The March school board meeting was held on March 12 and consisted of public comments regarding upcoming changes to local schools, discussion over a novel represented by teachers at Aliso Niguel High School and a Trustee’s controversial comment regarding the novel.
Trustee Bullockus began by sharing her desire to educate legislators on education and her plans to meet with Senator Catherine Blakespear and Diane Dixon. She also gave a shout-out to the Pacific Life Foundation for their very generous donations to our school district.
Moving on to the public comments, Nancy Roar began by saying, “Where is the transparency? For the first time in 45 years, the new board decided to hold workshops during weekdays when many interested people cannot attend, even including one board member to teach classes at a college. Another had to get a sub to cover her public school classes. Even for those who attended, like me, two weeks ago, much of the discussion was not able to be heard because the microphones were off for much of the time.”
She felt that the community deserved to know what was being said and what the district planned to do for their kids. Her comment was one of several that was met with a round of applause.
Another speaker, Jamie H., asked about what the district plans to do with the Board of Education being cut and how that will affect the more vulnerable students. This comment was also met with a round of applause.
One parent was nervous about his son, who was recently diagnosed with autism and felt anxious about attending school. He said that Hidden Hills Elementary plans to relocate their special education kids at the end of the school year and worries about his son having to adjust to a new environment. His concern was what will the district do to protect these kids? This comment was also met with a round of applause and followed by several other speakers concerned about the same issue.
Another speaker with a son at Hidden Hills Elementary School shared, “My son only said about fifteen words before going to school, and now he can talk in full sentences.” Her son loves this school and the family is devastated for the change to come.
A large part of the meeting was regarding the novel “James” by Percival Everett, which was submitted for consideration by Mr. Weinstein, Mrs. Anderson, Mrs. Torres and others.
A student at San Clemente High School shared that the novel will “enrich students’ understanding of diverse perspectives and empower them to engage with literature that challenges, inspires and fosters empathy.”
It was noted that his novel ties in with the “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” and “Frederick Douglas,” which are already being taught to English 3 and AP Language and Composition classes.
Trustee Bullockus brought up the use of the N-word and how that would be taught regarding being read aloud. Ms. Torres talked about how a past teacher at ANHS read books aloud and said the n-word, which prompted a student to record that teacher and report them.
This conversation concluded with Trustee Bullockus saying the N-word in a comment regarding the book, which led to severe backlash.
Trustee Castellanos later made a post on Instagram where she shared that she was deeply disturbed and outraged by the use of the racial slur, considering how unacceptable that language is.
The March school board meeting was memorable due to the array of public comments concerning parents and the conversation around the novel “James.”
