School official faces scrutiny over ties to artificial turf industry as parents raise safety concerns

In Santa Monica, California, the artificial turf debate is heating up faster than…well, artificial turf. 

A district school official is in the hot seat after a Reddit post shared an email calling him a "fantastic champion" for the artificial turf industry. 

Here's what to know

A Reddit post called out Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District COO Carey Upton over his alleged connections to turf manufacturer TenCate. 

"Artificial turf industry rep calls our local school district's COO Carey Upton a 'fantastic champion for us in California,'" the original poster wrote in the headline, adding, "I wish our kids had a 'fantastic champion' for student health and the environment instead." 

According to screenshots of emails the poster shared, Upton was praised by a TenCate representative, with the company supplying artificial turf to schools. 

The same thread also included images that the poster said show Upton has taken gifts from turf vendors, spoken at industry events hosted by TenCate, offered to help oppose a turf ban in Los Angeles, and used his school district email to lobby state Sen. Ben Allen in defense of fake turf. 

Much of the criticism centered on proposals for spaces used by younger children, specifically the Ocean Park School House and Roosevelt Elementary's new TK/K playground. In the thread, the original poster said "the School Board is woefully out of touch with the community" and accused district leadership of dismissing concerns about heat, plastic waste, and oversight.

Those concerns were echoed throughout the comments. One commenter wrote, "Our kids come home with fake grass blades / micro plastics all over there socks and shoes. It's gross."

The thread also included an image of an email said to be from Upton that addressed the politics of future turf disputes. 

The message included the line: "Politically, it is better exempt the project now rather than needing to exempt the project on a specific new challenge. (An example, tonight the SM Sustainability Commission is discussing banning a synthetic turf. If they were to do this, the BOE would need to exempt the project to put in a synthetic turf field. Voting on this when it is a community issue would be more of a challenge.)"

More background

This isn't the first time Upton has been in the news for pushing turf on the Santa Monica community. In 2025, residents resisted installing artificial turf at Franklin Elementary. Over 1,700 people signed a petition and numerous neighborhood organizations came out against the decision. 

Upton and the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District School Board's efforts to install plastic grass on elementary school playgrounds seem even more curious, since they stand alone in supporting it. 

The Santa Monica City Council unanimously voted to ban all new artificial turf on city-owned land, which doesn't include Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District property. The Santa Monica-Malibu PTA Council presented a study recommending that the district "prioritize removal of play-area turf and all artificial turf at elementary schools." Plus, neighboring Los Angeles Unified School District banned new artificial turf installations at early education, elementary, and middle schools. 

The discussion also touched on district spending. One commenter questioned why Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District hired an environmental consulting firm to study turf choices instead of following nearby LAUSD's example, writing: "Seems like they could've saved a lot of time and effort just copy-pasting from LAUSD policy."

Commenters repeatedly mentioned heat and plastic debris. More than one said children were bringing home pieces of artificial grass, and one described the turf as "WAY too hot, sheds plastic everywhere, and is just generally awful." The original post also claimed turf temperatures had exceeded 130 degrees.

What can be done?

Commenters called for accountability. The original poster urged residents to "Demand Upton's resignation." Other commenters called for greater transparency around turf contracts and district decision-making. 

Community members are pushing back. According to an update on the Change.org petition, the Franklin community's efforts worked. The district is moving forward with a natural grass pilot program and considering a moratorium on artificial turf. Meanwhile, the Roosevelt community was also able to halt artificial turf being installed on the TK/K playground. 

Several commenters also pointed to alternatives to more plastic-heavy campuses. One parent argued that the district should invest in "gardeners and plantings for this environment" and "real landscape architects," while another referenced grass varieties and maintenance practices that could reduce water use without covering soil in plastic.

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