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NORTH COAST - OCTOBER 23, 2014 - PAGE A29
EDUCATION continued from page 22 process out together.” He said this was not just out of fiscal concerns but to avoid the perception that Grove is “running the show or trying to shepherd it in a particular direction” – or that Steinberg is. “He doesn’t do any work unless I say so,” Grove said, adding that his staff will do all the research and preparation of materials. “What I really need him for is to give some input on the planning of the meetings and then to run the meetings,” Grove said. No apologies To compare fees, an attorney for the district, Daniel Shinoff of Stutz Artiano Shinoff & Holtz, charges $200 an hour, and a contract was approved on Oct. 2 for a Ph.D. psychologist for $150 per hour for neuropsychological and behavioral assessments. The San Diego County Office of Education offers facilitators at no charge who have extensive experience leading task forces and strategic planning sessions for San Diego County school districts. In a letter to all five SDUHSD trustees, Encinitas resident Danica Edelbrock objected to the $350 rate,
saying San Diego companies like the National Conflict Resolution Center can do good work for a lower rate. “I feel that you probably could have even recruited someone from the community who would have volunteered to do this for free,” Edelbrock wrote. Steinberg, however, offered no apologies. “These are what my fees are,” he said. “I don’t know how you want me to justify those fees. I don’t exactly know why I need to justify those fees.” He said his company specializes in working with public agencies, providing a variety of different services in the construction and community development sectors. “That’s what I do for a living,” he said. “That’s what I’ve been doing for many, many years.” The contract approved by the school board states that Creative Alliance Group will “provide assistance with the creation and implementation of the high school enrollment study group, establishing a collaborative environment between the district and the community, and facilitating and coordinating with all parties regarding attendance boundary areas and school enrollment, during the period Oc-
tober 3, 2014 until project completion or termination by either party with 30-day written notice, at the rate of $350.00 per hour plus out of pocket expenses, to be expended from the General Fund 03.” Edelbrock, in her letter, asked trustees to state how much money has been allocated in total for the contract. The total amount is unknown, said Grove, who called the contract “pretty standard” and said any arbitrary number would be difficult to estimate. “I don’t know how long this is going to take or exactly how many hours I’m going to have him do work for us,” Grove said. “I don’t know. We’ve not done this before.” Grove said he didn’t “even know how to predict how many meetings we’re going to have. What I don’t want to do is rush this process.” I asked Grove if bids had been solicited for this contract, and he said that professional services don’t typically go out for bid – “especially ones that aren’t going to be hundreds of thousands of dollars.” He also added that contracts that go out for bid can take months before vendors reply, are reviewed, and selected.
Conflict of interest? Cost is not the only concern. Because Steinberg’s two children currently attend San Dieguito Academy, the perception of a conflict of interest exists and some have questioned Steinberg’s objectivity. “We are all well aware that there are multiple other options for mediation that would not have introduced such clear bias to the process,” wrote Encinitas resident Lisa Koch-Hulle to trustees. “It is my sincere hope that you reconsider this contract, as the result of any mediation from a clearly conflicted person will certainly and rightly be questioned, making the effort doomed from the start.” In her letter to board members, Edelbrock echoed these concerns. “This person is supposed to be unbiased,” Edelbrock wrote. “Did Dr. Grove mention to you that this man lives in La Costa and his children attend SDA? If he offered this information, then I question your judgment to approve this.” “Rick [Schmitt] and I both interviewed him and that was one of the first questions I asked,” Grove said. He said Steinberg told
them he was objective and that his children would be unaffected by any decision. “He has no dog in the fight,” Grove said. “He doesn’t care what the outcome is.” Steinberg couldn’t remember if either of his children were on a waitlist to get into SDA but said LCC would have been fine if they had not been admitted to SDA. He does not live within walking distance of either school. “When people say I can’t be objective, they don’t know my background,” he said. “I’ve had some experience in the past with this district on a boundary school issue.” Steinberg is referring to his battle with the school district more than seven years ago, over San Dieguito’s decision not to build a middle school in his neighborhood in La Costa Valley. Even though his school had not been built yet, he said it was the “same basic concept” – the importance of children attending a neighborhood school. “I really understand where these folks are coming from,” he said. Grove said Steinberg is an excellent choice for a facilitator not in spite of but because he struggled with the district on similar issues
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in the past. “He has no problem taking the district on, as he’s demonstrated,” Grove said. “I think that gives legitimacy to the fact that he’s not going to be a district yes-man on any of this.” Grove added that Steinberg’s experience in the past means he has the knowledge and context of the boundary and enrollment issues the district is wrestling with. “There’s value in having someone who understands it rather than just hiring some random facilitator from outside the district who would come in and wouldn’t necessarily understand the community and the issues,” Grove said. “I’ve been involved for many, many years with this district,” Steinberg said. “I understand there’s a tremendous amount of passion around this issue.” Steinberg said the charge of bias is unfounded also because the study group will not vote or make recommendations. “We are simply coming up with ideas and options and exploring how those options can be put into play,” he said. Study group members See EDUCATION, page 30
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