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.
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