EDUCATION

Claremont COURIER/Friday, June 14, 2013

Property sale finalized at CUSD board meeting

here was a special treat at the Thursday, June 6 gathering of the Claremont Unified School District Board of Education when the Pledge of Allegiance was followed by a rendition of The Star Spangled Banner as performed by districts Elementary Strings Orchestra.

The showcasing of student talent continued when, with a clinking of medals, a number of 4th through 6th graders stepped to the front of the board room to be honored for their success at the recent Los Angeles County Office of Education Math Field Day. Additionally receiving kudos was Jessica Jackman-Uy, a fifth grade teacher at Chaparral Elementary who coordinated the districts participation in the event. Congratulations were also given to members of the Claremont High School debate program who have qualified to attend the National Championship Speech and Debate tournament to be held in Birmingham, Alabama next week, followed by a laudatory presentation by CHS theater director Krista Carson Elhai. Ms. Elhai took time to enumerate some of the achievements of her students such as the awards they took at the California State Thespian Festival held in Upland on March 22-24. A number of her students did so well in the festival they have now qualified for the International Thespian Festival, to be held at the University of Nebraska on June 24-29. With 5 productions, a move to a new theater and its associated opening gala plus their annual F.O.O.T. auction and a sing-along with the cast of Wicked, Ms. Elhai and her thespians are wrapping up a dizzyingly busy school year. I dont even remember what musical we did last week, Ms. Elhai laughed. Were very excited to be celebrating our 50th year in our new building that we never leave. The board next bid farewell to 2 high school students, Carolyn Bird of Claremont High School and Aimee Orcasitas of San Antonio High School, who had joined the school board at meetings in order to report on doings at schools throughout the district. Please dont think this has to be your last board meeting, board member Steven Llanusa joked. Youre welcome any time. During the public comment period, Freeman Allen, co-chair of Sustainable Claremont, stepped up to the podium to appeal to the board to renew the position of
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Community Garden Coordinator. Sustainable Claremont values the position so much it hopes to contribute $2000 to help finance the job, up from $1500 last year, he said. I see these gardens as an outdoor laboratory that is absolutely crucial in giving students real-world lessons in what nature is like, Mr. Allen, a reCUSD tired Pomona College chemistry profesNEWS sor, said. For the last year, the district has employed Dessa DAquila at 25 hours per week as the CUSD garden coordinator. Along with helping oversee gardens at various schools, including San Antonios Food Justice Program and the new biomes project at Oakmont School, which has staff, kids and volunteers cultivating the landscapes of 4 California native landscapes, including desert, grassland, shrub land and forest. Much of Ms. DAquilas time, she explained prior to the meeting, is also spent connecting teachers hoping to embark on gardening projects with staff and students from local colleges as well as community members that hope to donate time or resources to Claremont schools. As we go forward, were going to have a much more successful program if we have someone to coordinate it, Mr. Allen said. Board approves Service Center sale, disagrees on sale process There were some moments of tension as the board prepared to vote on whether to approve the offer for the Service Center Property that D.R. Horton made at an auction held at the end of May. The homebuilder agreed to the districts $7 million asking price, accompanied by a $10,000 deposit. While the board and district at large seemed pleased with the results of the auction, Mr. Llanusa expressed chagrin that the auction yielded no other conforming bids and no attendees other than D.R. Horton. It should be noted that there were 2 other bids submitted by company representatives before the auction, but one fell below the districts price tag at $4.5 million and neither bid was accompanied by the required security deposit. Mr. Llanusa said he urged the board and the district to reach out to a number of real estate agencies prior to selling the Service Center Property, located at 700 Base Line Rd., in order to find the most motivated buyer. Instead, the district opted to use the services of Tierra Development, which helped CUSD promote and sell another property, 4.35 acres located at its former dis-

trict offices. D.R. Horton also purchased the property for $6.2 million. I am hugely disappointed, Mr. Llanusa said. The district opted for expediency over efficacy. This is a Hobsons choicetake it or leave it. Im sure [Tierra Development] reached out to hundreds of companies, Lisa Shoemaker, assistant superintendent of business services, said. Its very common that wed get mostly nonconforming bids. Board member Jeff Stark asserted that the bid received from D.R. Horton was twice what people told the board and that district the Service Center property would be worth in 2006, at the height of the real estate market. The district benefited from relying on experts, he emphasized, such as the Surplus Property committee who made recommendations as to the sale of the property and on a real estate company that had previously made good on its promise of netting the district the top-dollar amount for a property. If the district had set a lower price for the Service Center property, then it would perhaps have received many more bids. Mr. Stark stressed that the plan all along was to appeal to a big company with deep pockets. I think its important for the board to understand what our role is in this, Mr. Stark said. Bill Fox, former president of William Fox Homes Inc. in Ontario, is a member of the districts Surplus Advisory Committee, also known as the 7-11 Committee. The committee is composed of volunteers with expertise in the real estate industry who donated many hours to helping the district sell its properties. Mr. Fox said he strongly objected to Mr. Llanusas assertion that work conducted by the 7-11 Committee and by the district utilized inferior methods this time around. Im proud of what the committee has done, he said. Im proud to be a resident of Claremont and Im proud to be a part of the process. After the discussion, the board voted on whether or not to accept D.R. Hortons offer for the Service Center property. Everyone on the 5-member board voted yes except for Mr. Llanusa, who cast a dissenting vote. Escrow on the former district office property, on which D.R. Horton plans to build a 50-plus unit condominium development, will close in the very near future, Ms. Shoemaker said. That happened more quickly than the district expected, and, given that D.R. Horton has already jumped over many of the hurdles that would apply to an adjacent housing project, the Service Center property should close even more quickly, she projected. Sarah Torribio
storribio@claremont-courier.com

t takes a certain drive and tenacity to embark on the ambassador journey and travel alone at such a young age, Ms. Dierken recognized. Beyond the travel, students must complete 2 online courses and several orientations following their excursion. While the program can be grueling for some, Ms. Dierken felt it posed an exciting new opportunity for Faith. Faith was one of the few I thought had that drive, Ms. Dierken said. Some kids are interested at first, but it takes a lot of hard work to stay in the program. Faiths teacher, Kimberly Walters, can attest to her students hard working spirit. Faith is an extra-hard worker, always giving 110 percent, Ms. Walters shared. You couldnt ask for a better student. She is always prepared and has a positive attitude. With the help of Ms. Walters, Faith has spent a section of the past school year fa-

miliarizing herself with global geography and maps of the world, including the places she will visit. She has also taken the time to study world cultures. She looks forward to learning more firsthand. I cant wait to share my culture with other people and learn about their cultures as well, Faith said. Putting her classwork into action is only part of the excitement surrounding her impending trip overseas. Traveling to Ireland and England is a dream-come-true for the avid readershe gets giddy at the mere thought of traveling along the same routes as many of her favorite writers, Shakespeare included. Shakespeares home is among the top of her list of mustvisit destinations. Perhaps shell draw some inspiration. I love writing and improving my writing, she shared. While excited about the trip itself, Faith admits her nerves start flaring any time she has to climb aboard a plane, let alone the 12-hour flight she will be taking by

herself. However, she has a game plan. Im trying to stay calm and do other things, she said. Her plan includes adding to her book knowledge with some of the classics, including Harper Lees iconic To Kill A Mockingbird. She will also throw in some math practice with her algebra book in tow. Its an equally thrilling and nervewracking venture for the Nishimura family. Faiths mother, Freya Nishimura is not only preparing to send her daughter off to the UK, she is also saying goodbye to her older son, Brent, who is traveling to Australia, also with the ambassadorship program. Im proud and broke, Ms. Nishimura joked. Despite the expense, Ms. Nishimura has taken the opportunity to impart another valuable lesson to her children before they travel cross-country. Faith and her brother have been tasked with earning their way overseas by fundraising to help pay for their $7000 trips. Over the last 6

months, they have been hard at work helping to run yard sales and selling Valentines and Mothers Day cards and other items. Faith took it upon herself, with the advice of her teacher Kimberly Walters, to also reach out to the Claremont Police Officers Association, which donates a certain percentage of club money to worthy causes in the community. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, Detective Rick Varney said of Faiths trip, and the associations decision to donate $300 to her ambassadorship fund. Ms. Nishimura is pleased to give her children the opportunity to see the world, while representing the family and her Chaparral community. She says her daughters drive and spirit, inspired by her older brothers, is something to be reckoned with. Faith has no fear, her mother said. She is something else.
Beth Hartnett news@claremont-courier.com