Orange Trustees OK Counseling Program--Until May

ORANGE — A program that allows psychological counseling interns to work with troubled students has managed to once again squeak past the politically conservative Orange Unified School District trustees, but only for a few more months.

The trustees voted 4-2 late Thursday night to extend contracts for the counseling work but to set tighter regulations on the program. The contracts will now expire in May, signaling that more rounds in this philosophical battle are not far off.

A deep rift was visible among the 100 people in the audience, testimony to the strong beliefs unleashed by the counseling debate. While the crowd at board meetings normally lists heavily toward supporting social programs, trustees witnessed a backlash Thursday from conservative residents who agree with their philosophy that emotional problems are best dealt with in the privacy of the home.

“I think that family values are what have to be condoned by society, not lazy parenting,” said parent Paige Allerd, who drew gasps from some in the audience.

The views of Allerd and other social conservatives was counterbalanced by advocates such as Gisela Meiers, who co-founded the Community Network for Education to act as a watchdog for the controversial school board.

Meiers said her groups of 200 parents, as well as the district’s council of PTAs and many school principals, all strongly support the counseling program.

“The student assistant program is valuable for the affluent as well as the needy,” Meiers said. “If you truly care about the students and want to represent this district, you will vote to continue the program.”

The issue, which was postponed in February because of a late meeting, symbolized an important aspect of the campaign by the conservative majority of the board to put all 37 of their schools on a back-to-basics track that focuses strictly on academics.

Administrators last fall decided not to renew contracts with three nonprofit agencies that have provided graduate counseling students to 30 of the district schools for the past six years.

The $54,000 for the counseling contracts with Mariposa Women’s Center, Straight Talk and Turning Point come from the state’s program for drug and alcohol abuse prevention. The services are free to the district.

Students, parents and local mental health professionals balked at the suspension of the program in October and pressured the trustees to reconsider the issue.

As a compromise, the trustees in November said the counselors could return temporarily until regulations could be drafted.

The new rules approved Thursday lay out how students will be referred to counselors and give district officials more supervisory powers.

“Students may be referred for social, emotional, behavioral or achievement concerns which affect functioning in the school setting,” the rules stipulate. Students whose problems are not affecting their academic performance could not be referred.

Trustee Bill Lewis, who agreed to continue the program, told program advocates he would not necessarily support the counseling as it exists when contract renewals come up next fall.

And Trustees Martin Jacobson and Max Reissmueller both voted no to all aspects of the program.

“Some of these problems are just part of growing up,” said Reissmueller, referring to the issues counselors discuss with students. “To refer them to counseling is ludicrous.”