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Photograph by George Sakkestad

Saratoga High School teacher Bob Kucer is one of the noontime swimmers who will have to look for an alternate place to swim since the program was disbanded on March 1.

City will not intervene in high school pool issue

By Shannon Burkey

The Saratoga High School adult noontime swim program will remain closed despite pleas from swimmers to the Saratoga City Council that it intervene in the school's decision.

At the April 4 council meeting, members said that the decision to close the program that has been in place since the pool opened in 2000 was that of the Los Gatos-Saratoga Joint Union High School District, and it was not the council's place to tell the district what to do.

"I've spent many, many hours and taxpayer money on this, and I am very uncomfortable that this is even on our agenda," Councilwoman Kathleen King said. "We can make suggestions to the high school, but it's not our place to tell them how to run their business, just like I hope they don't come and tell us how to run our business."

Councilman Chuck Page agreed and said the school board has a responsibility to its students, and he would be remiss to go against it.

The program, run by De Anza Cupertino Aquatics, was disbanded on March 1 because principal Jeff Anderson believed there were safety issues with adults not affiliated with the school coming onto the school campus during the school day.

The program allowed any adult to utilize the pool for a drop-in fee of $5 between noon and 1:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and gave the adults participating in the program access to a small area of the school's locker room and showers.

It was the locker room access that caused the district and the school board to close the program.

Although many of the swimmers were upset by the closing, Helen Chang, co-president of the Parent Teacher Student Association at Saratoga High School, said she and a majority of the school's parents wholeheartedly agree with the school's decision.

"We were very surprised to learn that any adult could use the pool and locker room during school hours," Chang said to the council. "Having open access to the school and locker room during school hours is potentially risky to the physical and emotional safety of our youth."

But the swimmers, some of whom have utilized the pool since the program began six years ago, said they pose no risk and have offered to work with the school district to find a solution.

"No one is unknown and no one wants to put the children at risk; we are parents, too," Saratoga resident Shannon Newton said. "The people who use the pool are almost entirely Saratoga citizens. Many live in the Saratoga High School district and some have kids there. We're not strangers to the community."

Master swimmer Lisa Fischer-Colbrie agreed, adding that the noontime swim program is made up of an "incredibly vibrant and athletically inclined group of age, gender, race and culturally diverse people."

"We're all fully cognizant of the safety and security issues facing the schools today," said Fischer-Colbrie, who has used the pool since it opened. "All of us have agreed to be fingerprinted and have background checks done just like any teacher at the school in order to utilize the pool, this despite the fact that our group possesses no threat to the school or its students."

But Cynthia Chang, school board president, said having the swimmers on campus during school hours is a liability, and she has received numerous e-mails from parents expressing their concern.

"Our position is not a reflection that the district does not trust those existing swimmers; rather we just have to make sure we protect our students' safety and privacy--we simply cannot take any risks," she said.

C. Chang reiterated that the school district does want to work with the community, and only the program during school hours is being cut. DACA currently runs a morning adult swim program during the week before school and a children's program in the evenings.

"I want to make sure people understand we are community-friendly. We are not trying to close the program to the public at all, but our foremost fiduciary responsibility is the safety and privacy of our students. That is something we cannot compromise on," she said.

When the pool was built, the city loaned the school district $150,000 toward the $1.5 million project. The school is paying the city back by allowing it to use many of the district's recreation facilities as a credit toward the total amount, but the contract excludes the use of the pool. Currently the city has a balance of $78,404 left to use.

Vice Mayor Ann Waltonsmith had requested at the March 21 council meeting that the pool issue be placed on the April 4 agenda, but had little to say on the subject other than, "In the future our citizens need to be included in discussions that effect them."

Councilwoman Jill Hunter said she remembers people wanting a town swimming pool and that many members of the community personally contributed to the Saratoga High School pool because then- principal Kevin Skelly said it would be a community pool. But as a former school board member herself, she said she knows this is a decision for the school.

"To me schools should be used by the community; that would be my dream," Hunter said. "Unfortunately, this is not our decision. It is a decision you guys made, and you feel strongly that this is something you have to do, so I respect that."

Although the swimmers were disappointed with the decision, many of them have already moved on to other pools and swim programs.

"I'm just sad," Fischer-Colbrie said. "I don't feel like we were heard, and I don't think the council had all the facts. If they did, maybe we could have salvaged it."