Principal’s Warmth Melts Protests

Being appointed principal of a school when the opening was created by the transfer of a close friend was not how Yvonne Chan would have preferred getting her first shot at heading a school.

But that’s what happened this fall when Chan replaced Sylmar Elementary School’s popular novice principal, Jeanne Lau.

Lau was removed as principal during summer vacation because she failed to pass an elementary-administrator’s exam. She was transferred to Castelar Elementary School in Chinatown as a vice principal.

Lau’s departure prompted a protest by parents and teachers, who demanded that she be reinstated. But top administrators of the Los Angeles Unified School District stood by their decision and named Chan the new principal.

Operating Smoothly

One month into the new school year, the tumult of the summer has subsided, and Chan appears to have the school running smoothly by means of straight talk, high energy and diplomacy.

Her strategy has ranged from holding a series of meetings with those who might have hard feelings about Lau’s transfer to placing fresh flowers in classrooms before the first day of school. And when parents complained that a hedge posed a hazard to students crossing the street near campus, she was ready with a large pair of garden shears.

Parents and staff give the new principal rave reviews. And Chan says she may have found a home at the fast-growing, northeast Valley school.

“I didn’t walk in scared,” she said. “I decided to rely on human nature and the fact that we are all professionals. The kids come first, and I knew no one would let anything interfere with us giving our students a good education.”

But Chan gave human nature a little help to make sure the school operates smoothly.

‘Let Them Ask Any Question’

In August, she called every parent involved in the protest or active in the PTA. “I called in the evenings, on weekends, and had a good 20-minute to half-hour chat with them,” Chan said. “I let them ask me any question they wanted.”

She invited the parents to come in as a group to talk about their concerns and the coming school year. Sixteen took her up on the offer.

“I told them I was not here to talk about the past, I was here to talk about now,” Chan recalled. “I told them that we’re here for the kids and that we had to get on with it.”

The parents told Chan of their concerns and came up with 12 proposals that they wanted implemented, including establishment of an anti-drug program and continuation of the instrumental-music program.

They also wanted Chan to do something about the overgrown hedge at Phillippi Avenue and Polk Street, which they said obstructed drivers’ view of children trying to cross the street.

Anti-Drug Program

Chan said that all the concerns could not be addressed immediately, but she started to work on the list.

Because of a districtwide expansion of Project DARE, the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program, members of the Los Angeles Police Department will go to the school in January. Chan said she would also like to stage an anti-drug fair on the campus.

Programs started by Lau, such as instrumental music, will continue. And last week, Chan joined a group of parents who spent the morning trimming the hedge.

“Anyone who works as hard for the safety and education of our children deserves a lot of respect,” Sylmar Elementary parent Candi Duty said.

“We lost a principal who was multilingual and was very sensitive to all members of our school community,” said Melody Katz, another Sylmar parent. “We’re very lucky to get another principal who is also multilingual and who is working hard to get everyone involved.”

At the same time Chan was working to win the respect of the parents, she was also working hard to win over the faculty.

Confident of Positive Reports

Chan said the first thing she did was to let the “education grapevine” go to work.

“I already knew a number of teachers who worked here. Some of them had been my students at California State University, Northridge,” she said. “I knew the teachers would talk to each other about me. I was pretty confident that the reports would be positive.”

Before classes started, Chan invited all the teachers who had been quoted in news articles or who had written letters to newspapers about the Lau transfer to a meeting. She said her message was similar to the one she gave the parents: We’re professionals; we’re here for the kids, so let’s get on with it.

At the first faculty meeting, attended by all 33 Sylmar Elementary teachers, Chan reiterated that position. Once again, the response was positive, she said.

“I’m pleased with what she’s doing and how she’s doing it. She’s been very up front and open with us, and that’s very important,” teacher Renee Wells said. “The faculty has gone out of its way to make her feel that we don’t have any hard feelings against her. We wanted her to know that we want to work with her.”

Said teacher Nancy Heims: “I can’t imagine the district had anyone better than Yvonne Chan to replace Mrs. Lau.”

Chan also addressed the Sylmar Chamber of Commerce about the transfer controversy and her plans.

Perceived as a Doer

“I think they perceived me as a doer,” Chan said.

Before coming to Sylmar, Chan was assistant principal at Sharp Elementary School in Pacoima. Lau also preceded Chan in that job, and the women have been friends for years.

Chan, a Van Nuys resident, has a doctorate in education from UCLA. She joined the Los Angeles school system in 1968. She speaks several languages, including Spanish, which parents say helps her make Spanish-speaking parents comfortable when they come to the campus.

One unexpected outgrowth of the controversy, according to parents and teachers, has been an increase in the number of parents who want to get involved in school activities. Last year, PTA leaders had difficulty finding volunteers to chair all of the organization’s committees. This fall, 62 parents showed up for a board meeting, and there were more than enough volunteers to lead and staff committees.

All the problems have not been solved, however. This year, the school has more that 850 students on a campus built for 685. Bungalows have been added to help with the overflow, but one class is being held in the library, and a storage room that has been converted into a classroom is so close to the restrooms that teachers call it “flushing meadows.”

Enrollment Closed

After just two weeks of school, the district agreed to close enrollment at Sylmar. New students in the school’s territory will be bused to less-crowded schools in other parts of the San Fernando Valley.

And although parents and teachers say they are pleased with Chan’s appointment as principal, they are still not happy with district rules that led to the transfer of Lau.

“I’m disappointed with how the system worked, but not with how things worked out,” Sylmar Elementary PTA President Pam Silva said. “I think the district has to pay more attention to what’s going on at a school and what works at that school.”