Primary Set for College, L.A. Boards : Elections: Candidates for the governing bodies of the Los Angeles Unified School District and the Community College District file nomination papers. Voters go to polls April 9.

The large field of candidates for four seats on the Los Angeles Board of Education includes two close allies of retiring board President Jackie Goldberg and two former board members aiming for a political comeback, according to election documents filed last week.

A former member of the Los Angeles Community College District Board of Trustees also wants his old job back and will be competing in one of four races for seats on that board.

The nominations period for the April 9 municipal primary election ended Saturday, marking the official beginning of campaigns for both boards.

With four of the seven seats up--including those held by two high-profile school board veterans who are calling it quits--there is greater-than-usual potential for significant change in the board that governs the nation’s second-largest school district.

The board’s only black member, Rita Walters, elected in 1979 during the school district’s desegregation battles, is stepping down to run for the City Council. Goldberg, an activist liberal who joined the board in 1983, plans to return to teaching high school.

The board’s only remaining veteran, Roberta Weintraub, said Friday their departure represents “a major loss.”

“Both of them have been through the wars . . . the budget cutting . . . and the negotiations (with the teachers unions and other labor organizations),” Weintraub said. “They understand the nuances and the subtleties of the negotiating process, and a new person will not have that.”

But two of the candidates--Jeffrey P. Horton, who wants to succeed Goldberg in the 3rd District, and Sterling Delone, who is seeking Walters’ 1st District seat--have worked as Goldberg’s school board field representative, giving them some knowledge of the inner workings of the 625,000-student district. They also have the backing of the coalition of teachers, gays and community activists that helped elect Goldberg.

Both also are longtime teachers in the district, and they have the endorsement of the teachers union, which has become an important force in school board elections. The union, United Teachers-Los Angeles, can raise campaign contributions and muster votes from within its membership.

UTLA also has endorsed Warren Furutani, who is seeking reelection in the 7th District. But the union has not yet decided whether to get involved in the 5th District race, where incumbent Leticia Quezada is challenged by former board member Richard E. Ferraro, a controversial conservative who lost his seat in 1983 to Larry Gonzalez, the board’s first elected Latino.

Quezada was elected to the board without the help of the union, and she and UTLA members have tangled on issues. But the union might back her this time.

Anthony Trias, who was appointed to the board but was defeated by Goldberg when he ran for election in 1983, also is running again.

Low student achievement, severe overcrowding, worsening budget problems and reform of the district are likely to be major issues.

In the Community College District election, veteran Trustee Hal Garvin has decided against seeking a fourth term, and his Office No. 5 seat has drawn the largest field of candidates of any of the races. Unlike Board of Education members, who are elected from districts, Community College trustees run for specific seats but are elected by voters from throughout the nine-campus system.

Among the contenders to succeed Garvin is Kenneth S. Washington, a retired college administrator and former assistant state superintendent of public instruction.

The district’s budget straits, which has resulted in the elimination of hundreds of classes throughout the district, is likely to be the major issue in the campaign.

With the historically low voter interest in the races, the AFT College Guild, representing teachers, clerical workers and college police officers, is expected to continue to play a major role in this year’s elections. Six of the seven current board members were elected with guild support.

The guild will not announce its endorsements until after the completion of contract negotiations. However, most observers expect the incumbents to win guild support.

Garvin, a former teacher in the district who angered the guild by voting against its pay raises last year, said he is frustrated with the district’s financial problems and does not believe a majority of the board is willing to make tough fiscal decisions.

He cited “problems facing the district which I do not believe I can be helpful in solving under present conditions” in announcing he was stepping down.

Also on the ballot is a bond measure that would finance the replacement of old buildings and worn-out heating and other systems. It needs two-thirds voter approval to pass.

SCHOOL BOARD, COLLEGE DISTRICT CANDIDATES The Los Angeles city clerk’s office has announced that the following candidates have filed for seats on the Board of Education and the Community College District Board of Trustees in the April 9 Municipal Primary Election. MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF EDUCATION District 1 Barbara Marie Boudreaux, elementary school principal Arnold Carl Butler, educator, businessman Sterling Delone, teacher Charles E. Dickerson, attorney Donald Fay Jones, school district employee Celestine W. Palmer, educator Marion Estelle Sims, educator, clinical psychologist Chetera Gayle Ingram Watson, educator, parent, activist District 3 Stanley Bunyan, retired teacher, principal Jeffrey P. Horton, teacher Mario Anthony Pompa Jr., teacher, community organizer Anthony (Tony) Trias, educator, businessman District 5 Richard E. Ferraro, educator Leticia Quezada, member of the Board of Education District 7 Warren T. Furutani, member of the Board of Education Timothy E. McKinney, carpenter MEMBER OF THE COMMUNITY COLLEGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES Office No. 1 Wallace B. Knox, member of the Board of Trustees Alice Hilda Lane, journalist Elizabeth K. Stone, airline worker Office No. 3 John K. Evenhuis, community college student Elizabeth Michael, county committeewoman, businesswoman Julia Li Wu, community college trustee Office No. 5 Brad Rayburn Hamill, aerospace engineer Peter Ireland, environmental agency executive John J. Jamgotchian, attorney Paul Cohen Koretz, city councilman, educator Patrick Dennis McGuire, educator, businessman Gloria Elisabeth Rothenberg, community activist, businesswoman Hal James Styles Jr., investment counselor, educator Kenneth S. Washington, retired college administrator Howard O. Watts, disabled veteran William Douglas Zuke, disability advocate Office No. 7 Gerald C. Broderson, community crime fighter Mark Isler, teacher, business owner David Lopez-Lee, member of the Board of Trustees Compiled by Times researcher Cecilia Rasmussen