> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Bowing out, jumping in - URL: https://www.smdp.com/bowing-out-jumping-in/ - Published: 2008-08-05T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-24T20:31:59.000Z - Author: Melody Hanatani - Tags: Government & Politics, Malibu, #archive-import, Homeless *Wisnicki opts not to run for re-election, Shriver pulls papers* CITY HALL Board of Education member Kathy Wisnicki, whose re-election bid remained a question throughout this summer’s candidate filing period, confirmed on Monday she will keep her name out of contention for good. Wisnicki, a Malibu resident who will conclude her first term on the school board this fall, said after careful consideration she has opted to explore other options, which could include another shot at the City Council next spring. Wisnicki is the only Malibu resident on the school board. A former researcher for UCLA’s Graduate School of Education and Information Studies, Wisnicki was first elected to the board in 2004, serving during that time as both the vice president and president. “I will continue to be involved in the school district in some way, but I haven’t figure that out yet,” she said. In April, the mother of two children barely lost a campaign for the council, finishing less than 30 votes shy of the third-place winner and political ally, John Sibert. Wisnicki was the last incumbent whose status for re-election remained in doubt. Last week, Councilmember Bobby Shriver ended weeks of speculation when he pulled papers, spending the past few weeks discussing possible re-election plans with his wife and daughter. “It’s a big time commitment for me,” Shriver, who oversees non-profit organization (RED), said.“I not only go to the meetings but I’m doing these other (council-related) things and we had to decide whether everybody was up for that.” He has already gathered approximately 125 signatures since pulling nomination papers and plans to submit them on Wednesday, two days before the filing deadline. Candidates must collect 100 signatures of registered Santa Monica voters in order to qualify for the ballot. Shriver said he has some “unfinished business” that require a return to the dais for four more years, including seeing through the completion of clean beach projects, which are funded under Measure V, and further pushing the cause for which he has been most outspoken — homeless services at the West L.A. Veterans Affairs campus. Three buildings at the site were designated to house services for homeless veterans last year. The VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System began seeking prospective social-service providers last month. Measure V, which passed in 2006, sets aside $20 million to enhance storm water mitigation and prevention strategies, intended to clean beaches in an area long criticized for fostering unhealthy swimming conditions. “They might not get finished and I am determined to finish them,” Shriver said. For Wisnicki, the past several years on the board has been marked by transition, including the departure of several key figures in the district administration. “Despite all of the transition, we remained focus on the education of our students,” Wisnicki said. She counts the passage of Measure BB, a $268 million construction bond, and building the district’s financial reserves from $3 million at the beginning of her term to $14 million today, as one of the current board’s many accomplishments. Oscar de la Torre, the school board president, called Wisnicki a strong advocate for schools. “She’s thoughtful and committed to improving public education,” he said. A LOST VOICE FOR MALIBU? Wisnicki’s imminent departure means the loss of the only Malibu resident on the school board. All of the candidates who have pulled papers live in Santa Monica. School board members stress that they represent the entire district, regardless of whether a constituent lives north or south. “We’re without a Pico Neighborhood representative on the City Council and nobody says anything,” de la Torre said.“The fact is that the community in Malibu will always be represented and has always been represented, even without an actual resident on the Board of Education.” But some who live in Malibu said the absence of one of their own on the board could be difficult and cite the lack of representation as reason for a district split. A number of Malibu residents have for years talked about seceding from the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, but those discussions heated up last fall over allocation of Measure BB construction bond money, the neighbors to the north feeling their own projects got shortchanged. Laura Rosenthal, a Malibu resident who is involved in a campaign to form a new district, said that the current political climate makes it impossible for anyone other than a Santa Monica resident to succeed in a race. “There is a lot of animosity toward Malibu and I think it’s stemming from the BB funds and some of the other things that have gone on in the district,” she said. “I think there are too many factions fighting each other, and those are the reasons why we need to be our own school district.” The secession campaign is in the midst of collecting signatures in order to jump-start the process to examine a district split, which is done by the county’ Committee on School District Organization. Approximately 25 percent of registered voters in the new district is required. Rosenthal said the campaign is about 60 percent of the way there. When Wisnicki decided she wasn’t running for re-election, several educational advocates gathered to see if they could put up a viable candidate from Malibu. Nobody was willing to mount a campaign. “It’s really difficult for a Malibu person to win the school board election,” Wisnicki, who raised $50,000 for her own campaign four years ago, said. “I spent a considerable amount of time knocking on doors and campaigning and getting to know the community of Santa Monica, which helps me in my term, but it’s difficult for someone to commit to that.” Ralph Mechur, who is also running to fill the final two years of former school board member Emily Bloomfield’s term, said it is valuable to have a Malibu perspective, but that the elected education officials represent everyone’s best interests. “I hope that they still feel that they’re a partner with Santa Monica and will feel comfortable talking to the other board members on issues that are important to them,” Mechur said. “We’re here to provide services to all children in the district.” *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on August 5, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/080508.pdf?ref=smdp.com)