November 28, 2006 > New Haven Community Forum

by Rick LaPlante

Nearly 40 people attended the first meeting of the New Haven Community Forum, held at Alvarado Middle School. The Forum - one of the initiatives to come out of the New Haven Unified School District's Strategic Plan - is designed to give parents and the community access to information and an opportunity to contribute their ideas.

The first Forum, hosted by Superintendent Dr. Pat Jaurequi, was primarily an organizational meeting. Although the Forum is open to anyone, it is hoped that each school will be represented by at least two members of its School Site Council. Attendees offered a wide variety of possible discussion topics. School safety led the way in terms of interest.

This first meeting also included a brief discussion of Strategic Planning, and attendees received a copy of the first Strategic Planning quarterly report. The evening concluded with a question and answer session. In response to questions, Dr. Jaurequi emphasized that School Site Councils are governing bodies and that the Forum will be an advisory rather than a decision-making body. She discussed the schedule for school modernization and received feedback about the need for security cameras at James Logan High School and the need for more funds to be directed toward special programs for African-American students.

The next New Haven Community Forum is scheduled for Tuesday, January 23, starting at 4 p.m., at James Logan High School.

Future meetings, all on the fourth Tuesday of the month, will be held February 27 at Barnard-White Middle School, 6 p.m.; March 27 at Conley-Caraballo High School, 7 p.m.; April 24 at Cesar Chavez Middle School, 4 p.m.; May 22 at the Educational Services Center, 6 p.m.