Editorials

It’s time for the Morgan Hill Unified School District’s seven elected trustees to exercise some fiscal restraint and set an example by cutting back on theirs use of taxpayers’ money to attend conferences and banquets in the name of “professional development.”During the 2013-2014 school year the board of education members spent more than $15,000 from the general fund on their expenses for airfare, hotel stays, meals and registration to attend events such as the California School Boards Association’s annual conference in San Diego, Chamber of Commerce breakfasts, the California Latino School Boards Association conference and other events. It’s easy to dismiss $15,000 as insignificant compared to the district’s overall $65 million general fund budget. But the trustees, who are elected by the people of Morgan Hill and are using their money to attend these events, have a responsibility to set an example. Plus, the amount spent by MHUSD trustees on these conferences and banquets is more than twice that of nearby school districts. In Morgan Hill, at the top of the list was Trustee Rick Badillo’s $4,645.70 tab, a majority coming from attending the CSBA and the California Latino School Boards Association annual conferences as well as CSBA Masters in Governance coursework.At the opposite end is Trustee Amy Porter Jensen, who did not attend a single conference and expensed not a cent from the taxpayers’ wallet.We agree with Badillo, who told reporter Scott Forstner that it’s the elected officials’ duty “to be as informed as possible on current issues affecting our district as well as the rest of the state.” However, this information seeking process does not have to come at the expense of the taxpayers. Perhaps the board could implement a policy that reimburses trustees for registration fees but not travel and hotel expenses, similar to the policy in place at Santa Clara Unified.It’s a tough pill to swallow that the CSBA conference in San Diego came at a $7,581.54 charge. Did they have to fly? A carpool drive down to Southern Calif. would have been more economical. And how about a Subway sandwich for lunch rather than hundreds of dollars in meals?And some of the events—particularly Chamber breakfasts and dinners—are simply extravagant and serve no purpose in advancing the trustees’ knowledge of technical school issues. Trustees could also use some of their $200 or so monthly stipend to pay for their meals and hotelsThe board is putting together a subcommittee of three trustees to come up with a more suitable professional development budget. That’s a productive start. Professional development is a vital component to establishing the best board —and something that should not be discouraged. But not at a $15,000 cost to the taxpayers.

There are whisperings that the Morgan Hill Unified Board of Trustees is ready to offer Interim Superintendent Steve Betando a three-year contract.

Rocketship Charter Schools may not provide the magic silver bullet for our schools, but the Morgan Hill Unified School District should have the school in its arsenal of options for parents and students.

Morgan Hill teen Sierra LaMar disappeared from our town on March 16, 2012. She was 15 at the time and a sophomore at Sobrato High School. Her alleged killer, Antolin Garcia Torres, 22, was arrested more than one year ago and he still has not entered a plea.

Morgan Hill Unified School District trustees should make up their minds and vote – as it’s legally required to do – next week on whether to accept or reject the petition by Navigator Schools to open an elementary school.