Candidates Divided Over Issues Facing Schools in Ventura : Education: Questions about Supt. Cesare Caldarelli’s past have dominated a race that, some say, has more at stake for the district.

Against a backdrop of bitter teacher contract negotiations and public confusion over the district’s long-term plans, four challengers and three incumbents are running for three seats on the Ventura Unified School District board.

Vying for the three at-large seats in Tuesday’s election are incumbents Judy Alexandre, May Lee Berry and Terence M. Kilbride, and challengers Judee Hauer, Philip O’Rourke, John Walker and Ronald Wong.

In recent months, administrators of the 15,000-student, 26-school district have wrestled with long-range planning, stalled contract negotiations and revelations of past job troubles involving district Supt. Cesare Caldarelli.

Administrators and the district’s 650 teachers have engaged in angry exchanges in the wake of the June expiration of the teachers’ three-year contract. They have also been at loggerheads over a complex and potentially expensive long-range planning proposal dubbed “Vision 2000.”

The September debut of Vision 2000 was followed by disclosures that Caldarelli had encountered serious opposition as superintendent of the Martinez Unified School District, including a no-confidence vote from district teachers. Caldarelli’s decisions, which were supported by the Martinez school board, forced unplanned layoffs, according to some Martinez school officials.

But during his tenure, student test scores rose, the district approved a $25-million bond issue to renovate schools, and it instituted child-care and optional kindergarten programs. Caldarelli served as superintendent of Martinez, a small town northeast of San Francisco, from 1983 until he was hired in Ventura in July, 1988.

Several candidates said these issues have been overblown and misinterpreted, obscuring district successes.

“I was kind of amazed that we’ve drawn this many candidates into the race because I think things have been running reasonably well in the district,” Kilbride said.

Kilbride, a Ventura County deputy district attorney who has served on the board since 1980, said an effective district curriculum has resulted in student test scores that are “way up.” He cited the 11 schools selected by the state Department of Education as “distinguished schools” as evidence that the district is “going fabulously.”

According to figures provided by district officials, CAP scores for 12th-graders went up in most categories from 1987 to 1988. However, at the elementary level, there was a general decline in CAP scores over the same period.

Kilbride, along with Alexandre and Berry, acknowledge that the district faces problems, including the teachers’ unresolved contract, escalating retiree benefits and management turnover.

But all three stressed improvements in the curriculum, as well as an increase in year-round education. They also pointed to greater attempts to involve the public in district decision making through budget, curriculum and parent advisory committees.

“Really, the only sticking point that I can see right now in the district are the salary negotiations,” Kilbride said.

At least one challenger agreed that the district is operating smoothly.

“I firmly believe we have a good school district,” said Wong, 58, a retired Navy officer and first-time candidate.

Wong, who is PTA president at Ventura High School and has held similar posts at other schools, said the public has been misled by media reports of the district’s troubles.

“The public’s perception is really off base right now because of how things have been reported,” said Wong, adding that he was saddened and distressed by the turmoil created by Vision 2000.

A 15-point proposal for guiding the district into the next century, Vision 2000 has been criticized as being vague and poorly timed. The proposal, which touches on areas ranging from new teacher salary formulas to employee day care, drew immediate anger from teacher representatives. Teachers complained that they had no input and accused district administrators of circumventing the salary negotiation process by taking grandiose schemes directly to the public.

Vision 2000 proponents say that the plan is simply a set of suggestions and that both teachers and the public will have a say in the development of firm policies. Several public forums to discuss it have already been held.

Though the din surrounding Vision 2000 has subsided, Hauer said both the handling of the plan and the hiring of Caldarelli are symptoms of a school board “that may not question as much as they should.”

“I think what I’m sensing is a board that’s not as thorough as it should be,” Hauer said.

Hauer, 43, a real estate broker who is a first-time candidate for the board, also said board members were skimming over district problems, including declining CAP scores and an alarming high school dropout rate. According to figures released by the state in June, about 13% of Ventura’s high school students drop out between their sophomore year and graduation.

“What we need to look at more than anything else are programs that are educationally sound,” Hauer said.

Although school board members say the board is enlisting teacher and public input, several challengers say both groups need to become more involved in district decision making.

Walker, 42, a general manager for GTE, characterized district management as “a top-down approach.”

“Those that are closest to the classroom and what’s going on in education should be in a much stronger position in determining how monies are spent,” Walker said.

If elected, Walker said he would push for an increase in “school site management,” a program that would eventually allow teachers and parents a greater say in school issues.

O’Rourke, 44, a salesman, also said teachers’ concerns were being neglected, fostering low morale among school employees.

“Most of the people that work for the district are not happy,” O’Rourke said. “Their concerns are not being heard, or they’re not being acted on by the present board.”

O’Rourke also criticized the board for a “sorely lacking coordinated effort” to combat rising drug and gang problems. District officials disagreed with O’Rourke’s contention that drug-intervention programs at the district’s two high schools were inadequate, citing drug programs at both.

Reiterating a concern expressed by many candidates, O’Rourke said he was also worried about the escalating cost of retiree benefits, which he said “has the potential to bankrupt the district.”

Under a program adopted in 1975, district employees who serve 10 years or more continue to receive medical benefits for themselves and their dependents after they retire, a package that could cost the district an estimated $1.8 million for 1989-90. The money is drawn out of operational funds, monies also used to pay for school maintenance and supplies.

District officials set aside $500,000 this year to begin building a retiree benefit reserve. However, O’Rourke said the reserve “is something we should have handled years ago.”

In the face of dwindling discretionary funds, innovative efforts by both the schools and the community can help pick up some of the slack, Wong said.

Among Wong’s proposals is an effort to clamp down on gangs and drugs through a consortium of youth organizations such as the Little League and the Boy Scouts.

“All we hear about are the bad gangs, but we should consider that the alternatives are the good gangs,” Wong said. “How can we work together to get our kids to join the good groups?”

If elected, Wong said he would also propose adding a seventh period to the high school day. The activities period would allow students to take electives ranging from drama to academic decathlon. It could be added to the schedule at no extra cost by taking small increments of time from the other classes, he said.

Alexandre also proposed expanding course offerings. Alexandre, a counselor and licensed social worker who has served on the school board for four years, said that despite financial constraints, students could have a wide course selection through clustering of schools. Under this system, students would be able to choose from several schools on the basis of electives they offer.

“The basic curriculum at all the schools would be the same, but extra enrichment would be available in particular areas, say fine arts, humanities or science and technology,” she said. “As a district, we may not be able to afford a music/drama teacher at every school in the district, but we might be able to afford four or five.”

Alexandre also defended Caldarelli and the school board’s decision to hire him. She acknowledged that Caldarelli had made some mistakes in Martinez, but said the board carefully weighed his record before hiring him.

Berry, 45, an event and meeting planner running for her third term, said one of her main concerns is reducing class size.

Under their old contract, teachers have a say in class size. Reducing class size means hiring more teachers, a move teachers have traditionally resisted because limited salary funds then have to be split between more teachers.

Berry also said the board has worked hard to include public input in the planning process.

“The board is trying to allow the public to become part of the process. . . ,” Berry said. “It’s the taxpayers’ money that we’re talking about.”