Long-time Laguna Beach resident Sheri Morgan has announced she will run for Laguna Beach Unified School District Board for a second time.
If elected in November, Morgan states her main campaign objectives are to return Laguna Beach schools to a standard of academic excellence, create policy reform to empower board leadership and community voice, return to fiscal responsibility, accountability and oversight, and rebuild community partnerships to strengthen our schools and use community and district taxpayer resources.
Morgan, who first ran in 2020, said residents strongly encouraged her to run again because district policy reform is “a must.”
“The communities’ voice has been marginalized,” she said. “Pushing forward a $150 million Facilities Master Plan without community engagement, during enrollment decline of 21% over the last five years is fiscally irresponsible. Not one dollar of the $150 million went to educational programming. This is at a time when high school students have less flexibility in their class scheduling options due to a restrictive master schedule. With only two options for an AP class, for example, many students had to choose between the academic AP, passion elective or even not having a class.”
Morgan said recent news about eliminating special education programs is also concerning.
“I am learning that it’s necessary to send kids out of town for education support if their Independent Education Program (IEP) recommends it,” Morgan said. “While that may satisfy the constitutional right to an education, it doesn’t factor in the human element and the toll it takes on families’ overall social and emotional well-being. District leadership regularly speaks about the ‘whole child’ and ‘every student, every day.’ We are a well-funded district and should be serving our community and its families better.”
Morgan said the situation has frustrated families and taxpaying Laguna Beach citizens, which she hopes to change if elected.
“We fund over 87% of our schools’ budget, and yet we are turning kids away, limiting education options here for our students while our administration and board are suggesting over-the-top development plans out of scope with the neighborhood, out of line with the spirit of Laguna development and out of touch with the needs of our community. Additionally, while enrollment has declined 21% over the last five years, administrative and support staff salaries have increased by over 55%, and while we spend upwards of $31 thousand per student, according to a recent report, how we spend education dollars matters. Our testing still shows that 49% of our students are meeting the math standards at the high school level.”
Morgan considers district and community partnerships important, especially regarding hot-button issues like the current pool development.
“The city was a 70% funding partner in the operations of the pool, and yet they were never solicited before planning; the needs of the community were not considered and still aren’t,” Morgan said. “This is not a partnership. The district has an autocratic leadership style and can’t work in a community where the two largest recipients of property tax dollars need to collaborate to maximize space and facilities to suit the community’s needs best.”
School Board President Jan Vickers is running for re-election in November, while board member Kelly Osborne will not seek another term. According to OCVote.gov, Margaret Warder, Lauren Boeck and Howard Hills also intend to run for a school board seat.
For more about Morgan’s policies, visit votesherimorgan.com, and on social media at @votesherimorgan.
