School Update

While the Capo school district had a contentious election on Nov. 2, the Saddleback district quietly replaced two of its five trustees. Because Dolores Winchell and Dennis Walsh were the only candidates for two open seats on the SVUSD board, no election was held. The two new trustees replaced longtime board members Dore Gilbert and Nancy Kirkpatrick. Both Winchell and Walsh reside in Lake Forest.

Even when school districts weren’t facing severe financial cuts or battles with the teachers union, few challengers ran for the board of trustees in either district. Beyond the question of who is qualified to lead, who wants the job?

On Dec. 13, Jonathan Volzke posted an article on the Capistrano Dispatch, about the state’s projected $28-billion shortfall for the next 18 months http://capistranoinsider.typepad.com/beyond_the_blackboard/ . Volzke noted that 40 percent of the state’s funding goes to education, which has been cut $21 billion in the last two years.

The CUSD board of trustees will vote in February on a proposal by Oxford Academy for a charter school. The concept was reported on this blog on Oct. 30 http://www.missionviejoca.org/News/2010_Q4/2010_10_30/article4/article4.htm . Mission Viejo resident Julie Collier wrote, “I wanted to let you know about a unique opportunity for CUSD students. Oxford Preparatory Academy Chino Charter School is looking to start a K-8 school called Oxford Preparatory Academy South Orange County next fall in CUSD. Even though CUSD has great schools and teachers, some of you may be interested in a different choice for your children.”

Oxford’s proposal was presented to CUSD last week. In 2009, SVUSD rejected a similar proposal from Oxford after stating concerns about how a charter school would impact the district’s finances. Oxford Academy officials began accepting non-binding applications for enrollment two months ago, and they reported receiving more than 1,100 applications. Location of the charter school proposed for CUSD has not been announced.