Why I support Hollander for Paso Robles school board

March 7, 2023

OPINION by CHRIS AREND

I originally endorsed Kenney Enney for the special election in April when he announced that he would run.  However, I now find that I must withdraw my endorsement.

I now fully endorse Angela Hollander.  I met Angela Hollander for the first time a few months ago and suggested, after a very good, lengthy discussion about education at the Cider Creek Bakery, that she should also apply for the appointment to fill the vacancy, but she chose not to do so at that time.  She has now decided to run for office.

She is knowledgeable and has been involved in education as a volunteer for many years, recently assisting students in obtaining scholarships.  I am convinced that she will deliver excellent service on the board for the PRJUSD and its students.

I served on the school board from 2018 to 2022 and held the position as president in my last two years in office. When board member Bausch resigned to take a seat on the city council, I encouraged Kenney Enney to apply for appointment.

I had met with Kenney a couple of times previously and was extremely impressed with his record, especially in the military. Kenney was appointed, but enough voters signed the petition to hold a special election to permanently fill the vacancy, all in accordance with California law.

In the meantime, I have been very disappointed by Kenney Enney’s actions and those of his supporters.

I was still in office and involved with the PRJUSD when the petition for the special election was circulated and certified, including several discussions about the process and legal points with Superintendent Dubost.

Superintendent Dubost is very aware of the issues surrounding potential use of school resources, including employee working hours, for such petitions and board elections. He made sure from the very start that Ms. Alvord also knew and followed the rules, and she did so.

For my part, I saw absolutely no improper use of school district resources or bias on the part of either the PRJUSD or SLO County.  Both Superintendent Dubost as well as Superintendent Brescia took legal advice throughout the process, maintained strict neutrality and played it by the book.

However, Kenney Enney decided to file a complaint with the California Fair Political Practices Commission. Unfortunately, he felt no need to provide a copy of the actual complaint to the press or otherwise disclose the complaint to the public.

His press release about the complaint makes vague accusations about improper use of District resources but does not state one specific fact to support the accusation. In the meantime, I have seen the complaint.

Aside from stating some general, superficial points to satisfy the minimum requirements for any complaint of this type, the complaint does not state a single fact to substantiate the accusations. The complaint was dismissed out of hand on March 2, 2023.

Kenney Enney did not obtain permission to use a PRJUSD asset, namely, the PRJUSD logo which constitutes intellectual property belonging to the PRJUSD. Some of his supporters have apparently also used the logo without permission.

Despite receiving a cease and desist letter, Kenney Enney has persisted in using the logo based on the argument that this is covered by the “fair use” exception in copyright law. I read the law differently, but I am not an advisor to the PRJUSD.

Be that as it may, basic civility dictates that a person ask the PRJUSD for permission before using the logo. I encourage the PRJUSD to take all reasonable action to assert its rights, including applying to a court for an order enjoining any further use.

One of Mr. Enney’s main concerns about the school district is apparently that some online material used in the district contained a link to material which then contained another indirect link to a book which is inappropriate for children. That issue arose while I was still in office.

The link was disabled and a process was immediately initiated to make sure that links contained in school district materials are restricted so that they do not indirectly lead to material which is not age appropriate.

Mr. Enney has now made an issue out of the link incident by arguing that Superintendent Dubost supposedly should have filed a criminal complaint with the District Attorney to trigger an investigation about making obscene material available to children.

I recall having discussed this suggestion with Curt Dubost a while back and before Mr. Enney turned it into a campaign issue. Filing a criminal complaint in this situation would have simply been a waste of everybody’s time, especially at the District Attorney’s office.

Many of Kenney Enney’s supporters and perhaps Mr. Enney himself have still not understood the concept for a “community school” at the 36th street site. It is simply absurd to argue that a “community school” in Paso Robles would be some sort of socialist indoctrination center.  These folks should take the time to read the California Community Schools Partnership Act (Ed. Code §§8900-8902).  My own vision is that the new community school can soon become a center of academic excellence.

Above all, I am disturbed by Kenney Enney’s hostile attitude toward Superintendent Dubost. He has been an excellent leader for the district through the financial and operational turmoil left by his predecessor Chris Williams, the COVID crisis when we pushed as aggressively as possible to keep our schools open, and also through the “culture war” issues.

I have seen many CEOs during my professional career, and Curt Dubost is certainly one of the best.