Alhambra : Asians Demand Apology

Twenty-two Asian community groups are calling on Alhambra School Board member Dora Padilla to resign or apologize for her remarks about the selection process for a local high school’s Academic Decathlon team.

Padilla, the board’s vice president, had said in December that San Gabriel High School’s decathlon team, which is all Asian, does not represent enrollment at the school, which is 44% Asian, 43% Latino, 9% Anglo and 4% other. Padilla later said that parents had complained to her that decathlon coaches did not encourage or recruit non-Asian students for the team. Team members are selected on the basis of test scores.

In a Feb. 2 letter to Padilla, the Chinese American Parents & Teachers Assn. and 21 other groups wrote: “As an elected official, you have an obligation to all of the students under your charge, regardless of ethnicity. You have misused your position of authority and injured the very students you have taken oath to protect and nurture.”

Groups that signed the letter include the Asian Business Assn., Chinese American Politician Alliance, Los Angeles Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Southern California Chinese Lawyers Assn.

Padilla declined to comment, saying she wanted to talk to the school district’s attorney.