Readers Respond

At issue: Support -- this time from students, too -- for Measure A, which

will appear on Nov. 9 ballot.

A very important issue will he on our Nov. 9 ballot. It is important

because the outcome of this school repair bond measure affects each and

every student in the Huntington Beach Union High School District, and

because it is an election. In this country, we have the right to vote,

but not enough of us exercise that right.

Measure A, the high school repair bond measure, will enable the school

district to make some very important repairs to our campuses. Our schools

are old and in need of much more than just paint.

Huntington Beach High School recently celebrated its 73rd birthday and is

long overdue for necessary repairs. Some of the buildings are sinking,

causing extensive structural damage.

During the rainy season many classrooms leak. And in some cases parts of

the roofs are collapsing.

In some areas, the foundations have shifted, making it difficult to plan

outdoor activities.

Our bathrooms are a mess. We need to completely repair and replace major

fixtures and doors. There are some restrooms where there is no privacy at

all because stall doors are missing, and half the faucets, toilets and

showers in the gym don’t work.

We need Measure A to make these repairs now. They are worse than last

year, and they will be worse next year.

Vote yes on Measure A. Our future students will thank you.

TARA GOODNESS

Student, Huntington Beach High School

A very important issue will be on the ballot Nov. 9 -- Measure A, the

school repair bond.

The money from this bond will be used for some very important repairs to

our schools.

The structural damage in some facilities need immediate repair. You think

you are walking in a carnival fun house when walking through hallways

because of the uneven floors. Our bathrooms look as if a hurricane blew

through them. We have no soap or toilet paper dispensers, or even doors

on the stalls!

CHRIS HOLMES

Student, Fountain Valley High School

If you have ever heard a student complaining about the terrible condition

of the school buildings, believe it. That student was not exaggerating.

Our schools are in disrepair, and they will continue to deteriorate

unless something is done about it.

Not only are there not enough bathrooms, but some of those bathrooms

don’t even have doors on the stalls. Fungus grows and thrives on the dirt

and stagnant water that collect in the corners of the tile flooring.

In some classrooms, the stench of mildew growing on the carpets is almost

too much to bear.

When it rains, students inside the halls become almost as drenched as the

ones outside because the roofs leak so bad.

If another large earthquake hit, students’ lives would be in danger. The

sinking buildings and deteriorating walls could collapse at any moment.

Most of us forget that some of these schools are 40 to 70 years old. Our

schools were built so long ago that they aren’t wired for the computer

technology needed to enhance our learning and help us get the experience

that is needed to be successful in the computer age.

The maintenance workers at our school do a wonderful job keeping the

campus clean and doing minor surface repairs. But the repairs the school

so desperately needs are not the type that can be done by routine

maintenance.

Please don’t force us to attend schools that are falling apart and that

may be dangerous to our health. No one wants to go to a school that is

dirty and ready to collapse.

HOLLY MARKWOOD

Student, Fountain Valley High School

In a mid-size U.S. city that could have been anywhere stood a high

school, a proud institution built around the turn of the century. We in

the city thought of it not as old but eternal. Like the cathedral of

Notre Dame or Westminster Abbey, our school was a treasure that would

always be there, a shrine to proud tradition.

Then one day disaster struck -- a fire -- and it was gone.

The school was empty at the time of the fire, and no one was hurt. But a

city grieved nonetheless. People lined up on the street where the school

had once been to collect remnants from the wreckage, as if so many

memories could be captured in brick and mortar. Web sites were set up in

tribute. There was talk of rebuilding, but it was just talk.

It was a fire that destroyed it, but it could have been an earthquake.

This was my high school in Anderson, Ind., but it could have been

Huntington Beach.

How many times I’ve driven past Huntington Beach High School and quietly

appreciated its beauty. What great architecture. What great curb appeal.

I lived in Huntington Beach for years before I ever stepped foot on its

campus. What a surprise it was to see its pitiful condition, the cracked

foundations and leaking roofs. It is far from a safe haven for our kids

during an earthquake.

This summer dozens of volunteers turned out to clean up the school and

make cosmetic repairs, but correcting the condition is beyond the work of

a citizen brigade.

We have a chance at the polls next month to make it right.

Passing Measure A, school repair bond, will let us fix up Huntington High

and other high schools in the district so badly in need of repairs. The

cost to each of us is minimal, but the rewards are greater than we’d

imagine.

Just ask the folks of Anderson.

BOB DEATON

Huntington Beach