Debate Heats Up Over Fundamental Schools

Santa Ana school board members conducted a heated discussion Tuesday over adopting a lottery system to select students for fundamental magnet schools instead of the annual practice of parents camping out in lines.

A final vote will not come until late August or early September.

School officials said the change is necessary because the camp-outs may violate the California Education Code, which requires random and unbiased admissions procedure. They also said the camp-outs are unsafe.

Parents who cannot afford to take time off work say the current system is unfair, board President Nadia Davis said.

But board member Rosie Avila strongly disagreed. She wants to keep the camp-out system and attacked her colleagues for even discussing the matter in August when parents cannot organize opposition.

“I think it’s cowardly of you guys to do it during the summer . . . to fix a system that’s not broken,” she said.

The fundamental schools offer stricter discipline and a back-to-basics curriculum. Their students typically achieve higher test scores than other Santa Ana schools.

But some maintain that the real secret to the schools’ success is the cadre of committed parents, whose ardor is demonstrated in the four or five nights spent in a tent waiting to enroll their children.

Supporters of the camp-outs, a byproduct of the current first-come, first-served enrollment procedure, say they help them brainstorm fund-raising ideas and foster PTA partnerships.

“If you could see the dedication of what happens in line,” said Richard Montecino, a parent at Greenville Fundamental School. “It helps the school tremendously.”

Others disagreed. Last spring, a number of parents complained about the policy, and board members began considering a change.

Santa Ana’s first fundamental school, Greenville, opened in the 1970s. Five others have opened, and district officials are planning a fundamental high school.

Many parents say the camp-outs may have worked in the 1980s when it meant only one night in the cold but they have become impossible now, as some parents begin lining up as early as a week in advance. Parents who work or have young children at home cannot take a week off to enroll one child in school, opponents say.

The proposal calls for changing to a lottery in the fall of 2003. Students already at the school would be able to stay and their siblings would also be permitted to enroll.

Board members also are considering:

* Advertising the schools and notifying every parent in the district about enrollment.

* Requiring parents to attend meetings to demonstrate their commitment before entering the lottery.

* Creating more fundamental schools.