Weis to Replace County Schools Head

Over the objections of Latino activists, the Ventura County school board has voted to appoint Assistant Supt. Charles Weis to fill Supt. James Cowan’s position after he retires in July.

The board voted 4 to 1 Tuesday to appoint Weis to finish out Cowan’s term, which will have 11 months remaining when he steps down July 1. Board member Wendy Larner abstained, saying she wanted to first interview Weis about the job.

Afterward, Weis, who has served as assistant superintendent of curriculum for 2 1/2 years, said he plans to run for the superintendent’s job in June, 1994.

“I hope it gives me an advantage,” Weis, 42, said of his appointment.

Before the board’s vote Tuesday, members of the Latino Coalition on Fair Representation urged the board not to appoint Weis for precisely that reason.

They asked the panel to find a selection process that would give qualified minorities an equal shot at the job.

Vincent Ruiz, spokesman for the 20-member coalition, suggested that the position be filled by different people on a rotating basis until an election is held.

The coalition also recommended that the board call for a special election in November because, Ruiz said, voters have the right to decide who they want in the job at the earliest possible date.

But the board said state law requires that the panel appoint an interim superintendent to fill the remaining term of the current officeholder. Only when the term is completed, they said, can an election be held.

Still, Ruiz and other members of the coalition said they felt that the board should have solicited applications for the job.

“If they wanted to be fair, they should have interviewed others,” Ruiz said.

Board member Doylenne Johnson said Weis has worked closely with Cowan over the last two years and that gives him an advantage over other candidates. She said he knew the job better than anyone else and would ensure a smooth transition at a time of increased demands and fewer education dollars.

Weis, a former assistant superintendent of the Fillmore Unified School District, said the board took the proper action, given the circumstances.

“I feel confident that they would not have found anybody better for the job in such a short period of time,” he said. “Personally, I think the board made a wise decision.”

The Ventura County superintendent of schools office is responsible for issuing checks to the county’s 16,000 school employees and monitoring budgets for the area’s 20 school districts. Duties also include managing several county school sites and education programs for handicapped students, children of migrant workers and children in the Juvenile Court system.