UPDATE: Comments on this thread are now closed. The new 2009 thread is available at this link.
I wrote a post on July 16, 2006, entitled “SAUSD corruption coming out with Mijares gone,” and it blew up to over 2,000 posts. However, it exceeded the capacities of our server and has been truncated recently at about 1,529 posts. But one of our readers has stepped up to the plate and painstakingly copied all of the comments into four NEW posts:
- SAUSD-Mijares corruption thread, 2008 Comments
- SAUSD-Temporary Thread (Migration 5/16/2008) Comments
- SAUSD-Mijares corruption thread, 2007 Comments
- SAUSD-Mijares corruption thread, 2006 Comments
Also, don’t forget you can go to the right sidebar of any page page and search for “SAUSD” to get links to ALL of our past SAUSD stories.
I have been honored that this blog has allowed so many people to vent their frustrations with the SAUSD administration and school board. We will continue to shed light on these issues and I hope that our readers will continue to use this blog to communicate about the corruption at SAUSD.
SAUSD does not belong to the administrators or to the school board. It belongs to us. We will have an opportunity this fall to take back the school board, with three seats opening up. I pray that good candidates will emerge so we will be able to do exactly that. Until then, please keep the comments coming! But post them here, to this new thread. Thank you.
who wants to know the gossip on what goes on behind the walls in the City of Santa Ana?
ano,
Spill it! We all want to know 😉
Ano,
First of all this is the school district thread, not the city. Secondly it is your kind of attitude that has turned Santa Ana into the sewer and worst school district in the county. Finally, it is obvious what is going on behind the walls is the problem. What is that buzz word? Transparency? That is all we are asking for. If we have to use gossip to out it we will. Funny thing about gossip. It usually is based on something partly true.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JUNE 26, 2008
HUNGER STRIKE BEGINS BECAUSE OF SAUSD EMPLOYEE CONTRACT CUTS
Hundreds of Santa Ana School District Employees Cut to Part-Time Employees – HUNGER STRIKE STARTS TODAY (June 26)
CONTACT PERSONS: John Palacio (cell) 714-856-5214
Zeke Hernandez, (cell) 714-661-4428
Ramon Quintanilla, employee of Santa Ana Unified School District has started on a hunger strike to do what he feels he has to do in order to get the attention of school board members.
The school district has started the wheels rolling to cut the contracts of many dedicated employees – there can only be outrage that ultimately those who will suffer are the students of Santa Ana parents.
Quintanilla is holding his fast at the school district’s office, located at 1601 East Chestnut Ave., Santa Ana.
Santa Ana LULAC Council #147 (League of United Latin American Citizens) urges the public to support Mr. Quintanilla and others who are in solidarity.
Recognizing the urgency of this situation, John Palacio, School District Board Trustee has will be on-site to make an assessment and have discussions with teachers, employees and parents of school children.
Santa Ana Unified School District has cut more than $100 million from the budget since 2004, after several consecutive years of declining enrollment. The district has dropped from about 60,000 students in 2004 to about 54,000 this current year.
Founded in 1929, the League of the United Latin American Citizen (LULAC) advances the economic conditions, educational attainment, political influence, health and civil rights of American Latinos through community-based programs operating at more than 700 LULAC councils nationwide. Santa Ana LULAC Council #147 was established in 1946 and is the oldest LULAC chapter in California. It sponsors a LULAC Youth council at Segerstrom High School (Santa Ana Unified School District).
~end~
For those of you unaware of the impact on some of us, this is my situation:
22 years in the district at 8 hours a day working 10 months. I was prepared to ride out the storm and take the hit. Problem is that if you take the 3.75 hours, you forfeit all rights to district benefits when you retire. So many of us, who are committed dedicated employees, will be forced to retire years ahead of when we wanted to just to keep our health insurance when we retire.
It is truly shameful and Jane, the board and all administrators should hang their heads in shame.
It’s so unfair.
Here’s a thought:
Jane gives up 10% of her salary and makes all SAUSD administrators give up 10% of their salaries, then SAEA will match that amount from the teachers’ dues they collect and save some of your jobs.
Desgraciadamente, they would never suffer for you.
Okay, so here’s the challenge: IF all SAUSD administration takes a 10% pay cut and SAEA agrees to match the amount saved, I would be willing to also match the amount with a 10% salary cut IF it means saving your job(s).
#355
And you wonder why this thread has lasted so long. This is truly a story of many in the district. Let me guess you also had to drop from the Blue Cross PPO plan to the HMO plan because the cost tripled. Maybe you were Kaiser but we had to take that hit too and try finding a decent HMO especially if you retire and move out of the area.
#357 – No, I stayed with Blue Cross PPO. But I did have to drop my husband from my plan to be able to stay with the PPO.
As the school year closed, we all noticed that our administrators stopped speaking to us and had difficulty even making eye contact with us. No one told us what was coming our way. We heard from outside sources. Several of the instructional assistants aren’t even aware yet what is coming their way.
Jane has had many, many meetings throughout the year to keep administrators apprised of the situation. Yet, she couldn’t even have one meeting with classified as the school year ended.
FYI – Informational picketing will take place again this afternoon (Friday) from 3:00 pm til 5:30 pm at the District Office. Pass the word to other employees. Press will be attending.
Additonal threads related to SAUSD can be found at the following links:
Fired SAUSD instructional aide goes on a hunger strike. Art Pedroza June 26
http://orangejuiceblog.com/2008/06/fired-sausd-instructional-aide-goes-on-a-hunger-strike/
Aye Rosie!. Art Pedroza June 26
http://orangejuiceblog.com/2008/06/aye-rosie/
SAUSD administrators appear to have bungled Summer School. Art Pedroza June 27
http://orangejuiceblog.com/2008/06/sausd-administrators-appear-to-have-bungled-summer-school/
Laid off instructional aides protest at SAUSD headquarters. Art Pedroza June 28
http://orangejuiceblog.com/2008/06/laid-off-instructional-aides-protest-at-sausd-headquarters/
Maybe the district figured if they allowed fewer kids in summer school it would be easier to count the number of students who attended. Even with online attendance SAUSD can’t seem to figure out how many students attend summer school. This is puzzling.
For the last several years summer school teachers have been required to take attendance on the computer every hour as opposed to taking attendance at the beginning of class.
Two years ago I was asked by my assistant principal if I kept any attendance records from the previous summer school session. Now mind you, I took attendance daily on the computer, students received grades, I got paid, AND I was being asked about summer school attendance in May.
I told this A.P., “No, but I did take attendance on the computer so somebody must have the records…”
The A.P. then asked me if I could access the attendance records from the previous summer on my computer.
I said, “No, teachers can’t even access attendance records from the previous day much less the previous summer.”
A few days later I asked if they were able to find the missing attendance records. The A.P. said the problem had been resolved (whatever “resolved” means).
It has been said that SAUSD loses money every year by offering summer school. I truly question the truthfulness of this statement made by the district every year.
If SAUSD is losing money on summer school perhaps the individual or individuals accountable for maintaining ICUE (the online attendance taking program used by SAUSD) should be required to go to summer school and take a double session of math!
Additonal threads related to SAUSD can be found at the following links:
Fired SAUSD instructional aide goes on a hunger strike. June 26
http://orangejuiceblog.com/2008/06/fired-sausd-instructional-aide-goes-on-a-hunger-strike/
Aye Rosie!. June 26
http://orangejuiceblog.com/2008/06/aye-rosie/
SAUSD administrators appear to have bungled Summer School. June 27
http://orangejuiceblog.com/2008/06/sausd-administrators-appear-to-have-bungled-summer-school/
Laid off instructional aides protest at SAUSD headquarters. June 28
http://orangejuiceblog.com/2008/06/laid-off-instructional-aides-protest-at-sausd-headquarters/
Why is Mrs. Velado still working for SAUSD?
http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/news/education/article_2079712.php
Are you getting your teacher back?
A look at the numbers as OC school restore programs and jobs.
By ERIC CARPENTER, FERMIN LEAL AND SCOTT MARTINDALE
The Orange County Register
Fewer than a third of the 1,918 Orange County public school teachers who were in danger of losing their jobs in March because of the state budget crisis actually were let go, according to a Register survey of schools.
But the situation is likely to remain fluid.
In the end, 532 teachers across the county are without a job for the upcoming school year because of a shortfall in local district funding blamed on the state budget crisis.
Districts have slashed costs in other areas.
Hundreds of librarians, clerks, bus drivers, custodians and instructional aides were eliminated, and cuts to music, arts and special education helped districts trim a combined $160.6 million from their budgets.
“The original proposed state budget looked terrible for schools,” said county Superintendent William Habermehl. “It’s gotten better, but we are not out of the woods yet.”
I am a huge fan of the Economist magazine and I was interested to find that it had an article that referenced Santa Ana’s school district. Here is the online link and story. There are currently 8 comments left by readers at the end of the article:
http://www.economist.com/world/na/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11511530
California schools
The English patients
Jun 5th 2008 | SANTA ANA
From The Economist print edition
What happened after California abolished bilingual education
TEN years to the day after California banned teaching in any language other than English, Erlinda Paredes runs through a new sentence with her kindergarten class. “El payaso se llama Botones”, she intones—“the clown’s name is Buttons”. When a pupil asks a question in English, she responds in Spanish. It is an improbable scene. But the abolition of bilingual education has not worked out in quite the way anybody expected.
Before 1998 some 400,000 Californian children were shunted into classes where they heard as little as 30 minutes of English each day. The hope was that they would learn mathematics and other subjects in their native tongue (usually Spanish) while they gently made the transition to English. The result was an educational barrio. So that year Ron Unz, a software engineer, sponsored a ballot measure that mandated teaching in English unless parents demanded otherwise. Proposition 227 passed easily, with considerable support from Hispanics. Voters in two other states, Massachusetts and Arizona, have since followed suit.
In Santa Ana, a mostly poor Latino city in Orange county, the number of children in bilingual classes promptly halved. Demand would have been even less had schools not prodded parents to request waivers for their children. In the past few years demand for bilingual education has fallen further. This year 22,000 pupils in Santa Ana are enrolled in “structured English immersion” programmes, where they hear little but that language. Just 646 are taught bilingually.
It has been a smooth transition, disappointing the many teachers and Latino politicians who forecast imminent doom for immigrant children. Yet the revolution in standards promised by Mr Unz’s supporters has not come to pass either. State tests show that immigrants are indeed doing better in English. But so are native English speakers. In the second grade (ages seven and eight) the gap in reading ability between natives and the rest has narrowed only slightly; in higher years it has not narrowed at all. The results of national tests are even less encouraging.
Before 1998 many poor immigrant children in California received a dismal education informed by wrong-headed principles. They now just suffer from a dismal education. Fully 74% of English learners in the fourth grade read at “below basic” level, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress. In 2006 a study found that, after six years, just one-quarter of Hispanic pupils could expect to be reclassified as fluent in English—which is, admittedly, a pretty high bar. This augurs badly for their economic future. And, since more than one immigrant child in five lives in California, it is also bad news for America’s largest state.
Howard Bryan, who is responsible for English learners in Santa Ana, says that formal teaching methods matter surprisingly little. Pupils in well-run schools with demanding teachers, who are encouraged by their parents, tend to succeed whatever the language.
The problem is that many parents are unwilling or unable to push their children, and most programmes are weak. The abolition of bilingual education has revealed a much bigger problem. California’s public education system is sclerotic, with a meddlesome central bureaucracy and mighty teachers’ unions. Until it is reformed, immigrants will continue to struggle.
Few such problems afflict Ms Paredes’s pupils. Hers is a “two-way” bilingual class in which exactly half of the children already speak English fluently. Most of them are the offspring of upper-middle-class Hispanics who worry that their children will grow up knowing no Spanish. The class is drip-fed English according to a strict formula. In kindergarten pupils speak English 10% of the time; by fifth grade they speak it 50% of the time. Not surprisingly, given the pupils’ backgrounds, such classes score remarkably well in tests, Partly for this reason, two-way bilingual education is entirely uncontroversial.
Although such two-way programmes are much rarer than old-fashioned bilingual education, they have roughly doubled in number in the past ten years. They have even popped up in affluent white areas like Santa Monica. While the teaching of English to immigrants is not going too well, the teaching of Spanish to natives is going swimmingly. The clearest change wrought by Proposition 227 is that Spanish has turned from a remedial language into an aspirational one.
wow, if Jane gave up 10%. If all the top 10 would give up their car allowance. If everyone gave up just 1%, what difference would our district actually make? If the top 10% would just give up their car allowance (!!!!) it would make such a difference!!! How petty it is to ask such as small thing!!!! How petty it is to ask such a candidate such a small thing. And yet it will go unasked.
The guy who was part of the QEIA grant at the district (he has something to do with the money aspect) is also working on the school district’s budget cutting and job cuts (maybe even informally).
His contract on the QEIA thing is not up until July 1 but he seems to be working on other district stuff while being paid by the grant.
Now, SAUSD has made him a $10,000 a month job working under Olsky.
Misusing grant funds by doing other work on the time paid through the grant??
Conflict of interest involving QEIA because the district is promising him a job once his grant job runs out on July 1??
If he is/was part of the changing job descriptions that is supposed to be done by an outside, impartial consultant. How impartial can he be if he goes from outside to inside in one small leap??
Yeah… and when a general in the army who is the guy who ok’s buying the missiles and he ok’s a bunch of money to buy defective missiles from a certain company and then quits the military and is hired by the company that makes defective missiles for $10,000 a month that constitutes a certain lack of impartiality in his former job as a general.
And… did he quit his grant job because the grant money ended and he would no longer be paid under the grant anyway… or did he quit because he just thought a job with SAUSD is a much higher calling??
Has anyone else noticed all of the remodeling of offices at district headquarters is STILL going on ?
The remodeling hasn’t even slowed down!
#337
Hey, what do you expect of the former Miller’s Outpost model?
The dictrict is beyond corrupt. In the midst of cutting benefits and hours to almost 1,500 classified employees (mamy who are not even aware of the hit coming), the district (Dr. Olsky) creates a $10,000 a month job for someone she likes.
Is anybody going to do something about this? Where is the state when we need them?
Well, Fred Gomeztrejo (principal @Valley) is in Florida with a couple of teachers AND HE BROUGHT ALONG THE OFFICE MANAGER, TINA HERNANDEZ.
WTF?
I thought the district was crying poor and slashing jobs left and right. Olsky needs as many people under her as possible so that she can say that she “didn’t know!” of the problems in the district.
Russo is supposed to be watching Fast Freddy. He’s been responsible for a rash of litigation and grievances and letters of concern. Why is he packing up a secretary to take to Florida?
The state and district are probably laughing their butts off while everyone whines here instead of filing a legal and legitimate complaint with them containing proof, documentation and corroboration. Ain’t nobody else going to do it for you folks. And the district is counting on that. You reap what you sew.
Police reports were filed against Saddleback High School principal, Tracy Brennan after she harassed and body blocked a staff member the last few days before school ended this year.
Nutty VP Evelyn Carrigg hissing “get rid of her, get rid of her!” for witnesses to hear and corroborate.
City police could not take the report, but the school police consider the incident serious. It still seems like a conflict of interest to have school police in the mix. Everyone knows that they’ve had a reputation of having to cover up misdeeds in the past. This investigation will most likely stick and the charges will lead to more legal action against Carrigg who has a history of harassing and intimidating employees under Jones and now under Brennan.
Where is union rep sell-out Meg Robinson now? She should be here defending Tracy “the hugger” Brennan.
Anonplus,
So many sheep for the district to slaughter! However there are many of us who are actively fighting against the corruption that continues, unabated, under Jane Russo.
There is speculation that Juan Lopez is actively undermining her efforts by hiring fluff that will support him and not her.
However, Jane’s lack of experience and her passive approach to problems may be her biggest undoing.
Where is past Superintendent, Al Mijares, these days? He can be found here (click the link and scroll down a bit and you’ll see his familiar face:
http://www.connection-collegeboard.com/08may/reg_western.html
Note from Western Region VP Al Mijares
There are a number of diversity initiatives that are driven by the Western Regional Office’s recognition that we must be assertive and unwavering in our efforts to connect all students to college success and opportunity. A Dream Deferred™: The Future of African American Education, the Native American Student Advocacy Institute and Prepárate™: Educating Latinos for the Future of America are events that have taken place in recent weeks, and Western Regional K-12 and Higher Education staff members played an integral part in the organization of these three special conferences, which deal with innovative practices on closing the achievement gap for underrepresented students.
WRO’s higher education staff is busy preparing for many more summer events, including the
28th Annual Summer Institute on College Admissions and School Relations.
July 27-31 at the University of San Diego. Registration is now open for this career development institute, which provides a distinct opportunity for newly hired, entry level admissions/outreach staff to gain a better understanding of the higher education landscape, engage in a robust exchange of ideas and network among a group of passionate and distinguished colleagues.
The higher education staff will host a small group of new deans/directors of admission for a special program June 10 in the San Jose office. Entitled Finding, Recruiting and Enrolling Students for a Global Economy, this pilot program was designed to enable participants to understand the impact of changing demographics on enrollment practices, developing strategies to effectively identify your best student prospects and building relationships with similarly situated admissions professionals. Presenters will include Patricia Coleman, assistant vice president for Enrollment Management, Dominican University; Steven Graff, director and senior consultant, Admissions & Enrollment, the College Board; Esther Hugo, outreach coordinator, Santa Monica College; Mike Matthews, director, Student Search Services, the College Board; and Walter Robinson, director, Office of Undergraduate Admissions, University of California-Berkeley.
Sandy Baum, senior analysts for the College Board and professor of economics, Skidmore College, and Linda Peckham, director of communications and training, the College Board, conducted professional development workshops in Seattle, Wash., and Denver, Colo., that examined how pricing, demand, market structures and price discrimination — all traditional components of economic theory — also impact the higher education marketplace and why financial aid is essential to creating equity and access.
The Diversity Collaborative hosted a seminar in Denver, Colo., that provided practical policy guidance for higher education officials. The seminar focused on issues associated with the development of diversity-related, enrollment-management policy (including outreach, recruitment, admissions, financial aid and scholarship policy development) at undergraduate, post-graduate and professional schools.
In other K-12 news, the WRO and the Florida Partnership hosted seven members from the California Department of Education last month in Florida. The visit was to provide an opportunity for the California delegation to visit with state legislators, district/school site administration, teachers and students throughout Florida and observe College Board programs and systems that are effectively assisting the state in closing the achievement gap for low-income and underrepresented students.
Finally, last month’s A Dream Deferred Conference drew 524 participants. The keynote speakers were Darnell Hunt, UCLA; Noma Lemoine, LAUSD; and Calvin Mackie, Tulane University. This year, the Models of Excellence Award was renamed in honor of Asa Hilliard.
Don’t count Jane Russo out. She’s extremely intelligent and understands politics. Everyone would like to see things happen quickly, but it just doesn’t work that way. She has already made sure that many of the problem administrators both at the district and school level have left. Her biggest challenge yet is to somehow get rid of Juan Lopez. I’m not sure what type of power and clout he has, but I do believe Jane is aware of it. Maybe I’m being overly optimistic but I think his days may be numbered.
Sorry 377…
Russo is OUT attempting to “steal”.
Her cover-up/mishandling of the “phantom classes” and subsequent HIRING YET ANOTHER OVERPAID/UNDEREDUCATED ADMINISTRATOR showed her truest colors.
#374
The only way city police could not take the report was because no crime happened and it was an internal matter. I assume by ‘BODY BLOCK’ you mean she just stood in the way and did not commit a physical touching of the teacher. That would have been a crime. If it was just some sort of internal report the school police will take it as information or administrative action.
People need to understand that their is a conflict of interest with school police when it involves administration and also should remember that the city police have higher authority. If a city police officer refuses to take a report where an actual crime happened telling you the school police can do it, then you should request a city police supervisor because you have run into a city police officer that doesn’t understand the law regarding school police.
Crime reports taken by school police are actually city police reports and filed with the city. If you think there is a conflict of interest then you need to insist a city police officer investigate and take the report so the school police do not minimize the incident or put a spin on it.
One of the frustrations of this style format for a blog w/o forums can be seen in obscure threads that take on good life when not too many people are aware of it. Here is a revived thread that I think belongs here on the main discussion of SAUSD:
http://orangejuiceblog.com/2008/06/sausd-screws-up-on-teacher-layoffs/#comment-61740
If a city police officer refuses to take a report where an actual crime happened telling you the school police can do it, then you should request a city police supervisor because you have run into a city police officer that doesn’t understand the law regarding school police.
Crime reports taken by school police are actually city police reports and filed with the city. If you think there is a conflict of interest then you need to insist a city police officer investigate and take the report so the school police do not minimize the incident or put a spin on it.
Anonplus,
This information sounds reasonable. I hope that it is true and can be used in a helpful way. It appears that the SAUSD police department is part of a very closed system. I hope that you are right in regards to laws overseeing district police.
Red,
I can assure you the information is true, although you won’t find too many school police officers that will admit it. Unlike their University and Cal-State cousins, school police have a few more restrictions on them. Do not misunderstand. School police must meet the same training standards and requirements of any city police officer, but the scope of their authority was written into the education code when the original concept of school police was created. (Ref. Ed code 38000 et sec)
In simple terms school police are an addition to the city police when it comes to schools. They were never legislated to completely replace the city police. Some city police officers assume that the schools are the school police’s turf and they don’t have to do the paperwork unless it is a major crime such as rape, murder, or a federal crime. To clarify that, cities and districts usually create a memo of understanding as to who handles what.
When things turn into problems or crimes with administrators a definite conflict of interest with school police occurs especially when it becomes a ‘He said, she said’. A victim has the absolute right to request the city police instead of school police investigate because they share jurisdiction and the city police supercede the school police.
Red –
Just add the links to the main post if you like. You have the authority. 🙂
SMS
Hey the SAPD Sucks!!!!!!!!!
Thanks for the protecting and serving the community. Can we as citizens hand out tickets too these losers for talking on there cell phones 24/7?
#352 There is so much too say, where do i begin?
City employess should be thankful they have jobs this is why: Parks and Recreation Southwest Senior Center should be very careful with there actions if Arnold finds out where our tax money is going he might just cut all cuts too our local senior centers. Rocio Meza, she has a nice title but, does she know how what her actual job description is??? i don’t think it includes having personal visits from her lover on a daily basis,for maybe the last year….oops, i think she’s married. or how about she’s never in the office conducting business maybe because she is at her mothers house or with her mmmm you know who, not husband.Be careful Rocio, Gerardo might find out what’s really going on. And, you might not be Pearl’s pet anymore. To Be Continue……..
#385 – this thread is about corruption within the SAUSD. Corruption with SA city government is not relevant to this thread.
#386
Corruption is corruption. Let them post about city exposure to corruption. If it gets too many posts, then maybe Art & Co could dedicate an open thread to City Shenanigans 😉
Having an outlet to tell on the naughty is such a sweet thing!
Can anyone confirm: Martha Brambilla is taking over as Principal for Lathrop.
VP/Curriculum at Segerstrom is moving into the principal spot @ Segerstrom.
??
#387
Obviously you miss the point. The logo taking you here is not the city seal. It is the SAUSD seal. District administrators hope this thread will become diluted or go away. It won’t for now.
All Art has to do is write another story about the city and have SMS create a new side thread and logo. This thread does not need to include city corruption unless it ties into the school district and obviously our friend who wrote his little piece plays with a deck of 51.
#388 – Lathrop’s website is announcing her as their new Principal.
Anybody heard that Dawn Miller (Villa) is going to the district to replace Pat Machado?
#390
That is news to me. Is Pat Machado leaving the district after screwing up Lathrop and Century, then promoted to a district position? That would be good news. I hope someone can answer your question about Dawn Miller and her reputation.
Maybe someone is finally cleaning house..I hope.
Pat Machado announced her retirement a few months ago. She did a good job of screwing things up at the district as well. Dawn Miller will be taking her position. Dawn is very experienced in the district and also very competent (although possibly a bit militaristic as well). She deserves a chance to make a difference and I hope she does.
Thanks anonplus.
I have forwarded your suggestions to the employee who just requested this link to the school district blog. We should be getting an excellent additional poster here very soon!
#374- First, she is probably on vacation- the same as you, second, she is not your elected rep, and third, if you are so unhappy, you could run for rep, but you probably do not want to spend the time.
#393
No problem. I assumed it was common knowledge.
#394
Union Rep Meg Robinson has exactly one person that she represents – herself. No one who knows about her is going to ask her for help. And anyone who thinks that contacting her for assistance is a good idea should be warned.
I am not sure what you were trying to get across in your post about her not being an elected rep.
I am sure when she returns in the fall, she’ll continue to be a kiss up for any administrator at her site to keep her position in good standing. She certainly has overseen the continued flight of excellent teachers and staff.
http://www.ocweekly.com/news/news/santa-ana-school-employees-steaming-at-sneaky-district-turning-full-time-jobs-into-part-time-ones/28970/
Santa Ana School Employees Steaming at Sneaky District Turning Full-Time Jobs Into Part-Time Ones
By DAFFODIL J. ALTAN
Thursday, July 3, 2008 – 3:02 pm
Benefits In Doubt
Santa Ana school district employees are steamed that the district is turning full-time jobs into part-time ones—and being sneaky about it
Next fall at Santa Ana public schools, a visit to the librarian, the computer technician, the registrar and the school nurse may be a one-stop shop. Dozens of district employees, including an instructional aide who initiated a hunger strike, protested outside the district offices last week, denouncing the sneaky way, they say, Santa Ana Unified School District officials went about proposing job cuts that could affect librarians, office assistants and other employees who hold non-administrative, non-teaching positions in the district.
School-district officials proposed last week consolidating, renaming and reducing hundreds of full-time jobs to part-time positions with less pay and no health benefits, infuriating employees and parents. The most alarming part, says longtime board member John Palacio, is that the administration disguised potential layoffs under “new job description” categories included in the reports given to board members by the district the Friday before the June 24 meeting.
“They tried to be slick,” Palacio says of district officials. “It’s insulting, from a board point of view, when staff give you deliberately one-sided information. The report doesn’t tell you how many positions were collapsed into one, the fiscal impact this will have or about the subsequent laying off of people. It doesn’t tell you that they will go from full-time to part-time salaries, that there are no health benefits and that there are less hours. It doesn’t tell you that if a person takes the job, they will lose their retirement. All of that had to be in there. How can I make an informed choice if it’s not?”
The vote on the job descriptions was pulled from the June 24 meeting after some internal protest and will be formally voted on at the July 8 meeting. The county’s largest district, with 54,000 students, faces nearly $29 million in cuts that, it says, are due to declining enrollment and the state’s fiscal crisis. The district included $29.5 million in cuts to balance its $487 million budget; the creation of the new part-time jobs passed 3-1, with Palacio as the lone dissenter.
“Technically, these job cuts have already been passed,” Palacio says, adding that he will vote “no” again on July 8, when the part-time job descriptions are formalized.
The union representing classified employees combed through the list of job duties to discover the reshuffling of duties.
In the case of the new, part-time “school site technician” position, for example, tasks include managing student-enrollment records, monitoring class size, administering medication to kids, taking blood-sugar-level readings, preparing truancy reports and keeping attendance records—tasks currently handled by full-time school nurses, receptionists and registrars.
“The restructure plan was created to provide more flexibility and efficiency with respect to how students are served,” says district spokesperson Angela Burrell.
The list of duties for several “new” positions was the alarm bell that sent several dozen people to district offices in protest last week.
“My job has been renamed,” says Monica Bustamante, a data technician at Saddleback High School and 20-year district employee. Her job duties, which include managing records, transcripts and report cards, now fall under the site-technician job. “They’ve made [the description] so general it even says you have to help a sick kid,” she says. “How do they expect us to do all this in 3.75 hours? A lot of us are looking for other jobs because we need our health benefits.”
The creation of all-encompassing part-time positions is a sign that layoffs are imminent, says Margie Strike, labor representative with the California School Employees Association, which represents the affected employees. The district, she says, has violated state labor laws by not negotiating with employees before proposing to eliminate their positions.
Officials pulled a similar move late last year, she says, when they created two new part-time positions to replace full-time special-education instructional aides. The new part-time jobs resulted in the gradual layoffs of 177 full-time employees. The union filed an unfair-labor charge with the California Department of Labor against the district June 11, protesting the unusual way the layoffs were handled. The charge is still under investigation.
“Districts are allowed to create new job classifications,” Burrell says. “We comply with the law by extending an offer of ‘Meet and Confer’ to the California State Employees Association.”
Strike says the district can create new job classifications when the jobs are different. The problem in the current situation, she says, is that jobs are being duplicated at lesser hours. “No other district in the county is doing anything like this,” she says.
Burrell says the district re-created the special-ed positions as part of a plan to “refocus and restructure,” as well as cut costs. She says the aides were doing approximately two hours of incidental clerical work every day. To “refocus” the positions, they were split in half and two part-time positions were created to eliminate the clerical component, Burrell says. A four-hour day is the minimum someone would need to work in order to receive health benefits.
Ramon Quintanilla, a 14-year-veteran district special-education instructional aide who was one of the last to receive a layoff notice in the earlier round of job cuts, staged his hunger strike for four days outside district offices last week.
“We’re in the classroom working with students,” says Quintanilla. “[The district] didn’t negotiate with us at all. They’ve never done something like this.” The predicament facing laid-off, longtime employees like Quintanilla: If they choose to apply for the part-time positions, they may lose their retirement or retire without benefits.
Employees are now fearful the same tactics used to oust the special-education aides will be used on them. Although official layoff notices have not been sent out, some employees have been told, unofficially, by their school principals that they will lose their jobs.
“Our principal is one of the few who tells us what’s going on,” says an 18-year-veteran office assistant at an elementary school who wished to remain anonymous.
Burrell says a total of 481 layoffs, the majority classified positions, were approved with the passage of the budget. A total of 505 “new” part-time positions will be created when the board finalizes its vote July 8, she says. “Laid-off employees will be able to reapply for these positions,” she says. “And we were able to rescind 560 of 573 teacher layoffs, which is positive.”
However, Palacio, Strike and other employees say they believe the number of classified employees who will lose their jobs may be higher once the final state budget is approved in July and the district revises it one more time.
The union has estimated the number could then reach into the 600 or 700 range, which would be debilitating to schools, students and teachers, says Palacio. “This is about fairness, about respecting our employees. Some people have been here for 20 years. These are the employees who are taxpayers, who are parents in the district, who live here. The way you show them respect is by giving them a good salary and good benefits.”
daltan@ocweekly.com
What sticks out with me on this story and I noted it under Art’s seperate article, is that the union realizing they had a violation of labor law, took well over 6 months before filing a complaint over the first 177 that were layed off.
In fact it took a second wave of the same illegal action that might effect as many as 600 to 700 more classified employees before the union bothered to file on the first 177.
I am certain the first 177 fired feel just great about this. The other 600 should take note and figure the union will either do nothing for 6 months or now put up a fight and probably lose since this had been an acceptable practice over 6 months ago and CSEA did NOTHING! On the other hand should CSEA win, in 1 or 2 years, maybe these former employees will have found other jobs, moved elsewhere, or both.
Lindquest, a CSEA member at SAUSD, has posted a call to action on another thread about this story. Between that and a 1 man hunger strike last week I’m betting the board majority will finalize these cuts anyway. About the only call to action Linquest has accomplished that I can see is that he and other DSO’s, along with school police, were not cut.
anonplus…you are wrong about school police and DSO’s. They have all been cut to eleven months. That is an 8.3% pay decrease. The district was so underhanded about this cut that no one seems to even know about it. They waited until June 30th to make this announcement and advise the employees they were not to come to work until August!
Realityck
Thank you for the correction. I had spoke with several DSO’s and school police a few weeks ago. They believed they were not going to be cut back to 11 months because the union told them the district could not do it and the board had proclaimed they would not cut the police or DSO’s.