Forum Spotlights New School Trustees

A forum by a group of newly elected conservative school board members proved to be a bigger attraction to school officials curious about what the trustees would say than to parents concerned about the state of public education.

Sponsored by the Moorpark chapter of the California Republican Assembly--the conservative arm of the state Republican Party--the education round table was billed as an opportunity for trustees and the public to consider the relationship between the Ventura County Board of Education and local school districts.

But one of the two county school trustees scheduled to participate did not show up, and the other left early.

New county board Trustee Marty Bates did not attend the public forum because of another engagement, and new Trustee Angela Miller left 30 minutes into the 1 1/2-hour meeting.

That left three panelists--Norm Walker, who was just elected to the Simi Valley Unified School District board; Elaine McKearn, a new trustee for the Conejo Valley Unified School District board, and Mildred Lynch, who won reelection to the Conejo board.

Moderated by Moorpark Republican Assembly President Matt Noah, the discussion ranged from school violence to the federal government’s influence on public education.

A few parents in the audience raised concerns about these issues, but most of the two dozen people at the forum were teachers or elected school trustees who appeared mainly interested in listening.

Some school officials, however, confronted the panel and Noah. Simi Valley school board President Carla Kurachi asked why Noah’s group chose a panel of mostly new trustees who lacked the experience to discuss issues knowledgeably.

Noah responded: “The Moorpark Republican Assembly wants to highlight the views of people who have views akin to what we have.”