An educated proposal
General Plan to include city’s support for public education
By André Coleman 10/04/2012
After years of lobbying by local public education advocates, the City Council is recommending that the General Plan, the city’s blueprint for growth and development, include a statement about Pasadena’s support for public education.
If finally adopted on Dec. 3, the eighth guiding principal of the city’s 10-year plan would read: “Pasadena is committed to community planning that supports vibrant educational resources responsive to the broad needs of our diverse community. Quality public schools are a shared community responsibility.”
The group Invest in PUSD Kids has been working for several years to get the city to declare its support for education in the General Plan, according to public education advocate Peter Dreier.
“For several years, IIPK has been mobilizing support for this ‘eighth guiding principle’ to the General Plan,” Dreier, a political science professor at Occidental College in Eagle Rock with kids attending Pasadena schools, wrote in an email. “By adopting this language, the City Council is saying that it recognizes that public education is a priority and that it will consider the impact of its policymaking on our public schools.”
Members of Invest in PUSD Kids attended Monday’s City Council meeting, which included a preview of the updated plan.
“The impact that public education has played in our community, especially as it relates to the interaction with other land usages, is important,” City Manager Michael Beck told the Weekly. “Even though the city does not oversee their zoning usage, Pasadena has a strong presence in education, especially K-12, and it should be incorporated in a positive way in the General Plan to demonstrate the positive role it plays.”
The other seven General Plan guiding principles are:
• Development will be targeted in the central district, transit villages and neighborhood villages to serve community needs to enhance the quality of life.
• Pasadena’s historic resources will be preserved.
• Pasadena will be an economically vital city by providing jobs, services, revenues and opportunities.
• Pasadena will be a sustainable community.
• Pasadena will be a city where people can circulate without cars.
• Pasadena will be a cultural, scientific, corporate, entertainment and education center for the region.
• Community participation will be a permanent part of achieving a greater city.