School Fight
2007-05-27 10:14PM PDT/Home
My wife is apparently not to be trifled with. Well, I've always known that, but our local school board is finding that out the hard way. She was quoted in the SJ Mercury News, and the Palo Alto Daily when she asked one of the board members to recuse themselves from the an attendance area issue because of a conflict of interest.
The exchange began last week when Aaronson said Goines should recuse himself from boundary discussions.
"With all due respect to your position on the LASD Board of Trustees, and your current level of attention to the matter of attendance area boundary changes, I must ask you to recuse yourself from the vote on this matter," she wrote. "It has come to my attention that you have a conflict of interest in this matter, as your daughter is in the second-grade at Santa Rita, and you live in that southernmost area and your child would be asked to attend Bullis."
Nine minutes later board President Bill Cooper replied to Aaronson with an e-mail saying that all board members have children enrolled in the district except Margot Harrigan.
Aaronson replied nine minutes later saying that other board members "aren't in an area of flux."
Just over an hour later, board Member David Pefley wrote that he appreciated Aaronson's passion, but added that "you are way off on the facts, as in your other letters."
Aaronson responded to Pefley with an e-mail beginning with: "I am hearing loud and clear that you don't appreciate, and have not appreciated, what I have to say.
The exchange is more completely documented on my wife's blog.