Before the year is out, this board should adopt a policy ensuring that all East Side graduates meet college entrance requirements by 2015.
~ 2010 State of the District Address
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As president of the Board of Trustees of the East Side Union High School District (ESUHSD), my outreach plan to pass an A-G graduation policy focused on generating broad community support to encourage, or if necessary, coerce board members to support the proposal. Phase 1 of the plan was to introduce the concept to the community at the annual ESUHSD State of the District Address.
In 2010, the ESUHSD was in transition and facing a fourth straight year of budget cuts. An interim superintendent was managing the district upon his predecessor’s resignation. The East Side Teachers Association (ESTA) president made it clear to me that the ESTA board was in no mood to add anything new to its plate. Keeping my remarks upbeat while proposing a new initiative would be challenging given the uncertain political atmosphere.
Traditionally, the school board president drafted the State of the District speech in collaboration with the superintendent based on the administration’s priorities for the year. The customary location and time for the State of the District ritual was at the district office boardroom at 4:00 pm, just before the regularly scheduled January school board meeting. A sprinkling of people – District office staff, principals, and union leaders – usually attended.
I worked with the superintendent to include my announcement on A-G. To attract more parents and families, the board decided to start the address at 6:00 pm and move the January meeting to the James Lick High School multipurpose room. That space held special meaning for me. It was just down the hall, 29 years earlier, where my counselor told me that college was not in my future. In that room, I was awarded a baseball MVP trophy in 1979 and named the school’s 1988 Coach of the Year.
As a student of history and politics, I crafted my State of the District program with the Presidential State of the Union Address in mind. I opened my remarks by stating, “For the past six decades, our teachers and district employees have prepared students for the future.” I introduced three generations of East Side graduates from the same family to illustrate East Side’s rich history and family-focused culture.
To emphasize the importance of beginning high school with a college-prep schedule, I shared the story of Marco Ramirez, a Silver Creek High School graduate and CEO of a multimillion-dollar construction company. Although he graduated with respectable grades, counselors did not provide access to the requisite courses to be eligible for a four-year university. As a result, he had to endure a slew of prerequisite courses at a community college before transferring to California State University, Chico.
Ramirez stood as applause filled the room to acknowledge his presence. With his story as the backdrop, I shared my vision for an A-G policy:
“As we begin the second decade of the 21st century, the state of East Side Union is both challenging and promising. To overcome the challenges and to capitalize on the promises, I’m asking the board to focus on student achievement with effective policies, not just words. We need to continue the work this board started in the fall to identify the achievement gaps within our system.”
“Equitable funding within the district’s budget should address the deficiencies and, before the year is out, this board should adopt a policy ensuring that all East Side graduates meet college entrance requirements by 2015.”
The Mercury News published portions of the speech in a February 3, 2010, op-ed article.
The 150 or so people in attendance rose in a heartfelt standing ovation. At that moment, I was optimistic that my board colleagues would have the courage and foresight to expand college access to every student on the East Side.
I also understood that building momentum was critical to overcoming any challenges that laid in our path. Phase 2 of my outreach plan was to engage with the Silicon Valley Education Foundation and seek support from elected officials representing parts of the ESUHSD.
- Read the first three parts of the Fight for College Access Series
Next time: Phase 2 of the outreach plan
ESEReport.com 