It has been a busy week in East County. It looks like the San Diego County Board of Education has taken notice of the Grossmont Union High School District’s by-trustee area election resolution and has set up a series of four meetings to get public input on how you feel that your part of East County is represented in the 2016 elections. I cannot stress enough how important community involvement is in this situation and the Committee on School District Organization is paying attention and needs your input.
It has been a busy week in East County. It looks like the San Diego County Board of Education has taken notice of the Grossmont Union High School District’s by-trustee area election resolution and has set up a series of four meetings to get public input on how you feel that your part of East County is represented in the 2016 elections. I cannot stress enough how important community involvement is in this situation and the Committee on School District Organization is paying attention and needs your input. And because part of the contention of this resolution is the lack of representation of our minority population, it has sent this notice out in English, Spanish and Arabic. To find the guidelines to publically speak or submit a written request, you can find out all of the information in all three languages at www.sdcoe.net/board and all of the meetings are in the front-page story of this issue.
Many are wondering why there is not a meeting in Alpine as its demand for a new high school (as previously promised) is a large part of this contentious resolution, and I am wondering the same. But, that being said, the meetings seem to be equally distributed throughout East County, giving all of our communities a place and time that they could travel to the closest meeting and let their voices be heard.
I can understand the District’s desire to avoid litigation if it truly is in violation of the federal Voting Rights Act, but there seems to be much more lying underneath this reasoning like pork barrel projects (earmarks) in government policy. It is our tax dollars and our children’s futures that are at stake here, and if you are in the minority groups, you want fair representation. But not at the expense of special interest. So get involved and let your voice be heard if you feel that the GUHSD is not meeting the needs of your children’s high school education.
On a lighter note, it is that time of year again when our local scholarship pageant winners are saying their farewells, and new ambassadors are chosen to represent your local community. If you have never been to one of our local pageants, you are missing out. It is not the stereotyped “beauty pageant,” and I am always astonished at what these young ladies do on a daily basis, whether they gain the title or not. Each and every contestant I see is a winner as they are wonderful role models, heavily involved in the community and have a passion to serve it. And it is a tough job. For those of us that go to the many community events, we see them there. From charities, city events and chambers, these young ladies juggle school, work, family, friends and the tremendous amount of hours they spend representing their communities, and the ones around them. Their contribution to charities is phenomenal when you hear how much money these ambassadors raise each year. And although they always speak about being role models to young girls, their reach goes much further than that inspiring young boys and adults to become more active in their communities or support a needy cause.
I never thought that I would be such a fan of these pageants as I had the stereotype deeply embedded that it was only the Barbie doll girls that stood a chance, but I was wrong. All of these young women that participate are remarkable and any one of them could be a great ambassador for their community. All of them display poise, the ability to communicate, and with all the hours of community service and still maintain their GPA’s at the highest levels. And once that tiara and sash is placed, their work escalates for the next year. Lakeside, La Mesa and Santee now have its 2016 ambassadors. This weekend, the new Miss Bulls Only Rodeo Queen is happening and through April we will see new ambassadors for El Cajon, the Lemon Grove/College Grove community and the Miss Rodeo Lakeside crowned. So if some young lady comes to your business or home looking for sponsorship, seriously consider contributing to your communities future.
