One (brief) meeting into his four-year term as a new member of the School Board, Steve Gourley this morning provided a glimpse of the future.
Even though he is a freshman on the Board, he has nothing resembling new-guy jitters.
To put it delicately, it is unanimously agreed among his four colleagues that he is the least bashful member.
Of Protocol
He is not the President — Dr. Dana Russell just was elected. Protocol says it would be indecorous to confer the honor on a just-arrived person.
Not that anyone in the school community regards the 20-year veteran of electoral politics as a “just arrived” except in the most technical sense.
Just as he was a take-charge type during his two terms on the City Council and in other positions of authority, Mr. Gourley’s trademark personality is emerging in his opening moments at Irving Place.
The pillars may already be rattling. Or trembling.
Notorious Problem
He put forward a powerhouse challenge this morning.
Meetings of both elected bodies in Culver City — the School Board and the City Council — are notorious with exasperated residents for running deep into the night, sometimes the next day.
Without exception, this leaves what is often the most crucial business being conducted not only long after a respectable hour but in front of a community audience that has fallen asleep or become invisible.
Even in one abbreviated meeting in the nearly two months since he was elected, Mr. Gourley has determined that it is time to make a stern resolve and become more disciplined.
Strict Business Hours
“It should be possible for the School Board to condense the heart of community business into the two hours between 7 and 9 o’clock,” he said.
“Not letting it run too late at night for people to stay. Instead of reaching a conclusion at 11 o’clock or later, after most people have gone home, put it over to the next meeting between those same hours, 7 and 9.
“I would rather have the people who started, finish with us”
Surely the cheering across Culver City by long-suffering School Board watchers — even on New Year’s Eve — began before Mr. Gourley was finished speaking.
(To be continued)
