By Sen. Gloria Romero, Ret.
LA/Orange County Register, August 25, 2014
On a recent sunny afternoon, mothers gathered in an apartment complex near the Happiest Place on Earth – Disneyland.
Parents eagerly discussed their plans to access the key – not to the magical kingdom with its promise of Tomorrowland – but to the American Dream itself. The key, for them, is transforming their neighborhood school, Palm Lane Elementary, which has languished on the California Department of Education's chronically underperforming school list for 10 years.
For awhile, parents were hopeful: Principal Roberto Baeza had assumed leadership, bringing with him a stellar record of excellence and respect for parents. That ended when he was inexplicably removed by the Anaheim City School District in May. Parents approached the school board, including the sole Latino representative, Jose Moreno, but felt rebuffed.
That's when parents decided to use California's Parent Trigger law, which enables parents to transform such chronically underperforming schools. Although parents still hope Baeza will return, they've decided to try to convert Palm Lane into a charter school. Los Angeles Unified and other CORE districts have won an exemption from the law, but Anaheim City is not one of those districts.
Parents thought it might be helpful to seek support from Los Amigos of Orange County – a Latino advocacy organization headed by Moreno. I joined them Wednesday at a meeting to appeal to club members. Not only did they leave with no support, but Moreno missed the presentation. He told the parents afterward in the parking lot that he was displeased with their actions.
Why, they wondered? "This isn't Mexico, with a patronage system," observed parent leader Cecilia Ochoa. "He shouldn't stop us or tell us we're 'embarrassing' him for organizing on our own."
Yet, within 48 hours, Moreno was meeting with the club's Education committee to express his opposition with the parents' reform efforts.
What is particularly ironic is that Moreno recently sued the city of Anaheim, seeking greater Latino empowerment. He cited the failure of the very schools the parents are seeking to transform. Moreno said, "Anaheim … [Latinos] have suffered from, and continue to bear the effects of, past discrimination in … education … which hinder their ability to participate effectively in the political process. … In Anaheim, there are significant disparities in the educational levels of Latino and non-Latino white residents. ... Only 53 percent of Latinos 25 or older have graduated from high school."
His lawsuit fails to mention that he has been a school board member for eight years, with the power to work on turning around these failing schools he decries. Given his lawsuit, shouldn't he support the parents' reform efforts, rather than try to sabotage them?
Whether the parents succeed remains to be seen. Certainly, they should be free to organize using lawful California provisions. Moreno's actions to suppress his own constituents' efforts raise serious questions of ethics. After all, he is a member of the very board that will, ultimately, have final authority over the parents' Trigger drive. As an elected official sworn to uphold state laws, he should recognize this inherent conflict of interest and recuse himself from any actions on this issue. However, when reached for comment, Moreno said he perceives no conflict.
These parents may live by Disneyland, but their efforts are no fantasy. They deserve to use a law written for parent empowerment unfettered, not wait for something magical to happen mañana – or, perhaps, in another 10 years.
Staff opinion columnist Gloria Romero is an education reformer and former Democratic state senator from L.A. Email:Gloria@parentempower.org. Twitter: @GloriaJRomero
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