Published in the Sept. 30 – Oct. 13, 2015 issue of Morgan Hill Life
By Claudia Rossi
Claudia Rossi
It is alarming that a small group has initiated a recall election that will cost our school district more than $500,000. Bob Benevento has served honorably on the MHUSD school board for five years and has always made students his top priority. Any recall effort is frivolous considering that Bob will face re-election in November 2016.
Bob has focused his involvement on young people through his leadership in Pony Baseball and the Mushroom Mardi Gras scholarship fund. As a board member during the recession, Bob was part of a board that worked collaboratively with the Morgan Hill Unified School District to maintain arts, music and athletics. Bob has also been a strong proponent of Career Technical Education, the focus academies, and Measure G. In the past two years, Bob has helped ensure teachers and students have the resources necessary to successfully implement the Common Core State Standards and that parents and community members play a significant role in the district’s Local Control Accountability Plan.
The petitioners assert that Bob Benevento “championed moving 6th graders to middle school” in Morgan Hill. However, this change was discussed as early as 2010 when Dr. Wes Smith was our superintendent. Furthermore, the petitioners claim that Bob “refuses to listen to parent input” on this issue. In fact, Benevento supported a series of informational parent meetings last spring and two input gathering meetings this school year.
The wording of the petition indicates that the board heard only opponents to 6th to 8th middle schools, but teachers, parents and district staff expressed strong support for this move. The 4 to 3 vote was based on the opportunities 6th graders would gain by attending middle school: math and science instruction aligned with new curriculum; access to academic counselors and subject area specialists; special intervention classes; advanced science lab facilities; and greater access to middle-school extra-curricular activities.
The accusation that Bob has been a part of any Brown Act violation, including the passing of a note during a board meeting, has been addressed by legal counsel, who found that “no corrective action was required.” In addition,the presence of a police officer at board meetings is meant to ensure meetings remain productive (despite confrontational outbursts by the public), and not as a threat to “arrest parents he disagrees with” as the petition suggests.
Supporters of students find it unconscionable that anyone claiming to support our children would recklessly waste resources needed in classrooms. Voters will have the opportunity in the November 2016 election to weigh the merits of all school board candidates, along with Bob should he choose to seek re-election. We urge the public not to sign the petition because the recall effort is merit-less, costly and filled with false allegations.
Claudia Rossi is a trustee on the Santa Clara County Board of Education. She wrote this column for Morgan Hill Life.
