Who Picks County Supt. of Schools? Voters Will Decide

It’s now official: Orange County voters on Nov. 8 will decide whether they want an elected or an appointed county superintendent of schools.

With no debate or discussion, the county Board of Supervisors unanimously voted Tuesday to put the question on the November ballot. The county Board of Education voted Jan. 28 to request that the supervisors put the elected-or-appointed referendum on the county ballot this year.

Voters will decide by a simple yes or no whether the next county superintendent of schools, to be selected in 1990, will be appointed by the county Board of Education or will be chosen by the voters. Orange County has always had an elected county superintendent of schools. County voters rejected the only previous attempt, in 1978, to change to an appointed superintendent, by an 80% majority.

No one in the audience spoke for or against placing the question on the ballot.

Control Is Issue

The central issue is administrative control of one the county’s largest government agencies, the $50-million-a-year Department of Education. The county superintendent of schools, now Robert Peterson, has authority over that department and its 800 employees.

In contrast to Peterson, the county Board of Education has no direct control over the administration except through the department’s annual budget.

Board of Supervisors Chairman Harriett M. Wieder said in a memorandum to the supervisors that the “county counsel has advised that it is the county’s responsibility under state law to conduct this election and to absorb all related costs”--estimated at $30,000.

Peterson Tuesday called the referendum a waste of taxpayers’ dollars. Money spent on the election would be better spent in the classroom, he said. He also questioned the wisdom of having an appointed superintendent.

“It’s amazing that people would suggest an appointed county superintendent at the very time there is much clamor for more accountability for teachers and principals,” he said. “An appointed superintendent is much less accountable to the citizenry. . . .

“It would change the superintendent from a public servant into a bureaucrat, and also offers an opportunity for special interests to hold sway rather than a general citizenry.”

Grand Jury Urged Change

The 1985-86 Orange County Grand Jury strongly urged that voters be given a chance to decide how the county superintendent of schools is selected in a referendum. That grand jury said that county education would be improved if the five-member elected Board of Education appointed a superintendent rather than the person’s being picked in a countywide election every four years. A board appointing a superintendent could pick the best qualified educator, the grand jury said.

“We found universal criticism of the county (superintendent of schools’ office) from its primary constituent group, namely the superintendents of the districts in the county,” the grand jury said. “The leadership function of the (county) superintendent’s office and the Orange County Department of Education has little credibility in the local education community.”

In 1987, a so-called Blue Ribbon Committee appointed by the county Board of Education also recommended appointing, rather than electing, the county superintendent. The committee, headed by Orange Mayor Jess Perez, said that “an appointed superintendent of schools would best meet the educational needs of Orange County.”

The committee and various grand juries all have noted that locally elected school boards have the power to hire and fire their own superintendents.

Peterson has said that the grand jury criticism was unjustified and that the department he operates works harmoniously with the 28 local school districts. Peterson also has predicted that the voters “will never give up the right to elect their county superintendent.”

No California county that has an elected county superintendent has ever voted to change to appointive selection.

A 1986 public opinion poll paid for by the county department found that few Orange County residents know about the county Department of Education or the county superintendent of schools. Nonetheless, 56% of those surveyed said they wanted to continue electing the county superintendent.

The county department operates special schools for the handicapped, teaches juveniles who are under court supervision for criminal offenses, and serves as the auditor and accounting agency for the 28 local school districts in the county. The department also operates a vocational training program, workshops and a video library for teachers.