San Dieguito Union High School District is one of the highest performing in the state, but the next school board will be focusing on several areas of improvement.

Three candidates are running for two seats on the board. Incumbents Joyce Dalessandro, 62, and Beth Hergesheimer, 48, are campaigning together. Dentist and district parent Michael Klein, 43, seeks to unseat one of them.

The incumbents have argued that experience and familiarity with district issues will be extremely valuable as the board continues to tackle tight state budgets, growth in its career technical education programs, higher expectations in math education and other issues.

Klein has said the board needs new blood and a fresh perspective. He has also called for more transparency in school board decisions, and he has been among the parents upset with the district's decision not to build a middle school in La Costa Valley.

District administrators have said that flattening enrollment growth after about 2000 forced San Dieguito to reconsider building a new middle school. But parents say they are worried that the property could end up as high-density housing, offices or a strip mall.

Administrators and trustees have said the district has no plans to sell the land, and it could prove invaluable to them if enrollment bounces back and a school is eventually needed.

Beyond squabbles over real estate, the district faces several persistent challenges and new goals.

District profile San Dieguito Union High School District. Three candidates are running for two seats on the school board. Budget: $99 million Enrollment: 12,575 Teachers: About 600 Campuses: Nine

San Dieguito enrolls nearly 12,600 students at four middle schools, four high schools, an alternative high school, and an independent study program. It also offers adult education classes. The district serves residents in the La Costa, Encinitas, Solana Beach, Del Mar, Rancho Santa Fe and Carmel Valley areas.

Overall, the district this year scored 855 out of 1,000 on the state's Academic Performance Index, California's key measure of a school's success. The California Department of Education encourages schools to score at least 800.

While the district overall has a high API score, some groups of students, such as Latino and poor students, need help. Those groups failed to meet their state targets for improvement this year.

Dalessandro, whose two daughters graduated from district schools, is in her 12th year on the board. She said she'll continue to work for more choices for students, including more opportunities for career technical education that offers instruction in engineering, robotics, biotechnology and other fields. She also wants the district to start offering an International Baccalaureate program, which would add new dimensions of academic rigor and also encourage students to get involved in community service.

She said closing the achievement gap between affluent and less affluent students and between students of various ethnicities is a big goal.

As for the La Costa Valley controversy, Dalessandro said there has been no attempt to mislead the public.

“We needed to plan for a middle school and we did that, but then things changed and the kids weren't arriving,” she said. “The kids may come eventually.”

Hergesheimer, a community volunteer who has been active in the PTA, has served on the board for four years. She, too, said she wants to help guide the district as it works to close the achievement gap. Enhancing work experiences in school – such as the lab experiences in middle school that allow students to dabble in computer-assisted drawing, rocketry and other hands-on activities – is a priority, she said.

Hergesheimer said she has worked hard to build good relationships with administrators, teachers and others in the district, and she wants a second term to put that experience to use.

The fact that there hasn't been a large number of candidates vying for the board says a lot, said Hergesheimer, who has a son at La Costa Canyon High.

“It's because it's a district that's functioning quite well,” she said.

Michael Klein, who has a daughter at Oak Crest Middle and a son at La Costa Canyon High, said that while the La Costa Valley property issue may have prompted him to run for the school board, he's not a one-issue candidate.

He said he also wants to help the district find a way to lower class sizes at the high schools.

Klein said he doesn't have any specific concerns about academic issues. Rather, he said the school district needs to be more open, and decisions made at the school board level deserve more discussion and debate. He sees the La Costa Valley controversy as emblematic of a district that needs to be more open and honest.

“I think there needs to be more accountability and transparency,” Klein said. “I really feel there needs to be someone who represents the public more.”

Citing Dalessandro's 12 years on the board, Klein said he would also push for term limits.

“It's very important for new blood to come on the board,” he said.

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