Honig’s Wife Defends Business Role : Education: She calls criticism of the parent involvement project she runs a political attempt to discredit schools chief. A state board raised possible conflict-of-interest issues.

SACRAMENTO —  Nancy Honig said Friday that critics of the Quality Education Project, a parent involvement program she runs, are politically motivated to discredit her husband, state Supt. of Public Instruction Bill Honig.

“I think it’s political,” Nancy Honig told a news conference after defending her program before the State Board of Education. “I think they’re out to do Bill Honig harm.”

She referred to board President Joseph D. Carrabino and several other members who have questioned whether there has been pressure on California school districts to subscribe to QEP because it is headed by the state schools chief’s wife.

Nancy Honig said these critics “sounded like they have an agenda they were trying to promote.” She also branded as unfair the treatment she has received from the Sacramento Union, which has published several critical articles about the QEP program.

Mike Pottage, city editor of the Sacramento Union, said the newspaper pursued the story with the help of memos from apparently disgruntled sources in the Department of Education. “We have multiple sources because Mr. Honig’s building (the Department of Education) leaks like a sieve,” he said.

Nancy Honig, who is president of QEP, said “false allegations” have damaged the program’s effectiveness, causing some school districts to shy away from its special efforts to get low-income parents more involved in their childrens’ education.

Earlier, in a feisty appearance before the board, she denied that her husband pressured local school districts into contracting with QEP or that the Department of Education gave the program preferential consideration.

During the hearing, Carrabino posed what he said were “key” questions: “Have any state resources been used to promote QEP?” and has the project profited because its president is married to the state schools chief?

“QEP has never received a dime from the state Department of Education,” Nancy Honig replied, although the department hired outside consultants to help implement the program in a few districts several years ago.

She also said her relationship to Bill Honig “was often a negative factor” because many school boards and superintendents, taking pride in their independence, did not want to have anything to do with a project run by Honig’s wife.

Carrabino also suggested that QEP’s status as a charitable trust might be a “sham” because of the large salary paid to Nancy Honig. She received a salary of $108,000 last year.

“I’ve always gotten a salary for what I do,” she said. “I’ve run four businesses. This is a reasonable salary for raising $10 million and running a large national organization.”

QEP works with more than 200,000 youngsters in 320 schools, mostly in California.

The business, which rents seven rooms in the Honigs’ San Francisco home for its headquarters, employs 24 full-time professionals and has an annual budget of $3.2 million.

Nancy Honig said she was “perturbed” by Carrabino’s questions because “if I were a man, you wouldn’t be making statements like that.”

She said about $4 million of the $10 million she has raised for QEP came from the Milken Family Foundation. The foundation was established by former Beverly Hills junk bond king Michael Milken, who was later sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for securities law violations.

Board member Joseph Stein asked if “a group that is trying to set an example for children should accept tainted money” like the Milken donations.

Nancy Honig said the Milken foundation has been “cleansed” by the state attorney general and has also given money to the University of California, the University of Pennsylvania, the United Way and many other educational and charitable groups.

“I feel we’re in good company,” she said.

However, she said it had been a mistake to run the business out of the Honig home “because it looks so bad--that’s the big regret.”

Carrabino said it was “indiscreet” for the Honigs to allow a venture such as QEP to be conducted from the family residence.

The board president said it would be a comparable situation if Barbara Bush, who has worked to eliminate illiteracy, started her own company to encourage children to read.

However, Carrabino said he did not expect the issue to return to the board.

“We’ve done our duty,” he told reporters after the meeting. “We’ve held a hearing, we’ve asked our questions. Now we’re done with it and where it goes from here, I don’t know.”