2 Emerge as Top Contenders for School Chief Post : Education: Board must tread through racial politics in choosing an interim superintendent, with opposing groups backing a black and a Latino administrator.

Huddled behind closed doors, the Los Angeles Board of Education is wrestling with the difficult decision of choosing a helmsman--someone who can steer the district out of its worst fiscal crisis while providing sensitive leadership for one of the most ethnically diverse school systems in the nation.

Their top choices: Sid Thompson, 61, an African-American who, as second-in-command to three superintendents has run the day-to-day operations of the mammoth district for the last six years, and Ruben Zacarias, 63, a Latino deputy superintendent whose rise from humble beginnings on the city’s Eastside to the top of the district mirrors outgoing Supt. Bill Anton’s own ascent.

A third top contender, district lobbyist Ron Prescott, 53, withdrew his name from consideration Thursday. “It’s quite a compliment to be considered as someone to follow Bill Anton,” Prescott said in a telephone interview. But he said supervising lobbying efforts in Sacramento is “where I want to be.”

The board began holding interviews for the top job Tuesday, the day after Anton stunned officials with his decision to resign Sept. 30, nine months before his contract would have expired. Though he will stay through the end of the district’s budget process, Anton is leaving at a critical time, in the midst of tense negotiations with district bargaining units, and at the start of another year of overcrowded classrooms and diminishing resources.

Several district officials say that Thompson--an affable man well respected by the district’s rank and file--would be the best person for the interim, providing a sense of continuity in a district facing a possible strike by its teachers and drastic employee pay cuts to make up a $400-million budget shortfall.

But the board must tread carefully through the racial politics of a district that has had its share of inter-ethnic strife.

Latino activists and politicians have already demanded that Anton, the first Latino superintendent in the district, be replaced by another Latino. They say it is critical that the district’s top official reflect and understand the concerns of a student population that is nearly 65% Latino.

“We strongly urge, endorse, and demand that the board appoint a qualified Latino or Latina,” Joe Flores, chairman of the Mexican American Education Commission, has said.

But Wednesday night, the Council of Black Administrators endorsed Thompson, saying he is next in line and most qualified for the top position. The organization of black educators sent telegrams to each board member Thursday voicing support for the district’s highest-ranking African-American administrator.

“Sid is second-in-command, and to jump over him would really be a slap in the face of a black deputy,” said Barbara Boudreaux, the only African-American representative on the board. “In any business, the vice president takes charge until the new president is selected.”

Though some board members acknowledge that ethnicity must be considered, they say their choice ultimately must be based upon who is most familiar with the district and best able to guide it past grave fiscal problems and low employee morale.

“I’m leaning towards Sid Thompson,” said veteran board member Roberta Weintraub, who added that the other candidates were also highly qualified. “He’s the best equipped to hit the deck running and take on the responsibility.”

She emphasized that to choose anyone other than Thompson would set the wrong tone. “To elevate Ruben (Zacarias) or Ron Prescott at this time would be the wrong message,” she said. “ . . .Sid is the highest ranking and you’d have to have a very good reason to pass over Sid at this point, and I can’t think of that reason.”

A 36-year district veteran, Thompson began his career in 1956, teaching math at Pacoima Junior High. He climbed through the ranks, serving as a principal and area administrator before being made deputy superintendent of school operations in July, 1986.

Thompson, who oversees instructional and administrative offices, has often filled in when Anton was away--a quality many say makes him ideal for the job in the short term, and perhaps even for the long haul. In 1987, Thompson and Anton were finalists for the superintendent’s position, which ultimately went to Leonard Britton, former head of the Miami school system. In 1990, Anton was named superintendent.

Zacarias, like Anton, grew up on the city’s Eastside. Well-liked by his peers, he began working for the district in 1965, serving as a principal and assistant superintendent before becoming deputy superintendent of human resources, parent and community services last year.

Several district officials say Zacarias has worked closely with Anton, and, like Thompson, has a thorough understanding of the workings of the school system. But many say that his expertise lies more in the area of community relations, and that he lacks Thompson’s years of experience running the system on a daily basis.

Board member Mark Slavkin, who has not made up his mind, said he has advised his colleagues to proceed cautiously. “The selection of an interim superintendent is one of the most important decisions boards of education have to make,” he said. “The stakes are very high.”

Slavkin said one of the most important tasks facing the board during its deliberations is defining the roles of the board and the superintendent. Anton, in publicly announcing his resignation Tuesday, cited constant “micro-managment” by the board as one of the chief reasons he was stepping down.

“Part of the problem has been lack of clarity,” said Slavkin, who says he has pushed for the board to delegate more authority to the district’s top administrator.

As speculation swirls about who will get the interim position, some district officials fear any delay in picking a permanent superintendent will allow ethnic tensions to fester and leave the district in flux.

“It’s going to be ethnic politics, and the longer it drags out the more infighting there’s going to be,” said one senior official, who did not want to be identified. “All they’re doing is delaying hard decisions. An interim superintendent is useless, a place warmer, and all we’re going to have is another nine months of instability.”

Virgil Roberts, an educational activist who has been involved with the district for 15 years, added: “I think we should be careful not to play racial ethnic games. What we want is a leader of our educational system who can see to it that all of our kids achieve.”

Other candidates said to be on the list for the permanent position include former school board President Jackie Goldberg and Associate Supt. Sara A. Coughlin, who oversees elementary schools in the San Fernando Valley. Board members would not confirm that they are being considered.

The board may conduct a nationwide search to find more candidates for the permanent job. But unlike years past, shrunken resources and pending pay cuts may mean officials are unable to offer a salary comparable to other districts, and may have to keep the search local.

Anton, who signed a two-year contract with an optional one-year extension, was to be paid an annual salary of $164,555. However, because of pay reductions and furlough days, Anton earned that salary during only one fiscal year.

Currently, he is earning $156,572, a figure that would drop further after pay cuts and unpaid days off are determined for all district employees. Because of unanticipated revenue and additional budget cuts proposed last week, district workers are facing pay reductions this year ranging from 4% to 13.5%--lower than the 6% to 16.5% earlier proposed.

Anton, who has accrued a year’s worth of unused vacation, will be paid approximately $153,000 for that time and will draw a retirement pension of about $130,000 a year, according to district officials. The new superintendent’s salary must be negotiated, officials say. Currently, Thompson earns $138,966 a year, while Zacarias makes $106,154.

Though salary cuts will no doubt be a factor, the sudden departure of Anton may also deter an outside interest in the district’s top job, said Michael Casserly, acting director of the Council for the Great City Schools.

“Anton’s reputation was so solid amongst his peers that it’ll give people pause before deciding to wade into an environment that fractured,” said Casserly, head of a coalition of the nation’s largest urban public school systems.

United Teachers-Los Angeles spokeswoman Catherine Carey said the union will try to work with whomever the board chooses. “We’re not supporting any one candidate,” Carey said. Anton charged that UTLA unduly influenced four of the seven school board members.

The union has waged an aggressive campaign to stave off the proposed pay cuts. In the latest action Thursday, several hundred teachers distributed leaflets at government buildings downtown and staged a mock auction of supplies they say are scarce in schools but abundant in district offices.