By Miriam Raftery, Editor, East County Magazine

April 23, 2013 (El Cajon) – This afternoon, the spotlight will shine on the El Cajon City Council as it considers whether to enter into discussions with the Grossmont Union High School District on a potential partnership to reopen the East County Performing Arts Center (ECPAC).  The plan potentially could also including building a state-of-the-art, multi-use facility adjacent to ECPAC, filling a community need for meeting space as well as an additional entertainment venue to create a broader cultural hub for the community.

It’s time for city leaders to take center stage and provide leadership to reopen ECPAC, the jewel of East County’s cultural community.  Shuttered in disrepair for several years, the darkened theater has negatively impacted businesses downtown as well as arts lovers across our region. 

A partnership with the school district could be a win-win situation, though there are challenges that must be explored and overcome.

By Paul Kruze

April 11, 2013 (El Cajon)--Members of the Grossmont Union High School District (GUHSD) Board on Wednesday night decided in principle (with no formal vote) to begin exploratory talks with the City of El Cajon on becoming a partner in the operation of the troubled East County Performing Arts Center (ECPAC) , as well as build a multi-purpose conference center adjacent to the theater. 

The Board also voted 4-1 (with Priscilla Schreiber voting “no”)  to endorse building a 325-seat performing arts center on the campus of Grossmont High School at the cost of $15.1 million dollars.

Representing GUHSD on the ad hoc committee will be board president Jim Kelly and board member Jim Stieringer.

Critics call action "meaningless"

February 12, 2013 (El Cajon )—Newly elected Grossmont Union High School District Board Trustee Jim Stieringer plans to introduce a resolution on the 12th high school for Alpine at the board meeting at 924 East Main Street, El Cajon.   The public portion of the meeting will begin at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, February 13.

The motion directs the GUHSD to developed modified building plans and submit to the Division of the State Architect  (DSA) –but only after it is determined that the Alpine School District Unification plan is either abandoned or fails to achieve voter approval. In addition, the site and building plans must be modified to stay within the remaining budget.

Update: February 13, 2013:  Councilman Wells indicates that three months after this story ran, he has not been contacted by a Grand Jury and believes that he is not a target of the investigation. 

By Miriam Raftery

November 5, 2012 (El Cajon ) – Updated November 6, 2012 -- Three people, including two members of the Grossmont Union High School District (GUHSD) board, have confirmed that a Grand Jury is investigating why money from Prop H and Prop U was not used to fund a new high school in Alpine as mandated by the bond language.  

El Cajon Councilman Bill Wells chaired the Prop H Citizens Bond Oversight Committee  (CBOC) and according to multiple witnesses, played a lead role in killing plans to build the district’s 12th high school in Alpine.

A Rebuttal to Jim Kelly's guest editorial in ECM

By Bill Weaver, candidate, Grossmont Union High School Board

November 2, 2012 (San Diego’s East County)--Jim Kelly is a blue ribbon fibber. Jim Kelly says, "It is time to answer these misleading, politically-motivated attacks."

I'll say it is--there is only one politically motivated attack agent. It is Jim Kelly who for years has been officially the recruiter for the out of touch extremist right local party that is in charge of ruining the conservative name with its radical right agenda. There is zero validity to Jim Kelly's rebuttal.

By Bill Weaver, candidate for the GUHSD board

October 28, 2012 (Alpine) – Why is building a 12^th high school for the Grossmont Union High School District in Alpine still an issue?

Because it was twice funded by public initiative bond measures, Prop H ($274 M) and Prop U ($417 M), Further, HS12 is a money maker for the GUHSD, the one and ONLY bond project predicted to make money, and attract new students and California Average Daily Attendance (ADA) funding, per GUHSD Demographer Mr. Vince O'Hara. There are over 1200 students that would attend, and this would alleviate overcrowding at Granite Hills HS, now populated at around 2800 students (and SAVE money by reducing physical campus needed added classrooms using up bond money because 600 fewer students would be at GHHS).

By Miriam Raftery

October 25, 2012 (San Diego’s East County) – Numerous claims and accusations have been flying among candidates running for the Grossmont Union High School District, where the Board majority is reportedly the target of an ongoing Grand Jury investigation over allocation of bond funds.  Which candidates’ claims are true and which are not substantiated by the facts?   Scroll down to read the findings of our hard-working team of fact-checkers.

All six candidates have agreed to participate

By Miriam Raftery

October 22, 2012 (San Diego’s East County) – Want to learn more about  candidates running for the Grossmont Union High School District (GUHSD) board?  

The public is invited to a GUHSD candidates forum on Monday, October 22 at 6:30 p.m. in La Mesa.  The League of Women Voters will moderate the forum, which is sponsored by East County Magazine. Audience members will have the opportunity to submit questions in writing and hear candidates’ views in this important race. 

Trustee defends stances on Alpine High and bond monies amid reported Grand Jury probe

By Janis Mork and Miriam Raftery

October 12, 2012 (San Diego’s East County)- Elected to the Grossmont Union High School District Board in 2008, Gary Woods, Ed.D., is a professor of psychology at Southern California Seminary who says he has been an advocate of modernizing high school campuses and bringing technology into classrooms, although he opposed bond measures that provided that funding and is staunchly against new taxes.

Other priorities include "risk students and graduation success, best practices in secondary education, business internships, character development and charter school reform."

By Janis Mork

October 7, 2012 (San Diego’s East County)—Zach Miller has first-hand knowledge of what a student needs to learn. Now 19 and a junior at SDSU, he is running for the Grossmont Union High School District Board to apply some critical thinking skills and assure that students' needs are met.

At age 5, he was admitted to American MENSA, an organization for those with genius-level IQs. He headed up Academic League teams and was captain of the Rubik’s Cube Competitive Team at Cajon Valley High School, where he graduated with honors.  While still in high school, he took community college classes; finishing 10th grade he enrolled at San Diego State University’s mechanical engineering program. 

His priority is to ensure that teachers and students have resources to teach and learn. He hopes to include more Advanced Placement and honors classes and increases in student enrollment, resources for AVID courses.  He hopes to better the district, to look at what the schools need and use the money to help students learn instead of luxuries, such as building new swimming pools and performing arts centers.

By Lou Russo

September 11, 2012 (Alpine) -- East County has recently been treated to columns by Bill Weaver and Sal Casamassima on the need for a “divorce” from the Grossmont Union High School District (GUHSD) by the citizens who desire a new high school be built in Alpine. While I agree a “divorce” is necessary, those who truly desire a high school be built in Alpine should file divorce papers against the Alpine High School Citizens Committee (AHSCC) and the past/present chairs, e.g. Bill and Sal. Thinking it a good idea to follow the recommendations of the AHSCC is akin to trusting Sacramento’s work on your household budget. 

By  Bill Weaver Alpine Blossom Valley High

September 4,2012 (Alpine)--Let's help to dispel ill-fated news on a 12^th high school in Alpine (HS12) by a "Focus", on the "Top Five HS12 Myths", Let's demystify the most commonly tossed-about HS12 less-than-honest rumors;

#1) We [GUHSD] are in declining enrollment.

>> Irrelevant; The high schools directly affected by the HS12, have now been, "De-Mythed" by a GUHSD Boundary Committee. BC reports, charts & demographic data show that the entire GUHSD will benefit by HS12, which will bring hundreds of new students back to the GUHSD, and several million($) in new CA ADA funding back.

School officials conduct a ribbon-cutting ceremony to honor the completion of the new pool 

April 21, 2012 (Spring Valley) -- Officials from Grossmont Union High School District (GUHSD) and Steele Canyon High School celebrated the completion of the new aquatics facility with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on April 17. The Steele Canyon High School Aquatics Facility is the third and final pool completed in the district this year.  

 By Serena Scaglione

February 23, 2012 (El Cajon)--More than 150 parents, students and members of East County communities attended last week’s special board meeting at West Hills High School to stand for or against the Board’s decision last November to change the district’s boundaries.

Despite numerous pleas to the Board to rescind the boundary changes, the Board voted four to one to keep the new boundaries in place, with trustee Priscilla Schreiber casting the only "no" vote.