Sometimes I think about quitting this blog. Education is a huge, hot button issue that is hard to get people to agree about. But then, I receive gifts, like the articles in this morning's Simi Valley Acorn. Sure the article about Stratton and Kurachi is a good one, and confirms much of what I have been saying over the past 4 years... But it's the OTHER article that paints the clearest picture of SVUSD, and confirms the clear differences between SVUSD and other, more proactive organizations.

The contrast is astounding.

The article is about the Thousands of gopher holes on SVUSD fields. My favorite quote is: "It's an ongoing maintenance issue, but if you can't see them, you don't want to spend money on the problem,"

So let's talk about a couple of things here:

Kurachi and Stratton break their silence this morning to claim their board does no planning, makes odd decisions, mostly in secret and is not workig in the best interests of kids. Read the article here.

Then, you've got another article where the SVUSD is basically playing a district wide game of "Whack-a-mole", while the much smaller park district, with a much smaller budget (and a LOT more ground to cover) claims not to even have a gopher problem, because they are proactive about it.

Read it here

If the theory goes that: "If you don't see a problem, you don't want to pay for it", then what else is the board, that isn't working well and is dysfunctional - WHAT else aren't they seeing?

If you can't see termites, are they there?

If people don't see most graduates not going to 4 year colleges, is it an issue?

If middle school kids are being ignored and are not learning, does anyone know?

If the library appears closed, does anybody really know it never actually opens?

If a tree falls....

From Kurachi & Stratton iin thew Acorn:

Both board members agreed that part of the problem is the lack of creativity the board displays in devising solutions.

"We used to discuss visions and have board retreats to discuss new ideas, but we don't do that anymore," Karachi said. "We don't do good work, we don't hold special meetings and we don't have parent involvement with committees."

Both officials would also like to see the new members eliminate the shroud of secrecy that the board appears to hide behind.

"They do things in lots of strange places, in strange meetings, at times and places where it is not easily seen. They don't understand the spirit of local government, which is you ought to do things in public meetings with proper public discussions. About 80 to 90 percent of the public doesn't have any idea what's going on," Stratton said.

So readers... What is your take on all of this? Why can the park district get its job done, on time, in budget and take care of their responsibilities. And the school district is a political mess, meets in secret and continues to fail its most important constituencies - the kids.

The word is contrast. Other words that come to mind are excellence (park district) and failure (school district).

Is there a school board candidate that wants to say anything about all of this? If you do, please share with our readers your plan, as opposed to "I will manage the gopher situation more effectively" kind of stuff.

Good morning Simi Valley!

Are pesky rodents ruining Simi's athletic fields?
By Avi Rutschman avi@theacorn.com

UNSAFE FOR PLAY?

A shot of some of the gopher holes that plague high school athletic fields across Simi Valley.
Even though they're more rascally than they are threatening, gophers are burrowing deep under the skin of Simi Valley Unified School District administrators. The subterranean rodents are responsible for creating unsightly damage to a number of athletic fields owned by the district.

"Gophers are a constant battle," said Mel Roop, the assistant superintendent in charge of facilities and property. "There is a lot of open space around our campuses and they seem to like these areas. They're something we've got to fight all the time."

In addition to the aesthetic damage, holes made by gophers also create an unsafe environment for recreational sports.

Debbie Britton, Simi Valley's regional commissioner for the American Youth Soccer Organization, canceled all games at Santa Susana High School after determining the location was unsafe.

"The fields were deemed unsafe by the Regional and Area Safety Director, the Regional Referee Administrator and myself, Regional Commissioner," Britton stated in a bulletin posted on the organization's website.

In spite of AYSO's decision to cancel all games at Santa Susana High School, the field is still used by students.

"The students are currently having physical education classes on the field," said Dirk Minzer, a member of the custodial staff at the school. "We take care of the gopher holes as they pop up, and for us, we're pretty good as far as gopher holes go."

Gophers have been known to cause extensive damage to Simi Valley fields by chewing through irrigation wiring.

"When the irrigation controls don't work, the fields start to die because they don't get watered," Roop said.

The school district has been unable to take a preventive approach to solving the problem and instead relies on addressing the gopher issue once it's poked its head out of the ground.

"It's an ongoing maintenance issue, but if you can't see them, you don't want to spend money on the problem," Roop said.

Gopher abatement consists of laying traps with bait and filling holes with sand, according to Roop. Officials estimate that the district spends between $10,000 and $15,000 a year on supplies to correct the problem. The district also contracts with Ventura Pest Control for rodent removal.

"This has been a problem for as long as I can remember," Roop said. "Once the maintenance teams get behind, they have to work extra hard to catch up."

While the school district appears to be locked in a neverending battle with their underground nemesis, the park district has remained unscathed. "None of our fields are af

fected by gophers," said Jim Keppler, a parks district official. "If there was a problem with our fields, we'd knock it out right away, but there isn't one."

The parks district currently contracts with Animal Pest Management and performs rodent removal twice a week.

"We have a lot of pride in our fields and make revenue off tournaments that are hosted at them, so we need to keep them up. Safety is also a No. 1 priority with us," Keppler said.

Even though gophers may be a nuisance, school district officials are quick to point out that the situation could be worse.

"One good thing is that gophers don't carry diseases like rats and other rodents," Roop said.

AYSO Region 121 did not return calls from the Simi Valley Acorn.