News
The Watsonville Register-Pajaronian, July 28, 2007
OPINION
PVUSD must account to the Grand Jury 2007
report
BY: LUIS ALEJO
Posted: Saturday, Jul 28th, 2007 Serious concerns about the practices of the Pajaro Valley Unified School District were raised by the Santa Cruz County Grand Jury in its 2007 report released on June 28. Anyone concerned about our public schools should take a close look at this report. It is a shocking eye opener. The independent report confirmed what many educators, parents and community members suspected was going on for some time, but due to a lack of transparency by the PVUSD, it was hard to confirm.Here are some of the grand jury’s findings and conclusions:. $2.5 million was spent on the mold cleanup at Pajaro Valley High School.. Another estimated $2.7 million of scarce educational dollars have been spent on attorney’s fees for the mold lawsuit regarding Pajaro Valley High.. Millions more were spent on unnecessary fees for expensive Certificates of Participation (COPs) for construction projects, without public notice and against the advice of PVUSD financial counsel.. Another $900,000 was lost for filing an application late for an Internet-access grant.. The school board did not comply with the Brown Act when rehiring Interim Superintendent Mary Anne Mays last January.
. Superintendent Mays allegedly asked subordinates to purchase $1.3 million worth of America’s Choice materials from her former employer, most of which are not used by local teachers.
. There is a lack of school board oversight of budgets, contracts, and other expenditures, and a failure to safeguard taxpayer monies.
. The zone system, with its three assistant superintendents, is ineffective and contributes to inconsistencies and lack of communication.
. The superintendent and the assistant superintendents have failed to provide leadership, rigorous standards and management of instructional programs.
. Quality English learner instruction is not being delivered and students are falling further behind. The Grand Jury’s findings illustrate waste and mismanagement of the worst kind. Moreover, our students, teachers and schools are being deprived of precious resources. The millions could be put to better use to deal with the critical challenges facing our schools and helping more of our students graduate and attend universities. Dedicated teachers wouldn’t have to spend money out of their own pockets to buy class materials and others would not be leaving our district in droves. About 80 teachers have left this year.So far, we have only seen the district go on the defensive with excuses rather than making the report an opportunity to self-evaluate and make needed improvements. School Board President Doug Keegan was quick to claim the report was “politically motivated” to cover for the district’s abysmal failings and reprehensible actions. But the Grand Jury, a highly respected institution, does similar independent audits and reviews of public agencies every year. Just take a look at its past reports to see the extensive work it conducts annually. In addition, two other independent reports, the 2004 management audit and the 2007 Norm Gold report on English learners, have cited similar problems. How many more independent reports do we need for this school board to take corrective action?
At the July 11 school board meeting, Keegan announced that the way the district was going to respond to the Grand Jury was to hire a public relations consultant, Tom Delapp, and former PVUSD trustee, Evelyn Volpa. Volpa led the 2004 effort to split the school district through “reorganization,” and was part of the very problems cited by the Grand Jury.
The contracts to both of these “hired guns” were said to be final, even though they never came before the school board for approval or placed on a meeting agenda for public review. The costs for these consultants have yet to be publicly divulged.
The school board’s response exemplified the wasting of scarce education dollars and a lack of oversight of contracts awarded without board approval. These are the very things the Grand Jury report cited as huge problems, but it was happening right before our eyes at the meeting.
Keegan also changed standard meeting procedure when he announced that the public would speak before he made his presentation on the Grand Jury report. We later found out why, when he announced that the two consultants would be hired. It was a shameful tactic to prohibit the public from responding to his announcement, but it was consistent with the Grand Jury’s criticism of a lack of respect for the Brown Act.
Luckily, school board members Sandra Nichols and Karen Osmundson rightly demanded that the contracts come to a future meeting for public review and board approval.
The school board must now respond by Oct. 1, and must fully account to the Grand Jury. Many are also waiting to see if the board will also follow the recommendations of the report or simply continue to point the finger of blame elsewhere.
In the meantime, I recommend everyone review the report at www.co.santa-cruz.ca.us/grandjury. That way, you can see for yourself what is going on inside the district administration. It certainly does not look good. Hopefully, it will be a community wakeup call for new leadership and immediate, comprehensive changes.
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Luis A. Alejo is a public interest attorney and the director of the Student Empowerment Project. The opinions of columnists are not necessarily those of the Register-Pajaronian.
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(Published in 7/28/07 edition)
http://www.register-pajaronian.com/fe_view_article.php?story_id=1617&page_id=77&heading=0
The Watsonville Register-Pajaronian, May 9, 2007
Task force members chosen
Posted: Wednesday, May 9th, 2007
Watsonville Mayor Manuel Bersamin and Pajaro Valley Unified School District Trustee Sandra Nichols were two of the major players of the English Language Master Plan Task Force appointed or drawn at random Tuesday. The task force, charged with creating a “master plan” for English Language Development, was established because of a revealing report by language expert Norm Gold of Sacramento.Gold was hired to help revamp English-language learners’ education following state and federal “scrutiny” of the PVUSD, he wrote. The report was released in February and was embraced by the majority of educators, Board President Doug Keegan said.
After Interim Superintendent Mary Anne Mays announced April 18 that a task force would be created, director of state and federal programs Sylvia Mendez’s desk was flooded with applications vying for a spot on the 49-member task force.
The large response confirmed one of Gold’s findings that one of PVUSD’s biggest assets was “the many teachers and administrators who have substantial English learner training and experience.”
A specific numbers of slots were designated for representatives from local government, universities and grade school leaders that fairly represented a cross section of stakeholders, Mays said in April. Teachers, administrators, trustees, union leaders, students, parents and civic government and university representatives are all allowed on the force.
However, California Association for Bilingual Education disagreed with the selection process, such as allowing parents of children who spoke English as a first language to be on the force.
Luis Alejo, director of the Student Empowerment Project, was disturbed that community members were not allowed on the force. “This slams the door on all of us who have struggled for years for our students’ education,” he said. Mendez said community members were not welcomed because, “The master plan should focus on the good of the students. If there was an individual who had strong advocacy for one program or process in the mix, it would be difficult to come to consensus.”Keegan was confident the task force would in fact represent a cross section of the education community and would tackle ELD effectively. Keegan appointed trustees Nichols, who is an advocate for bilingual education, and Libby Wilson, who recently pushed to set deadlines ELD students must meet.
“I have great hope we will do phenomenal work together,” Mendez said.
http://www.register-pajaronian.com/fe_view_article.php?story_id=1131&page_id=72&heading=0
The Watsonville Register-Pajaronian, April 7, 2007 OPINION
Poor decisions being made for our school district
The new board of trustees of the Pajaro Valley Unified School District School has only been in office since December, but poor decisions are already being made and here are some examples.
Possible Brown Act Violations
At the Jan. 17 school board meeting, PVUSD Board President Doug Keegan and the three recently-elected board members voted to oust Interim Superintendent Terry McHenry effective Feb. 28 and reinstate former Superintendent Mary Anne Mays, who became a polarizing figure after her politically motivated and ungraceful resignation last year.
However, the school board agenda lacked notice that the board would be removing or reinstating any superintendent. The agenda for that item only stated, “Report, discussion and possible action to approve Amended Contract for Interim Superintendent.”
The “back-up” information packet provided to board members only states, “The current contract for the Interim covers the responsibilities for both the Interim Superintendent and the Interim Associate Superintendent. The contract now needs to be amended to delete the responsibilities and related compensation for the Associate Superintendent ”
The Brown Act requires the school board to post an agenda with a brief general description of each item to be discussed or acted upon at the meeting. But the language clearly gave no notice to the public of their intention to reinstate Mays.
To this day, the board has failed to rescind its improper action taken on Jan. 17 and simply posted the contract for Mays on the Feb. 28 agenda, which is a separate action from deciding to remove or reinstate any superintendent. The board’s action of simply approving the contract for Mays was, in essence, a ratification of a prior illegal act. Search for new superintendent halted
The school board has now also denied the public the opportunity to have a new full-time superintendent with the reinstatement of Mays, who has only committed to work 60 percent of the time, or three days a week, at a cost to taxpayers of more than $100,000. Since Mays came to the district in 2002, more PVUSD schools have gone into “program improvement” status and now face severe sanctions for not making adequate yearly progress under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. At least five schools are currently at risk of being taken over by the state.
One would think that with these serious challenges and with some of the highest dropout rates, the high expulsion rates, the lowest graduation rates, the lowest college-going rates in the county, that Mays would recognize that the job is more than a part-time gig. A new possible development is that the district now wants to create a new deputy superintendent position to do the other 40 percent of the job, even though a 2004 PVUSD management audit concluded that the district already had the highest administration expenditures and the least amount of money going into our classrooms. District is failing English language learners
Nearly 50 percent of the students in the PVUSD are English language learners and a recent report by well-respected expert Norm Gold shows that the district is failing our ELL students. These conditions have existed under the watch of Mays. Gold made numerous recommendations for improvements, but so far, Mays has used the report as a basis to give layoff notices to several administrators, which was not a recommendation of the report. Layoff hurts after-school programs for kids
One person who received a pink slip was the director for the Extended Learning Program, who is responsible for after-school programming . These programs serve thousands of local students and volumes of research have shown how critical these programs are in assisting students and keeping them out of trouble.
So, how does the district benefit by giving a layoff notice to someone who makes such programs possible and yet fails to touch the current district zoning system, which the management audit concluded is a huge cost to the district and should be replaced?
Silencing the voices of educators
A recent newspaper article reported that Mays now wants to be the only voice on local education issues concerning the district. Such a policy would silence the voices of many dedicated individuals who work with our students every day and may have already created a chilling effect on speech.
Mays subsequently responded by claiming she only wanted to control public records requests, which are typically handled by department heads. Now, isn’t this sort of micromanagement the very thing that Mays accused board members of doing just a few months ago?
With all this recent district activity, it is essential that there be transparency and that light be shed on what is being done, or not done, for our students, teachers and schools. But these are the types of things that occur when you have folks sitting on our school board who lack experience and choose to be a rubber stamp for the superintendent
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Luis A. Alejo is a local attorney and the director of the Student Empowerment Project. The opinions of columnists are not necessarily those of the Register-Pajaronian.
The Santa Cruz Sentinel, March 28, 2007
Mays seeks control over release of PVUSD information
Pajaro Valley schools chief Mary Anne Mays wants tighter controls over information released under government sunshine laws.But Mays, who has served as interim superintendent of the Pajaro Valley Unified School District since March 1, denied Tuesday that she is censoring staff.“ There has been no effort to tell people they can’t speak their minds,” Mays said.Mays’ remarks came in response to a published account of a staff meeting held Thursday. Quoting anonymous sources, the account left the impression that Mays was attempting to muzzle staff. But Mays said she was clarifying procedures for handling official public records requests. For reasons of legality, consistency and efficiency she wants such requests to come through her office.She said staff could continue to answer questions on a more informal basis.Mays’ version of the meeting was confirmed by some in attendance, including her administrative assistant Alicia Jimenez, adult education director Bob Harper and interim human resources director Larry Lane.“I have not been directed not to talk to the press,” Lane said. “If it was an opinion question and I had an opinion about it … I would respond”Harper suggested that anxiety over Mays’ plans to rethink the district’s administrative structure and the potential for job loss might be coloring people’s perceptions.
He said he’s always felt free to talk to the press and nothing said at the meeting “made me feel any different”Jennifer Laskin, a Renaissance High School teacher who has been outspoken on district and political issues in the past, was not at the meeting. But she said she thought it unlikely Mays would try to stifle free speech.“It’s so illegal,” Laskin said. “It’s not something she would do”
Still Watsonville lawyer and district watchdog Luis Alejo finds Mays’ attempt to control public records requests worrisome. Alejo has filed requests on a variety of issues, such as expulsion rates. Sometimes he’s asked the superintendent’s office for the information. Other times he’s gone directly to the department involved.“The district has been slow in responding to records requests, and I think now the problem will only get worse under Dr. Mays’ proposal by micromanaging over the duties of others,” Alejo said.
And it may get more difficult to obtain information. Jimenez said one of the factors that prompted the superintendent’s discussion of the policy was a request for information related to the number of parents who have asked schools to withhold their children’s personal information from military recruiters.Jimenez said the district doesn’t track that information, wasn’t legally required to provide it and the research made extra work for staff.
Alejo, who made the request, discovered parents are increasingly seeking to shield their children from recruiters.“The public has the right to have light shed on what is being done right or wrong in our district,” Alejo said.
Contact Donna Jones at djones@santacruzsentinel.com
You can find this story online at:
http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/archive/2007/March/28/local/stories/07local.htm
The Watsonville Register-Pajaronian, April 18, 2007
EcoPark plan moves away from garbage
Posted: Wednesday, Apr 18th, 2007
A proposed waste processing and transfer facility termed the “Zero Waste EcoPark” is shaping up to be the latest concept in what to do with — and where to house — waste in Santa Cruz County. Since early 2006, consultants have worked with county staff to study what kind of facility is needed for the site. The plant will likely include a drop-off site for recycling and facilities for yard trimmings, construction debris processing and treatment and transfer of residual waste, according to Patrick Matthews, recycling and solid waste services manager in the Santa Cruz County Public Works Department. “We’re not talking about a landfill,” he said. “This is a sustainable system — we’re moving away from the concept of garbage. If we’re doing this right, there’s not going to be a lot left over.”A final report is expected to come before the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors May 15 with suggestions on general EcoPark facility areas, but may not include exact locations, Matthews said.Debate over waste in Santa Cruz County has simmered since 2000 when a local task force began evaluating potential sites for a new landfill. The debate rose to a fever pitch before the group’s 23 proposed sites, nine of which were in the Pajaro Valley, were finally eliminated by a county task force in September 2004.
The community consensus was clear — no landfill was wanted anywhere in the county, according to Matthews.
“Now we’re looking at how we’re going to fill that need without it,” he said.
The county vowed to focus on alternatives like recycling, waste-to-energy technology and shipping garbage out of the county. In 2005, the board passed a resolution to divert 75 percent of landfill waste by 2010 in an effort to move toward the goal of “zero waste.” That means maximizing recycling and composting, minimizing waste, reducing consumption and looking toward recyclable packaging.
In 2005, the board also banned dumping recyclables into the Buena Vista landfill in an effort to prolong its life until about 2024, while consultant group HDR/BVA studied landfill alternatives.
On Tuesday, the board bought more time with an agreement with the Monterey Regional Waste Management District to use a Marina landfill to dispose of waste from the Ben Lomond Transfer Station for the next 20-30 years. County officials hope the plan will also extend the life of the Buena Vista landfill and help determine potential costs of sending waste out of the county.
The extra time will come in handy as the price and timeline for EcoPark remain to be seen. Before the report is released, consultants are hoping to gain input at public meetings scheduled in Live Oak, Felton and Aptos this month. A meeting was also held in Watsonville on Monday.
“Everybody involved will have to decide how much we want to spend,” Matthews said. “Eliminating waste is not inexpensive. It could be a couple of million dollars to tens of millions.”
According to Robin Musitelli, an analyst for Supervisor Ellen Pirie who serves on the Integrated Waste Management Local Task Force that reviewed the EcoPark concept, the alternative landfill would likely be housed in an industrial building with adequate public access.
“It can be anywhere,” she said. “It’s like a big warehouse type of facility.”
One looming question is whether a compost site for organic waste would be housed on the same site. While the waste recycling and processing facility would likely require between 20 and 25 acres, another 25 to 50 acres would be needed for composting.
“It’s a question of whether or not the transfer site and material recovery is also sited with the organics,” Musitelli said. “They don’t have to be sited together.”
At next week’s meetings, the community will view examples of processing and collection facilities in Phoenix, Sunnyvale and Berkeley and how well they fit into communities, Matthews said.
But some worry that even a landfill alternative without the kind of water and air pollition concerns associated with a dump may prove burdensome because of traffic, nuisance and land use impacts. Watsonville attorney Luis Alejo, who said he was one of six community members at Monday’s presentation, fears that like earlier landfill proposals, the EcoPark site will also end up in Watsonville.
“I suspect that a lot of the major sites are going to be in South County again,” Alejo said. “It is important to recycle, but it’s a major issue of equity. Watsonville has been the site for the county dump for decades.”
•••
Meetings on the Zero Waste EcoPark will be held from 7-9 p.m. on April 24 at the Simpkins Family Swim Center at 979 17th Ave. in Live Oak and April 25 at Aptos Village Park at 100 Aptos Creek Road in Aptos.
http://www.register-pajaronian.com/search_archives.php?heading=5#
The Santa Cruz Sentinel, April 20, 2007
Santa Cruz County looks at new recycling center
SANTA CRUZ — After county residents shot down a new landfill three years ago, supervisors are looking at option two: an “EcoPark”County officials said the proposed facility would expand the county’s recycling and composting capability to divert most of the 600 tons of garbage county residents produce each day from the landfill. No site has been elected for the facility and the county has not unveiled plans detailing how large it would be or what it would look like.Dan deGrassi, solid waste planner for Santa Cruz County, said the proposal is a good thing because the county’s landfill has about 16 years left until it’s full.“This is an alternative to landfills, since the county has decided not to consider building any new landfills in the community,” deGrassi said. Supporters say it couldn’t come at a better time.In 2004, residents around the county successfully thwarted efforts to replace the Buena Vista landfill in Watsonville, which takes trash from the unincorporated county. The dump was scheduled to close in 15 years.
Twenty-three sites were proposed around the county and all were shot down. Opponents cited traffic, noise and water pollution concerns, among others. That left supervisors in a lurch, scrambling to figure out what to do with the garbage once the landfill is full.The board started to answer that question on Tuesday by approving a 30-year deal that will truck 24,000 to 26,000 tons of garbage each year from the Ben Lomond Transfer Station to Monterey County’s landfill in Marina, deGrassi said. That should extend the county landfill’s life from 12 to 16 years.
But Monterey County officials have stressed that the Marina landfill is not a permanent solution to Santa Cruz County’s garbage woes, he said.Instead, “we need to start looking at a major recycling center in the county,” Supervisor Tony Campos said. The county already diverts 58 percent of its trash from the landfill. But the potential is even greater, deGrassi said, with the right facility.
While the county would take the lead on building the new processing center, the four cities in the county are expected to participate, too, deGrassi said. Similar facilities are operating in Monterey and Santa Barbara counties.But opponents are already preparing for a fight — especially in the Pajaro Valley, where some residents worry they could end up with a recycling plant in their backyard.
Watsonville lawyer Luis Alejo, who opposed the previous landfill proposal, said that while the recycling facility would put Santa Cruz County on the “cutting edge,” he doesn’t think South County, which is home to the landfill now, should have to take a second garbage facility. “Why don’t other parts of the county step up to take responsibility?” he asked.
Last fall, Watsonville City Council members passed a one-year moratorium on building such a facility within city limits. DeGrassi and Public Works staff should return to the Board of Supervisors in May with a list of potential sites for the new center.
Contact Genevieve Bookwalter at gbookwalter@santacruzsentinel.com.
Proposed recycling and compost centerThe public is invited to three informational meetings next week to learn about and give feedback on plans for a new recycling and compost center. All meetings are 7-9 p.m.:
- Monday: San Lorenzo Valley Elementary School, 7155 Highway 9, Felton.
- Tuesday: Simpkins Family Swim Center, 979 17th Ave., Live Oak.
- Wednesday: Aptos Village Park, 100 Aptos Creek Road, Aptos.
You can find this story online at:
http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/archive/2007/April/20/local/stories/01local.htm
The Watsonville Register-Pajaronian, February 23, 2007
Heated immigration debate ensues at UCSC
Posted: Friday, Feb 23rd, 2007
SANTA CRUZ — One of the hottest topics in the country was taken on by experts on the forefront of an immigration debate Wednesday for more than 260 college students and community members.“This is a pivotal year,” panelist and Watsonville lawyer Luis Alejo said of immigration laws being debated in a now Democratic majority Congress, including expanding a guest worker program that would grant more work permits to migrant laborers. In 2001, an estimated 1 million legal immigrants and 500,000 illegal aliens settled in the United States, according to the Federation of American Immigration Reform.Inside a University of California, Santa Cruz auditorium, panelist Mariana Bustamante said she is often asked, “Why don’t they just go to the post office, fill out a form and become legal?”But immigration is a complex socio-economic issue that can not be reduced to being driven by fears or prejudices, Bustamante said. Misinformation surrounding immigration issues produces “simplistic solutions, like building a fence along the border,” she said.
Border protection was increased in late 2006, when Congress authorized funds for building a 700-mile-long wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, hiring more law enforcement agents and creating more detention facilities. The REAL ID Act cracked down on illegal immigrants already in the country.
However, panelist Col. Albert Rodriguez said these new laws were not enough to stop undocumented workers from entering the country and described Congress as “inept political junkies.”
Rodriguez commended the vigilantes as “patriots” who protected Americans against “vicious” gangs of illegal aliens operating organized crime rings across the border.
Immigration enforcement hit home during the September 2006 immigration raids on Watsonville and Santa Cruz, called Operation Return to Sender, by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, whose tactics shocked many in the community.
“This reduced public safety in Watsonville because the trust with local law enforcement has been erased,” Alejo said.
Blocking immigrants escaping poverty from seeking a better life is inconsistent with American values of fairness, Bustamante said.
Over the course of America’s history, there have been waves of opening and closing its borders.
Currently there is a nationwide sentiment largely against opening the door to foreigners, Alejo said. “Politicians make immigrants scapegoats for society’s ills,” he said. Panelist Ira Melman of the Federation of American Immigration Reform, a conservative organization that supports cutting off both legal and illegal immigration into the United States, argued that immigrants take away American’s jobs, drain welfare resources, impose a burden on public schools and commit more crimes.“It’s not that no one wants the job, it’s that no one wants the wage,” Melman said, refuting the argument that our economy is dependent on cheap migrant labor. Businesses are profiting off illegal workers at the expense of the American middle class, he said.
Another element within the debate is the issue of granting refugee status and entry to those fleeing from war.
The White House announced Wednesday that 7,000 Iraqi refugees will be allowed into the U.S. this year — an increase from the 202 permitted in 2006, according to the Associated Press.
The International Organization for Migration estimated that 1 million Iraqis will flee their homes and become displaced this year.
Regardless of which immigration laws are be enacted by Congress in the next decade, Watsonville City Manager Carlos Palacios said in a recent speech that a huge change is about to happen in California; by the year 2015 Latinos will be the largest ethnic group in the state.
“You can either look at change with fear or excitement,” Palacios said.
The Watsonville Register-Pajaronian, Januar 17, 2007
Plaque unveiling honors legacy of MLK
Posted: Wednesday, Jan 17th, 2007
About 60 Watsonville residents braved the cold Sunday evening to honor locals who have lost their lives to gang violence and to dedicate a memorial tree plaque in the Watsonville Plaza.Speakers at the event linked efforts to end the violence that has killed at least 61 Pajaro Valley residents over the last 12 years with the enduring legacy of nonviolent resistance of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., whose birthday will be observed nationwide today. Watsonville attorney Luis Alejo asked the crowd to honor King by remembering young people killed in Watsonville, as well as in Iraq and throughout the world.
“For many different reasons, it is a good night to be here,” Alejo said.As the crowd held candles in the cold, community members unveiled a plaque next to what they termed the Tree of Peace, a Japanese Maple planted during the 10th Annual Watsonville Peace and Unity March in 2003. The plaque reads, “In memoriam of all our brothers and sisters who have lost their lives to violence, and in honor of those who continue to champion for peace in our community and throughout the world.” Laura Segura Gallardo, new executive director of Women’s Crisis Support-Defensa de Mujeres, spoke about the first time violence hit home for her, when two Watsonville residents were killed nearly 25 years ago. Remembering the impact the murders had on the community made her work to end violence in Watsonville, she said.“We really want to build a community that produces nonviolence,” Gallardo said.
Rosa de Ramirez, who lost her son Antonio Ramirez Valdivia, 19, when he was killed in a drive-by shooting at Manresa State Beach in 1994, said she attended the vigil to honor her son and to encourage others to work toward nonviolence.
“My son is gone,” Ramirez said, as she straightened a photo of her son dressed in a tuxedo for eighth grade graduation on a table at the vigil. “He was my baby. I miss him a lot. It’s like it just happened yesterday.”
For Ramirez, speaking out about her son’s death was difficult at first. But now, she is confident that speaking publicly about her pain can help others dealing with the aftermath of violence.
“I don’t want this to happen to other parents, we don’t want this violence to happen,” she said. “I’m not afraid anymore.”
The Santa Cruz Sentinel, October 7, 2006 Guest Column:
Marching against violence in Watsonville
By Luis Alejo
Every year that goes by, violence continues to tragically take the lives of many of our local residents. In 2004, two more of our young people lost their lives to violence in Watsonville.Isaac Guzman, 17, was brutally stabbed on Airport Boulevard on Dec. 3, 2004. He was a popular student at Watsonville Community School and was waiting for his father to pick him up after school on the day that he was tragically killed.
Wayne Minten, 18, was fatally shot in a drive-by on May 13, 2005, on Palm Avenue as he was riding home on his bike. He was a hard-working, cheerful young man and was thought of highly by those who worked with him at Hungerford’s restaurant and at a Soquel demolition company.After Isaac and Wayne were killed, I visited the altars set up by family members and friends at the spots they were killed. I saw the mementos, the flowers, the messages and the photos left for them.
They were loved by so many. At their funeral services, I heard the words of pain, hurt and anger of their family members and so many other young people. I saw their mothers’ tears and heard their cries about never being able to celebrate another birthday, Thanksgiving or Christmas with their children. I couldn’t help but feel their pain.
It was a very difficult time for both the Guzman and Minten families. Still grieving, they had the strength and courage to speak out and tell other young people of Watsonville that they did not want to see any retaliation. They did not want to see any other mothers lose their loved ones to senseless violence, and they put their faith in our justice system to prosecute those responsible.
Isaac and Wayne’s killers have not been caught yet, but they will be brought to justice. Their cases have certainly not been forgotten by many of us.After these killings, former Mayor Ana Ventura Phares called for a Neighborhood Safety Summit to find ways to reduce violence. Many community residents repeated that the primary way to make a significant change is for local residents to become actively involved in bringing peace into our homes and neighborhoods.
Today, the people of Watsonville will have an opportunity to come together to take action against gang and domestic violence, and to never forget all our brothers and sisters who have lost their lives over the past several years. The 13th annual Watsonville Peace and Unity March will begin at 11 a.m. today at the City Plaza. Every year, students, families, churches, local officials, law enforcement officers and community-based organizations join in this struggle for peace and unity.
The march is a way to send a strong message into every home, school, and neighborhood that we must work together to put an end to violence and to create a better future for our younger generations.
This year’s march will also remember: Jessica Cortez, 9; Jorge Cortez, 16; Tony Valdivia, 19; Victor Simental, 23; Mike Echeverria, 22; Mariana Zavala, 14; Andres Rodriguez, 43; Benny Casares, 21; Edgar Chacon, 16; Augustin Jacobo, 16; Jose Hernandez, 16; Servando Renteria, 21, Jose Antonio Torres, 16; Gloria Hassemer, 42; Oscar Perez, 14; Benny Casares, 21; Jose “Pepe” Garcia, 22; Sergio Romo, 19; Ulysses Huante, 18; Alejandro Alex Lopez, 19; Eric Lopez, 19; Valdemar Biddlecome, 19; Lucio Garcia, 16; Gregorio Oso Ramirez, 26; Dalila S. Wilson, 19; Leticia Coronado, 38; Joel Arrellano, 19; Jesus Fernandez, 2; Kelly Chilcote, 58; David Douglas, 57; Luis Fernando Gomez, 27; Esteban Herrera, 19; Juan Rodriguez, 23; Ricky Romero, 17; Salvador Rocha, 18; Alejandro Fernandez, 22; Cecilia Fernando Rocha, 30; Tiburcio Moreno Gomez, 39; Gabriel Cesar, 18; Manuel Almieda, 19; Larry Lopez, 23; Justin Black, 17; David Chiota, 58; Humberto Lopez, 25; Kelly Ann Reber, 21; Heather Nicole Pereira, 25; Jose Enrique Perez; Julio Ayala Mendez, 42; Mauricio Cruz, 35; Fernando Balderas, 28; Wayne Carey, 37; Narinderpaul Singh Dhillon, 19; Alfred Leyva Garcia, 42; Barry Fuentes Batad, 40; Ricardo Marin Guzman, 30; Omar Trejo, 29; Ramon Villegas, 45; Maria Guadalupe Fernandez, 7; Danielle Dewart, 23; Luis Antonio Aguilar, 25; Norman Lee Eldridge, 52; Benjamin Avila, 42; Jesse Rodriguez, 47; John Beltran, 61; Christopher Carr, 23; Arturo Ortega Cardenas, 31; and Jose Cabrera, 40.
After reading these names, one cannot help but realize that there is much work to be done to put an end to this madness in our community. Violence in Watsonville is undoubtedly a problem that continues to affect people of every age, gender and ethnicity. Great work is already being done by many groups, our City Council and local law enforcement, but we have do more throughout the year to help our youth pursue their college dreams and aspirations instead of turning to the pipeline of gangs and prisons.
The time to act to bring peace to our streets and homes is now. Everyone is invited to join us this morning. We can never waiver in our efforts to champion for peace.
Luis A. Alejo is a local attorney and has volunteered every year with the annual Watsonville Peace and Unity March.
You can find this story online at:
http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/archive/2006/October/07/edit/stories/01edit.htm
The Watsonville Register-Pajaronian, September 13, 2006
Raids wreak havoc in local communities
After immigration officials from the U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agency arrested 107 illegal immigrants in Watsonville, Santa Cruz and Hollister last week — in the largest immigration raid in about a decade — many fear far-reaching repercussions.“It appears that the raids are over, but they wreaked a lot of havoc during the time that they were here,” said Doug Keegan, an immigration attorney who directs the Santa Cruz County Immigration Project and counseled about 10 families affected by the raids.Attorney and community activist Luis Alejo said raids in the mid-1990s sent shockwaves though the community, leading to a strong response from the Watsonville City Council.
“(A raid) has averse consequences in many ways,” Alejo said. “It creates a really strong sense of fear. In Watsonville, a strong sense of trust with local law enforcement is important. In terms of public safety, I think it’s going to be a major setback.”Watsonville Police Capt. Edmundo Rodriguez disagreed that the arrests would hamper WPD’s relations with immigrants. “ICE has been here before to arrest people on warrants,” he said. “It hasn’t had an adverse effect on us.”
While WPD maintains a cooperative relationship with ICE in arrests involving criminal activity, it does not participate in immigration enforcement, Rodriguez said.
“It is not our mission to act in a role as an immigration enforcement agency,” he said.
Because ICE is a completely separate agency, its arrests shouldn’t affect residents’ willingness to cooperate with WPD, Rodriguez said.
Still, Keegan said raids could impact local law enforcement, in part because ICE agents identified themselves as police. Some agents also told residents they were officers who needed to discuss a problem at school, Keegan said.
He said he feels obligated to now inform immigrants that they are not obliged to open their doors to law enforcement unless they produce a warrant.
While most ICE agents appeared to be working from a list of specific residents, they also arrested other undocumented people nearby, Keegan said. In one instance, ICE officials banged on several doors in a Live Oak senior residential facility after they had already arrested one woman, Keegan said.
Keegan is working to arrange a meeting with ICE officials, community members and Congressman Sam Farr (D-Carmel) to discuss the raids. He wants to secure a commitment from ICE that they will limit searches to people with outstanding deportation orders or criminal records, to prevent arbitrary arrests, he said.
Several locals said this week that they were enraged by what they saw as indiscriminate raids.
When Gloria Palomo, a leader of the group Communities Organized for Relational Power in Action, or COPA, discovered that a Live Oak couple she described as pillars of the community had been deported, she couldn’t believe it, she said. The couple was taken from their home early Friday morning, leaving their 13- and 20-year-old daughters behind.
“These are people that have collaborated with us for years, they’re very involved in the community, they attend church, they have their own business … Now their daughter is asking where her parents are.”
The couple lived in the United States for 14 years, Palomo said. They had hired a San Francisco immigration lawyer three years ago to help them file paperwork. Instead, Palomo said, the lawyer defrauded the couple out of $15,000, leaving their paperwork incomplete.
When ICE officials came to their door, Palomo said they were not informed of their rights.
“We are very angry,” she said. “It didn’t have to be like this.”
ICE agents have the authority to arrest anyone they find to be an illegal immigrant, said Tim Aitken, deputy director for detention and removal at the San Francisco field office of ICE.
If a person is unable to produce proof of their legal status, the agents may conduct an interview to determine if enough evidence suggests a person is an illegal immigrant. If the evidence reaches the threshold of probable cause, the agent may arrest the person, he said.
These arrests are not considered criminal arrests, said ICE representative Lori Haley. They are called “administrative arrests,” and for this reason, ICE could not release the names of those arrested last week.
Aitken provided a rough breakdown of the arrests, however: Of the 107 people arrested last week, 87 have already been removed to Mexico.
Of the remaining 20, three were from other countries, and the agency was seeking authority to deport them, he said.
Every immigrant ICE finds to be in the country illegally has the opportunity to see an immigration judge, Aitken said. Of the arrestees who had not been removed, 17 had requested a hearing before an immigration judge. The process does not involve the right to an attorney, however, those arrested may hire an attorney to help them, he said.
If the immigration judge rules that an immigrant must be removed, they may not have another opportunity to see a judge, he said. Of those arrested, 45 were considered fugitives who had disobeyed immigration judges’ orders to leave the country.
Keegan said he suspected that most people didn’t know they could ask for an immigration judge, nor did they know that their families could hire an attorney.
“They were working against the clock,” he said. “I don’t know of anyone who actually got an attorney.”
The Santa Cruz Sentinel, March 29, 2006
Adults want Watsonville protesters to return to classrooms
WATSONVILLE — While community members may differ on the issue of immigration reform, adults seem to agree students would be better off expressing their political views on campus.For the past two days, hundreds of Watsonville High School students have staged walkouts to protest proposed immigration reform legislation.In response, dozens of police officers have taken to the streets to try to keep unruly demonstrators under control.“I call on the students to go back to the classroom, get educated,” said Mayor Antonio Rivas. “That’s the way to go.”Some expressed skepticism about student motivation.“Coming from an immigrant family, I would support the issue,” said Jesus Ramirez, a 23-year-old San Jose State student who observed classes at Watsonville High on Tuesday. “There are students who really think that they can make a change … but a lot of students are using it as an excuse to cut classes.”Luis Alejo, a Watsonville lawyer and community activist, said he monitored Monday’s march to help keep students safe. He said he found most understood at least the gist of proposed legislation and were genuinely concerned about the issue. Those who weren’t as educated learned as they marched.“If this had not been of great concern, you would not have seen the numbers,” Alejo said. “This was probably the largest student walkout in the history of Watsonville.”The interest in the issue provides an opportunity, he said.“The school district should use this as a teachable moment,” Alejo said.School officials say they have given students the opportunity to speak out on campus, and will continue doing so.Rivas said teachers at Alisal High School in Salinas, where he works as a counselor, centered civics lessons on the immigration issue and updated students on the progress of legislation through Congress.On Monday, the Senate Judiciary Committee stripped the most offensive language from the bill.“So they understand all the marches and rallies are being heard by Congress,” Rivas said.Alisal students joined others from Salinas high schools in walkouts Tuesday.Watsonville Councilman Dale Skillicorn worried about the expense of deploying dozens of police officers to handle protesters, and suggested any educational value was negative.“They learned how to disrupt the community,” he said.Peter Bellonzi, a parent of two Pajaro Valley High students, said teenagers lack wisdom and experience so they’re more prone to act spontaneously.His 16-year-old son stayed in class. His 14-year-old daughter walked out. She was ordered by a police officer to go home, and learned actions have consequences, Bellonzi said.“As a parent, I’m glad they are getting involved,” he said. Watsonville High Athletic Director Rob Cornett said some students took advantage of the protests, but others were more idealistic. He said he supported the ones who were trying to express their political views.“This is America,” he said. “This is why I love this place.”Sentinel staff writer Isaiah Guzman contributed to this report. Contact Donna Jones at djones@santacruzsentinel.com.
You can find this story online at:
http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/archive/2006/March/29/local/stories/02local.htm The Santa Cruz Sentinel, May 1, 2005
OPINION
P.V. schools too quick to expel
By Luis Angel Alejo
Current university research demonstrates that expelling students from school has dire consequences on the educational opportunities of those students. That is why the Pajaro Valley Unified School District was recently urged to improve its expulsion policy and disciplinary practices after parents discovered the expulsion rates of the Pajaro Valley district are the highest in the county and are disproportionate for the number of students within the district. In the 2003-04 school year, students in the Pajaro Valley district comprised less than 50 percent of the students in Santa Cruz County and yet they accounted for more than 85 percent of the students ordered expelled in the entire county. These rates are similar to those in the previous three years of available data. Some district administrators recently have tried to downplay the numbers by claiming that nearly half of the expulsions are suspended. But when the suspended expulsion numbers are removed from the picture, the rates were even worse for some years. For instance, Pajaro Valley Unified School District students accounted for nearly 90 percent of all non-suspended expulsions in the county in the 2002-03 school year. The vast majority of expulsions are non-mandatory under California law and therefore, district and school administrators have a wide range of discretion in recommending an expulsion over lesser disciplinary action. In the 2003-04 school year, for instance, only 4 out of 116 the Pajaro Valley district-recommended expulsions were mandatory. In addition, 100 percent of students who were recommended for expulsion in the past four years eventually were ordered expelled by the school board. In some years, the school district had an expulsion rate of more than five times the rate of that in the rest of the county and nearly 4 times the state rate. These statistics paint a very disturbing picture about what is occurring within the school district. The Pajaro Valley district is recommending and ordering far too many of our local students expelled instead of resorting first to less extreme measures, including therapeutic rehabilitation, prevention, intervention and support (such as community service, alternative educational settings, individual and family counseling, after-school programs, peer mediation and conflict resolution, and volunteer hours with local nonprofits and student organizations). This suggests that the Pajaro Valley district is not fulfilling its legal obligation to provide an educational opportunity to all children in its boundaries, and, instead, is implementing an expulsion program that is denying children their fundamental right to a public school education. Research by the Civil Rights Project at Harvard University clearly demonstrates that expelling a student significantly increases the probability the student will drop out of school, and tracks students into the juvenile justice system. Other research shows the majority of expelled students do not return to their home school or graduate, and they are three times more likely to drop out of school by their sophomore year. The studies also show a direct correlation between suspensions, expulsions and delinquency rates, and truancy and absenteeism commonly follow a student’s removal from a public school. Many disciplinary policies in our schools lead to pushing many students out of schools. Scholars have concluded such policies are creating what has been termed a “schools-to-prison pipeline” since such policies increase the likelihood the student will be guaranteed a space in a prison or Juvenile Hall rather than guaranteeing a student a seat in a university classroom. Expulsions should be used only as a last resort, and district and school administrators should be better exercising their discretion and recommending expulsions for only extreme cases. State law and the constitutional right to an education make this approach a legal requirement, not just good policy. Each student’s education is worth saving, and the school district should be doing everything possible to safeguard their educational interests and help each student succeed and overcome academic or behavioral issues with which they may be challenged. Zero-tolerance types of approaches that simply get rid of students by expelling them does nothing to correct their behavior and mistakes, and those students are only put at greater risk of academic failure. It also ends up costing taxpayers thousands more in the long run. It is clear the district must take immediate action to rectify this egregious, punitive trend within the district and establish policies that will help students succeed instead of simply getting rid of them. It appears a comprehensive review of district policies on school discipline is needed, and an in-service training also must be held for all school principals and district staff about discipline alternatives to expulsion. Thus far, district officials have stated their willingness to review their current expulsion policy and practices. The district also has recently moved to open an alternative middle school for its students starting in August, to provide them with better options to expulsion. These are certainly steps in the right direction. The bottom line is we simply cannot afford to give up on any of our students by pushing them out of our schools. We must do everything possible to help them succeed and realize their full academic potential. Luis Angel Alejo is a local attorney, the director of the Student Empowerment Project and a member of the county Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Commission.
You can find this story online at:
http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/archive/2005/May/01/edit/stories/03edit.htm The Santa Cruz Sentinel, March 8, 2005
Student group urges district to change final exam policy
The director of a student advocacy group sent a letter urging the Pajaro Valley Unified School District superintendent to help change a policy that gives F’s on final exams to Watsonville High School students who miss the tests. Student Empowerment Project director Luis Alejo wrote to Superintendent Mary Anne Mays: “Many times, families have to leave due to family emergencies or other exigent circumstances. To punish migrant students for simply migrating is contrary to state and federal laws that aim to protect them from the adverse consequences of moving from place to place and being displaced from their schools.” Last December, 68 migrant students at Watsonville High received F’s because they had to go to Mexico before their finals, according to Faris Sabbah, director of the Office of Migrant Education for the district. The year before, 50 students received F’s for the same reason. High school administrators maintain that students know when their finals are well in advance, and that parents should plan accordingly. The high school is in the midst of working with migrant parents to change the policy, according Sabbah. The Student Empowerment Project, based in Watsonville was created in 1994 to advocate for the rights of students and make positive changes at the local and statewide levels, Alejo said.
You can find this story online at:
http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/archive/2005/March/08/local/stories/11local.htm The Santa Cruz Sentinel, January 22, 2005
Pajaro Valley school board again considers naming school for Chavez
By DONNA JONES
WATSONVILLE — Next year some Pajaro Valley students may attend a school named after Cesar Chavez. At least that’s what supporters of the renowned labor leader are hoping as Pajaro Valley Unified School District officials start the process of naming two new schools with a discussion Wednesday. Recent changes in school board membership may mean chances of naming a school after Chavez are a lot better than they were two years ago, when Chavez backers lost an acrimonious battle. “We’ve been waiting a long time for this,” said Luis Alejo, one of the leaders in the failed campaign to name Pajaro Valley High School after Chavez. “We hope people really come together and make this a reality for Watsonville.” School officials are looking at naming the new elementary school on Ohlone Parkway, temporarily called Landmark, and a new middle school that will open next year on the former Alianza Charter School campus on Arthur Road. Backers who launched a campaign almost a year ago to name Landmark after Chavez say he is a celebrated civil rights leader whose achievements will serve as a role model for students. Opponents say the name is too divisive in a community where the painful wounds of a labor strife in the 1970s still haven’t healed. Rhea DeHart, school board president, wasn’t on the board last time the issue came up but has said she could support the Chavez name. There will be a Chavez school, she predicted. Trustee Willie Yahiro voted against the name two years ago. “It was a potentially divisive situation, and a high school should be encompassing for everybody,” he said Friday. But he declined to comment on how the issue might play out at the elementary and middle school level, other than to say he wanted to make sure the community had a clear understanding of the process from the start. Contact Donna Jones at djones@santacruzsentinel.com.
If You Go
WHAT: School board discusses naming two Pajaro Valley schools. WHEN: 7 p.m. Wednesday. WHERE: District office boardroom, 292 Green Valley Road, Watsonville.
You can find this story online at:
http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/archive/2005/January/22/local/stories/05local.htm