CONSTRUCTION BOND AT ISSUE; SOUTHERN KERN SCHOOL BOARD HOPEFULS SPEAK OUT.

Byline: Karen Maeshiro Daily News Staff Writer

With Southern Kern Unified School District officials contemplating a school construction bond measure, three of four candidates vying to fill a vacant board seat offer varying degrees of support for a bond.

In support, more or less, are candidates Morrison ``Ed'' Mackay, Ralph Nelson and Robert Vincelette Jr. Opposed is candidate Timothy Schank.

The special election scheduled for April 13 came about as a result of a petition drive. After trustee Paul Rodriguez resigned to move to Texas, the board appointed Mackay to fill the last two years of his term.

That spurred a petition drive spearheaded by Schank, who collected enough signatures from residents to force an election, an issue that has caused some grousing among some of his competitors.

The union representing nonteaching staff in the district has endorsed Nelson. The teachers union has a policy of not making endorsements.

The district board must decide by July whether to place a construction bond measure on the ballot in the November election. A poll of Rosamond residents indicated 66 percent to 67 percent supported a measure, which would tax them $35 to $39 a year on a house with a $100,000 assessed valuation. State law requires a 66-2/3 percent majority vote to pass a bond issue.

Tax assessments in that range would constitute a bond measure of about $10 million, which the district would use to finish renovating and refurbishing schools.

Mackay, 60, has lived in Rosamond since 1981. He's a retired Los Angeles Safety Police officer and now runs a Quartz Hill security business. He has had two children go through district schools.

A Kern County reserve deputy, Mackay served on the Rosamond Community Services District from 1984 to 1996. He was appointed by the board in November to fill Rodriguez's seat. Nelson, Schank and Vincelette were among the five other people who applied to be appointed to the board seat.

Mackay said he supports the bond. ``One thing I discovered is if you have a house reassessed, it brings down the taxes. We as a people need to leave something for future generations,'' Mackay said.

Mackay also said he would like to see all students tested to find out how they learn, whether it's through a visual or hearing process. ``If we test students and find this is an easier way for them to learn, then we can do it. It's a term called multi-intelligence. People learn in different ways,'' Mackay said.

In addition, Mackay would like to see more ``long-distance'' learning using satellites or the Internet to bring new courses into Rosamond, such as advanced placement classes.

``I would like to be involved and help students. I think I've got the experience and the training background,'' said Mackay, who has taught economics and business at Cerro Coso Community College and Golden Gate University.

Value of an education

Nelson, 37, has lived in Rosamond for nearly eight years. He works as an electronic engineer at Edwards Air Force Base. His wife is a teacher at Hamilton Elementary School.

While Nelson said he personally supports a bond, he wishes there were some other way of securing funds for the district. He says increased taxes will impact people on fixed incomes and others who can't afford them.

``We need a way to get more funds into the district. The bond appears to be the only way to do that,'' Nelson said. ``At the same time, I look at a lot of the retirees in the district. I don't want to hurt the retirees living on fixed incomes or people who can't afford the additional cost of the bonds, yet for the district to be able to function and carry through with its programs, we need additional sources of money.''

Nelson said he is running because he wants to make sure his children receive a good education. He has two children - one in kindergarten, one a preschooler - and a third on the way.

``It boils down to being an engineer. I understand the value of an education. I want my kids to have pretty much the same opportunities I had,'' Nelson said. ``Being on the board is one way to ensure and provide guidance and set standards for schools to provide that education.''

Nelson said he will work to make sure the district completes wiring all its campuses to provide more technology, expands and develops literacy and reading programs to help low-performing students improve, and provides more supervised activities for children after school and on weekends and safe campuses for children.

Partnership with the community

Schank, 41, has lived in Rosamond since 1985 and owns a property appraisal service. He was elected to serve an unexpired board term in 1994-95, and twice ran unsuccessfully for the board, in 1995 and 1997. He is a director on the Rosamond Chamber of Commerce and has two children in the district.

Schank said he opposes the bond because it would unfairly tax only property owners. He is also concerned about whether the money levied would be used for what it is collected for and never commingled with the general fund, he said.

``It's not that I'm opposed to improving schools, but the issues of the bond are fundamentally unfair because it's only assessed against property owners,'' Schank said. ``It's unfair that a community passes a bond and asks landowners to foot the bill, and anyone who doesn't own land gets to reap the benefits.''

One of his goals is to interact and form a better partnership with the community, such as providing parents more access to trustees by giving out trustee home telephone numbers.

Schank also favors paying heed to school site council committees, which are made up of parents, and engaging in a dialogue with teachers.

``Trustees can get a better awareness of what is actually going on. Perhaps it would help to have trustees sit in on classrooms to see firsthand some of the interactions and issues that teachers face on a daily basis,'' Schank said.

Technology will play big part

Vincelette, 52, has lived in Rosamond for 8-1/2 years. He works as division manager and flight chief with the 95th Communications Squadron at Edwards Air Force Base. He has two children in the school district.

Vincelette said he would support a bond issue. ``I would support a reasonable bond to the voters, something we know voters would support,'' he said.

Vincelette said he has a background in instructional technology, which he said none of his opponents has. ``They have some technological background, but not in the educational area,'' Vincelette said. He also said he has expertise in contract services.

``As we start moving into the next century, technology will play an important part in the education of children,'' Vincelette said. ``I am offering my expertise in instructional technologies as a member of the board. It's not just computers. You have educational media, television. You have distance learning, and interactive media, which could be anywhere from slide sound to interactive video discs.''

Vincelette said he will work to ensure that the district is providing the best education for the children and is responsible in how it uses its tax dollars, and will monitor what the district is doing in the area of educational technology.

Right to choose officials

Schank said he started the petition drive for an election because he felt residents had a right to voice their opinions through an election on who should fill the vacancy.

Mackay said it was case of ``sour grapes'' on Schank's part, and he has questioned the timing of the petition drive, saying Schank should have instigated it before the appointment process was completed.

Schank said he was justified in his actions and that he didn't know that an election could be called by petition until after Mackay's appointment.

``The first time it was made public that the community had a voice was after his appointment,'' Schank said.

Vincelette agrees with Schank that people have a right to choose their elected officials.

``It's not sour grapes (on Schank's part). Mackay, in my estimation, was not the best qualified candidate,'' Vincelette said.