School board needs 'more balance,' says challenger
By Joanne Groff joann@theacorn.com

Gregory Lennox

In a sea filled with educators, a real estate investor and former business executive wants a chance to prove he too can be successful on the Conejo Valley Unified School District board.

"The current board is dominated by educators," Gregory Lennox said. "Their perspective is valuable, but a balance is needed with those whose career experience is outside of education. Any board needs a full range of experiences and perspectives to be effective."

Lennox said he sees a need for balance not only in career experience, but also in a philosophical sense. He referenced a board decision to choose a health book that describes marriage as a union between two partners rather than a textbook using a more traditional definition.

"I was disheartened by that decision because it didn't seem to be in sync with what the community wanted," Lennox said.

Lennox is one of five challengers and three incumbents running in the Nov. 7 election. He called declining enrollment the greatest concern facing the Conejo district.

"The high cost of housing in the Conejo Valley is resulting in fewer young families who can afford to move into our district," Lennox said. "Declining elementary enrollment has a direct impact on state funding. . . . It's time to face reality.

"It really boils down to having very clear long-term goals, looking at resources you have available and making sure you're spending money in priority areas."

Lennox wasn't afraid to talk about some solutions that he acknowledged may not be very popular.

"When you have a smaller district, you have to shrink," Lennox said. "That inevitably means cutbacks somewhere. No one likes cutbacks, but you have to look at where you can cut where it doesn't affect what's most important- classrooms.

"If we have declining elementary enrollment, we may have to face closing an elementary school so that we can consolidate our schools."

Lennox also strongly suggests embracing the Conejo Schools Foundation, a fundraising arm of CVUSD that started a few years ago "but hasn't really taken off," according to Lennox.

"I don't think we should rely on that to bail us out, but I think there's a tremendous opportunity for the community to rally for supplemental funding," Lennox said.

The board should also focus on attaining the best resources for the classroom and keeping an eye on "the average student" at a time when much attention is given to gifted and at-risk students, according to Lennox.

Lennox has served on the Acacia Elementary School Site Council and the District Advisory Council since last year. He's also the director on a nonprofit board at the Women's Resource Center, where he serves as vice president and treasurer. Lennox is president of Oceano

Partners, a real estate investment company. He sold his automotive and aviation component manufacturing business in 2004, giving him "tremendous time flexibility."

Lennox and his wife, Lillian, have been married for 25 years; they've lived in Thousand Oaks since 1988. The Lennox family includes four girls and a 7-year-old boy adopted from Bolivia.

Lennox is also a private pilot and spends time volunteering with Angel Flight West, transporting medical patients and their families for treatment.