3 Trustees In Sausalito Face Recall- School leaders criticized for ignoring district woes - December 31, 1997 by Peter Fimrite

3 Trustees In Sausalito Face Recall
School leaders criticized for ignoring district woes
Peter Fimrite, Chronicle Staff Writer

Wednesday, December 31, 1997

(12-31) 04:00 PDT SAUSALITO -- The battle for control of the troubled Sausalito School District intensified this week when it was announced that three trustees will face a recall election.

Marin City and Sausalito parents collected more than the 1,814 signatures required to force trustees Gracie Grove, Dennis Elsasser and Delores Talley to face a recall vote, according to Howard Hanson, the Marin County registrar of voters.

The vote is tentatively scheduled for the June 2 primary ballot.

``This signals a shift in Sausalito politics and dispels the recent history of apathy on the part of the public when it comes to education,'' said Natica Lyons, campaign organizer for Project Homecoming. The citizens group has spearheaded the effort because of its belief that the district's leaders have not dealt with abysmal test scores, violence and other problems in the district.

The Sausalito district has been under intense criticism from parents in Sausalito and Marin City, the towns that feed the district's two schools, Bayside/Martin Luther Elementary School and Northbay Alternative School.

The district spends $12,276 per student, nearly three times the Marin County average, but its 248 pupils have the lowest test scores in the county. School board members blame the low scores and other problems, including violence, poverty, unemployment and substance abuse in Marin City, an area of low-income housing where the majority of students reside.

Many parents, however, claim that leadership is the main problem. A recent audit commissioned by the district and a report by the Marin County Civil Grand Jury support critics. Both the audit and grand jury gave the district -- which serves a student population that is 80 percent African American -- failing grades in leadership, curriculum, conflict management, public relations and minority programs.

Grove and Elsasser could not be reached for comment yesterday, but Talley criticized Project Homecoming for going forward despite efforts to improve the situation and the fact that Talley and Grove will be up for re-election in November.

She said the board appointed Jeanne Gibbs, a member of Project Homecoming, and Catherine Sneyd, a supporter of the group, to fill vacancies on the board this fall. She also said the hiring of a new principal at Bayside/Martin Luther King has had positive results.

``I really thought we were going to be able to work together and make positive steps,'' Talley said. ``We're getting the brunt of the criticism even though the problems have been going on for many years.''


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