School Board Has Poor Attendance Record at Decathlon Banquet

MARK THEM ABSENT: The Los Angeles Unified School District’s annual Academic Decathlon awards banquet earlier this week drew the best and the brightest from the city’s public schools.

But it wasn’t much of a draw for the Board of Education. Only San Fernando Valley board member Julie Korenstein showed up.

The other six board members couldn’t make it, according to their offices.

One, Barbara Boudreaux, had a prior speaking engagement that night. And board member Warren Furutani explained, “This is only the second one I’ve missed in eight years. But I’ve been sick so I’m trying not to go out as much.”

The decathlon, which tests students’ knowledge in 10 subjects, is often seen as the school system’s shining light. Last year, the team from Taft High School in Woodland Hills won the local, state and national competitions. This year, the team from Marshall High in Los Feliz captured the local title.

Korenstein, who regularly attends the Biltmore Hotel dinner, doesn’t even represent the winning school nor does she represent their competitors, Taft and El Camino Real. But she said the event is “a real shot in the arm.”

“It’s the most exciting thing that L. A. Unified has--it really is,” Korenstein said. “With all the headaches and heartaches I go through, this is just wonderful and positive. It recharges me. It’s great to see the kids--they couldn’t be more excited at a football game than they are competing against each other academically.”

The banquet, held in a ballroom at the Downtown L.A. hotel, also is attended by parents, administrators and teachers. Supt. Sid Thompson not only attended, he handed out some of the awards.

But the board members’ absences didn’t go unnoticed. “Shame on them,” sniffed one district employee at the event.

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OFFICE POLITICS: Ever since City Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky won election to the County Board of Supervisors, some of his council colleagues have lobbied for his coveted post as head of the council’s Budget and Finance Commitee. It is a role that bestows the power to recommend dramatic changes to the city’s $3.9-billion budget.

But nearly as important has been the behind-the-scenes maneuvering to get his office space: a roomy, third-floor spread with a view of Mayor Richard Riordan’s offices across a light well. The digs are appealing because they are close to the council chambers, where the members gather three times a week.

Traditionally, office assignments have been decided on the basis of seniority, giving veteran lawmakers first shot at roomier suites and leaving newcomers the remnants.

So far, Councilman Richard Alarcon has been the only person to formally submit a bid for the office with Council President John Ferraro. If successful, Alarcon would abandon his second-floor offices, which one City Hall worker once described as “a pit.”

But council members Jackie Goldberg and Mike Hernandez have also expressed interest in Yaroslavsky’s office. Of the three, Hernandez has the most seniority, having been elected in 1991. Goldberg and Alarcon were elected last year.

Some City Hall insiders wonder whether it would be logical to postpone the game of “musical offices” until after June, when elections for eight council seats may spark a new round of moves. One cycle of office rotations may be cheaper and easier to coordinate than two, they say.

But then again, logic does not carry the day at City Hall.

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RAIL LINE REDUX: When he steps down from the County Board of Supervisors next week, Ed Edelman will also be retiring from the chairmanship of the powerful Metropolitan Transportation Authority. His successor? None other than fellow Supervisor Mike Antonovich, with whom Edelman battled for years over the planned east-west San Fernando Valley rail line.

Edelman won the war in October when the MTA board opted to go with a mostly subway system instead of an elevated line over the Ventura Freeway, which Antonovich favors.

But with the passing of the baton, Antonovich will be in a position to guide the agency’s agenda, which might include some more plumping for the Ventura Freeway alternative.

That doesn’t necessarily mean trying to reverse the decision outright as the MTA staff now goes about trying to secure federal funding for the project. Habib Balian, Antonovich’s transportation deputy, believes the Ventura Freeway option will “naturally” look more attractive to the feds because of its lower cost--an issue that might resonate more with Republicans who have taken over Congress.

“With the change in Washington, now there’ll be a rethinking of priorities,” Balian said. “We still contend that the numbers they used for construction of the subway is not feasible.”

Besides the east-west Valley line, Balian said, Antonovich will keep tabs on other projects important to his district: the Pasadena Blue Line extension and a Burbank-Glendale light-rail system.

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TRAVELIN’ MAN: In some circles, it is desirable to be considered a “jet setter.” But not when the cost of air miles and hotel accommodations are picked up by the taxpayers.

Since he was elected to the Los Angeles City Council in June, Richard Alarcon has racked up the miles by making nine trips to various government conferences around the country at a total cost to the taxpayers of $7,835. That does not include the trip Alarcon took this week to a conference in Minnesota. That’s 10 trips in 16 months.

The previous trips have taken the freshman lawmaker to Colorado, North Carolina, San Francisco and San Diego as well as several jaunts to Washington, D.C.

Annette Castro, Alarcon’s chief of staff, said the councilman attends many meetings of the National League of Cities because he is a member of a committee that is studying economic development, a topic vital to his working-class constituents.

“He is very involved,” Castro said.

In contrast, the Valley’s other freshman council member, Laura Chick, has stuck to her campaign promise of spending no taxpayer money on travel.

She has, however, charged the city for registration fees to two government conferences for a total of $475.