Oxnard : District Asks Clinton to Tour Schools

President-elect Bill Clinton and Gov. Pete Wilson are among several elected officials who have been invited by the Oxnard Union High School District to tour the school system next month to get a firsthand look at classroom programs.

“We’re going to bend arms to get them to come,” said Supt. Bill Studt. “You never know. If you don’t ask, you don’t receive.” Studt said the special open house will be held Jan. 8. The program is called “Government and Education: Partnership for Tomorrow.”

Other politicians who have been invited include Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Sen.-elect Barbara Boxer, state Sen. Cathie Wright (R-Simi Valley), Assemblyman Nao Takasugi (R-Oxnard) and the city councils of Oxnard, Camarillo and Port Hueneme.

Studt said Gov. Wilson’s office has already informed the district that he will not be able to attend, but will send a representative. Studt said the district is hoping that Clinton will do the same if he is unable to attend.

The purpose of the program is in part to show off some of the district’s successful educational programs, Studt said. It is also intended to give officials a close-up look at some of the problems many school districts face, including crowded classrooms and increasing numbers of limited-English-speaking students, he said.

Although the district has yet to hear from Boxer or Feinstein, Studt said “we feel real confident we will have state and federal legislators present that day.”