June 25, 2010 -- At least two members of the Special Education District Advisory Committee (SEDAC), including Chair Theresa Harris, resigned this week following a controversial vote last Friday by the Board of Education affecting District Advisory Committee (DAC) membership. Also, at least another three people who had submitted applications to the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD) for SEDAC membership withdrew their applications.

A majority of the Board of Education on Friday approved a measure that called for those who have served on a DAC for more than four year and others whose terms will expire at the end of the month to submit applications if they want to serve new terms. Their terms would automatically be renewed, while those wanting to join DACs for the first time would be granted membership if space is available.

Harris, who declined an interview for this story, wrote in her resignation e-mail to SMMUSD officials that the board’s decision “supports the notion of entitlement and discourages new members from participating in this very important process.”

She went on to describe SEDAC meetings where “disrespectful and unproductive behavior” takes place and she wrote that members send inappropriate e-mails.

“Instead of positive collaboration, there are threats, vicious unfounded attacks (made both publicly and privately) and intimidation,” Harris wrote.

Claudia Landis, SEDAC vice chair, said that although Harris is part of a group that has ideological differences from her and some others on SEDAC, she hoped that Harris would reconsider her resignation.

“I personally don’t want an ideologically pure committee,“ Landis said. “I wish we had successfully been able to work together on the committee with the ideologically differences that are somewhat fundamentally different from each other. I regret that didn’t happen and would hope that we could still do this more successfully next year.”

As for Harris’ accusations, Landis said the behavior she alleged could also be attributed to Harris, but she declined to comment further.

Prior to the board’s vote last week, Board President Barry Snell attempted to remove the feature that gave automatic renewals to current DAC members. He was unable to get a majority of the board to support this. And he was scolded at the meeting by Landis and SEDAC member Tricia Crane, who accused Snell of proposing a concept coming from District staff with a goal to eliminate some long-term members who were functioning as whistleblowers. (See: SMMUSD Advisory Committee Application Process Disputed, June 23, 2010.)

Snell denied his intention was to see people removed from any DAC. He reiterated this in an interview on Thursday, saying the purpose of his motion was so that all applications would have the same weight for board consideration. Snell noted that there has not been a public reaction to last week’s decision from members of any of the other seven DACs. He said it is apparent from what has transpired this week that the board needs to focus on what is happening with SEDAC.

“There definitely needs to be work by the board to make sure SEDAC has an environment that is collaborative, that people feel safe to say things that may be in the minority in an atmosphere that’s comfortable,” Snell said. “And obviously some parents don’t feel that currently exists.”

Special education has been a hot button issue in the SMMUSD for several years. Following complaints by special education parents of intimidation and harassment by District staff, a consultant was hired to conduct a study of the program. The report released two years ago by Lou Barber & Associates showed that many of the complaints the parents had made for so many years had merit. (See: Special Ed Parents Plead for Change, March 4, 20087.)

This report was not endorsed by everybody, as several Malibu special education parents said Barber had not included their viewpoints in the piece. But it did lead to changes in the District’s program, including the removal of then-special education head Tim Walker.

Snell said it is ironic that the complaints about District staff regarding intimidation and harassment are now coming from within SEDAC about people in SEDAC.

Board of Education member Oscar de la Torre said although improvements have come to the SMMUSD’s special education program, there is still a healing process that must take place. He said the District should hire an outside facilitator to help with this.

“We’re assuming that if everybody comes into the room and we just focus on the agenda and we get the work done that those past injustices and past slights are going to work themselves out,” he said. “Obviously they haven’t. And we need to focus on that.”

Snell said he would only consider hiring an outside mediator if it were determined board members could not find a solution. He said holding a workshop for all DACs would be a good first start.

“The board should take responsibility,” Snell said. “It’s our DAC and I think that we should not spend money to facilitate something that we should do as a board. The District policy is clear that the DACs work at the pleasure of the board. To bring in someone to mediate something that I think is a board issue is just a little bit premature.”