Minority Enrollment Drops, but Prep School Denies Bias Allegations

Officials at a Van Nuys preparatory school on Tuesday denied allegations by its former director that the exclusive institution has illegally tried to exclude black and Latino students.

But they also released statistics showing that the enrollment of minorities has dropped sharply since the school opened.

In addition, Leslie S. McAfee, a lawyer representing the school, confirmed that a fax was sent from the school’s headquarters in Japan to the director before he was fired, giving him these “special instructions”: “We do not accept any black applicants at our school. . . . We do not accept the 35 El Salvadoreans (sic) to our school.”

Eizo Masuda, the founding director of the Stratford Preparatory School, has sued the private school for $1.1 million. Masuda, 52, alleges that the Japanese owner of the school, Motoaki Yamamori, fired him in February, 1991, for refusing to “perform illegal actions,” such as denying admission to black and Salvadoran students, and making false student visa applications so that Japanese students could get into the country.

At a news conference at the school, administrators reiterated earlier denials that they had discriminated against applicants. They also circulated yearbooks from the 2 1/2 years the school has been in existence, saying the books proved that the school allowed minority students to attend the American part of the school.

The Sepulveda Boulevard school, also known as the California Preparatory School, is an offshoot of one of the largest and most prestigious high schools in Japan. It has a separate curriculum for Japanese exchange students.

“There is not now, or has there ever been, a policy expressed or implied to exclude any students, whether on the basis of race, religion, sex or anything else,” McAfee said.

He said he could not comment on Masuda’s allegations or on any specifics of the school’s admissions or administrative policies because of the pending civil lawsuit. McAfee also would not comment on whether the sender of the fax was authorized to do so, saying evidence relating to that incident will be introduced during the trial of Masuda’s lawsuit, tentatively set for late August.

McAfee noted that the school had sued Masuda first, alleging he used petty cash without permission and failed to perform his duties properly as director of the school.

“He was terminated, and as a reaction, he filed a cross complaint,” McAfee said.

Masuda said Tuesday that allegations against him in the school’s lawsuit are groundless. He said school officials “threw the first punch” because they wanted to keep him quiet. McAfee and the school’s current director, Tatsuya Yoshino, declined to comment.

At the news conference, McAfee released a chart showing the racial makeup of the school, saying: “You can clearly see the school has a variety, a mix of students.”

However, the numbers show that the percentage of black students has dropped from 22% at the end of the 1989-90 school year to 14% last year to 3%--or one student of a total of 33--this year. Enrollment of Latino students dropped from 17% the first year to 16% last year to 6%--or two students--at the end of this year. White students, who made up 61% of the tiny school at the end of the first year jumped to 65% last year to 88% this year, or 29 of 33 students.

Students of all races, including two black students, dropped out this year for a variety of reasons, school officials said.

Masuda has alleged that he was fired for enrolling too many minority students, and for seeking approval of an exchange program that would have brought at least 35 students from El Salvador to the school. He said those minority students who remain at the school are those he enrolled.

McAfee said it would be unfair to say that declining enrollment of minorities was proof of discrimination.

“If you look at all three years, the school has a better mix--or at least an equal mix--than (other) public or private schools,” he said.

It is against state and federal law to discriminate against a student solely on the basis of color or ethnicity. But there are no specific state or federal agencies that regulate private schools and their admissions policies.