MOORPARK : Board Nominees to Speak at Forum

Five Moorpark residents vying for an appointment to the Moorpark school board will answer questions from the public at a public forum tonight.

Sponsored by a consortium of parents’ groups, the forum is aimed at helping the school board decide on a replacement for former board President Sam Nainoa, who resigned this month.

Submitting applications for Nainoa’s seat before Monday’s 5 p.m. deadline were David Pollock, chairman of a committee looking into the district’s elementary school configuration; Ted Green, chairman of the education committee of the Ventura County NAACP; Bob Coughlon, an attorney in the city, and William Moshier and Gary Cabriales, both members of the committee chaired by Pollock.

The forum will begin at 8 p.m. in the Apricot Room of the Moorpark Community Center, 799 Moorpark Ave.

Nainoa left the board June 4, saying that a new job would force him to travel too much to fulfill the obligations of his term that expires in November, 1994.

The board voted 4 to 0 June 8 to invite interested residents to apply for Nainoa’s seat.

Some have argued that the board should hold a special election to fill the seat, but board member Tom Baldwin said Monday that an election would be inappropriate because of the cost and the fact that so little of Nainoa’s term is left to be served.

“In essence, that person would be running (for reelection) again from the moment they got seated,” Baldwin said. “They would be under the gun more than other people.”