High Schools Name is Fault of City Council

It is clear that there is a giant Rift between the Colton Joint Unifided School District School Board and the Grand Terrace City Council and City Management.

CJUSD Board no doubt resents every time the City Management or City Council represents themselves as being in charge or responsible for the functions of the CJUSD or Board of E...

For example.

The City Council put in on its list of Priorities... The New High School.... they have over stepped.

When the City Council, Mayor or City Manager solicit funds, or speak as a Lobbies for the High School in Washington DC or in the Press.

When the City Council, Mayor or City Manager say and are quoted in the press that the school is "Our" High School, for "Our Students" for "Our Community"...


They have over reached their authority, diminished the authority and position of the School Board and School District Authority and Responsibility and Accountability for the providing of educational facilities for ALL of the School Districts Students. The City of Grand Terrace Management and City Council Members are in a way taking credit for the work and efforts being done by the CJUSD and will continue to take ownership if the Name of the School is Grand Terrace High School.

That is the real reason why every other site outside of Grand Terrace was tried first. That is why the Name of the School was pre-decided not to be Grand Terrace High School by the Board of Education. It would have been nice if the PUBLIC was aware that the name was not acceptable as an option in the "Name the High School Survey". It would be nice if the Public will to have the school named after the town where it is would go forth, and the battle of territory of CJUSD/Board and the GT City Council/City Managers could be made public and resolved.

Why:
Well when the City Manager represents he is making a request for school support, he is not the person that support can flow through. The funding agency will discredit him and the validity of the need for the funds requested, so when the CJUSD makes a pitch for the needed support the funder may already be resistant to the request due to the City Council or City Manager having had the first interface.

SO... bottom line here is that the City Council and City Manager must stop stepping on the toes and territory of the CJUSD and School Board Functions and Egos. They must stop taking credit for the High School being built. News about the school should come from the CJUSD... not the City Council or City Management. IF the City of Grand Terrace has been of assistance or supported this or that about the school that news should come from CJUSD Information Officer, not Steve Berry City Manager, or Mayor Ferre.

So folks of Grand Terrace, the reason the High School is not being named Grand Terrace High School is:

The City Council, Mayor, City Manager have demonstrated time and time again, that they will take credit for there being a high school in Grand Terrace, and attempt to take credit for all that may be good about the high school. "Our High School", "We will Build Our High School". "We will have a High School for "Our Students"... are all statements and attitudes that are offencive, to the CJUSD, and the Board of Education, and the entire CJUSD Population.

The City Council, Mayor, and City Manager are playing the "US/Them" or Yours/Ours" game to bolster their egos, and political importance when the fact is GT Students have been hosted in the City of Colton for like EVER... did you ever hear a member of the School Board say we need to Keep Colton High School for "Our Colton Students". Did you ever hear a Colton City Council Member or Mayor make such a claim? Do you see the Mayor of Colton step on CJUSD Authority? NOPE...

There is another problem brewing. That problem is that the CJUSD has a relationship with Colton PD to provide services to all schools in the CJUSD... Grand Terrace City Council will not like Colton PD operations in GT... as GT doesn't want to even look at the possibility that contracting for PD Services with the City of Colton may be more effective than a contract with the Sheriff's Department... NOT EVEN LOOKED AT... why... The Council / City Management has a HIGH RESISTANCE to anything "COLTON".

This is what YEARS of GT Snobbery and Prejudice make. Lets remember that in addition to CJUSD many of us rely on Colton Parks and Rec Activities for our youth... For many years Grand Terrace was Included as being "Local Resident Rates for Pool and other Recreation Use". Bad will caused by the Continuous Snubs and Over Reaching of our own GT City Council and City Managers have cause a change in this traditional and long running relationship of service to both communities.

I do hope that Egos get done with this and Ray Abril declines the honor. The CJUSD sucks it up and names it like other High Schools have been named, in each of the towns... Colton, Bloomington and now Grand Terrace... the first school of that type should be named after the Location of the School.

I hope in the future, when the CJUSD is Offended by the transgressions of the GT City Council they have the intestinal fortitude to make a point of it. It does not serve anyone for the GT City Council and its Representatives to Over Step, Over Reach, and take claim of credit or responsibility for Schools in Grand Terrace. This is a fraud of sorts they need to be held accountable for, and stopped.


What is Clear.

The people of Grand Terrace and even those of the district who participated in the Name The School Survey wanted the School Named " Grand Terrace High School ".

The School Board is supposed to be a representative of the People in the management of the Schools so Please hear the people and name the school "Grand Terrace High School".

Deal with the City Council's Conduct in a different way.

Or Perhaps, have the land annexed to Colton and call it South Colton High School... or Perhaps
USCGT High School.... United South Colton Granat Terrace High School...