San Diego Measures C And D Focus On School Board Elections And Accountability

Speaker 1: 00:00 Two local ballot measures could change the way San Diego unified school districts, board members are elected and held accountable KPBS education reporter. Joe Hong explains the arguments for and against measures C and D. Speaker 2: 00:15 Right now, elections for San Diego unified use a hybrid model during the primary only voters from a candidate sub-district can cast ballots in the November general, the candidates compete in an at large election campaigning across all of San Diego. Unified is five subdistricts supporters of measure C hope to change that they say at large elections, give disproportionate power to the city's white majority and thus marginalize the votes of people of color in certain sub districts. If pass the measure would make them November general abide district elections starting in 2022, Sharon White, hers pain is an incumbent board member running for reelection in sub-district II. In 2016, she took second place in the primary, but one in the general, she said she supports measure C because it would simplify the election process. Speaker 1: 00:57 My main reason for supporting it has to do with simplification. It's so complicated for folks to understand why we had district only, and then, Speaker 2: 01:09 But her opponent want Richmond said measure C would do more than simplify lotions. It would remove financial barriers to campaigning and encourage more community members to run for office. She used the example of campaign mailers to show just how much more it costs to run in an at large election. Speaker 1: 01:25 I was able to get on a couple of them, um, for a total of like a thousand dollars for the general election, just to get on one. They wanted 5,000 Speaker 2: 01:36 Richmond said that ultimately measure C could help diversify the school board by encouraging more people to run, but outgoing board president John Lee Evans said the current system already promotes diversity while ensuring that candidates represent both the needs of their subdistricts. And those of the overall district Evans who's voting against measure C set a by district election could encourage board members from more affluent parts of the district to neglect the needs of schools, serving more vulnerable student groups. When I was running, I was accountable to the voters in the entire district, as opposed to I'll just take my sub district and make sure we get the resources we need and not pay as much attention to what's going on the other areas. And I think that's, that's been a benefit and that is a potential detriment. If it were to pass Evans does however support and measure D which would change the San Diego city charter to give the school board power, to remove a board member for misconduct or failing to carry out his or her duties. Speaker 2: 02:31 But he said the measure couldn't be used by a majority of the board to oust the political opponent in the minority. And the measure does not allow for an unpopular board member to be removed for some or some small reason. It has to be very major. The measure was proposed by San Diego city council members, Chris Cate, and Vivian Moreno if passed the city charter would be modified. So that school board members convicted of crimes or failing to carry out their duties could be removed with a three fourths vote by the other members. But if they felt for whatever reason that this a school board member at any time is derelict in their duties, there is a process by which they can remove that school board member absent, a recall or resignation, which we know is very costly and are very difficult to get both measures C and D need a simple majority of the votes to pass. Speaker 1: 03:19 Joining me is KPBS education reporter Joe Hong and Joe. Welcome. Thanks for having me. Did you find out any reason why San Diego unified adopted the current hybrid plan of subdistrict elections during the primary and then city wide elections and the general? Speaker 2: 03:38 Yeah. So several years ago they had this problem where all five board members were sort of coming from the same, more affluent areas of San Diego. So you would have candidates sort of all coming from LA Jolla, Clairemont, Mesa, and areas like that. So they adopted the by district primary to address that issue. And then they kept the, the general election at large to sort of make sure that everyone in the school district gets a vote on all the school board members. Speaker 1: 04:09 And the argument and supportive measures C seems to center on diversity and cost. Is there currently a lack of diversity on the San Diego school board? Speaker 2: 04:21 I wouldn't say that, you know, you have, uh, Sharon Whitehurst Payne, who is an African American woman. She represents sub-district II, which, uh, serves Southeast San Diego. You have Richard Berrera who's Latino. He serves the subdistrict D which covers downtown Barrio, Logan areas like that. And then, yeah, you have three white representatives representing the other parts of the district. Speaker 1: 04:50 Now the additional cost of a citywide race in the general election must also give an advantage to the incumbent. Speaker 2: 04:57 Yeah. Yeah. I would say that, you know, incumbents typically typically have sort of more, more resources. They have more name recognition. Um, I spoke to, uh, Lawanna Richmond who is running against Sharon, what her is pain in subdistrict E and she was telling me the cost of a mailer during the by district primary is about a thousand dollars, uh, to send those around for the general to send mailers across the entire district cost $5,000, which is exactly five times the cost. Speaker 1: 05:27 Do those opposed to measure C think board members elected only by their sub-district with threatened the wellbeing of the district as a whole. Speaker 2: 05:37 Yeah. So this is sort of an interesting complexity to this, to this measure. The argument that is that by doing, uh, by district elections only it would create a more equitable school board, local communities, uh, serving more minorities would, uh, be able to push their representatives forward. Um, but on the other side board president, John Lee Evans, who's against the measure. He told me that, you know, you could have a situation where folks from LA Jolla Guetta liked it, and they sort of only care about their subdistrict and they're politically incentivized to just take care of their own rather than the entire district. Speaker 1: 06:16 Okay. So that's the argument against measure. Say, let's move on to measure D the school board found out last year, it had no way to remove a trustee for cause if that school board member did not voluntarily resigned. Remind us briefly about the controversy involving trustee, Kevin Biser. Speaker 2: 06:35 Yeah. So in 2019, some allegations of sexual abuse surfaced against Kevin Biser. I believe it was four men who accused him of, of misconduct and the school board before any type of charge or conviction, they voted on re resolution to, uh, asking Kevin Biser to step down. Um, Kevin Biser refused to step down and the school board and the city council also, they all sort of realize that there's no sort of mechanism for, um, removing a school board member if that school board member had been convicted of, of misconduct. So that's sort of where this measure comes from. Speaker 1: 07:18 And, and what does measure D say about the reasons a trustee could be voted out? Speaker 2: 07:24 One of two things needs to happen. A trustee needs to be convicted in a criminal court of, um, sexual abuse or whatever it is, or number two in a civil judge needs to find that, uh, trustee was the, the word is derelict in their duties, meaning they're not showing up for board meetings, not carrying out their responsibilities, et cetera. And once one of those two things happens, the board can, the remaining board members can vote. And if they get a three-fourths vote, they can vote that person out. Speaker 1: 07:56 Now, uh, a sexual misconduct lawsuit against Biser was settled last year. And he remains on the school board. That sounds like a very awkward situation. While measure D is on the ballot, has Biser commented on measure D Speaker 2: 08:11 No Biser has not commented on the measure, but, um, I want to be very clear. I, I spoke with his lawyer the other day and Beizer did settle the lawsuit against him, uh, from one of his accusers, uh, where he, he works in the Sweetwater school district. He's a teacher there, and the district itself conducted an investigation and found no evidence of wrongdoing and visor has actually been teaching there for, for has gone back to teaching there for about a year now. So I just want to make it very clear. That's where that sort of investigation stands. They've sort of found no evidence of wrongdoing Speaker 1: 08:46 Are any other school board members saying much in supportive measure day. Speaker 2: 08:50 It seems like the school board unanimously supports measure D I think, uh, they want to create a mechanism for, uh, keeping school board members accountable, if something more serious were to happen. Speaker 3: 09:05 And I have been speaking with KPBS education reporter Joe Hong, Joe. Thank you. Thank you.