San Mateo-Foster City School District takes heat on elections plan

The act disfavors at-large elections and prohibits it when minority voices are overshadowed when attempting to select a candidate, Deputy County Counsel Rosendo Padilla said during the Board of Trustees meeting Thursday, Aug. 26.

With roughly 11,000 students across 21 school campuses shared between two cities, the district enlisted guidance from Douglas Johnson, president of National Demographics Corporation in drafting its map.

Addressing the board during public comment Thursday, Rafferty lambasted the district’s process which he, other speakers and some trustees said has failed to draw wide enough community engagement. He further accused the board of acting in self-interest and accepting illegally drafted maps that do not use verified 2020 U.S. Census data. 

The federal figures show the Latino population in the Shoreview neighborhood of San Mateo did not grow proportionally to other parts of the city, which would affect where lines are drawn. He also took issue with the board’s reluctance to consider instating a seven-member map, a suggestion supported by trustees Alison Proctor and Lisa Warren for potentially allowing additional diverse voices onto the board.    

“These are zombie maps, they’re maps to nowhere,” Rafferty said. “It’s wrong and I think the voters ultimately will hold you to account for it.” 

Responding to Rafferty’s allegations, Johnson conceded that the data has been verified by state demographic researchers but has yet to be validated. While districts are required to use the most recent validated census data, he said that process will not be complete until mid- to late-September. 

Padilla also noted the board is under a tight time constraint to approve a final map by Sept. 8, 90 days after it adopted a resolution stating its intent to shift away from at-large elections on June 10. While Rafferty offered to give the board an additional week or two to develop the map “with some integrity,” Padilla said Rafferty has previously denied the distinct extensions. 

If the Sept. 8 deadline was not met, the district could have been vulnerable to expensive litigation meant to ensure the CVRA is followed and districts are protected, Padilla said. Rafferty’s letter also states that the district will be expected to revise its map once census data becomes available, Padilla noted.

“The more public comment, the more public interest, the greater and in this case the district and the board is working with what they received,” Padilla said. “This is what we have and it’s coming from a demographer who is highly experienced and has worked with hundreds of school districts.” 

Ultimately, the board selected five-member map 209. The map was not the number one pick for any of the trustees but they agreed it fairly grouped communities in a way that would provide balanced governance from future board members by sharing a mix of single-family and multifamily units. As drafted, two seats include land from both San Mateo and Foster City, providing the city with adequate governing power. 

Responding to assertions the board acted in self-interest and did not take the process seriously, board President Kenneth Chin noted two sitting members will lose their seats once by-area elections begin. 

Trustee Noelia Corzo and Proctor both reside in Area 1, mostly consisting of Foster City and Los Prados Park. Chin and Warren also face conflicts, both residing in Area 3 which includes most northeast and centrally located San Mateo neighborhoods. Trustee Shara Watkins is the only board member in Area 5, on the southern end of the city. Areas 2 and 4 which include land in the northeast of the city will go vacant during the 2022 election. 

“The reality of the situation is with this next vote we’re voting two people off,” Chin said. “It’s not something we take lightly because we are thinking of the district as a whole and not as ourselves.” 

The County Committee on School District Organization will review and approve any final map.

As SM-FCSD nears the end of its process, San Mateo Union High School District is only beginning its. Like the elementary district, SMUHSD Board of Trustees met on Thursday to hold its first public hearing on the creation of its district maps, led by its attorney Lozano Smith and the National Demographics Corporation’s Johnson and Jonathan Berry-Smith.

Still in the early planning phase, the district is months away from formal map considerations planned for late January and early February with final board approval slated for Feb. 24 and final County Committee approval before May 10. 

“I think the geography of it will make it very interesting and I hope there will be a lot of public participation,” Linda Lees Dwyer, member of the San Mateo Union High School District Board of Trustees, said.

sierra@smdailyjournal.com 

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