SIMI VALLEY : Trustees to Start Meetings Earlier

In a move designed to keep school board meetings from continuing late into the night, Simi Valley school trustees voted this week to start their bimonthly meetings an hour earlier at 6:30 p.m. beginning Feb. 14.

Televised broadcasts will start at 6:30 p.m. and the board will meet in closed session immediately after the open session ends.

Also, two board members will now be available between 6 and 6:30 p.m. to listen and respond to public concerns.

“I think it has a lot of advantages,” trustee Carla Kurachi said. “One thing that is nice is for all our people to come together with board members in a more informal setting.”

Trustees want to try the new time schedule for three meetings--through the end of March--and then decide whether to change meeting times permanently, officials said.