SHERMAN OAKS : Parents Call Meeting on School Vandalism

A rash of weekend vandalism at a school in Sherman Oaks has prompted a meeting Monday of concerned parents and school officials.

Millikan Middle School has been the target of vandals on six consecutive weekends, resulting in thousands of dollars in damage, school officials said Friday.

“We regularly come in in the morning and find graffiti and vandalism,” said David Almada, principal of the 1,600-student Middle School at 5041 Sunnyslope Ave. “They even leave messages, like, ‘We did it in the dark.’ ”

Besides marring walls with graffiti, Almada said vandals ripped out ceiling tiles in a classroom, and destroyed various other school property. Parents say the recent vandalism only hints at the extent of the problem.

“The purpose of this meeting is to draw attention to the fact that the Los Angeles Unified School District is not taking responsibility for making our school secure,” said Pamela Maury, a parent at the school.

Maury, a past president of the PTA and a member of the School Leadership Council, called for the meeting, which is set for 6:30 p.m. in the school auditorium. Maury said a permanent police presence is needed on the campus and that she favors all-night lighting outside the school and police surveillance to halt the recent string of vandalism.

“If the district isn’t going to maintain this campus and provide adequate supervision, then it should shut the school down,” she said.

Almada, who said he empathizes with parents and has personally requested a police presence on the campus, also said solutions are not as easy as they may seem.

“Part of the problem, of course, is money,” he said. “Our district, with its resources, is doing what it can.”