LBUSD School Board Election Becomes Partisan Football

The fight for the up and coming spots on the Long Beach school board is heating up and if the battle lines had not been previously drawn in the sand, they are now guarded and defended more heavily than our national borders. With Tuesday, 04-08-08 drawing nearer and two members of the Board of Education for the Long Beach Unified School District fighting for reelection, tempers are beginning to flare.

At issue are the seats in district 2, currently held by Felton Williams who since July of 2007 served as board president, and district 4 where Jon Meyer has not made too many friends. Although aspirations and early election promises were legion, reports labeling both Mr. Williams and Mr. Meyer as obstructionist over classroom issues brought to their attention by teachers in the trenches did not sit well with the teachers' union.

Ready to stand in the gap of discontent is TALB endorsed 4^th grade teacher Rosa Diaz who is challenging Felton Williams, and TALB endorsed mediator Paul Crost as well as retired LBUSD director and not-TALB backed Karen Thomas Hilburn who both are confident they can do a better job than Jon Meyer.

Seeing the writing on the wall, Mr. Williams was quick to identify by name a group of teachers that have aligned themselves with him and his candidacy for reelection, and in addition has managed to wrangle an endorsement out of the Long Beach Police Officers and Firefighters Unions, which - when considering that he is also connected to the Long Beach Chamber of Commerce recall attempt of teachers' union favorite board member Michael Ellis - is a clever ploy.