Pomona Unified Begins Process to Shift from At-Large to Trustee-Area Elections

Pomona Unified Begins Process to Shift from At-Large to Trustee-Area Elections Public Invited to Provide Input on Proposed Trustee Areas.

The Pomona Unified School District is holding a series of community meetings as it begins the process of moving from at-large to trustee-area elections, approved by the Board of Education at its Feb. 11 meeting.

The shift means that instead of residents voting for any board candidate on the ballot irrespective of where in the PUSD District boundaries they live, residents would now vote for a candidate residing in their newly drawn trustee-area, which is typically based on geography.

“I want to thank our board members and PUSD community for researching this issue, weighing the options and coming to a fiscally responsible decision that is in the best interest of this organization and the children in it,” Pomona Unified Superintendent Richard Martinez said. “Regardless of the voting model, we remain committed to continuing our focus on our District’s core mission to be accountable to and provide students with the best education possible regardless of where they live.”

The District will submit a request for a waiver to the California Department of Education so that it will not have to hold a special election and instead hold new trustee-area elections concurrent with the November election.

A professional demographer will draw several possible trustee area maps before public hearings take place. The hearings – in which PUSD community members will be able to provide input and testimony regarding the proposed trustee areas – will be held on the following days:

* Tuesday, Feb. 17 at 7 p.m. at Diamond Ranch High School, 100 Diamond Ranch Drive, Pomona
* Wednesday, Feb. 18 at 7 p.m. at Pomona High School, 475 Bangor St., Pomona
* Thursday, Feb. 19 at 9 a.m. at the PUSD Education Center, 800 S. Garey Ave., Pomona
* Thursday, Feb. 19 at 7 p.m. at Garey High School, 321 W. Lexington Ave., Pomona
* Monday, Feb. 23 at 7 p.m. at Ganesha High School, 1151 Fairplex Drive, Pomona

Once the public has provided input, the school board will select a final trustee map, which would determine the number of board seats (5 or 7), at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 3. The approved map would be presented to the Los Angeles County Committee on School District Organization the following day.

The County Committee will provide final approval of the trustee map at its April 1 meeting after holding its own public hearing in March. That date has yet to be determined.

Some trustee area seats will likely come up for vote in November 2015 and the remaining seats in November 2017.

For more information, contact the Superintendent’s Office at (909) 397-4800, ext. 23882.

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