[img]1456|left|Mr. Dave LaRose||no_popup[/img]Southern California casual in his first hours in office this morning, Supt. Dave LaRose, fit and primed, resembled a young man who had just sprinted home from rowing practice as he began receiving visitors.
Tall, spare, crewcut and collegiate, he was resplendent in a vivid scarlet-and- white knit shirt and dark slacks.
Decked in thoroughly comfortable, appropriate attire, he debuted in a manner pleasantly contrasting that of his three proper lady predecessors. They would not have been caught in such informal clothes even if the closet had suffered an India-style power failure.
Patti Jaffe was known for her black wardrobe preference.
Myrna Rivera Coté was easily the most fashionable.
Laura McGaughey passed through rooms without anyone taking note – of her ensemble, either.
Culver Park Time
The first question put to Mr. LaRose came a few hours too early – about the liquid status of Culver Park High School.
For a month, the School District quietly has been sitting on the griddle, placed there by the American Civil Liberties Union.
With lawyers in the wings, the ACLU entered the case because of the clumsy, public relations-disaster manner in which the District handled the enforced, widely unpopular eviction of the continuation school from its historic home in favor of kindergarten students.
The other 50 percent of criticism has been aimed at the equally awkward, transfer of students from the green campus they shared with El Marino Language School to a drive-through parking lot behind Farragut School. Students are to be housed in bungalows whose once and future status remains a public mystery.
As Mr. LaRose started his first day, Interim Supt. Eileen Carroll, Asst. Supt. Leslie Lockhart and others were engaged in interviews this morning, without an opportunity to update Mr. LaRose. “I will be debriefed on the whole situation this afternoon,” he said.
With the ACLU determined to probe, will Mr. LaRose be the point person in the ongoing case?
His answer suggested the kind of apparent no-nonsense leader he intends to be.
“There will be shared responsibility, but I would expect I would be accountable for it,” he said.
What Mr. LaRose knows about Culver Park’s transition is this:
“My understanding is that the program is being relocated, and there are concerns relative to the calibre and the quality of the facility. That is something that is being addressed throughout the summer with project management, upkeep, and that is what I will be debriefed on this afternoon. That is the extent of what I know.”
All in the Family – Drive
Mr. LaRose, his wife Mindi and younger daughter Maddy arrived in their new home on the Westside, by car, late Friday evening, just 28 hours after leaving Port Orchard, their home in Washington state for the last eight years.
On Opening Day, not only did Mr. LaRose’s Casual Smart attire set him apart from his predecessors, so did the furnishings in his office, which made him look like a father of many or a Super who is permanently kid- or student-oriented.
In the southeast corner is a handsome and striking display of Dr. Seuss objects, set off by an outsized Seuss book.
Therein, you may assume, lies a story.
“One of my many pleasures in working in education is reading to children,” Mr. LaRose said.
“I love to be with kids, period, especially on the playground. Let’s not kid ourselves. We all loved recess, right?
“When I became a principal at a K-8 school, it was my first transition into working with elementary. We had a big fall event, and my wife picked up a Cat in the Hat costume.
“From that moment forward, during the Read Across America celebration, celebrating Dr. Seuss’s birthday, I have gone into eight to a dozen classrooms a year (in early April) reading Dr. Seuss – in full regalia, absolutely.”
Now the venue has shifted 1200 miles south.
And there they are, the deadly serious and deadly fun sides of new Super Dave LaRose.
