CUSD update – Rich District, Poor District
Editorial staff

Does the Capo school district have a split personality? No expense was spared on such showpieces as the $52-million administration center or the new $150-million high school in San Juan Capistrano. At the other extreme, buildings like Newhart Middle School need a makeover and major cuts are coming.

Those who attended the Feb. 11 CUSD board meeting saw a stark contrast among agenda items. Trustees supporting nonessential amenities at the new high school act as if the district is awash with cash. When it came time to discuss district finances, officials talked about ways to cut $28 million from the budget. The board is split between four big spenders from the old Fleming regime and three reform-minded trustees who can’t stop them.

The effects of state cutbacks will be disastrous in school districts that are ill-prepared for any downturn. This is especially true in Capo USD, which wasn’t making ends meet in good times. A special board meeting will be held Feb. 25 to adopt a tentative budget.

After months of supporting approximately $8 million for nonessential amenities at the new high school, Supt. Woodrow Carter pointed to the state, saying, “It’s the worst budget in the history of the state.”

A CUSD resident said, “CUSD is continuing to pour millions of dollars into San Juan Hills High School in San Juan Capistrano. I was appalled during the Feb. 11 meeting that the board voted 4-3 to pursue the pool, stadium and concession stand while talking about cuts that directly affect education.”

The superintendent will hold a town hall meeting in Mission Viejo to discuss school finance on Wed., Feb. 27, 7 p.m., at Capo Valley High School, 26301 Via Escolar. Some parents refer to the meeting as a PR attempt to deflect blame from the holdover trustees with a long history of overspending. One parent reacted, “The state budget is a crisis on its own, but it does provide a scapegoat. Carter can blame everything on the state while he’s continued to support the old regime.”

CUSD’s current money pit – the pricey new high school in San Juan Capistrano – opened last September with only 640 students. With a site capacity for more than 2,500 students, SJHHS has only a freshman class, and word is spreading that enrollment has dropped 20 percent. Perhaps the attrition rate is due to the tug-of-war over funding, dealing with the unfinished campus or the school’s image issue, “dump high school.”

As a basis for comparison, Saddleback Valley USD is facing the same statewide reductions, estimated at up to $800 million throughout California. SVUSD has not mentioned such severe measures as CUSD, but its officials will meet Feb. 28 to review options. As another example reported in the Jan. 13 OC Register, Ocean View School District projected it would be unaffected by state cuts because it has ample reserves.

Mission Viejo residents who will attend the Feb. 27 meeting at Capo High should be aware of cost-cutting suggestions that have previously been ignored by the Fleming-era majority. Parents have suggested selling the Taj Mahal administration center and mothballing the new high school until new housing development on The Ranch warrants reopening it.