A Lesson in Staying Competitive : Be chintzy on schools and economic opportunities will go elsewhere

California showed last week that when civic, business and university leaders work together, the state can successfully compete for major scientific programs: San Diego was chosen as headquarters for the $1-billion International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor fusion energy research project.

ITER is expected to pump $200 million into San Diego’s economy, and it will be a prestigious addition to San Diego’s growing scientific community. The state’s second-largest city won out over Naka, Japan, and Garching, Germany, which will have satellite facilities.

Luring the project took an aggressive, unified presentation by the University of California, plus follow-through and support from Gov. Pete Wilson, the county’s congressional delegation, local leaders and business executives.

The effort was in stark contrast to others in the last decade. The state has lost such major projects as the Microelectronics and Computer Technology consortium and the federal supercollider atom smasher, both to Texas, and an earthquake laboratory to Buffalo, N.Y. Internal bickering and a lack of leadership were partly to blame.

The state seems to be overcoming these obstacles. But another worry remains: the quality of our schools.

Microelectronics and Computer Technology’s president cited insufficient financing for the state’s public schools as a significant problem when San Diego was a potential site in the mid-1980s.

And last week, San Diego officials had to battle the perception that the area’s schools might be inadequate for the children of visiting foreign scientists.

Tours of La Jolla Country Day, a private school, and University City High School--two of the best secondary schools in the city--calmed those fears.

But although San Diego and the state have some first-rate public and private schools, years of underfunding have taken a toll on many others--and on California’s reputation. That must change if we are to remain competitive.