Return the school board incumbents

In another time and another circumstance, these endorsements might

be different. But by most accounts, the Newport-Mesa Unified School

District is in good hands. That’s why voters should return all three

incumbents -- Judy Franco, Serene Stokes and Wendy Leece -- for

another term.

This is not an easy endorsement in many ways. We often have argued

that the Newport-Mesa Unified board is in need of new leadership, new

thinking and new ideas.

We found it hard to stomach, when faced with the challenge of

censuring one of their own for driving under the influence, that they

were mum, except for Leece, who instead faced the wrath of her

colleagues.

Yet when the opposition is placed against the leadership,

commitment and experience that all three bring to the table, the

choice becomes clear.

In Franco’s case, she has been a board member for more than 20

years. She has had health problems and last election indicated that

she would not run again. But with her health problems behind her and

her heir apparent choosing to move out of town, Franco didn’t believe

there was a good replacement out there.

So she did what anyone who cares about the community’s public

education would do; she decided to go one more round and see through

some of her biggest initiatives and goals.

She deserves this final term to see some of her hard work

achieved.

Stokes doesn’t have nearly the tenure of Franco. But she

demonstrated to our editorial board that she has a strong grasp of

the needs facing schools here. She has good ideas and a vision for

leading educational leaders forward that is far and above her

opponents.

She is the best pick in this race.

Finally, to the race between Leece and Costa Mesa’s Tom Egan.

Egan is an extremely bright, likeable man who loves the political

debate. He has been for some time an activist on issues affecting the

Westside and has added much to the discussion there.

But, having just come to school board issues this year when he

started running his campaign, we question whether his heart is really

in the school board race or if he just was a willing volunteer who

stepped up when forces out to get Leece came calling.

Make no mistake, we disagree often with Leece and her views. We

disagree with her stand on creationism being taught in public

schools. We disagree with her move to ban high school reading that

she finds uncomfortable. The list goes on.

But what Leece does bring to the table is courage in her

convictions and a voice for those who don’t otherwise have one in the

local schools debate. She wasn’t afraid to stand up for what she

thought was right in the Jim Ferryman drunk-driving case and risk

criticism. She never wavers or backs down from her beliefs. She is

the voice for that segment of the community that shares her sometimes

ultra-conservative views, a voice that with Egan would cease to

exist.

And, most importantly, she questions things that may just get the

board’s rubber stamp, like state or federal funding that comes with

strings attached.

Like Stokes and Franco, we think Leece’s voice and experience is

too important to lose.