By It's easy to armchair quarterback the action that spawned the quagmire of controversy Los Altos schools chief Marge Gratiot finds herself in.

There is no argument, especially from her, that she acted inappropriately by calling recent Mountain View High School graduate Kevin Bella about his decision to run for the Los Altos School District Board of Trustees.

That call prompted a wave of public outcry suggesting the superintendent tried to bully Bella out of running for the school board.

We believe Gratiot when she says she did not ask him to drop his candidacy. We understand that Bella did not emerge as a serious candidate because he would be attending the University of California at Davis in the fall, allowing for little or no campaign time, let alone time to conduct board duties if elected. We also understand her concern that Bella’s running would result in three candidates for two seats, triggering an election that could cost the district between $30,000 and $75,000. That’s no small change for a small district such as Los Altos.

Still, Bella is to be congratulated, not questioned, for taking an interest in the electoral process. We are convinced he entered the race for the right reason - to add a younger person’s input to schools issues and inspire others his age. As we said last week about two local teens running for Los Altos City Council, we are encouraged by young people getting involved in local politics.

What are the lessons learned here for Gratiot and the district? Certainly, Gratiot realizes now that silence would have been golden if she had to do it all over again. After this year’s controversy surrounding the closure of Bullis-Purissima School and a subsequent charter school effort, the last thing this district needs is more bad publicity.

We suggest Gratiot and other district officials tip their collective cap to Bella, wish him luck, then turn their attention to what really matters: the efficient running of our district and the education of our children.

If there is to be any communication to candidates in the future, we suggest it be sent to all the candidates so that one is not singled out. If all of them had been called or e-mailed about these election cost concerns, the ensuing controversy might not have happened.

To Gratiot’s credit, she has apologized and not minced words in calling her action, “stupid.” She has written a letter of apology to Bella. True leaders acknowledge their mistakes, as she has done. The experience has served her well - she knows all too clearly that her responsibilities lie in the educational arena, not in the political one.