Sweetwater Union Athletics Officials Make a Play in the Political Arena

Weary of having sand kicked in their faces, not to mention having to play on fields laced with sand to make up for the lack of grass, athletic directors and coaches in the Sweetwater Union High School District are dabbling in the political arena.

Using the Nov. 6 election as a lever, they have formed a coalition to endorse candidates they believe will best help athletics in the county’s second largest school district.

“We feel athletics in the South Bay is at an all-time low,” Jerry Hombs, the coalition chairman and athletic director at Bonita Vista High, said. “We want to do something about it.”

At issue, Hombs said, are three main points.

--The coalition, called the Sweetwater Coaches Assn., wants a higher priority placed on athletics.

--It is asking for a return to scheduling sixth-period physical education classes for athletes. Such classes were eliminated in the early 1980s.

--It wants the district to be responsible for the maintenance and renovation of athletic facilities. The coaches say facilities in the South Bay are far substandard to those in other districts.

“The things we’re vying for, they have in other districts,” Hombs said. “If they have the money to do it, we should have the money to do it. It’s a matter of priorities.”

For those reasons, the group organized in September, interviewed seven of the eight candidates for the three positions last week, and decided to endorse Jim Cartmill, Debby Ahrenstein and Ruth Chapman. Incumbent Judith Bauer, the board’s vice president, did not attend the interviewing session.

Bauer is being challenged by Cartmill, a former tennis coach at Bonita Vista and the director of Campus Life in the South Bay. Ahrenstein, an assignment secretary for the San Diego Section, is running against incumbent Steve Hogan, the board’s president, and Lorenzo Provencio. Chapman, who serves as the board’s clerk, is being challenged by Tris Hubbard, a former district administrator, and Mike Cruz.

Members of the five-seat board--the other two four-year terms are up for election in 1992--rotate in the various positions on the board.

The district’s Management Assn., composed of management employees, have taken a different stance, endorsing Hogan, Bauer and Hubbard. That group has formed a political action committee for the first time.

“That’s scary to us,” Hombs said, adding later: “Regardless of who wins, I think athletics will improve because communication lines have been opened. I think they will improve more if Cartmill, Chapman and Ahrenstein are elected.”

“We’re interested in the athletic part of it, but we’re talking about all extracurricular activities,” Hilltop Athletic Director John Baumgarten said. “All of them need a shot in the arm.”

This is believed to be the first such coalition formed by athletic instructors in the district. The coalition, roughly 80 “loosely tied” members, is asking for $1 to $5 donations and has collected about $600. It plans on taking out an ad in one of the local newspapers and is encouraging coaches to spread the word.

Hombs said the coalition is acting on its own, not in conjunction with the Sweetwater Education Assn., the teacher’s union. He also stated the endorsements had nothing to with the San Diego Grand Jury investigation into allegations of bribery and computer- and auto-theft rings within the district earlier this year. In July, the grand jury found no evidence to support the allegations, but it did criticize the board for costly, sloppy record-keeping and recommended that it tighten controls over expenditures.