Beyond the Blackboard

Maddox, err, Lopez, is Back ...

As some commenters have noted, Ken Maddox is back in the public eye, sort of.

The former Capistrano Unified School District Trustee, removed from office in a 2010 recall, is posting on the Aliso Viejo Patch web site, but using the name Ken Lopez.

You might remember he added Lopez to his name while a trustee.

So far, he's blogged in support of the school's decision to allow the expansion of Oxford Prep Academy Charter School, and about adopting dogs.

Patch uses volunteer columnists. Maddox identifies himself as a "policy analyst" but does not say anything about for whom, or his past public service. The state Board of Equalization website still has his name as Ken Lopez Maddox as a senior advisor for tax and legislative policy.

I've heard he might be planning a run for Aliso Viejo City Council.

Here's his columns:

On OPA

On adopted dogs

 

Also on Tonight's Capistrano Unified Agenda

Capistrano Unified School District has released updated drafts of adjusted trustee area boundaries, which will be reviewed and discussed at the Board of Trustees’ meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012.

The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. in the Board Room at the CUSD Education Center, 33122 Valle Road, San Juan Capistrano.

The drafts, drawn by National Demographics Corporation, can be found at http://bit.ly/zT8p5U.

The trustee area boundary adjustment is a process that occurs once every decade after data from the U.S. Census is updated. In addition, voters approved Measure H in November 2010 that changed the method of electing members of the Board to a “by trustee area” election process. This requires Board members to live in a particular Trustee area, and be elected by voters living within that area. The election scheduled for Nov. 6, 2012, will utilize the new method of election.

The latest drafts have been drawn using criteria approved by the Board of Trustees at its Nov. 14 meeting and refined during its discussions on Dec. 12, 2011, and Jan. 9, 2012.

Members of the public who wish to provide feedback on the draft plans can attend one of the meetings, send their input to [email protected], or mail comments to the Capistrano Unified School District Board of Trustees, 33122 Valle Road, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675.

A final decision is expected to be made on Jan. 25 or Feb. 13.

Fireworks Monday at Capo Unified School District Meeting

A spat erupted between Capistrano Unified School District trustees on Monday, with the board majority accusing two colleagues of trying to shut down the school district.

Trustees were considering staff’s request to borrow $30 million in tax revenue anticipation notes, which have become common tools for school cash-strapped school districts. The TRANs provide money now and are repaid with the tax money provided by the state in the next fiscal year.

But Trustees Ellen Addonizio and Sue Palazzo pointed out the district already has one TRANs loan outstanding, and that this was the first time CUSD issued a TRANs that went across two fiscal years.

Addonizio wanted more of an update on the district's finances, including a special meeting, before voting on the item. Superintendent Joe Farley responded he believed district staff had well briefed trustees on the state of the district.

The trustees, reading prepared statements, also accused the other board members of getting the district into financial trouble by restoring furlough days and other cuts to teachers in 2010.

That issue has been hashed over again and again—a resident even filed an unsuccessful lawsuit to stop it—and trustees let Addonizio and Palazzo know they felt it was time to move on.

“I am offended that it is continually brought up,” Trustee Anna Bryson snapped at the pair. Ironically, Bryson was elected as an ally of the two. The other trustees also voiced their displeasure, especially when staff told the trustees refusing to act on the TRANs Monday would ultimately leave the district without cash to pay its employees and other bills.

“Why don’t you just make the motion you want—to shut down the district,” Trustee Lynne Hatton asked the pair.

Trustee Gary Pritchard added that he couldn't even wrap his head around what Addonizio and Palazzo were trying to accomplish, but labeled the effort "ludicrious."

Trustee John Alpay accused the pair of stumping for the November election, when he, Brick, Pritchard and Palazzo face re-election.

It was business czar Ron Lebs' last meeting, too. He was the one handling the issue. "You're going to miss us, aren't you," Alpay asked.

The motion to start work on the TRANs passed 4-2, with Jack Brick absent. Trustees next meet January 25.

I'll get some audio up when I can...

Capistrano Releases Potential Trustee District Maps

Many, many sentences in the reports stress these are only a starting point, but the Capistrano Unified School District has posted maps of potential new voting areas for the district's seven trustees.

The five scenarios look at trustee areas that mirror high-school attendance areas, elementary attendance areas, city boundaries and other criteria.

They also identify whether they'll create an open seat up for grabs in the next election, or pit two existing trustees against each other.

The work was required because of the 2010 Census, which shows 343,291 people in the CUSD boundaries, 17 percent Hispanic.

And remember, with the passage of Measure H, voters will only cast ballots for one trustee -- the one from their area.

The public hearings on this kick off Monday night.

Here's the maps:

Download CUSD District Maps

Here is the district news release:

Public Hearing, Board Discussion Scheduled for Monday, Dec. 12

 

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO—Capistrano Unified School District has released preliminary drafts of adjusted trustee area boundaries, which will be reviewed and discussed at the Board of Trustees’ meeting on Monday, Dec. 12.

            The five drafts, drawn by National Demographics Corporation, are considered a starting point that will stimulate discussion, ideas, and direction for the consultant to develop a final plan for approval. The maps can be found at http://bit.ly/uALe24 (pdf).

            The trustee area boundary adjustment is a process that occurs once every decade after data from the U.S. Census is updated. In addition, voters approved Measure H in November 2010 that changed the method of electing members of the Board to a “by trustee area” election process. This requires Board members to live in a particular Trustee area, and be elected by voters living within that area. The election scheduled for Nov. 6, 2012, will utilize the new method of election.

            While the drafts have been drawn using criteria approved by the Board of Trustees at its Nov. 14 meeting, the plans are not final or exclusive. Considerable revision is likely and different parts of the plans can be melded into one final proposal.

Plan A boundaries are drawn using the least amount of change and are relatively compact; Plan B relies heavily on city borders; Plan C is drawn taking into account elementary school attendance areas; Plan D is based on high school attendance area boundaries; and Plan E is drawn using city boundaries and high school attendance areas as guidelines.

The plans will be brought back to public meetings for review and discussion on Jan. 9 and Jan. 25, 2012. The final plans are scheduled to be adopted at a Board of Trustees’ meeting on either Jan. 25 or Feb. 13, 2012.

Members of the public who wish to provide feedback on the draft plans can attend one of the meetings, send their input to [email protected], or mail comments to the Capistrano Unified School District Board of Trustees, 33122 Valle Road, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675.

District Attorney Says No Brown Action Violations at Capo Unified, but Calls Atmosphere 'Toxic'

The District Attorney's Office has issued a report that clears Capistrano Unified School District is innocent of any Brown Act violations during the saga of restoring some of the cuts made to teachers' contracts last year.

The DA earlier issued a report saying there was a violation, but Capistrano Unified officials protested, and the DA's Office agreed to reconsider. This time, after interviewing all of the trustees, the DA says some things might have looked like violations of the state's public meeting law, but actually weren't.

The 26-page report painstakingly, and in some cases painfully, goes over the meetings, discussions and debates leading up to the restoration, through the public meeting held after the restoration to reaffirm the decision.

The report says two trustees -- presumably Ellen Addonizio and Sue Palazzo -- complained to the DA about the potential Brown Act violations, as did a resident. That would have been Jim Reardon, who sued the district over the issue but ultimately dropped it when the case was gutted by a judge.

While saying there were no violations, the DA doesn't go so far as to say all is well in CUSD. The report notes trustees could still use additional Brown Act training, and that closed sessions should be recorded.

And then there's this:

"The Superintendent feared that a public discussion of the restoration of hte furlough days and pay cuts would potentially intimidate the new Board into reneging on the contract, resulting more labor strife. There was a desire to avoid such contention and to restore calm in the wake of last year's labor dispute and the charged political atmosphere of the recall.

"While such feelings are certainly understandable, it bears noting that democracy, with limited exception, does not contemplate elected officials making decisions behind closed doors to avoid public paritcipation with its potential for loud opposition. It may be natural human nature to wish to avoid such unpleasantness, but democratically elected governments demand public officials of sterner stuff."

It gets stronger on page 25:

"The OCDA's investigation also revealed what can be described as a seemingly toxic atmosphere within the halls of CUSD. Evidence revealed examples of condescension or disdain for other Board  members or dissenting members of the public. Meaninful discussion was replaced by facetious motions and political theater. Accusations and recriminations were repeatedly recounted. The motivations of colleagues and others were questioned or impugned. While mutual recriminations and concerns for contractional obligations, professional positions, political agendas, and labor peace were expressed, one was left with the impression that the very object of the entire organization, the education of the community's children, had been allowed to fade into the background. The public has a right to expect that those charged with educating their children lay aside their personal animosities and agendas to focus on the true purpose of the positions they occupy.

The report goes on to talk about trustees who didn't want their statement taped, who wouldn't be interviewed in front of CUSD attorneys, etc.

Here's the entire report:

Download Final DA Letter on CUSD

CUSD Board has High Praise for Farley

Capistrano Unified School District Trustee Gary Pritchard announced at Monday's meeting that the board have reviewed Superintendent Joe Farley's work in closed session, then read the following statement:

"The board believes Dr. Farley is exactly the type of leader CUSD needs at this time. His sound leadership as proven to be a stabilizing force in the district. The board believes that Dr. Farley’s experience and enthusiasm for instructional excellence makes the district an exciting place to learn and teach.

The board looks forward to a productive 2011-12 school year with Dr. Farley leading our district toward meeting our  goals and addressing our challenges.

Thank you very much Dr. Farley."

Trustee Anna Bryson added a few more laudatory comments, too. It was just last May when trustees announced Farley would be taking the helm of CUSD.