SMMUSD Board Rejects Another Malibu Proposal

MALIBU, CA — The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District Board voted 5-2 Thursday to reject Malibu’s most recent offer to let the Los Angeles County Office of Education's Committee on School District Organization's Committee on School District Organization, and its consultant School Services of California, decide the terms of its departure from the district.

Craig Foster, Malibu’s lone representative on the school board, and Richard Tahvildaran-Jesswein, cast the two dissenting votes.

“The School Board is not comfortable agreeing to be bound by future recommendations - sight unseen - particularly since the District has its own financial plan that will accomplish what both sides have publicly stated they want; an equitable separation,” the district said in a statement Friday.

“We continue to support the concept of unification, as long as it is equitable for both territories, but we will not relinquish our authority to ensure a fair outcome in the process,” SMMUSD Board President Jon Kean said in a statement.

On a somewhat paradoxical note, the district also argued that its rejection “would not change the status quo” because “the City already would have to abide by the County’s recommendations or risk denial of its petition.”

In fact, the terms of Malibu’s April 13 counter proposal was that LACOE’s Committee on School District Organization and School Services renegotiate the financial terms of the contract independent of either party’s input.

Malibu, which has seen two of its proposals rejected this month alone, expressed disappointment.

“No one’s surprised, but it’s still shocking,” Mayor Mikke Pierson told Patch. “It just seems like more stall tactics.”

Pierson later said in a statement that he is “deeply disappointed that the SM-MUSD Board of Education, which is elected to represent the students of Santa Monica and Malibu, choose to reject the City’s most recent reasonable settlement offer.”

The city’s statement said that board rejected the offer to let LACOE and School Services, which it called “impartial third parties with extensive school finance expertise.”

Despite the recent setback, Malibu has said it plans to continue its decades-long fight for an independent school district. “We’re far from giving up,” Pierson told Patch.

“We again reiterate our desire to work cooperatively with the City and re-extend an invitation to the City to return to the negotiating table with the district.”

But beyond Saturday’s LACOE hearing, it is unclear what exactly will come of the negotiations. Malibu and SMMUSD have rejected

The two cities will face off in a preliminary LACOE hearing Saturday and present their divergent narratives. Malibu feels its students have long been underserved by the district, saying it is an “afterthought,” and a “colony.” It says that it has extended a generous offer that will not result in the loss of any per-pupil funding for either district.

Santa Monica, which only this month publicly supported the idea of an independent Malibu district, says that Malibu’s offers represent a “cash grab” that will result in a loss of millions of dollars for the district, forcing it to make painful cuts.

Both sides have been rallying support by holding “informational nights” presenting their side of the argument, encouraging public testimony from supporters, and taking out full-page ads in local newspapers.

Click here to watch LACOE's meeting on Saturday at 9:30 a.m. The passcode is 547531.

Related coverage:

Malibu Proposes Third Party Negotiate School Separation | Malibu, CA Patch
SMMUSD Board Votes Down Malibu's 'Best And Final' Offer | Malibu, CA Patch
Will Santa Monica Students Pay The Price If Malibu Separates? | Santa Monica, CA Patch