Parents’ Revolt Delays Merger of 2 Schools : Education: Battle over Westlake School for girls and Harvard School for boys is an uphill struggle.

A proposed merger of Westlake School for girls and Harvard School for boys has been delayed a month amid a continuing revolt by parents.

The 30-day delay of the final vote, announced on the eve of the Westlake Board of Trustees meeting last Thursday, is the first indication that the merger of the two prestigious schools, promoted as a “done deal,” might come undone.

Conceding that they face an uphill struggle, parents have mounted a multi-pronged attack on the plan that, if approved, would mean the end of the 85-year-old all-girls school.

They are poised to ask the state attorney general to block the merger as ill-conceived and hastily announced. In a draft of a letter to Atty. Gen. John K. Van de Kamp, which has not been sent, they charge that the board has acted capriciously on anecdotal advice, without the due diligence required under the California Corporations Code.

A surprise announcement last month that the two schools would be merged into Harvard-Westlake School in 1991 triggered an intense backlash among Westlake parents that has not abated despite efforts by the board and administration to downplay its depth.

The brouhaha is a battle royal involving many of the city’s movers and shakers.

Philanthropist couple Helen and Peter Bing, the largest benefactors of Westlake and Harvard, are enthusiastic backers of the merger. The Westlake Board of Trustees is dotted with names such as Sam Goldwyn, Aaron Spelling and David May II, of the department store family.

At a recent parents meeting held in an auditorium named for director Garry Marshall, singer Howard Keel boomed out his dismay about the proposed merger.

A number of players have ties at both schools and in the community. Richard Close has a daughter at Westlake and a son who graduated from Harvard last year. Wearing his hat as president of the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Assn., Close said he fears that the merger will bring more traffic to Coldwater Canyon Boulevard in neighboring Studio City, home of Harvard, which will provide the high school campus under the merger plan. The junior high grades will be taught at the Holmby Hills Westlake campus.

If either school came to the city seeking conditional-use permits or zoning changes, the matter could come before one of two key city commissions. A Westlake father sits on the Planning Commission, and a Harvard father sits on the Board of Zoning Appeals.

Despite the postponement, Harvard sent out a bulletin to its parents this week saying the merger was expected to go forward. Harvard Headmaster Thomas C. Hudnut said in an interview that he based his optimism on assurances from his counterpart at Westlake, Nathan Reynolds, who did not respond to several requests for comment.

According to Hudnut, Reynolds said the delay would provide more time “to bring more trustees up to speed” about the disputed issue.

Opponents of the merger are skeptical that it is a now-or-never matter that must be speedily enacted while a “window of opportunity” is open, a posture that makes Westlake the suitor. They question the premise on which the merger was based--that Westlake could not compete with a Harvard expected to go coeducational on its own. Underlying the dissension is a philosophy--demonstrated in research and fostered by the headmaster who now favors a merger--that single-sex education is superior for girls.

Even those who are not opposed to coeducation take issue with the deal’s terms, which give Harvard a 2-1 majority on the board of trustees. “This is not a merger, it’s an acquisition,” said Rod Berle, a member of the Westlake Board of Trustees.

Another festering issue is religion. Harvard, whose bylaws will govern the merged institution, falls under the jurisdiction of the Episcopal Diocese, a relationship some Westlake parents do not like.

The intense opposition has been fueled by revelations large and small. A wire service report from 1978 was unearthed in which the Harvard headmaster extolled the benefits of his membership in an exclusive Washington, D.C., males-only club.

The Westlake administration’s private opinion about Harvard boys--that they are “obnoxious”--also was revealed in a confidential memo distributed to members at a board retreat in June and obtained by The Times.

On a page entitled “Problems for Harvard if They Go Co-Ed,” under the subheading “Intimidating Atmosphere at Harvard,” an administrator whose name is not contained on the document wrote the following:

“Only the most socially aggressive and confident girls will feel comfortable after visiting Harvard. The admissions office doesn’t encourage families to visit now because the boys are so obnoxious. Imagine the possibilities when little girls start to visit for the first time.”

The memo mentions an incident involving a Westlake student who appeared at a Harvard assembly to promote a joint production of “Jesus Christ Superstar” and who complained of harassment from the boys.

Hudnut said the incident was an “eye of the beholder” situation. Women faculty members in the front row did not detect any disrespect in the boys’ behavior, their headmaster said.

As for his membership in the Cosmos Club, which has since changed its policies to admit women, Hudnut said, “It is irrelevant.” According to Hudnut, belonging to the club was a “very useful adjunct” in Washington that did not detract from his ability to educate both sexes.

Opponents of the merger have been rankled by what they perceive as the presumption of the pro-merger forces. At an emotional meeting in which parents repeatedly asked to have a voice in the merger decision, Westlake board President Alan Levy replied testily, “This is not a shareholders’ meeting. There are no stockholders in this corporation.”

Although that is technically correct, because the power is vested in the Board of Trustees, such statements have galvanized opponents of the merger, who are not accustomed to being dismissed so summarily.

According to Berle, the Westlake board has hired former Los Angeles Unified School District Supt. Harry Handler to evaluate the data about the predicted dearth of high-quality applicants for Westlake if Harvard goes co-ed without it. A number of committees seeking parent reaction have also been formed.

“Window dressing,” Berle said.

Parents are also critical of a letter that went out this month on pre-printed “Harvard-Westlake” stationery to elementary schools where sixth-graders might apply for admission.

Attorney David Higgins, a Westlake parent, said the mailing was a “dangerous thing for the board to allow to happen,” creating liability by presenting something that had not yet been approved by the board.

Meanwhile, a fund-raising campaign is under way to demonstrate to the board that Westlake will be economically viable if students do defect to a Harvard that goes coeducational on its own.

Nearly $100,000 was raised by those at the meeting. In addition, Berle said, he has presented a pledge for a $1-million cushion to protect the school from the loss of large benefactors who might fall away if the merger collapses.

In particular, many parents, though not for attribution, say Helen Bing as a source of funds would be lost if Westlake remains as it is. Bing’s generosity is a mainstay of the school.

Though merger opponents are far from claiming victory, Berle said, there are many more “borderline” board members than there were three weeks ago.

Nevertheless, Hudnut predicted that despite the scrutiny, the merger will hang together. “I think the overriding benefits of it will be sufficiently clear to the people whose responsibility it is to make the deal go forward,” he said.