Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
The school district here has reversed a year-old resolution to not accept donations from the city, previously afraid it might inadvertently embrace gifts that were tied to the commercial cannabis industry.
“The conversation at the time was significantly different,” said Debra Jones, an Adelanto Elementary School District board trustee, noting how California voters have since legalized recreational use.
The Sept. 6, 2016, unanimous vote of trustees had set into rule that the board “would no longer accept donations” from the city’s general fund.
The decision aligned with the board’s official denunciation a year earlier of Adelanto’s aggressive move toward permitting medical marijuana growers to set up shop within city limits.
“The board took the stance that they didn’t want to take money from the city that could potentially be commingled with anything from the cultivation of marijuana,” AESD Superintendent Dr. Amy Nguyen-Hernandez said at a board meeting Tuesday.
It was during that meeting where city officials and industry insiders excoriated the district for its resolution. It’s a position that apparently had only drawn renewed attention as questions were recently raised over whether the city could pass out flyers at the district’s schools to promote a series of upcoming student-friendly events.
“It is sad that the School District has decided to put restrictions on where our contributions come from,” City Clerk Cindy Herrera wrote Oct. 23 to colleagues in an internal email addressing concerns the resolution would derail the city’s goodwill efforts. “Before it was widely appreciated and it was a win win for everyone.”
At Tuesday’s meeting, two days before the district board would pull an about-face, City Manager Gabriel Elliott, speaking at the podium, described the decision to shun funds as “a very hasty action” and “rather ridiculous.”
“I think there’s a lot more to be gained by allowing the city to help the community,” Elliott said. “The district needs to be more in concert with the city’s policies and decisions rather than opposing it.”
Jerry Davis, president of CSPA Group and a vocal force with the Adelanto Growers Association, called the district’s blanket refusal “offensive.”
But board members were nearly immediately agreeable to, at the very least, revisiting the issue, which they did Thursday morning in a special session.
“I want to make it clear that we will accept all donations from the city of Adelanto, no restrictions or reservations,” said Christine Turner, a trustee, who before had declared: “I don’t want to give away money.”
The board voted unanimously to lift the restriction.
Mayor Rich Kerr, who led the charge to galvanize the board to re-think the donor regulation, lauded them for the reversal. But he was far less content during a phone conversation prior to Tuesday’s regular board meeting.
“I’m pissed off,” he said. “You’ll take money from alcohol sales, you’ll take money from tobacco sales, you’ll take money from the lottery. But you won’t take money from this?”
After Thursday’s special meeting, he noted that getting district buy-in was merely the “first step.” District policy still calls for rejecting donations made by marijuana-related businesses.
But it would appear that the district had not been following those rules, if even unwittingly. Davis, the Adelanto Growers Association member, has championed several student-oriented events including “Trunk or Treat” at Adelanto Stadium.
Additionally, he and a partner with Lifestyle Delivery System (LDS), which plans to begin operations soon on mass production of CannaStrips, a marijuana-based medicine, have donated new bookshelves, computer stations and more to Adelanto Elementary School’s library.
The gifts included $5,000 for new books.
Nguyen-Hernandez said the district was “not aware,” however, of donations stemming from cannabis-related businesses.
But Kerr was aware that they weren’t.
“I don’t think they realized who they were getting the money from,” he said.
Asked whether the school district or any of their schools or students had missed out on would-be donations as a result of the restriction, Kerr offered a short answer: “No, we just did it another way.”
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Once concerned about cannabis influence, Adelanto school district drops no-donation rule - News - VVdailypress.com - Victorville, CA
Author: Shea Johnson
Contact: Contact Us
Photo Credit: Getty Images
Website: VVdailypress.com: Local & World News, Sports & Entertainment in Victorville, CA
“The conversation at the time was significantly different,” said Debra Jones, an Adelanto Elementary School District board trustee, noting how California voters have since legalized recreational use.
The Sept. 6, 2016, unanimous vote of trustees had set into rule that the board “would no longer accept donations” from the city’s general fund.
The decision aligned with the board’s official denunciation a year earlier of Adelanto’s aggressive move toward permitting medical marijuana growers to set up shop within city limits.
“The board took the stance that they didn’t want to take money from the city that could potentially be commingled with anything from the cultivation of marijuana,” AESD Superintendent Dr. Amy Nguyen-Hernandez said at a board meeting Tuesday.
It was during that meeting where city officials and industry insiders excoriated the district for its resolution. It’s a position that apparently had only drawn renewed attention as questions were recently raised over whether the city could pass out flyers at the district’s schools to promote a series of upcoming student-friendly events.
“It is sad that the School District has decided to put restrictions on where our contributions come from,” City Clerk Cindy Herrera wrote Oct. 23 to colleagues in an internal email addressing concerns the resolution would derail the city’s goodwill efforts. “Before it was widely appreciated and it was a win win for everyone.”
At Tuesday’s meeting, two days before the district board would pull an about-face, City Manager Gabriel Elliott, speaking at the podium, described the decision to shun funds as “a very hasty action” and “rather ridiculous.”
“I think there’s a lot more to be gained by allowing the city to help the community,” Elliott said. “The district needs to be more in concert with the city’s policies and decisions rather than opposing it.”
Jerry Davis, president of CSPA Group and a vocal force with the Adelanto Growers Association, called the district’s blanket refusal “offensive.”
But board members were nearly immediately agreeable to, at the very least, revisiting the issue, which they did Thursday morning in a special session.
“I want to make it clear that we will accept all donations from the city of Adelanto, no restrictions or reservations,” said Christine Turner, a trustee, who before had declared: “I don’t want to give away money.”
The board voted unanimously to lift the restriction.
Mayor Rich Kerr, who led the charge to galvanize the board to re-think the donor regulation, lauded them for the reversal. But he was far less content during a phone conversation prior to Tuesday’s regular board meeting.
“I’m pissed off,” he said. “You’ll take money from alcohol sales, you’ll take money from tobacco sales, you’ll take money from the lottery. But you won’t take money from this?”
After Thursday’s special meeting, he noted that getting district buy-in was merely the “first step.” District policy still calls for rejecting donations made by marijuana-related businesses.
But it would appear that the district had not been following those rules, if even unwittingly. Davis, the Adelanto Growers Association member, has championed several student-oriented events including “Trunk or Treat” at Adelanto Stadium.
Additionally, he and a partner with Lifestyle Delivery System (LDS), which plans to begin operations soon on mass production of CannaStrips, a marijuana-based medicine, have donated new bookshelves, computer stations and more to Adelanto Elementary School’s library.
The gifts included $5,000 for new books.
Nguyen-Hernandez said the district was “not aware,” however, of donations stemming from cannabis-related businesses.
But Kerr was aware that they weren’t.
“I don’t think they realized who they were getting the money from,” he said.
Asked whether the school district or any of their schools or students had missed out on would-be donations as a result of the restriction, Kerr offered a short answer: “No, we just did it another way.”
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Once concerned about cannabis influence, Adelanto school district drops no-donation rule - News - VVdailypress.com - Victorville, CA
Author: Shea Johnson
Contact: Contact Us
Photo Credit: Getty Images
Website: VVdailypress.com: Local & World News, Sports & Entertainment in Victorville, CA
