Nine months ago, school district trustee John de Beck’s idea for a San Diego Coastal Unified School District seemed relatively farfetched. But with the San Diego Unified School District in a budget crisis and neighboring coastal communities seeking more and more autonomy, local school supporters seem willing to listen. “The intention would be to sit down and create a new school district with a new board and new vision and new budgeting policies, and create a successful school district for the students,” said Pat Hom, president of Friends of Pacific Beach Secondary Schools, a nonprofit organization that supports area schools. De Beck presented his idea at a Friends of Pacific Beach Secondary Schools meeting in February. Hom said she thinks the idea is feasible, even though it is something that, to her knowledge, has never been done. “This is almost like we’re defecting in a way,” Hom said. De Beck presented three options for the proposed district, all of which included schools in La Jolla, Point Loma and Pacific Beach and Mission Beach. One idea included just those schools, one included schools in the Kearny Mesa area and another included schools in the Mira Mesa and Scripps Ranch area. Hom said she thinks the best idea for a possible coastal district includes Pacific Beach schools, along with those in Point Loma, La Jolla and Clairemont. “Personally, I think that’s manageable, that those people are all of a cooperative mind and that it is doable,” Hom said. “If it gets too big, we’re right in the same political nightmare that everybody else is in.” Hom calls a potential coastal district a chance to start over. She said the goal of uniting these schools would not be to exclude anyone, and her vision would be that Mission Bay High would still remain a Title 1 school, where a majority of students are on low-income-based free or reduced lunches. Under de Beck’s plan, signatures from 25 percent of registered voters in the proposed district would be required in order to put the measure on the city ballot, a process Hom estimates would take about nine months. Because the district meets city criteria, Hom thinks it can get on the ballot without too much resistance. Whether other communities around San Diego will support the breakaway district is a different story. “I think we can get it on the ballot without a problem,” Hom said. “I think the problem is going to be at the county and city level.” Hom said the Coastal District proposal would also meet resistance from San Diego Unified itself. Hom said the SDUSD would not want to surrender people with political influence in the coastal areas. “If the people want this, we can go out and get it,” Hom said. Those interested in more information on the proposed coastal district idea can e-mail de Beck at [email protected].