Trustee Sneen finally in the driver’s seat

Deirdre Newman

Don’t let Linda Sneen’s silence fool you.

As the only school board candidate who ran unopposed in November,

Sneen didn’t get to share her experience and ideas during the two

candidate forums.

Now that the election is over and Sneen is poised to replace Jim

Ferryman on the Newport-Mesa Unified School District Board of

Trustees, she is bristling with enthusiasm at the chance to

articulate some of her hopes for the district.

Visiting every school site is just one of them.

Sneen, an 11-year Costa Mesa resident, has already been personally

involved at three school sites as the mother of two boys -- Garrett,

15, and Elliott, 12.

Her involvement started with the PTA at Paularino Elementary

School. She worked her way up to president for two consecutive years.

She is most proud of coordinating the fund-raising to pay for a

mural.

“It was a pretty boring lunch area,” Sneen, 41, said. “We raised

about $600, and it was painted in about two days.”

Her efforts at Paularino created the reputation as someone who

could get things done, which continued when she became involved at

Davis Elementary School.

While there, she noticed that students at Harbor View Elementary

School in Newport Beach got to participate in a “Walk Through Ancient

History.” Sneen asked about the cost and, although it was expensive,

found a way to get a discount.

“I’ve always believed if there’s something good working at one

school, it can happen at any school,” Sneen said.

For her work at Davis, she received the Mayor’s Award in 2002.

And at Costa Mesa High School, Sneen and husband Bill finished a

tiling effort for a mural that had remained unfinished for a while.

She also served on the district’s committee to establish an

anti-bullying policy and Costa Mesa High School’s committee to select

a new principal.

“People tease me because they think I’m a shaker and a mover,”

Sneen said. “I like to ask questions and I’m already questioning

things [as a trustee].”

She said she decided to run for school board because she was ready

for a new challenge.

It was not until she committed, though, that she realized the

gravity of her choice.

“It was kind of a scary decision,” Sneen said. “I kept thinking,

‘What am I doing?’ But I know all the players.”

During the campaign, she was the silent candidate, relegated to

the sidelines during the candidate forums and having no need to raise

a dime in fund-raising, which she greatly appreciated.

“I thought that was pretty cool to have that burden lifted off,”

Sneen said. [I] wouldn’t have been able to raise that much funds and

couldn’t ask friends because my philosophy is to donate to the

schools.”

Sneen, who will be officially sworn in with Tom Egan on Dec. 10,

already attended a district leadership session and will be attending

a California School Boards Assn. symposium in the near future. And

she said she would like to complete the association’s two-year

master’s of governance program.

In addition to visiting every school in the district, Sneen is

looking forward to working on the update of the strategic plan in the

next year, learning more about the district’s pre-school program and

making decisions based on “what’s in the best interest for children.”

She also touts her skills as a good listener.

“I promise I will listen, listen, listen,” Sneen said. “I am

definitely available and believe parents and kids are our customers.”

She also likes to debate, which will come in handy with the

district facing a major loss in state funding. When legislators try

to work themselves out of a staggering $21-billion hole in early

December, it will be up to the trustees to figure out how to absorb

as much of the blow as possible without affecting classroom

instruction. Sneen said she will draw on her experience from sitting

on three school-site councils, for which she helped determine

budgetary goals.

“People came up with proposals, and we got to debate them,” Sneen

said. “I like brainstorming and walking away from meetings saying, ‘I

learned something there.’”

* DEIRDRE NEWMAN covers education. She may be reached at (949)

574-4221 or by e-mail at deirdre.newman@latimes.com.