Election 2008: School Board Candidates Aim for Top of Class

Six candidates are vying for three spots on the Santa Barbara school board. Noozhawk puts them to the test.

By Rob Kuznia, Noozhawk Staff Writer | Published on 10.10.2008

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School board elections can sometimes cause a little head-scratching on the part of voters who aren’t exactly sure what it is that school boards do.

This is understandable, given how schools are bound by many rules from higher levels of government, and are generally in no position to ignore mandates on testing and how to spend certain pots of money.

But make no mistake: the decisions made by the Santa Barbara School Districts Board of Education routinely affect many local lives.

For instance, because of a recent school board decision, the sight of students talking on cell phones and listening to MP3 players on campus is considerably more rare than it used to be. The board banned the use of those devices during school hours because most board members believe the gadgets to be an educational distraction.

And it is because of the school board that ninth-graders, beginning this year, no longer enjoy the luxury of having small math classes. Last spring, the trustees decided they had to cut the program to make ends meet.

Of course, by cutting one program, the board saves another. In the spring, the board spared the jobs of high school librarians and school psychologists, whose positions were also on the chopping block.

Vying for three spots on the Santa Barbara school board in the Nov. 4 election are six candidates who are eager to take on the responsibility of making such decisions, and many more.

In a Noozhawk questionnaire, the candidates weighed in on topics ranging from Gifted and Talented Education to gang-related attire to affordable housing for teachers.

The candidates are Annette Cordero, an SBCC instructor and the race’s lone incumbent; Susan Deacon, a former SBCC journalism instructor and current president of the South Coast Community Aquatic Center; Ed Heron, a retired business executive and the immediate past president of the nonprofit Partners in Education; Jacqueline Inda, co-founder of the new advocacy group to stem gang violence called Esperanza; Kate Smith, a local activist and a regular at many school board meetings; and Charlotte Ware, immediate past president of the Dos Pueblos High PTSA and a former engineer.

On some questions, their answers are similar. But a close read of the questionnaires betrays a healthy diversity of opinion.

For example, while Cordero and Deacon support the board’s recent decision to hire gang outreach specialists to work directly with students involved in gangs, Ware believes the money would be better spent on bolstering existing programs that have long focused on goals such as truancy prevention.

On the issue of affordable housing for teachers, and whether the district should set aside an unused parcel of district-owned land to build price-controlled housing, Heron said no, while Deacon and Smith said yes.

On the topic of the GATE program, Cordero and Deacon said they do not share some local educators’ concerns that GATE classes are getting too big, saying they are more concerned about the under-representation of disadvantaged students, who in this district tend to be Latino. Ware didn’t elaborate on whether the number of students in the program should shrink, but did say there are other demanding opportunities for students who want to be challenged, such as the Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate programs.

To learn more about the six candidates’ positions on local education issues, click on the questionnaires.

Click here for Annette Cordero’s Q&A.

Click here for Susan Deacon’s Q&A.

Click here for Ed Heron’s Q&A.

Click here for Jacqueline Inda’s Q&A.

Click here for Kate Smith’s Q&A.

Click here for Charlotte Ware’s Q&A.

Noozhawk staff writer Rob Kuznia can be reached at rkuznia@noozhawk.com.

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» Thank you, Noozhawk! on 10.10.08 @ 10:37 AM

WOW! These are great interviews with the candidates. I feel like I really got to know them and I’m impressed with how thoughtful their answers are. This is a useful service, Noozhawk. Thank you!


» question on 10.11.08 @ 05:54 PM

It would be interesting to know where the candidates lived.  not their exact address of course, but in general.  What woud happen if all 5 candidates lived in Goleta?? Would Santa Barbara elementary schools want Goleta people running their schools?

[Editor’s note: By definition, the candidates must reside within the school district boundaries. Of course, the high school district covers Goleta and Montecito as well as Santa Barbara.]


» Goleta Mom on 10.11.08 @ 10:14 PM

Charlotte has my vote.  She would be a tremendous asset to the Board.


» Ed Heron For School Board on 10.11.08 @ 11:17 PM

I grew up in San Roque and Samarkand and have resided close to the Mission for 37 years.


» to editor from Question on 10.12.08 @ 09:14 PM

That is my point.  Although I dont think it has ever happened or will ever happen, all 5 school board members could live in the city of Goleta and still be elected to the Santa Barbara School Board, thus meaning Goleta residents would have control of Santa Barbara elementary schools, with no Santa Barbaran’s having a say.

What could happen is Goleta residents having a 3-2 majority of the board, thus still controlling Santa Barbara elementary schools.  Is it about time things were changed?  Maybe districts need to be set up?
Mr. Heron, thank you for responding and letting us know you live in Santa Barbara proper.  What do you think?
Rob Kuznia - maybe that could be a future question?


» DP Parent on 10.13.08 @ 04:32 PM

Of course, DP and GV would love to just jettison the SBSD completely and join with Goleta Elementary. Wouldn’t that make the most sense? But of course, the SBSD doesn’t want to lose one of its flagship high schools that accepts transfers from Santa Barbara. I would wager that up to a third (maybe closer to 40% of DP’s students come from outside of Goleta proper.

Thanks Rob for the great articles!


» to DP parent from Question on 10.14.08 @ 08:36 AM

You are exactly right.  What else should be looked at is the number of “white flight” students that go out to DP from Santa Barbara and San Marcos High School.  The District has the information, but I would bet they don’t even want to look at it in fear of admiting a problem.

The thing is, will the City of Goleta (although I don’t know if they will even want to touch this) or the Goleta School District ever have enough money to purchase the facilities of DP and GV, esp with the millions of dollars that have recently gone into DP.  Would the Santa Barbara voters want to give up DP, esp after having voted for the Measure V bond.


» Well... on 10.14.08 @ 02:54 PM

...if the new Goleta District were willing to float a bond to pay the SB School Districts 50 or so million for the properties and then also risk losing basic aid status for its elementary students, I think it could fly. Let’s do a study! I bet SB would be thrilled—that’s a lot of facilities improvements they could fund for other schools.


» but if that happend on 10.14.08 @ 06:06 PM

If that happened, there would be a huge debate over where the district lines would be drawn.  Hollister and El Camino schools, both in Goleta Elementary District, are just blocks away from San Marcos.  The Goleta City limit is roughly Patterson.  Would be an interesting debate.


» sb native on 10.16.08 @ 10:36 AM

I’m surprised that no one has mentioned another solution for the representation issue:  two districts—1)SB Elementary School District with the city elementary schools in it and 2) the South Coast Secondary School District with all of the 7-12 schools from Montecito to Goleta in it.  That way the Santa Barbara elementary schools would have their own school board and so would the secondary schools.


» why should it matter? on 10.16.08 @ 02:49 PM

So would the Hope school district want to merge with San Marcos and La Colina, since they are in the direct vicinity?  That is what it sounds like if GV and DP were to merge with the Goleta Union School district.  Things should stay as they are.  If a candidate is the best for the job, why should it matter where they live?


» Board Watcher on 10.22.08 @ 12:04 PM

A big “shout-out” of thanks goes to Kate Smith.  She knows she lives outside the district.  She knows that none of her children should be in the District.  She knows she just cost the taxpayers of SB nearly $30,000 for an elections mailing piece telling the voters she is not a legal resident.  She does nothing but wage war with the Board and Administration.  Enough already!


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