The Westminster School Board Conflict (When Beliefs Collide***Why it Matters to Me***Roundup of Other Opinions***Blossy Marquez's questionable educational background; more from the OC Weekly (Is it acceptable for Christians to lie?)Blossie Marquez threatens the reporter
November 4, 2004--ORANGE COUNTY VOTING
Loud, Clear Message for Incumbents
Westminster school board's Rutkowski and Laguna Beach Councilman Baglin are defeated. Irvine's Agran is holding a tiny lead.
By Dan Weikel, Times Staff Writer
Turning out in large numbers, Orange County voters ousted incumbents in key local races but backed veteran politicians, including Irvine's Larry Agran, in other bitterly fought contests, incomplete results showed Wednesday.
Among the losers: Westminster school board member Helena Rutkowski, a Roman Catholic who opposed a state anti-discrimination law because of its liberal definition of gender, and Laguna Beach City Councilman Wayne Baglin, a political fixture for 26 years.
In a bitter Westminster school board race, voters were poised to oust incumbent Helena Rutkowski, one of three trustees who initially refused to rewrite district policies to comply with a state law that protects gays, transsexuals and others from discrimination on campus.
The Westminster district, which serves 10,000 elementary school students, erupted in turmoil last summer. Rutkowski, along with trustees Judy Ahrens and Blossie Marquez, cited their Christian beliefs in saying that the law immorally allowed people to define their own gender, potentially opening the door to cross-dressing teachers and Peeping Tom students.
Angry parents and teachers accused the three trustees of bigotry and launched a recall drive. When their signature petitions failed to qualify, they vowed to run challengers in an attempt to change the board majority.
Incomplete returns showed that Rutkowski was trailing city commissioner Sergio Contreras, business consultant Peter Nguyen and a second incumbent, Jo-Ann Purcell.
Gender Dispute in Westminster School District
Westminster School District at A Glance
• Campuses: 17
• Enrollment: 10,113
• Major racial/ethnic groups: Asian 33%, Hispanic 38%, white 22.5%
• English learners: 42.9%
• Students from low-income families: 62%
• Yearly budget: About $70 million
• Academic Performance Index (composite of test scores used to measure school performance): 726
RECALL ELECTIONS
ORANGE COUNTY
WESTMINSTER SCHOOL DISTRICT
WESTMINSTER SCHOOL DISTRICT RECALL ELECTIONS PETITIONS
By Joel Rubin, Times Staff Writer
The drive to recall two controversial Westminster School District trustees suffered a serious setback Thursday when Orange County officials announced that backers failed to submit enough voter signatures to put the recall to a vote.
For months, parents and teachers infuriated by the two trustees' stance on a state anti-discrimination law had canvassed the community in search of the required 7,233 signatures. Last week, organizers said they had submitted to the registrar of voters more than 8,500 signatures.
The campaign was disqualified, however, after officials counted fewer than 6,800 signatures submitted against Trustees Judy Ahrens and Blossie Marquez, a spokesman for the registrar said. The agency had not gotten to the next step, validating the signatures.
Ahrens, Marquez and a third trustee, Helena Rutkowski, had rejected the wording of a state anti-discrimination rule protecting transsexuals and others who do not conform to traditional gender roles. Citing their Christian beliefs, the three called the rule immoral.
Rutkowski, whose term is expiring but who is seeking reelection, was not a recall target.
The three trustees, who constitute a majority of the five-member board, eventually rewrote the rule with compromise wording to appease the state and avoid millions of dollars in sanctions.
"We serve a good God," Marquez said after hearing the announcement. "We knew we were doing the right thing and God honors that."
Louise MacIntyre, a parent who headed the recall effort, said such words only reaffirmed her distrust of the majority. She said it was unclear why too few signatures had been submitted and said there were no plans to mount another campaign.
The group of parents and teachers, she said, would turn their energy toward defeating Rutkowski.
http://www.ocregister.com/education/archive/genderindex.shtml
september 18, 2004:
http://www.ocregister.com/ocr/2004/09/18/sections/local/local/article_245495.php
Saturday, September 18, 2004
Westminster recall effort falls short
A group attempting to oust 3 members of the school board fails to gather enough signatures.
By FERMIN LEAL
The Orange County Register
WESTMINSTER – Supporters of a recall against two Westminster school board members failed to gather enough signatures, bringing an end to their campaign.
The group, made up of hundreds of parents, teachers and residents, turned in about 6,700 of the 7,223 signatures required for a recall election, officials from the county Registrar of Voters said Friday.
The group, which submitted the signatures last week, wanted to unseat Judy Ahrens and Blossie Marquez, whose terms end in 2006.
Ahrens, Marquez and Helena Rutkowski, who is seeking re-election in November, repeatedly voted this year against adopting a state-mandated anti-discrimination policy that included a definition for gender as "a person's actual or perceived sex."
The three women said the state gender definition was immoral and could promote transsexual behavior in schools. The other two board members, James Reed and Jo-Ann Purcell, supported the state definition, saying it would help prevent discrimination on campuses.
Ahrens, Marquez, and Rutkowski eventually adopted the state policy but attached the state penal-code definition for gender as "a person's biological sex."
State Superintendent Jack O'Connell, who initially threatened to withhold millions in school funding, accepted the district's policy but rejected the attached definition.
"It's disappointing," recall organizer Louise MacIntyre said Friday. "Now we will turn our attention to unseating (Rutkowski) in the upcoming election to win back the board majority."
Ahrens said she is glad the recall ordeal is over.
"I am proud of my conservative voting record and will continue to serve as a representative for family values for the next two years," she said.
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