BOARD MEMBERS GET RECALL THREAT.

Byline: Carol Rock Staff Writer

ACTON - A group of Acton and Agua Dulce residents have served school board President Fred Heslep and member Steve Harbeson with recall notices, the latest in a series of battles in the struggling district.

The move came in part in response to the board of the Acton-Agua Dulce School District's decision to demote former Vasquez High School Principal Steve Pinkston to teacher, as well as complaints of financial mismanagement.

``We made some unpopular decisions, but we have to choose between what's right and what's popular,'' said Harbeson, who wasn't surprised by the notices. ``Most of the people who signed the petition were upset that we got rid of Pinkston, but they don't realize we act as a single board. They see us as the leader of this movement.''

Harbeson said he was surprised at some of the people behind the recall, noting that proponents Sheila Cook and Leona Sexton worked to get him elected. He said that he nominated Sexton to fill a vacancy on the board late last year, but she declined due to her work schedule.

Alora Perna, a parent with children in the district, said the petition was prompted by concerns of financial mismanagement by the board, caused by boundary changes and spending money to move portables from campus to campus after the closure of Acton Elementary School.

``They are getting dangerously close to the 3 percent reserve, where the state will come in to take over the district,'' she said.

``My family is a bit dismayed, especially after all the hours I've put into the district,'' Harbeson said. ``I've put in a lot of time, a lot of patience, but now it's affecting our friendships and relationships with people we used to be close with.''

Harbeson has seven days to file an answer to the recall allegations after the petition is formally filed with the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder's Office, but he has no desire to do so.

``I can do a written response, but we don't need any more turmoil,'' he said.

Heslep did not respond to requests for comment.

Cook said recall proponents are concerned the school board is not supporting students.

``This is very hard, not an easy thing to do,'' Cook said. ``It's the community, not just one person, doing this and it's with a heavy heart. The district is just not moving forward.''

Cook said the group is concerned with escalating costs of moving portable buildings, saying that initial estimates of $100,000 for moving structures from Acton School to Meadowlark School have now nearly quadrupled.

Sexton is a community activist, working on projects such as the library and parks.

``There have been quite a few people who have been upset with the way things were going with the schools in general. Pinkston's situation might have been the straw that broke the camel's back.''

Sexton said the district's lack of long-term planning or strategic plan is another bone of contention.

``They have to find out how many children are in the area, not just those currently attending schools, but find the ones going to other schools that we could get back,'' she said, referring to parents who have sent their children to private schools and those who will move into new homes planned in the area. ``We need a professional to determine what's really needed.''

The group also objected to a proposal that would have added additional time to current board terms' tenure by consolidating board elections with general elections for the area.

``It's better to spend $31,000 on a recall election than spend $455,000 to move buildings that don't need to be moved when you have classrooms that sit empty,'' Sexton said. ``We're not getting straight answers and they're not listening when the public gives them input.''

Proponents of the recall must now submit the wording of their petition to the registrar-recorder for validation, after which they have 60 days to collect a minimum of 578 signatures, based on a registered voter base of 2,312 voters.

Carol Rock, [phone]

carol.rock(at)dailynews.com