Countywide : District’s Parents Give Schools High Marks in Poll

A poll has found that 85.3% of parents of public high school students in Huntington Beach, Fountain Valley and Westminster are generally satisfied with the high school system.

The poll, from Management Support Services of Fountain Valley, was conducted in June and involved a random survey of 481 parents.

The Huntington Beach Union High School District, which operates all the public high schools in the three-city area, commissioned the survey.

Supt. David Hagen said the survey is part of the high school district’s long-range, strategic plan.

“Our strategic plan calls for a 90% satisfaction level over the next few years,” Hagen said. “We are now at 85.3%, which is a good place to begin.”

Results of the poll were discussed at the district’s school board meeting last week. Gayle Wayne, owner of Management Support Services and supervisor of the poll, told the school board that high percentages of parental approval are especially hard to attain at the high school level.

Wayne said parents generally have a “tendency to blame the high school” for any problems that come to their maturing children.

In the Huntington Beach Union High School District, she said, parents generally were supportive of many aspects of the school system.

The poll found that 71% of the parents thought the high schools were safe, and 72% had a positive response about district discipline policies. A total of 81% of those polled said they believe the high schools are turning out “responsible citizens.”

Nonetheless, Hagen said, the poll showed areas where improvement is needed, including that of parental satisfaction with students’ career preparation. Only 51.5% of those polled said the high school system’s career-preparation programs met their expectations.