to learn what they need to, and to do well on exit exams, said Jordan. It’s a process and that means instructional materials also have to be adequate.
The board also has to investigate all fundraising avenues, such as at the ballot box, through public and private partnerships, grants from foundations and through a joint operating agreement with Malibu and Santa Monica.
“With ongoing dialogues we’re trying to set a foundation to open up possibilities,” said Jordan.
Tonight’s school board meeting will take place at the district offices from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Another meeting is scheduled for May 30, with Deasy attending.