CITY HALL — School board members are having second thoughts regarding a decision made earlier this month to slightly revise the role community groups play in advising the district on educational programs and the budget.
Members of the Santa Monica-Malibu Board of Education voted unanimously on Thursday to revisit the removal of one sentence that outlines the duties of District Advisory Committees — groups of citizens who inform and make suggestions to the board regarding issues related to the district.
The move follows a strong demand from committee members, many of whom are parents, to clarify their roles in light of the omission. Many believe the sentence’s removal diminishes their influence in the district.
“Discussion is exactly what we need,” said Trisha Crane, chair of the Special Education Community Advisory Committee. “This is a public school system and the questioning and probing of parents and community members is both healthy to our district and vital to public trust.
“Please don’t reduce us to unpaid workers simply reporting to staff.”
The line removed from the district’s policies about the role DACs play was: “The functions of the DAC is to assist in the overall planning of the educational program and of budget resources.”
Schools superintendent John Deasy said the change was necessary to clarify the functions of DACs and the district. The sentence was removed because the DACs are about budget suggestions and not allocations. The committees have no decision-making powers and can only advise.
“There has been no change whatsoever to how DACs work,” Deasy said. “The role of DACs has not been diminished, but enhanced, and the staff is very grateful for the vital and valuable role of the DACs. We do not devalue their work.”
Deasy pointed out that instead of reporting once a year to the board and making suggestions, DACs will report and make suggestions to the board twice per year.
Deasy said he was baffled by a recent article published in the Jan. 11-17 issue of the Santa Monica Mirror which said that “Henceforth, the DACs will have no role in the overall planning of the education budget and of budget resources.”
Deasy said that statement was most likely a misprint, which has led to a misunderstanding amongst DAC members.
Peggy Clifford, the Mirror’s editor, said she wasn’t sure any clarification of the article was needed and stood by the quality of the reporting.
School board Vice President Kathy Wisnicki apologized for the confusion and insisted the advisory committees are crucial to the district and its students.
“We are sorry for the misrepresentation of the facts and that we did not respond quickly enough to your concerns,” she said.
School board member Oscar de la Torre, who helped move the motion to revisit the issue, said the board made the right decision in publicly debating the new language.
“It’s about restoring trust in the community,” he said. “We heard the concerns of the community that an earlier board decision was curtailing their role, and we still don’t believe that was the case. But we will clarify it at the next board meeting. The main thing is we want to be loud and clear that we value parental involvement and the volunteer hours people give to the district.”
