Parents would like to have more input
SMMUSD HDQTRS A Bay Area education consultant who has held top administrative posts at several California public schools has been named the interim superintendent of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District.
Tim Cuneo, who most recently served as a senior partner with Cuneo-Zinnner Group in San Jose (his wife Jane Zinner is a partner) specializing in organizational development for public and private educational ventures, will be present at the school board meeting on Thursday, at which time he will be officially hired.
Cuneo is expected to earn $900 per day. His contract is day-to-day, giving the school board the flexibility to hire a permanent replacement for former Superintendent Dianne Talarico, who left the district after serving just two years to become head of the Burlingame School District in Northern California.
As interim superintendent, Cuneo, 66, will be responsible for all day-to-day activities within the district, which serves roughly 10,500 students at 16 schools. “After listening to parents, assessing our needs and interviewing four highly qualified applicants, we are thrilled to have Tim join our team in Santa Monica-Malibu,” said School Board President Oscar de la Torre.
“As the district continues to provide excellent education for its students, Mr. Cuneo’s experience will be a critical and strategic part of our plans to strengthen governance, improve special education and implement school construction plans outlined in Measure BB,” de la Torre added. “He brings extensive background in board protocol, policy development and team building, which will deliver an immediate benefit to our district.”
Cuneo joins the district at a time when many parents feel they and their children are being taken for granted. Parents have expressed their concerns with special education and the so-called “secret deals” reached between administrators and parents with children with special needs, breeding what some have called a culture of fear.
Parents are also upset over the district’s child molestation policy, which has been criticized following the arrest of Lincoln Middle School teacher Thomas Arthur Beltran, who has been charged with molesting a number of female students.
Then there was the transfer of a popular principal at John Muir Elementary School, who will be replaced by the principal at Lincoln, who has been blasted by parents there for failing to provide leadership.
“From the parents’ perspective we need leadership that is collaborative and really proactive and can be responsive to all the stakeholders’ needs, while at the same time have a very strong educational point of view,” said Rebecca Kennerly, president of the Santa Monica-Malibu PTA.
That could be difficult given the many needs of the district and the lack of funding from the state.
“A real problem we’ve had with the district is feeling a real partnership and I think that is a big challenge in our community,” Kennerly said.
Cuneo understands the district is in need of someone to take control and his priority — aside from finding a place to live within the district — will be meeting with stakeholders, both within the district and the community, to find out what the issues are and how best to solve problems. He will visit summer schools, PTA meetings and arrange meetings with the city manager and chief of police.
On Friday he expects to meet with district staff so that he can be fully briefed on special education.
During a telephone interview with the Daily Press Tuesday, Cuneo, a world traveler who enjoys cooking, photography and road biking, said he is up to the challenge of guiding the district during a difficult time. He is not out to change the culture. Instead he wants to keep the district moving forward and help put the school board in the position to hire the best superintendent possible.
“The school district has a really good reputation and I am interested in working in a diverse community committed to education,” Cuneo said. “You can really see that through the variety of activities provided for children and the high expectations set by parents. That is extremely important because that means we are going to better be able to deliver services. That’s what attracted me to it.”
In 2007-08, Cuneo served as the foreman pro tem for the Santa Clara County Grand Jury. Prior to that, Cuneo was interim superintendent for Scotts Valley Unified School District and senior executive director for the 21st Century Education Initiative as part of Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network. In his role with Joint Venture, Cuneo was responsible for all aspects of the public/ private partnership investing in K-12 school reform.
From 1966 to 1996, he held numerous superintendent, assistant superintendent, and dean of curriculum and instruction positions with Oak Grove, Whisman, Pajaro Valley Unified, and Fremont Union High School districts.
Cuneo is a former president of the Association of California School Administrators (ACSA). In addition, he has served on a variety of boards from PACE (Policy Analysis for California Education), the Tech Museum of Innovation, Hewlett Packard Employee Scholarship Committee as well as the Xerox National Education Advisory Council.
Cuneo holds a bachelor’s degree in Biological Science from Chico State University, a master’s in Counseling and Guidance from the University of Santa Clara, and a California Administrative Credential from San Jose State University.
“The ultimate goal is to make sure that we are serving the needs of every child,” Cuneo said.“Every decision we make should be in the best interest of our children and not in the best interest of adults. I’m more interested in what’s best for children.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on July 9, 2008. Read the original PDF.