Los Altos School District trustees held a public forum Jan. 16 for local residents to voice their opinions about the ongoing facilities issues and Bullis Charter School’s Proposition 39-mandated facilities request.

The meeting was respectful and factual, and I’m optimistic that this will be a turning point in the ongoing conversation around facilities in the Los Altos School District. We’ve heard from the community a desire to know more about Bullis Charter School’s goals and intentions, so I’ve outlined some of my thoughts here. I am expressing my personal opinion and not speaking for the entire Bullis Charter School Board of Directors, but I hope this helps.

City of Los Altos Community Development Director Jon Biggs, in his column “Nothing misleading about city’s revised ADU regulations” (“Other Voices,” Nov. 14), claims the recent ordinance changes proposed by city staff and approved by the city council were “in response to recently adopted state legislation” and “followed several public meetings held by the city council.” That is completely contrary to the facts and the city’s own records and transcripts.

My wife and I began the new year by binge-watching two seasons of National Geographic television’s “Mars.” Once we got past the streaming issues and some low-resolution moments, we found ourselves enjoying a pretty riveting series.

“Mars,” produced by the acclaimed filmmaker Ron Howard (who starred in “Happy Days” about 300 million years ago), suffers from kind of an identity crisis – though ambitious, it can’t make up its mind whether it wants to be a documentary or a fictional drama. It’s both, and as a result, the pacing and momentum of the series often get compromised. Nonetheless, “Mars” proves very thought-provoking as it raises good questions about the prospect of traveling to and living on the inhospitable red planet.

Following is an open letter to the Bullis Charter School Board of Directors.

Town Crier File Photo
A Starbucks patron hangs out in front of the downtown Los Altos coffee shop with three canines close by in this photo from 2015.

In today’s world, there is a growing amount of hand-wringing and worse regarding the widening divide between Americans. While reading horrendous headlines during my morning coffee at street-side java joints around town, I’ve noticed a positive sign among the negativity: Communication is increasing.

The interchange isn’t necessarily occurring between members of the blue team and the red team, Gen Z and the Greatest Generation, the hills and the flatlands, Main Street and State Street, but between pooches and their proud owners.

A young couple and their son, Mark, 2 – that’s us – arrived in the United States in 1965. My husband, Sam, a brilliant scientist, was invited to work after his post-doctoral time at Birmingham University in England, at the world-renowned Bell Labs in Murray Hills, N.J. An impossible dream came true for Sam, as he loved as a young engineer working at this iconic research institution, a post desired by all geniuses in those years.