Kevin Dobrik   PSL, FL

Posted: 06:02 am [PST] on May 08 2008

I was very interested in your video and I admire the courage Tom Russell and the others have to "take a stand". I hope that they win this fight or more likely war, it is very sad to see that corruptcy (sp?) has hit schools with children being affected directly and tax payers which are ultimately the parents. I myself am a student and had to have similar and different problems like the ones displayed on the video, I must say that here in Florida it isn't an different and that I would love to share my sympathy with the students and parents. I wish you all good luck.

John Smith   Laguna Niguel, CA

Posted: 09:16 pm [PST] on January 17 2008

Informative. Thank you for your report. It is shameful that the CUSD Board Members have mismanaged the district.

CUSDconstituent   CUSD

Posted: 02:56 pm [PST] on January 16 2008

BREAKING NEWS FROM THE CAPISTRANO DISPATCH:

RECALL APPEAL FAILS

The Orange County Registrar of Voters acted properly when he rejected signatures supporting an attempt recall against the entire Capistrano Unified School District board of trustees because voters didn't fill out their own address on the petition, an appellate court ruled.

In an 11-page ruling published today, justices with the 4th District Court of Appeal in Santa Ana said the law is clear that those signing a recall petition must also fill in their address. In the case of the recall, volunteers sometimes filled in the address of a signer, to save the signer from having to fill out all seven recall petitions.

The recall ultimately failed, although a second attempt -- targeting senior CUSD trustees Sheila Benecke and Marlene Draper -- is under way. Signatures for that effort are due to be filed by January 29.

See the ruling at www.thecapistranodispatch.com

Karen Anderson   Paris, Tennessee

Posted: 07:25 am [PST] on May 26 2007

I recently moved to Tennessee to get away from Calistoga, CA, where the school district featured in this video sounds eerily familiar to the way things are in Calistoga. I so admire the courage of the recall particpants in this video.

Dude Face Man Woman   18252

Posted: 06:19 am [PST] on April 17 2007

she is bad and her face is very ugly. When I say ugly I mean she is really frickin ugly

Cay   missoula, montana

Posted: 05:06 pm [PST] on February 20 2007

I was very interested in your video and how it really hit on the fact that so many school boards lose sight as to whom they are accountable to.Rubber stamp boards and unprofessional board/superintendent relationships are at the very core of dysfunction for so many school boards. In Missoula, our current Superintendent hired one of the school board members to build a garage onto his private residence. Then that same trustee just last week voted to extend the superintendent's contract. This trustee also has the duty of evaluating the superintendent and voting on his salary increase. This trustee always votes in favor of the superintendent's salary increase and also has repeatedly given "stellar" evaluations to the superintendent. What's even worse, only 1 member of the 11 member board saw this as a conflict of interest. The others had no problem with it! Clearly, boundaries have been crossed and the supposed "professional working relationship" that a board should maintain with its superintendent has become far too cozy. Relationships like this make it difficult if not impossible for school board members to retain any objectivity or to provide accountability in their roles as elected officials. Too many trustees are in the back pocket of administrators.

CUSD Recall Committee   CUSD

Posted: 03:27 pm [PST] on September 22 2006

Republican Party Endorses Capo Unified “ABC Reform Slate”

Party Refuses to Endorse CUSD Incumbents

Orange, CA. -- Ellen Addonizio, Anna Bryson and Larry Christensen, the three reform candidates running for the Capistrano Unified School District Board of Trustees as the “ABC Reform Slate” have each been officially endorsed by the Orange County Republican Party.

Addonizio Bryson & Christensen are also endorsed by The CUSD Recall Committee.

Numerous elected officials have also endorsed Addonizio Bryson & Christensen, including:

Tony Beall, Mayor Pro Tem Rancho Santa Margarita
Gary Thompson, Councilmember Rancho Santa Margarita
Neil Blais, Councilmember Rancho Santa Margarita
Frank Ury, Mayor Pro Tem Mission Viejo
John Paul Ledesma, Councilmember Mission Viejo
Gail Reavis, Councilmember Mission Viejo
Trish Kelley Councilmember Mission Viejo
Carmen Vali-Cave, Mayor, Aliso Viejo
Jim Lacy Councilmember Dana Point
Steve Knoblock, Councilmember San Clemente

Candidate Larry Christensen, a resident of Coto de Caza, stated, “We will put the best interests of the children and the taxpayers above all other interests in each decision we make. We will ask tough questions, hold the CUSD administrative staff accountable for their actions, and work to create a transparent organization that is responsive to our community.”

Addonizio Bryson & Christensen will each bring a wide spectrum of impressive personal and professional talents that will make them uniquely qualified and ready to serve as CUSD Trustees once they are elected in November. They possess qualities and experience the existing CUSD Trustees clearly lack.

For example, Ellen Addonizio is a certified public accountant with investigative accounting and independent auditing experience. Anna Bryson is a successful corporate executive with experience managing multi-million dollar budgets and hundreds of people. Anna is also a California State Assembly 73rd District Woman of the Year – a community leader with a long and impressive record of public service and charitable works. Larry Christensen has successfully owned and operated a civil engineering firm for 33 years and has developed extensive experience and expertise in facilities planning, real estate development and California Environmental Quality Act experience.

Not surprisingly, the Republican Party refused to endorse any of the CUSD incumbents. Russell stated, “The CUSD Trustees have been badly tarnished by our unprecedented recall campaign, the pending District Attorney investigation and the recent series of front-page scandals that have rocked the school district – they have become an embarrassment to the Republican Party and our entire community.”

The CUSD Recall Committee is the organization that led South Orange County residents in the unprecedented campaign to recall all seven elected Trustees of the Capistrano Unified School District. More than 177,000 signatures were obtained from South Orange County residents calling for the removal of all seven CUSD Trustees. The campaign focused on the serious financial mismanagement and corruption at CUSD.

To learn more about these important issues, please visit our website at www.cusdrecall.com or contact:

Thomas K. Russell
Spokesperson, CUSD Recall Committee
Telephone: (949) 459-1220
Facsimile: (949) 459-1217
Email: cusdrecall@yahoo.com

Gary Craven   Location unknown

Posted: 09:23 am [PST] on September 02 2006

CALIFORNIA PENAL CODE
SECTION 424,425,426

424. (a) Each officer of this state, or of any county, city, town, or district of this state, and every other person charged with the receipt, safekeeping, transfer, or disbursement of public moneys, who either:

1. Without authority of law, appropriates the same, or
any portion thereof, to his or her own use, or to the use of another;
or, 2. Loans the same or any portion thereof; makes any profit out of, or uses the same for any purpose not authorized by law; or, 3.
Knowingly keeps any false account, or makes any false entry or
erasure in any account of or relating to the same; or, 4.
Fraudulently alters, falsifies, conceals, destroys, or obliterates
any account; or, 5. Willfully refuses or omits to pay over, on
demand, any public moneys in his or her hands, upon the presentation
of a draft, order, or warrant drawn upon these moneys by competent
authority; or, 6. Willfully omits to transfer the same, when
transfer is required by law; or, 7. Willfully omits or refuses to
pay over to any officer or person authorized by law to receive the
same, any money received by him or her under any duty imposed by law
so to pay over the same;-- Is punishable by imprisonment in the state
prison for two, three, or four years, and is disqualified from
holding any office in this state.
(b) As used in this section, "public moneys" includes the proceeds
derived from the sale of bonds or other evidence or indebtedness
authorized by the legislative body of any city, county, district, or
public agency.


425. Every officer charged with the receipt, safe keeping, or
disbursement of public moneys, who neglects or fails to keep and pay
over the same in the manner prescribed by law, is guilty of felony.



426. The phrase "public moneys," as used in Sections 424 and 425,
includes all bonds and evidence of indebtedness, and all moneys
belonging to the state, or any city, county, town, district, or
public agency therein, and all moneys, bonds, and evidences of
indebtedness received or held by state, county, district, city, town,or public agency officers in their official capacity.

It appears that we need an audit of the books. I think the Board of Supervisors or the State of Califonia should institute this audit to determine how our tax funds we actually spent!

Bob Cole Jr.   Location unknown

Posted: 06:53 pm [PST] on September 01 2006

We hear how Mr. Fleming has done such great job in his 15 years in this District. However, many Capo schools are still in dilapidated portable buildings that should have been replaced many years ago. Much of the equipment such as the school computers used in secondary classes are old apples and IBM PENTIUM 1. They are too few, they barely work, and in most cases are junk.

My hats off to Capistrano teachers whom have struggled for years without proper equipment or supplies, paying for supplies out of their own pockets. Teachers are forced to work many extra hours gratis, after school and weekends, just to prepare themselves to teach school. These teachers want to work for the Capistrano School District and go above and beyond the call of duty to accomplish their job.

Consequently, I thing it is fair to say that the Capistrano School teachers have made the District what it is today ,in spite of Mr. Fleming and his crew. Gee, just think how much higher the District’s academic scores would be if these misused funds, noted in the newspapers, had been used to help the teachers and students of the Capistrano School District, instead of building an edifice for its administration. Take Heart teachers and students this is only the first of many changes that we citizens in the Capistrano School District will compel to occur.

Anonymous   Location unknown

Posted: 06:52 pm [PST] on September 01 2006

We hear how Mr. Fleming has done such great job in his 15 years in this District. However, many Capo schools are still in dilapidated portable buildings that should have been replaced many years ago. Much of the equipment such as the school computers used in secondary classes are old apples and IBM PENTIUM 1. They are too few, they barely work, and in most cases are junk.

My hats off to Capistrano teachers whom have struggled for years without proper equipment or supplies, paying for supplies out of their own pockets. Teachers are forced to work many extra hours gratis, after school and weekends, just to prepare themselves to teach school. These teachers want to work for the Capistrano School District and go above and beyond the call of duty to accomplish their job.

Consequently, I thing it is fair to say that the Capistrano School teachers have made the District what it is today ,in spite of Mr. Fleming and his crew. Gee, just think how much higher the District’s academic scores would be if these misused funds, noted in the newspapers, had been used to help the teachers and students of the Capistrano School District, instead of building an edifice for its administration. Take Heart teachers and students this is only the first of many changes that we citizens in the Capistrano School District will compel to occur.