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“The trolley is terrible, it is unsafe,” according to an unidentified “scholar.”

Preuss’s trolley travails

UCSD’s PR honchos are well-known for frequently touting the university’s charter prep school. “The Preuss School is located on the UC San Diego campus and is led by an alumna of the university — Executive Director Helen V. Griffith,” says an April 20 post on the university website. “She was drawn to the role to make a difference. ‘I grew up in Southeast San Diego, the same neighborhood where many of our scholars come from; I know firsthand how education can transform futures,’ said Griffith. ‘The Preuss School serves as a bridge to college and career, with a single-track, rigorous college preparatory curriculum that consistently results in our scholars achieving a 95% or higher college acceptance rate.’”

Helen V. Griffith: single-track curriculum, trolley-track transportation

But Preuss suffers from a host of long-standing woes, according to an April self-study report produced by UCSD for the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. “Preuss transitioned to utilizing the trolley for transportation for high school now that the station across the street is open,” says the document. “This was part of Preuss’s long-range plan. The [San Diego Unified School District] has been unable to provide busing to meet the school’s schedule; only sixth graders are offered busing because they have access to before- and after-school programming that aligns with the availability of buses.”

That’s not the whole story, per student remarks cited in the report. “The trolley is terrible, it is unsafe,” according to an unidentified “scholar.” “She feels bad for the younger students who have to take it. Commented that a man had a gun on the trolley and was arrested in front of her. She wishes we had the buses. She can get home around 6:30 pm if she goes to after-school activities. The earliest she gets home is 5:20 on the bus. She could get home at 5 pm, and if she stayed for after-school activities, she could be home by 6 pm. If public transportation is unreliable, she has to walk 20 minutes to the trolley and then gets tardy. Lots of altercations on the trolley, and it is scary when it is dark. She finds it unhelpful to call for MTS help in front of someone acting out. She has to strategically think out where to sit on the trolley to feel safe.”

Besides transportation, other needs per the feedback include “more bathrooms, sometimes the bathrooms are questionable, and students are doing questionable things. Would like a bigger locker room.” Also, “As a cheerleader, she would appreciate a gym (Ms. Bandy drives the cheerleaders to a gym so that they can practice safely). Walton Center is a little small. Sometimes the stage of the WC is a closet, so it is small for practicing cheer with drama supplies and pianos, and drapes. Gum is a problem at school and sticks to pants when students stick it under tables. Middle school classes smell...” And “feedback on furniture: some tables are falling apart, and students don’t treat them well.” In addition, ‘The art classroom is really small and should be upgraded.” In response, the Preuss report says needed improvements “include renovation of the fitness center, locker rooms (no AC, hidden areas make supervision difficult), trolley, and campus supervision needed. There is also a desire for a Scholar Services/Wellness Center, a Visual and Performing Arts Center, and more solar panels over the parking area.”

Toni’s emergency campaign stash

A high-powered pressure group of private ambulance owners, along with big labor unions, are pushing state legislators to boost the amount of money they collect from state taxpayers. “As part of the ongoing legislative campaign, California’s ambulance service owners and operators have created a coalition with all the labor unions that represent EMS in the state to campaign for increases,” per show notes for a February 21 industry podcast. Thus, a $5000 contribution to a campaign fund benefiting Democratic state Senate President pro-Tempore Toni Atkins, who is seeking the office of Lt. Governor two years hence, seems suspiciously timed. The cash, from the 911 Ambulance Provider’s Medi-Cal Alliance, rolled in on April 24.

“Our rates are set for us by the government and by government payers, and they are capped, and in some cases, they are fixed, so we are beholden to the State of California to help us and give us some relief,” Jim Karras, vice president and chief operating officer of Ambuserve Ambulance, Medic1 Ambulance, and Shoreline Ambulance told the podcast audience. Paramedic union honcho Shelly Huddleson added, “If we don’t do something soon with our Medi-Cal rates, then our EMS system is going to implode. It’s going to implode because our ambulance companies are either going to stop taking these Medi-Cal patients because they can’t afford them and so who is going to take care of them, or they are going to start shutting their doors. When they shut their doors, our members lose jobs.”

Ethical ignoramus

The state’s political ethics watchdog, known as the California Fair Political Practices Commission, has finally caught up with San Diego real estate broker Jim Neil, who was sued and then settled with by the City of San Diego last September over alleged conflicts. “The total monetary civil settlement paid was $1,000,000,” notes a February stipulation between the commission and Neil posted online by the agency.

Jim Neil: helping the homeless, helping himself.

The city filed suit last August against Neil and his real estate firm Kidder Matthews, alleging that they held stock in the parent owner of a hotel he contracted with the city to acquire for homeless housing. “As a part of the settlement agreement, Neil agreed to enter into a stipulated settlement with the Fair Political Practices Commission for a violation of the Political Reform Act that would be approved as to form by the San Diego District Attorney before being presented to the Commission for approval.” As a result of his FPPC deal, Neil agreed to pay a $5000 penalty, per the document. “Neil was an outside contractor, and he has not received or been asked to take any government ethics training. Neil’s level of knowledge regarding his ethics obligations as a contractor appeared to be very low.”

— Matt Potter

(@sdmattpotter)

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