Recently in 3rd Ward City Council Category

The kerfuffle over what to name Grand Terrace's new high school is over, the campus will be called Grand Terrace High School at the Ray Abril Junior Education Complex.

Stephen Wall, The Sun's Grand Terrace reporter tells me that the Colton Joint Unified School District board's decision to change the high school name has defused the dissatisfaction that was aroused among some Grand Terrace residents when the campus - set to be Grand Terrace's first high school - was going to be named after Abril, a retired school board member, instead of the city.

Third Ward Councilman Tobin Brinker, also a former Colton Joint Unified board member, sided with Grand Terrace parents. He said the campus should be named after the city and that parents who wanted their objections to be heard should pressure the district by refusing to allow their children to participate in state-issued standardized tests.

Students are now being encouraged to take the tests, Wall informs me.

Third Ward Councilman Tobin Brinker says he as asking parents who are upset about the name of a nearby school district's new high school should make their voices heard by refusing to allow their children to take standardized tests.

Brinker's gambit follows the Colton Joint Unified School District's decision to name a new school within the city of Grand Terrace in honor of retired school board member Ray Abril. Many parents whose children would attend the new school wanted the campus to be named Grand Terrace High School.

If parents do as Brinker recommends, and their children do not take the state-issued STAR tests, the district's overall performance on the standardized tests could suffer. Accordingly, the threat of parents refusing to let their children take the tests could create pressure for the board to reconsider the new high school's name.

"(It) lets them feel they have something they can do," Brinker said in a telephone interview.

"My hope is they'll (school board members) make this decision not because of the pressure, but because it's the right thing to do," he also said.

Brinker is a former Colton Joint Unified board member and a Rialto Unified School District teacher. Some families in southern San Bernardino send their children to schools in that district.

School district spokeswoman Katie Orloff said the school board has scheduled another discussion on the new high school's name for its Thursday meeting.

The campus is under construction, Brinker has proposed that the district could please the parents and honor Abril by naming a prominent structure on the high school in Abril's honor.

Seventh Ward Councilwoman Wendy McCammack said today that she will not seek a District Attorney's investigation into whether other city officials violated the state's open meetings law.

"I think at this point, my conclusion, based on the evidence that I'm aware of, is not something the D.A. would file on," she said, adding that at least her allegations of improper behavior served as a notice of the importance of following California's mandatory processes for handling public business.

McCammack first voiced her allegations at an Oct. 6 City Council meeting while the body considered a proposal put forth by 3rd Ward Councilman Tobin Brinker that would have allowed the council to elect one of their own to a leadership position that's currently held by the body's most-senior official. At present, 1st Ward Councilwoman Esther Estrada fills that role.

The council approved Brinker's proposal at its Oct. 20 meeting. The council is now on pace to elect one its own as Mayor Pro Tem in March. Whoever is named to that post will have authority to appoint council members to various city committees.

During that meeting, McCammack alleged that the Brown Act's requirements had been somehow skirted to generate a consensus among council members prior to public discussion. Such action would violate law that prohibits local officials from meeting secretly in a group or holding a series of private talks that would render public meetings as nothing more than a formality.

Later on, McCammack accused Brinker and Mayor Pat Morris of failing to obey the Brown Act. Brinker and the Mayor's Office responded by saying McCammack's accusations were groundless.

Shortly after McCammack first alleged a Brown Act violation, City Attorney James F. Penman counseled that City Hall would be better served by a training session on Brown Act compliance than asking for an investigation.

McCammack said today that she wants such training to be held.

Here's an announcement from 3rd Ward Councilman Tobin Brinker, who represents the city's southern neighborhoods.

Councilman Tobin Brinker, Third Ward, currently has a vacancy on the Building Commission, the Community Television Commission, and the Bureau of Franchises.

The requirements for serving on one of these Commissions are as follows:

* You must be a City resident, residing in the Third Ward
* You must be a registered voter within the City
* You must have a willingness to devote time and effort to carrying out the duties and responsibilities of the particular Commission/Board.

If you are interested in serving on the Building Commission, the Community Television Commission or the Bureau of Franchises, please contact Sylvia Loza or Cheryl Weeks in Councilman Brinker's Council Office at (909) 384-5333.