Plan to Open High School in Malibu Wins Approval
Despite fierce opposition from Santa Monica residents, the Santa Monica-Malibu school board has approved a plan to open a high school in Malibu.
The unanimous vote late Monday capped months of bitter debate that divided the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District. Santa Monica parents charged that the school would amount to an elite academy for wealthy Malibu residents. Malibu parents said the school was necessary to spare their children the one-hour commute to Santa Monica High, and to stem the flight of Malibu children to private schools.
The school would open in 1992 with a ninth-grade class at a middle school campus near Zuma Beach and upper grades would be phased in one year at a time. Enrollment would be open to students throughout the district, with a maximum of 360 for grades nine though 12. Santa Monica residents vowed to fight the decision with lawsuits or by unseating board members.
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