Dispute Brewing Between BHUSD and Advisory Panel

A potentially divisive battle is brewing between the Beverly Hills Unified School District administration and members of an independent committee that advises the BHUSD Board of Education on the district's financial operations.

As Patch , the newly formed Finance Committee has recommended that the board take several steps to improve its finances. These steps include hiring a part-time CPA to evaluate the district's $60 million budget and an inquiry into the experience of the staffers who work for Assistant Superintendent of Business Services Alex Cherniss.

The latter suggestion is causing some friction between Cherniss, BHUSD Superintendent Richard Douglas and some members of the committee. At a finance committee meeting last week, the administration officials rejected a suggestion to provide committee members with specific information about the experience levels of Cherniss' staff.

"We have spoken to legal counsel," Douglas said at the meeting. "We believe there are risks involved and we don't think it is the committee's charge to look at this information."

The committee's chairman, Herb Young, is a former board of education member himself. He asked Douglas to elaborate on the legal reasons why such information was off-limits. Douglas declined to do so, but said that the administration could provide an organizational chart of the job titles that fall under Cherniss. The job titles would include what responsibilities could be expected from each position.

Committee members said their intentions were simply to ensure that the BHUSD business office has the crucial experience needed to manage a $60 million budget.

"If everyone is learning on the job, that is a nightmare," member Robert Sternshein, a private CPA, told the administrators.

Young and at least one other member of the committee do not intend to drop their demand for more information from Cherniss.

"We have spoken to a lawyer who tells us that this is public information," Young told Patch.

How that information is described and released to the public may be the most relevant factor in this debate.

"If we provide the resume of these individuals—even with their names missing—it could be a violation of California labor law," said BHUSD board member Jake Manaster, who is an attorney. "When you get into personally identifiable qualifications, you run into problems."

Patch sought Manaster's opinion not only because he is an attorney, but he has served on a half-dozen advisory committees to previous boards of education. He has experience resolving disputes that may inevitably arise between such committees and members of the BHUSD.

"From my perspective, it is appropriate for the public to know the qualifications for the positions under Cherniss," Manaster said. "Once we understand the qualifications, we ask the superintendent if the individuals who hold those positions meet those qualifications. I completely trust a good superintendent to make that call."

It is possible that such an inquiry will lead Douglas to determine that certain staff members hired under previous administrations do not have the required experience to do their job. Douglas has not yet begun such an inquiry.

This columnist hopes that the members of the Finance Committee will be able to work out an acceptable solution along the lines that Manaster described. It would take valuable time from the committee's important mission if its members engage in an argument with the administration over releasing personnel-related information.

The committee will discuss the issue further at its next meeting, which will be held at 3:30 p.m. Dec. 20 in the district office. Members of the public are invited to attend.