The Manhattan Beach Education Foundation is an invaluable body to the Manhattan Beach Unified School District, granting it the ability to fund crucial educational programs. However, even between great organizations, there is a line that both parties should not cross concerning the relationship between an elected policy-making body, the MBUSD Board of Trustees, and a Manhattan Beach community-based interest group, MBEF.
An interest group does not necessarily carry a negative connotation. It is simply any body that works to promote its own cause ahead of the common interest. MBEF’s aim to place the interests of the students first is a noble objective and should never be devalued; however, it should not receive exclusive attention from the MBUSD Board, as MBUSD is responsible for representing every group within the school district equally. The close relationship between MBUSD and MBEF is, at the very least, concerning.
This tight connection is rooted in the location of MBEF’s office, the MBUSD administration building. No matter the integrity of a cause, an interest group should not be authorized to work in the same building as the governing body that it directly affects.
Additionally, the members of each body have often been one in the same. Since 2007, all but three MBUSD Board members held MBEF board positions immediately before their terms. Similarly, three out of the four candidates in the last MBUSD election held past membership in MBEF. In 2009, one MBUSD Board member joined MBEF after completing her four-year term.
For the sake of transparency and good governance, there should be a clear dividing line between the main funding body to MBUSD and the five people who develop public policy. However, it seems that this line is nearly non-existent.
Furthermore, MBUSD designates two Board members every year to represent MBUSD on the MBEF Board. According to this year’s representative, Bill Fournell, both organizations want to understand each group’s goals and then work toward agreement on what MBEF is willing to fund. Although this partnership may seem sensible, MBUSD should not be cooperating with MBEF in this way, as it demonstrates an irrefutable one-sidedness.
MBUSD Board President Ida Vanderpoorte said that she sees no conflict of interest or favoritism in their partnership.
Needless to say, MBUSD does not designate representatives to hear out the concerns of the Manhattan Beach Unified Teachers Association, another prominent group in the community that strives to promote its personal interests.
Additionally, the MBUSD Board’s lack of discussion when accepting influential grants from MBEF is especially concerning to some teachers, according to French teacher Lauri Gonalons. While decisions are made in the interest of students, they lack the public discussion that would benefit others affected, such as MBUTA.
MBEF President Nina Patel said that although the perception of MBUSD showing bias toward MBEF is always out there, it is not the truth. Patel asserts that MBEF’s only role besides fund raising is to ensure grants are used in the prescribed way.
The fact that MBEF’s interests are honorable and essential to the success of MBUSD should not grant it special access to the MBUSD Board. Regardless of if MBEF is influencing the decisions of the MBUSD Board or not, their close working relationship projects an image of collaboration that undoubtedly raises concerns.
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