MALIBU, Calif., Oct. 8, 2013 /PRNewswire/ —

Dear Superintendent Lyon and Members of the Board of Education:

We represent the Malibu High School PTSA, The Shark Fund, members of the MHS Site Council, Malibu Special Education Foundation, Boys and Girls Club of Malibu, and Advocates for Malibu Public Schools (AMPS)—and write to address the crisis at Malibu High School arising out of the possibility that there is a substantial environmental threat to the safety of our children, teachers, and classified employees.

We strongly encourage the district to take immediate action to protect the health and safety of our community, and recommend the following steps:

• Relocate– Relocate Building-E classrooms to trailers or another location until we confirm the school grounds are safe.
• Educate– Hold a public town-hall forum to educate and assure the community that the district views the safety issue as its highest priority and has a plan to resolve the concerns.
• Communicate– Appoint a district liaison to keep us informed and promptly respond to our inquiries.

The first step—relocation—is urgent. The district is responsible for ensuring that our children and district employees are safe. By placing our kids and your staff in temporary buildings, the district can (1) ensure safety, (2) avoid liability, and (3) prevent children from not going to school due to health concerns.

Because our constituents are concerned about sending their children to school now, we respectfully request a written response to this letter by tomorrow—October 8, 2013—at the 3:30 p.m. meeting scheduled at the High School, or by end of day.

We ask that you err on the side of caution to ensure that our community is safe.

If you would like to speak or meet with us, we are available at your convenience. Please reply to all of us, and if you would like to speak by telephone please contact Seth Jacobson by email at seth@jcipr.com or telephone at 310.310.2616.