from the FUSD Archives SEPT 1966:
Fremont Schools Set Up System of Staff Liaison
In 1966, a year after being founded, FUSD adopted a “System of Staff Liaison” to address the needs of a rapidly expanding student population and to better connect schools that often felt isolated from one another. Original article from the Oakland Tribune. Some 1966 milestones:
- The first Automated Teller Machine (ATM) was introduced.
- Star Trek premiered on TV September 8.
- The Beatles gave their last public concert in San Francisco.
- Fremont homes cost around $25,200 and a gallon of gas was just 33 cents.
FREMONT — Because it is growing so large, the Fremont Unified School District has established a new system for improving communication among staff members.
The district also has made four major adjustments in administrative assignments.
The new system, intended to link the individual schools more closely with the central office, especially in curriculum development, is based upon a so-called liaison administrator.
ATTENDANCE AREAS
Phillip Brazil, director of instructional materials; Dr. Jerry Zimmerman, director of elementary education, and Glenn Houde, assistant superintendent of instruction, have been assigned to cover certain high school attendance areas.
Brazil will take Kennedy and Irvington High Schools; Dr. Zimmerman, Washington High, and Houde, Mission San Jose High.
Each will assist not only staffs of the high schools but the elementary and junior high schools feeding into the upper grade campuses.
Through this added attention from the central office, it is hoped the individual schools will be able to keep better informed on developments in curriculum, what experiments are or should be conducted in the district, and, generally, what new things need to be tried or what old methods dropped.
USED AT HAYWARD
A similar system is used in neighboring Hayward Unified, and Supt. William L. Cunningham of that district has reported good results.
He noted that in large districts individual schools sometimes tend to feel like islands unto themselves but that a liaison program gives them a better grasp of the district-wide situation.
In the staff changes, James Sullivan, former superintendent of the old Warm Springs Elementary School District (which has been incorporated in Fremont Unified), will go from assistant director of new facilities to the principalship of Alviso School.
Because Ken Lee, purchasing agent, is returning to teaching, Harold Alameda, budget director, will take over his duties.
SUPERVISION, TESTING
Mrs. Gertrude McDonald, who has charge of Project Search — the graduate followup study, will add supervision of the counseling and testing services to her responsibilities.
Lawrence J. Sylva, director of new facilities, will take charge of maintenance at old schools. besides construction of new ones.
All the adjustments, Supt. William J. Bolt said, reflect efforts to cinch up the staff in a manner which the district's first year indicated would be more functional.
