Lieutenant Governor Visits School District

It’s back to school for parents too, Lt. Gov. Gray Davis told Conejo Valley Unified School District officials Tuesday.

During a round-table discussion, Davis, a Democratic candidate for the 1998 governor’s race, stressed that parental involvement, reduced class sizes and more testing are key factors in improving the quality of education statewide.

He urged parents to spend 10 to 20 minutes with their children as they do their homework each night and to spend at least a couple hours each month with them at school. As a result, students will study harder and skip fewer classes because they instinctively know school is important when parents are involved, Davis said.

“If parents are on campus, students do well,” he said. “If you’re there, school matters. It’s those early years when attitudes are formed.”

Davis called the Conejo district “one of the best school districts in the state” and made no mention of his gubernatorial opponent, Republican Atty. Gen. Daniel Lungren.

Among those present were members of the Measure Q Committee, which seeks to gain passage of the $97-million school bond measure Nov. 4. Its approval would fund a wide scope of district projects, including construction of 30 new classrooms, renovation of libraries, upgrading the heating and air-conditioning systems, and the rewiring of schools for more technologically advanced computer systems.

Davis stopped short of endorsing the measure, but said it makes sense.

“I support it in the abstract,” he said. “I’m not going to tell the voters what to do. But I’m confident they’ll do the right thing.”

Term limits will force Gov. Pete Wilson out of office at the end of 1998.

So far, only Davis and Lungren have entered the race. But U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, former White House Chief of Staff Leon Panetta and businessman Al Checchi, all Democrats, are contemplating bids.