Klein defends stance against education.

Now Klein takes on the elementary crowd.
Remember, Klein has absolutely NO experience in education. He's never even attended primary, secondary school or college. Fiscal responsibility? Does Klein know that California ranks 42nd in the nation in per student educational spending??

Politics at work in parcel tax?
Meadow Vista resident questions Republican opposition to Measure D

By: Ryan Sabalow, Journal Staff Writer
Sunday, March 27, 2005 11:52 PM PST



The recent political upheaval at Sierra College has moved from the hallways of the Rocklin campus to the rolling hills of Meadow Vista.

Meadow Vista resident Judy Creek, the wife of Sierra College Trustee Dave Creek, said Friday the Placer County Republican Party's choice to oppose a Placer Hills Union School District parcel tax is a direct result of meddling from Sierra College trustees Jerry Simmons and Aaron Klein.

Klein and Simmons sit on the Placer County Republican Central Committee and were part of the five-member endorsement committee that recently voted unanimously to oppose Measure D, a $48 annual parcel tax.

Proponents of Measure D say it would help the district ease a budget shortfall that could result in cuts to student programs and the layoff of at least 15 staff members.

"It's politics as a sport," Judy Creek said. "They just rampaged through Sierra College. Now they found the next school to go after."

The idea there's a correlation between the recent turmoil at Sierra College and opposition to the Meadow Vista tax is "silly," said Ken Campbell, chairman of the Placer County Republican Party.


"Come on," Campbell said. "Ask her if she sees black helicopters and G-men behind the trees."

Both Simmons and Klein deny any sort of political maneuvering, saying their party's disdain for taxes and the poor fiscal responsibility within Placer Hills motivated them to oppose the tax.

Klein, a resident of Colfax, whose family lives in Meadow Vista, said anyone who knows him is very much aware he's against raising taxes unnecessarily.

Klein said he was approached by Meadow Vista resident Ben Mavy, who was upset Placer Hills was trying to increase taxes after what he claimed were years of financial mismanagement.

He came to realize Mavy's concerns about Placer Hills had merit, Klein said.

"I'm a Republican," Klein said. "I've been opposed to tax increases a lot longer than I've ever been a trustee at Sierra College."

Judy Creek, herself a registered Republican and former Central Committee member, suggests ulterior motives are at work.

She said it was ironic that the adopted grandson of former Sierra College president Kevin Ramirez attended a Placer Hills school. Ramirez could not be reached for comment Friday to confirm Creek's claim.

"That's about as silly as her pal Rex Bloomfield's conspiracy theories in his editorial the other day," Klein said, referring to Wednesday's guest editorial in the Journal by Bloomfield.

Bloomfield alleged Klein, Simmons and Sierra Trustee Scott Leslie are part of ultra-conservative Republican conspiracy ultimately led by U.S. Rep. John Doolittle, R-Roseville, to take over Placer County.

This isn't the first time a rivalry between the Creeks and Klein has made its way into the public eye.

Judy Creek was Bloomfield's campaign manager in his November campaign for the Placer County District 5 supervisor seat. Klein was campaign manager for Bloomfield's opponent, Bruce Kranz, who won the supervisor race.

Dave Creek was also the first to call for Klein's recall after the newly-elected Sierra College trustee allegedly pressured Ramirez to resign.

After sending e-mails and speaking critically of Ramirez to faculty and staff, Klein filed a complaint with the Placer County Elections Department, stating Ramirez had used unethical means to fund facilities improvement bond measures at the college.

Ramirez denies any wrongdoing, and the complaint has been forwarded to the California Fair Political Practices Commission. The commission has yet to issue a ruling.

Close to a week after Klein filed, Ramirez announced he wished to retire. After nearly a month of closed-door meetings, Ramirez received a $405,000 retirement settlement from the board, along with potentially millions in State of California retirement benefits.

Ramirez is to remain at Sierra College receiving a full salary as president emeritus until this summer, as his replacement, Morgan Lynn, serves as interim president.

Dave Creek was the only Sierra trustee to vote against Ramirez's settlement, saying in earlier interviews it was ironic that Klein, who campaigned for trustee in November on the platform of fiscal responsibility, wasted hundreds of thousands of dollars to pay Ramirez not to work.

Dave Creek declined to comment on the Placer Hills issue, saying he may bring it up at the next Sierra College board meeting.

But Judy Creek said Klein and Simmons are only using area schools to further their political ambitions. They don't care about the communities they serve, she said.

"We just had these guys make a decision that cost taxpayers a half a million bucks - now they're opposing a small, $48-a-year tax," she said. "These guys treat politics like it's a video game."

Save us from the Babbits of the World

The Union
February 26, 2005

Save us from the Babbitts of the world
Timothy May
February 26, 2005

"May God prevent us from becoming 'right-thinking men' - that is to say, men who agree perfectly with their own police." - Thomas Merton

Among the various claims advanced by young Aaron Klein, Sierra College Trustee for Nevada County, one of the most audacious, but certainly not the most astute, is that certain "folks" do not care for his agenda because, "they don't like being challenged to achieve greatness."

In a recent guest column, our newly elected college trustee identifies himself as a 26-year-old software salesman with four years of experience running a business of 10 people. He offers no explanation, simply legal cover, for his attacks upon ex-president Kevin Ramirez. Young Klein offers no apology for the utter turmoil that he has caused the faculty, staff, administrators and students of Sierra College. And Mr. Klein makes no mention of the $45,000 contributed by Rocklin power brokers to bankroll his election.

"I know and am confident beyond a shadow of a doubt," writes Klein, "that every single action I have taken as a Sierra College trustee has absolutely been in the best interests of Sierra College, its students, and the taxpayers."

After reciting a simplistic shopping list of his "goals" for the college, (training people for jobs, hiring good teachers, investing in growth, attracting high school grads, etc.) young Klein ends his editorial with a slick shift to a high key. "With your help," he writes, "we will make Sierra College the best community college in America."

If Aaron Klein were running for student body president, this self-promoting stump speech of his could be acceptable, clichés and all. Yet Klein is not running for student office. Younger and less experienced than the average community college student, Mr. Klein has unfortunately been entrusted with the shared management of a multi-million dollar budget. He has been handed a trustee position-one purchased by Placer County partisans-and now his actions are adversely affecting the professional lives of thousands and the collegiate dreams of still thousands more.

"Nothing in the world," said Dr. Martin Luther King, "is more dangerous than sincere ignorance."

After reading Klein's column, I believe this young man is probably sincere. As a college English professor, I come into contact with hundreds of young minds each year. Some are brilliant and imaginative. Others evoke the concern expressed by Dr. King. But because they are young and willing to learn, we work with and challenge such young people. These same qualities in an elected public official, however, are simply unacceptable.

Klein says he is absolutely, beyond a shadow of a doubt, right.

"We all feel we are right," Igor Stravinsky once said. "But we felt the same way twenty years ago and today we know we weren't always right."

Listen to that voice-it is the voice of wisdom, the voice of maturity. Measure such a voice against that of young Mr. Klein, who insists he is absolutely, positively right. Which is to say Klein agrees perfectly with himself. Never mind the collective wisdom of the Sierra College faculty, staff, administrators and students. Never mind the thousands of Nevada County voters who were fed vague campaign slogans in November, and simply official silence ever since - even after Klein's ugly political hit job was completed. "Now it's time to move on and look to the future," says Klein, "and I'm very excited."

The dominant theme of Klein's essay and his actions is babbittry - the term used to describe the narrow, self-righteous, "go-getting" outlook represented in Sinclair Lewis' 1922 novel, "Babbitt." Lewis knew a certain American character quite well: George Babbitt is a young, self-important salesman whose economic, political, and even moral beliefs are summed up by his favorite expression, "What we need around here is a good business administration." Let's handle things with zip and zowie! Let's together be the very best in America!

May god save us from the right-thinking Babbitts of this world. Let them run for office in Babbitt County, where their "go-getting" talk and ethical complacency should feel right at home.


Timothy May lives in Rough and Ready and has taught English at Yuba College for the last 28 years.

Sierra Women's B-Ball Coach on Kevin Ramirez

These women are like night and Day
By Joe Davidson -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Thursday, March 10, 2005
Sacramento Bee

Roz Goldenberg is a lot of things in a game-day suit and pumps, and it's never friendly.
Fiery, feisty, ferocious with a bark that would make even the meanest mongrel flee are more apt descriptions for the Sierra College women's basketball coach.

She admits to all of it, but there's a Christina Day factor in the works now. Goldenberg's star pupil has chipped away at that Bobby Knight exterior and exposed Roz the Ruler into something of a postgame Roz the Cuddly Bear of late, though the coach might look over her shoulder to see if anyone is watching.


Goldenberg, about as personable as a sweaty wet sock on game day, even allowed some tears following a playoff win the other night. And upon realizing her Wolverines had advanced to the State Community College Basketball Championships - the two-year college version of the Elite 8 - that starts Friday in San Diego, Goldenberg allowed even more affection.
There were hugs to be had.

"I'm not a huggy kind of coach, but I can't help but relent to Christina Day," Goldenberg said.

Day would be Sierra's sophomore forward from Colfax High School. She is as spiritual and sassy and silly as she is basketball-skilled.

It's not a normal day if Day isn't up to her old tricks: impersonations or getting her coach to laugh. Day has provided comedic relief for a team that needed to have its collective funny bone tickled after a 7-5 start.

Goldenberg, one of the most decorated coaches in the state during her 14-year Sierra run with 330 wins and a 1998-99 state championship, needed something to grin about after a trying winter away from the gym.

Goldenberg and a host of Sierra coaches, faculty and students are still numbed by the news of their popular president, Kevin Ramirez, and the firestorm that swept the Rocklin campus. Ramirez, a regular for all Sierra athletic events, came to a controversial agreement about his retirement with the district board of trustees, though Sierra coaches wonder if he wasn't forced out the door.

"Day has really turned it around for me," Goldenberg admitted. "She's rejuvenated me. I got a little stale coming to work this season, walking through those doors, thinking, 'Well, here's work.' The whole Kevin thing, we're still sad about it.

"The negative things that were going on, the atmosphere, it wasn't any fun. I felt distracted. I felt that I wasn't giving it 100 percent. I wondered if I even wanted to do this anymore.

"But then there was Day. She raised me up, picked me up, got me to love this again."

But it wasn't always this way.

When Goldenberg would venture to Colfax to check out this 5-foot-11 wonder in high school, Day initially wanted to run. She had heard about Goldenberg's reputation and iron fist, not always a good fit for such a free spirit.

"At first, I was so intimidated by her, completely afraid of her," Day said. "I wasn't myself. Then I came out of my shell."

Now she keeps on her coach like a pest, teasing her mentor that it's too early in the day for the game suit, wondering what sort of pedigree she really has.

"I give it to Coach all the time," Day said. "I tease her. I've never seen her shoot a ball, never seen game film. 'What you got, Coach?' I love her. Under her hard front, deep down, she's a softy. I try to bring that out of her.

"And she's been great for me. She's impacted my life. She's made me a better player because she wants to be a better coach."

Goldenberg said she has been moved by the genuine humanness of Day. When she was 10 years old, a beam fell on Day's left foot. She lost three toes, but she never lost her balance. She marched forward, head held high, and shares her story when asked.

At a Sierra summer camp, Day told her tale with all the seriousness of a woman who knows what it's like to deal with adversity. Then she yanked off her shoe and sock to the glee of a room full of 8-year-old gawkers who had never seen such a site.

"Telling my story, that might help a kid who has something different about them," Day said.

Goldenberg said she got emotional after her club downed San Jose City College on Saturday, the same team that clobbered the Wolverines by 24 points earlier this season, because it dawned on her that this was indeed a special group.

Sierra (22-7) has won 15 of 16 since the slow start behind guards Rebekah Calvert and Phieban Mulatu, forwards Kobea Tudsbury, Kelly Mezger, Nicole Scott, and of course, Day, the leading scorer.

Goldenberg said the capper was seeing Ramirez after the game, the man who hired her to be coach in 1991, the man who let her vent over the years about Title IX issues, the man who supported her when she accepted the Sierra men's basketball post 10 years ago and still supported her when she abruptly stepped down after being harassed on campus by one of the men's assistant coaches.

Now, more than ever, there are tears and hugs and too much Day to comprehend. When earlier this season Goldenberg wondered if she wanted to coach another hour, she now has extended that timetable another three years, at least.

Now when she barks at Day during a practice or a game - and it will happen because a coach can't change all her colors - she'll finish by snapping, "All right? All right!" Then she'll smile.

"I'm getting to her," Day said.

Republican Assembly gave Klein $35,942 to run for the nonpartisan Sierra College board.

Klein recall effort folds
Backers say cost of special vote would be too damaging to college
By: Ryan Sabalow, Journal Staff WriterThursday, March 10, 2005 12:19 AM PST

Aaron Klein
After only a month and a handful of meetings, the group seeking the recall of Sierra College Trustee Aaron Klein has decided to call it quits.Kent Pollock, the part-time Sierra College journalism instructor spearheading the recall effort, issued a press release early Wednesday morning saying his organization had decided a recall wasn't in the best interest of the college.The recall's hefty price tag, estimated to be close to $325,000 - and the controversy associated with gathering signatures and campaigning against the newly elected trustee - would do more harm than good."We can't afford to do any more damage to Sierra College," he said. "A recall would have done so."Klein said Wednesday he was happy that the college could begin to move forward without the distractions of a costly recall effort.

"I am obviously grateful I won't have to spend the time dealing with the recall, no matter how confident I was of the eventual outcome," he said.Pollock said in earlier interviews his group had met several times to discuss the logistics of recalling Klein and was moving to appoint a steering committee to lead the charge against the 26-year-old trustee.The Web sites http://www.recallaaronklein.com/ and http://www.recallaaronklein.org/ had also been purchased, he said.Pollock said the group decided to hold back on its efforts because it would be hypocritical to use the same personal defamation tactics during a recall campaign that he alleges Klein used to paint a negative image of former President Kevin Ramirez."We earnestly, truly want to put this behind us," Pollock said. "No one has a stomach for picking a fight. We want the college to move on."

Even the most vocal of Klein's detractors have lost the recall fever.Joe Medeiros, biology instructor at Sierra College, one of the first to discuss a recall effort, also changed his tune.Medeiros agreed that it's time to move forward, but he's still mistrustful of Klein."He's going to have to prove his merit," Medeiros said. "So far he deserves a D-minus - he's that close to flunking."Klein's supporters say the recall had slim chance of success and was for all the wrong reasons."They were a vocal minority who didn't have enough support," said Sierra College counselor Hank Akana. "The people who voted in Klein ... wouldn't have supported it anyway."

Pollock, Medeiros and others called for Klein's recall in January, saying the trustee had pressured Ramirez to resign because of a right-wing Republican Party conspiracy ultimately led by U.S. Rep. John Doolittle, R-Rocklin.According to financial disclosure statements from the Placer County Elections Department, the Placer County Republican Assembly gave Klein $35,942 to run for the nonpartisan board in November's elections. Klein denies having a partisan agenda, but few can deny he has become a polarizing figure at Sierra College. After sending e-mails and speaking critically of Ramirez to faculty and staff, Klein filed a complaint with the Placer County Elections Department, stating Ramirez had used unethical means to fund campus bond measures. Ramirez denies any wrongdoing, and the complaint has been forwarded to the California Fair Political Practices Commission. The commission has yet to issue a ruling.

Close to a week after Klein filed, Ramirez announced he wished to retire. After nearly a month of closed-door meetings, Ramirez received a $405,000 retirement settlement. He is to remain as "President Emeritus" until this summer, while Morgan Lynn serves as interim president until a replacement can be found.Combined with state retirement benefits, Ramirez is in line to collect more than $10,000 a month for the rest of his life, Sierra College officials said. If Ramirez lived to be 86 years old, he would receive more than $3.5 million from State of California employee paychecks. Klein's critics cited these high costs as reason enough for the recall effort against the newly elected trustee. Soon after retiring, Ramirez received word that he would receive the Harry Buttimer Distinguished Administrator Award - the highest honor that can be bestowed upon a college administrator, further raising the ire of Klein's critics.

In spite of his frustration, Pollock said the bickering at Sierra needs to stop. "Ramirez said he was retiring to get the focus back on the college and its incredible accomplishments," Pollock said in the press release. "We're dropping the recall effort for the same reason. "Klein had similar sentiments."I prefer to look forward to making Sierra College the No. 1 community college in America," Klein said. "It's time to work together. There's no limit what a united Sierra College can achieve."

Klein speech defends actions.

Klein speech reignites Sierra battle
Payout for Ramirez retirement will cost college $405,000

By: Ryan Sabalow, Gold Country News Service
Tuesday, March 1, 2005 4:13 PM PST
Placer Herald


Sierra College Trustee Aaron Klein drew both praise and criticism from area community leaders after defending his recent actions in a speech to the Auburn Chamber forum Feb. 22.

In the early morning presentation at City Hall, Klein said he stands behind his choice to be critical of former Sierra College President Kevin Ramirez.

He was also the first trustee since Ramirez's contract buyout was announced last month to give an exact figure on the settlement, saying the final payout would be $405,000.

Ramirez is also in line to collect more than $10,000 a month in state retirement benefits for the rest of his life, Sierra College officials said.

If Ramirez lived to be 86 years old, he would receive more than $3.5 million from State of California employee paychecks, when retirement is combined with his buyout package.

Klein said he was perturbed that Ramirez's settlement forbids him or other members of the board from publicly discussing the settlement.


"I think it is unfortunate that the recent settlement agreement with (Ramirez) forbids trustees to tell the facts of what actually happened ... ," Klein said.

Former Auburn Mayor Cheryl Maki told Klein after his speech that although she supported him during the election, his choice to push the former president to resign was unduly costly to the college.

"It's naïveté to think that the atmosphere you created didn't force him to leave," she said.

She said Ramirez's settlement and the costs associated with replacing him were poor choices, since his contract expired in a year and a half. She said if Klein took issue with Ramirez's leadership, he should have let his contract expire.

Although he was one of six trustees to eventually approve the settlement, Klein said he originally voted against the buyout because of its high cost.

He said he agreed to the final settlement only because the board needed "to speak with one voice and be united."

Klein's statement that Ramirez would receive $405,000 was the first time a trustee had given anything but vague responses to the settlement figure. Some trustees said it would be as high as $500,000.

Board Chairman Jerry Simmons confirmed Tuesday that Klein's figure was accurate and that Ramirez would also receive more than $10,000 a month from the state's retirement system for the rest of his life.

"It's sort of like Social Security," Simmons said. "But we don't have any obligation except where we have to pay him for the (next) six months he's working for the campus."

Many of Klein's critics cite these high costs as reasons why some are pursuing a recall effort against the newly elected trustee.

"Mr. Klein is painting the picture that what he did only cost the district some four-hundred-odd-thousand dollars," said Kent Pollock, a part-time Sierra College journalism instructor spearheading the recall effort against Klein.

Pollock said other unstated costs include having both Interim President Morgan Lynn and Ramirez employed at the same time, along with the expensive costs of searching for a replacement and buying out Ramirez's pension.

The large figures didn't stop forum attendee Tom Dwelle from speaking in favor of Klein during the meeting. Dwelle said Klein was on the right track.

"He's a smart guy. I love him," Dwelle said after the meeting. "He's enthusiastic and capable."

Throughout the speech and ensuing discussion, Klein returned to his oft-repeated theme that all of his actions were for the best interest of the college, community and taxpayers.

He said under Ramirez's leadership, the college cut student programs and increased its debt as administrators took pay increases.

He was also critical of the failed Measure E bond and cited past Placer County grand jury investigations of Ramirez and Sierra College.

"It was then that I knew Sierra College needed new leadership on the board of trustees," Klein said. "The college had been doing great things for the community, but its direction for the future was dead wrong."

Klein also responded to the claim by many of his critics that he is a right-wing extremist with strong ties to ultra-conservative members of the Republican Party.

"Time has not been kind to their story," Klein said. "The facts sort of got in the way."

He said by agreeing to appoint Lynn - a registered Democrat - it shows he's not being partisan.

Her appointment would also put the reins of power at the college back into the hands of the trustees, he said.

"(Lynn) believes that the board of trustees is elected by the people, and that the trustees are her boss," he said. "Not the other way around."

Controversy has followed Klein since he was sworn in as trustee last month. After sending e-mails in which he spoke critically of Ramirez to Sierra faculty, Klein filed a complaint with the Placer County Elections Department, stating Ramirez had used unethical means to fund campus bond measures.

Ramirez denies any wrongdoing, and the complaint has been forwarded to the California Fair Political Practices Commission. The commission has yet to issue a ruling.

Close to a week after Klein filed, Ramirez announced to the board that he wished to retire, and after nearly a month of closed-door meetings, Ramirez received his retirement settlement.

He is to remain as "President Emeritus" until this summer, while Lynn serves as interim president until a replacement can be found. Soon after retiring, Ramirez received word that he would receive the Harry Buttimer Distinguished Administrator Award - the highest honor that can be bestowed upon a college administrator.

The high costs associated with removing the popular president and Klein's stated mission of fiscal accountability don't sit well with many Sierra instructors.

"I don't know how (Klein) can defend his actions," said Ramirez supporter Joe Medeiros, biology professor at Sierra College. "He was one of those who spearheaded taking out a man who is a state champion. I don't see how he can justify that at all."

Victor Uhouse, another forum attendee, said he didn't view Klein's actions as controversial, saying the newly-elected trustee has kept taxpayer interests at heart.

"Waiting a year and a half to (to buy out Ramirez's contract) may not have been in the best interest of the college," Uhouse said.