The Sunnyvale Sun

Letters & Opinions

Speak Out

Championing writer who
spotlighted school traffic

I would like to reply to Jim Carlisle's letter (Courier, Oct. 10). If Mr. Carlisle took the time to do some research before criticizing Mrs. Orvick, he would find the CUSD and FUHSD's zones cover hundreds of addresses in Los Altos and Sunnyvale as well as Cupertino. Mrs. Orvick is well within her correct school district and is a tireless volunteer in the Cupertino Union School District. I have experienced first hand the nightmare of the double and triple illegal parking at Kennedy Middle School, and I applaud Mrs. Orvick for bringing it to the attention of the Cupertino community.

Hilary Lujack

Cupertino parent

More near misses and
writer writes again

I feel compelled to write again regarding the response to my letter to the Courier a few weeks ago. Since writing that letter, I have had at least 15-20 people approach me and tell me about their own bike/car encounter. I urge every parent to ask their child if they've ever been hit by a car while on their bike. If they haven't been hit, I'll bet they know someone who has.

My son came home yesterday and said he saw another child on his bike hit on Orange Avenue. We are reaching crisis mode. I would hate to see parents discouraging their kids from walking or biking to school. We are a nation that is facing issues such as childhood obesity and an energy crisis. Having our children walk/ride to school should be a priority on so many levels.

Our schools, parents and community leaders need to come together and come up with a solution before the unthinkable happens. Please parents: SLOW DOWN, LOOK WHERE YOU'RE GOING.

Linda Orvick

Los Altos

FUHSD needs new
members on board

For years, FUHSD has been a shining foundation for our students, parents and teachers. Hence, it was most upsetting to see it embroiled in the messy affairs regarding Mr. Kreiger from Monta Vista High and the firing of our superintendent without due process. This rash, unprofessional action will cost us, especially our students, hundreds of thousands of dollars in unnecessary litigation fees.

We are urging people to get acquainted with the new candidates for our FUHSD school board. We need people who are fair-minded, level-headed and skilled at running a large organization with divergent needs. We need people who are dedicated to our community, who operate with impeccable integrity and careful deliberation.

Bill Wilson is a leader in the high-tech world as well as in our community. He has four children who attended schools in FUHSD. For two decades he has contributed his time, energy and skills to our community. As a FUHSD board member, Bill will bring clear vision, fairness, exceptional negotiation skills and most of all, great empathy for our students, teachers, and parents.

Check out his background. Then go out and vote for a better future for our community.

Nora Chuang, Henry Sang

FUHSD Parents

Challenger wins confidence of county board

This election year, we have an opportunity to evaluate the decisions and abilities that our many elected officials have demonstrated. The Santa Clara Board of Education plays a very important role in evaluating community needs, mediating and taking initiative when needed.

It is vital that we have boardmembers who will do just that.

The current incumbent of 12 years has failed to outreach when needed, learn about the issues and understand consequences. I believe that the citizens who reside within District 2, of the county board of education should vote for someone who will make a positive difference on November 7.

We should support Lynette Lee Eng, who has demonstrated her leadership skills and commitment to education through her school district activities and civic roles. Lynette Lee Eng is best suited to serve the children of our county.

John Olson

Trustee Area 2

Santa Clara County

Vote for candidate who
supports all students

Until someone has a child who has been lost through the school process, one will never understand and appreciate community advocates. As a grandparent and guardian of a school-aged child, I do understand, because my family and I have suffered through the frustrations and lack of clear guidance for children who are not classified as having special needs.

I have been to the county board meetings on behalf of our concerns and have witnessed Lynette Lee Eng in her efforts to work with the county board in bringing forth solutions that will benefit the parents and children of our community. I am grateful to know that there are parents like her who have tirelessly dedicated themselves to parent and child advocacy. Lynette Lee Eng would be a wonderful addition to the county board of education. It is time that we have a representative who will truly represent the needs of our community.

Don and Betty Neely

Cupertino

Suggestion to parents:
leave cars at home

I was dismayed, but not surprised, to read about the chaos in front of Cupertino's schools during "drop-off" and "pick-up" time. Out of a concern for their safety, parents drive their children to school, thereby creating the very condition of which they are afraid.

Economists refer to the over-exploitation resulting from free access to a shared, finite resource as the "tragedy of the commons." In this case, the resource is safe use of the roads leading to school. Using an automobile as transportation to school uses up too much of this resource. Simply put, not everyone can drive.

Unless necessary, please let your children bike or walk to school. The health of your children, the environment and possibly that of the child you may have otherwise run into will be the better for it.

Speaking of economists, they would solve this problem very easily by charging a suitable fee for driving to school. The fee would be used to compensate the common good for bearing the cost of one's driving. But since this is unlikely to happen, I thought I'd try just asking politely that folks think twice before using their car.

Scott Frake

Cupertino

Rowley and the head of union are not in staff's corner

Not everyone is upset Rowley is gone. Tom Avvakumovits is a puppet for management.

When I heard that Rowley was fired, I felt like celebrating. I was so sick of hearing him talk about bridging the achievement gap, when every remedial program and vocational program was being taken away that would help the underclass in the FUHSD whose achievement is several deviations below the mean on standardized measures.

Nor did I enjoy Rowley saying that he empathized with staff about the 4.9 percent rollback that was taken from our paychecks, and without missing a beat he then introduced five new administrators with six-figure salaries who had been hired by the district.

Unfortunately my elation at Rowley's firing was quickly diminished when I heard Polly Bove was now acting superintendent, since Rowley's errant email, which spoke of collusion between him and board members Nunes and Newton, was addressed to Polly Bove. No one sends a letter or email with the tone of this particular email to a neutral or innocent party.

It suggests Bove was part of a conspiracy to slam board member Avie Katz and his wife. It was a malicious and hateful email with clear political intent, not so coincidentally just months before an election.

Additionally, Tom Avvakumovits, president of the teachers union, has proven himself more of a friend to the administration than to the members of the union. Instead of protecting the rights of Cathy Katz, a union member, he has gone out of his way to support Rowley and Bove. Historically, when the district attempted to eliminate the guidance resource position, which would mean all 11 guidance counselors would lose their jobs, Avvakumovits did not utter a word of protest. Last year Avvakumovits spearheaded a drive to reduce school psychologists' salary by 10 percent. School psychologists are also union members. Unheard of, that a union president would campaign to reduce the salary of the union members whom he is supposed to represent and advocate for.

Esther Radol

Mountain View

Teacher is speaking out in
support of his union head

It is no more than a conspiracy theory by Esther Radol that Tom Avvakumovits is at the mercy of the puppeteering of the FUHSD management.

I don't question that Steve Rowley and the majority of the board were not on the same page in the direction they wanted to take the district. Yet I do question whether their differences could have been tolerated considering they are our community leaders and elected officials. This rash decision to fire Dr. Rowley now runs far beyond the squabbling of the school board, but it may affect the pay of over 400 teachers and the educational programming of 10,000 students, quite possibly those very vocational and remedial programs that Dr. Rowley has been accused of neglecting. Tom Avvakumovits' bringing this decision to question is not in support of Dr. Rowley, but out of concern for the very teachers that he represents through the Fremont Education Association (FEA).

As a teacher in the district, I not only support Tom Avvakumovits' decision questioning the board's fiscal responsibility, but I encourage him to seek more answers and offer my help in doing so. Trying to drag him down with Dr. Rowley with misleading and false information is irresponsible. First, when the guidance counselors' positions were in jeopardy of being cut, Tom was not the president of the FEA, so he did not stand by passively as our leader. Second, the 10 percent stipend reduction to new-hire psychologists to the district did not affect the current psychologists in the district. This 10 percent stipend reduction was a move to bring equal pay for equal work for the entire membership, but it only affected new-hire psychologists. The members at that time did not receive any pay reduction whatsoever.

I only hope that the community questions the board's decision and its effect on the fiscal budget of their schools.

Jason Heskett, teacher

Cupertino High School