No laptops, just lapdogs, for Chula Vista Mayor Cheryl Cox

Cheryl Cox’s May 28, 2008 memo to City Manager David Garcia is chock-full of pettiness and hypocrisy. Her directives make no sense, except as an effort to harass Mr. Garcia:

Cheryl Cox: “Do not use your personal laptop in your office.”

This is nitpicking, overbearing interference. Cox sounds like she’s reverted to her days as an elementary school teacher. But was she that unreasonable when dealing with children? Show some respect, Mrs. Cox.


Cheryl Cox: “While we appreciate that you often work long hours and you are entitled to take time off, this time off should primarily be spent out of the office.”

That directive is harmful to the City of Chula Vista, Ms. Cox. When the City Manager spends time in the office when he could rightfully be on the beach, he is available to deal with emergencies and routine questions and issues that come up, whether from another employee or a member of the public.

HERE’S WHERE CHERYL COX’S HYPOCRISY GOES TO THE TOP OF THE CHART:

Cheryl Cox: “You are reminded that retaliation against any City employee... is a violation…”

Cheryl Cox is a big fan of retaliation, particularly that carried out by the Director of Human Resources as directed by the public entity’s attorney. As a Chula Vista Elementary School District board member, she violated California Labor Code 1105.2 by firing an employee for filing grievances and a lawsuit.

Cheryl Cox: “However, you should understand that your failure to abide by [the rules]… may result in the termination of your employment.”

If Cheryl Cox were held responsible for her violations of the laws of California, she’d be out of a job. Yet she wants to fire the City Manager for using his personal laptop computer in his office?

Cheryl Cox: “We share your hope that these steps will bring these matters to a close.”

I don’t believe Cheryl is telling the truth here. I think she wants to fire Garcia because he’s too honest and open, two traits she neither shares nor approves of. It seems Cheryl wants to replace a laptop with a lapdog.

When Teachers Abuse Power by Heather Johnson

When Teachers Abuse Power

"Teaching is a noble profession, one that demands a great deal of patience and flexibility. A teacher plays different roles in the lives of students; besides giving them an education, they also act as guides and mentors. Children spend most of their waking hours at school, which is why it’s important for teachers to be accessible to the students not just as educators but also as a friend. While there are some teachers who live in your memory as the ones that did make a huge positive impact, there are others who are remembered for reasons that are both shameful and a disgrace to the field of education as a whole.

"Teachers are given a degree of power over the students they teach – they are trusted by both the school authorities and the children’s parents to use that power judiciously and for the general good of the children. But there are some bad eggs who give the entire teaching fraternity a bad name; they’re the ones who use their position and authority for their own purposes, some more horrendous than others.

"We routinely hear of teachers sexually abusing children in their care; some of them are so perverted that they film their dirty deeds and sell them for profits. As if this were not enough, they hold the threat of bad grades over their students’ heads if they tell anyone what happened. Statistics state that around 5 percent of teachers and coaches abuse minors, but this is not a true reflection of the state of events. The number of incidents that are unreported are much more than those that are. Most students are afraid to come out in the open fearing the repercussions – the ostracism from their peers, the future of their education and the effect the media impact would have on their lives and that of their loved ones.

"Abuse need not be sexual to be detrimental to the well-being of students – some teachers send children on the wrong path by encouraging them to smoke, drink and do drugs. Others play favorites in a blatant manner, with the students who are affected being powerless to do anything to bring the offenders to book.

The reason that such incidents are widespread is that most students look up to their teachers and are willing to go to any lengths so that they are not disappointed in them. A subtle word here and a small hint there are enough to make these immature minds fall prey to the more cunning brains of their educators. The only way to prevent this from happening to your child is to educate him/her in the ways of the world and warn them of the dangers that could befall them if they are not careful. Parents must play an active role in every aspect of their children’s lives and encourage them to report any untoward incident, no matter how trivial it may seem."


This post was contributed by Heather Johnson, who writes on the subject of BestCollegesOnline.com. She invites your feedback at heatherjohnson2323 at gmail dot com.

Education in Chula Vista is a game for insiders like Greg Sandoval

The story excerpted below comes from Southwestern College, but there was a story recently in Voice of San Diego about a similar situation at San Diego Unified School District. It seems that education is lucrative for insiders all over San Diego county.

3 college trustees boycott over Sandoval agenda item
By Chris Moran
SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
August 15, 2008

"Greg Sandoval, the college vice president, resigned after an employee filed a sexual harassment claim against him. He tried to rescind his resignation days later but was rebuffed by the community college district's superintendent and president, Raj Chopra.

"A proposal to extend a Southwestern College vice president's job through January – which would qualify him for lifetime medical benefits – was rushed onto the board's agenda this week so quickly that the college president wasn't informed.

"While Chopra was out of town last weekend, board President David Agosto put an item on Wednesday's agenda that, if approved, would have extended Sandoval's job through January, after he turns 55, and would qualify him for lifetime medical benefits from the college.

"The extension was not acted on because three trustees boycotted the meeting at which it was to be discussed over concerns about how the item made it on the agenda. They asked for a formal report on the matter by next month.

"“In my 35 years as an administrator, I have not seen one time an agenda item changed the way (this) did,” Chopra said.

"Sandoval has worked for Southwestern for 32 years, and he resigned in June after he was accused of sexual harassment in a claim filed against the college by an employee. The board rejected the claim. Sandoval's resignation is effective Sept. 30...

"College policy calls for the superintendent/president to prepare the agenda in consultation with the board president..."

Parents wrestled control of Locke High School away from the teachers union

Los Angeles Unified School District and the UTLA teachers union fought hard against Green Dot charter schools taking over Locke High School in Watts.

But the parents won.

Locke will open its doors this fall as a Green Dot charter school.



Parents Force Charter Takeover of L.A. High School
by Claudio Sanchez
Morning Edition
December 17, 2007

Locke High School is, by all accounts, among the worst high schools in Los Angeles. It's in Watts, one of the city's most treacherous, gang-infested neighborhoods. The school is overcrowded and on the brink of an academic melt-down.

Earlier this year, parents and half of the school's faculty revolted, forcing the school district to do something it has never done before: turn over Locke High to a private group of reformers. When that takeover happens next summer some teachers know they won't be rehired. Others don't plan to stay...

A loss for Beverly Tucker and California Teachers Association: child-molesting teachers lose credentials

The California Teachers Association's efforts to protect child molesting teachers from losing the right to teach have come to nothing. Beverly Tucker, the chief counsel for CTA, has lost her long battle.

Calif. lawmakers close teacher license loopholes
By JULIET WILLIAMS - Associated Press
August 12, 2008
SACRAMENTO

The state Assembly approved two bills Tuesday designed to close loopholes in California's teacher licensing laws that had allowed some teachers accused or even convicted of serious crimes to remain in the classroom.

The legislation would allow the state to revoke licenses from teachers who plead no contest to certain sex crimes or drug offenses or have had their licenses revoked in another state.

The bills by Sen. Bob Margett, R-Arcadia, and Sen. Jack Scott, D-Pasadena, were prompted by an Associated Press investigation last year into sexual misconduct by teachers.

The AP's investigation in California confirmed at least 313 cases in which teachers were punished for sexual misconduct from 2000 to 2005.

That included dozens involving pleas of no contest, a common legal agreement that allows a defendant to avoid a trial or civil liability but still leads to conviction.

An analysis by the California Teacher Credentialing Commission following AP's report found that about two-thirds of the educators who face revocation or other serious action are convicted following a plea of no contest to a serious offense.

That triggered a discretionary review by the commission rather than the mandatory loss of teachers' licenses, a process that can sometimes take two or three years.

Margett's bill also targets another problem. Under current law, the results of misconduct allegations are sealed by the credentialing commission after one year. That restricts the ability of school administrators to confirm a teaching candidate's complete record if they learn later that the applicant lied about his or her background.

Margett's legislation makes the records available for five years instead of one...

Some light reading for Lowell Billings: Teachers who bully

For many years CVESD superintendent Lowell Billings has known that bilingual students at Castle Park Elementary were abused by a group of teachers that was hostile to the bilingual program.

Billings has covered up the truth about those teachers.

A new study by Alan McEvoy comes to a worrisome conclusion:

"Perhaps the most troubling finding of this investigation is perceived institutional collusion through inaction when bullying incidents are known. The apparent absence of policies and procedures to address the problem should give us pause. The many caring educators who must tend to the casualties of abusive colleagues whose egregious conduct goes unchecked can only place a serious damper on school climate and morale..."

China, CVESD and Stutz law firm have similar ideas about freedom of speech

As I have explained elsewhere in this blog, CVESD and Stutz, Artiano Shinoff and Holtz are trying to hide the truth about themselves. So is China:

Journalists Say China Is Not Living Up To Openness Pledge

By Maureen Fan
Washington Post

Sunday, August 3, 2008;
"...Chinese authorities and the Western news media apparently have different understandings of "complete freedom." Sun Weida, a spokesman for Beijing's Olympic organizing committee, and Liu Jianchao, a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, suggested recently that reporters did not actually need to visit blocked Web sites to do their jobs. Sun was surrounded by a mob of reporters after a news conference, and when he insisted that the Internet was free and open in China, some of them shouted, "That's not true!" ...

Is Pat Judd coming or going?

Someone at the San Diego County Office of Education asked yesterday, "Where did Pat Judd go?"

The answer seems to be "nowhere," although it's not for lack of trying. At the same time that Judd claims to be preparing to run for yet another term as CVESD trustee, he seems to be applying for jobs in Los Angeles and Orange counties. Would he commute from Bonita if he got one of those jobs? Not likely.

Today the folks in Trabuco Canyon were checking up on him. Trabuco Canyon is in Orange County, and is served by Saddleback and Capistrano school districts. Maybe these folks are considering Judd for this position:

Capistrano Unified School District
Executive Director I, Fiscal Services
Posted: 6/20/2008 - Deadline: Until Filled
Classified Staff
6/20/2008 Capistrano Unified, San Juan Capistrano
Orange County $103,385 to $125,665 depending on experience and background

Whoa! I just went back to the job posting, and it's been removed! Maybe they decided on Pat Judd as soon as they read all about his exploits. Who wouldn't love an administrator who spends $100,000s of tax dollars to cover up wrongdoing? This is a man who will protect the status quo and the people in power come hell or high water. And whose business is it why he stopped working at his old job? Pat Judd is too discreet to go around passing out that kind of information. Good luck on the pay scale, Pat. We're rooting for you.

CVESD teachers who are lawyers want to know: "Can I use esquire after my name?"

Mary Elizabeth "Mimi" Carr had no trouble deciding that she would sign her name with an "Esquire" at the end, but other CVESD teacher-lawyers aren't so sure. Here's some authoritative information for them.

The Straight Dope Science Advisory Board says:

ESQUIRE

Now you might ask: what allows one to use this title? Is there a ceremony? Is it conferred by a university? Is it just some affectation that snob-nosed folks use? Can I be Joe Blow, Esq. just because I like the ring to it? Or do I need to get authorization, and if so from what? from where?

The answer is that any snob in the world (or at least in the U.S.) can use the title...

Now of course in England there's this whole business about hereditary nobility and getting knighted and all that, so it might be a little risky to start calling yourself esquire there. (Although what's going to happen? The Snob Cops arrest you?)

But we're not in England, we're in America! The land of the free, the home of the brave! You can call yourself anything you want ... although you do take the risk that you will be thought a snooty jerk.

Since this has never bothered lawyers, they have gotten into the habit of calling each other esquire. This is a little like elected officials addressing each other as "honorable," which to me seems a classic case of advertising something after it's gone. But I digress.

Among lawyers, it's thought pretentious if you sign yourself "Esq." in written communications but you are supposed to dignify other lawyers with the appellation... even if you never saw the inside of a law school there's nothing to prevent you from calling yourself esquire ... except the fact that you might be thought a lawyer.

CVESD still using illegal tactics to silence critics?

"...When you work for the public, as I have, you are required to be honest and serve the public..."
By Flo Samuels, Hayward, July 24, 2008 Voice of San Diego


I recently discovered what appears to be a connection between Chula Vista Elementary School District and the lawsuit by their lawyers (Stutz Artiano Shinoff & Holtz) to stop me from publishing my website.

It is illegal for a public entity to sue for defamation.

I suspect that CVESD superintendent Lowell Billings (at left in above photo), and (next to Billings in above photo) board members David Bejarano, Pam Smith, Patrick Judd, Bertha Lopez and Larry Cunningham know this very well. So why don't they operate in an above-board manner, and file a lawsuit against me as individuals?

First, I imagine they don't want to give me a chance to prove my allegations in court.

Second, they are accustomed to having the taxpayers foot the bill for their legal representation.

Stutz attorney Ljubisa Kostic denied that he made an uncustomary and lengthy visit to my website and blogs the day after I participated in a meeting at Castle Park Elementary school. Unfortunately for Mr. Kostic, I was able to match the IP address of his laptop, which he used during my deposition, to the May 28, 2008 visit. That same laptop had made very rare, and usually very short, visits prior to that date.

To top it all off, Kostic issued a Notice of Deposition to me on the very next day (May 29, 2008). He could have done this at anytime during the previous 8 months, and there is no reason to think he would have done it on that day except to retaliate on behalf of CVESD for my public appearance.

This appears to be yet another case of illegal involvement by CVESD in the justice system (see also CVESD's bizarre and successful effort to protect Stutz law firm from obstruction of justice claims), and an effort by CVESD to use intimidation to interfere with my right to free speech.

JULY 2008: New board members for Chula Vista Educators

Chula Vista Educators Board of Directors
JULY 2008
(Here is list of members of the board that was replaced.)


President 07-09
State Council 06-09
Peggie Myers
cvepresident@yahoo.com
Full-Release CVE Office 427-1063


Vice President 07-09
Monica Sorenson
Liberty Elementary School 397-5225
VP Monica Sorenson has taken over the remainder of Allan Insko's term as PAR chair (see below).

Treasurer 07-09
Nancy Potts
npotts@cox.netValley Vista Elementary
479-7171 Ext. 5339


State Council 07-10
CTA Board
JAMES GROTH
jgroth@cta.org


Secretary 07-09
Barbara Dunwoodie
monagin@cox.net
Hilltop 422-8323 Ext.3333


State Council 08-11--NEW!!
Jennefer Porch
Juarez-Lincoln 269-3620


PAR Chair 06-09
VP Monica Sorenson
took over for Allan Insko in the middle of this term
(appointed?)


Area Director A 08-10--NEW!!
Maureen Mcnair
Veterans 479-0571


Area Director B 07-08
Norma Pacheco-Davis
pachecodavis@yahoo.com
Los Altos 690-5880 Ext. 3848


Area Director C 08-10--NEW!!
Tim Kriss
Salt Creek 397-5494


Area Director D 08-10
OPEN

Area Director E 08-10--NEW!!
Jena Ritchey
Juarez-Lincoln 269-3620


Bargaining Chair 07-09
OPEN

Executive Director Mary Ellen Berumen
[New executive director]
mberumen@cta.org
427-1063 Ext 205
[Berumen replaced Tim O'Neill, who worked closely with Jim Groth and Gina Boyd to cover up crimes at Castle Park Elementary School.]

CVESD lawyers Stutz Artiano Shinoff & Holtz v. Maura Larkins trial February 2009

Stutz law firm asked the court on July 25, 2008 to delay the trial for their lawsuit against me for defamation.

One would think they'd be in a hurry to stop me if I'm truly defaming them.

Either my site isn't really hurting them, or Stutz law firm is tacitly admitting that what I say is true.


The November trial date selected by the court was changed to February 6, 2009.

The Stutz lawyer also said that a court-ordered settlement conference "would not be fruitful." The judge looked at him and said, "Well, then you'll just have to work it out yourselves."

CVESD case discussed in "White Chalk Crime"

A new book mentions CVESD's illegal actions against Maura Larkins.

From "White Chalk Crime" by Karen Horwitz (page 596)

"California NAPTA member Maura Larkins corroborates this point when she commented on my legal case and discussed the abuse used to silence her: If you had done what I did, which was to refuse to come back to work until there was an investigation, I guarantee you would have been dismissed for refusing to come to work. They were delighted that I wasn't at work for an entire year--UNTIL I FILED SUIT.

"Then they claimed they had wanted me to be at work for that entire year. In fact, my dismissal specifically stated that by filing grievances, tort claims and a lawsuit, I had shown myself to be "unforgiving," an "irremediable character defect"!

"Once they target you, neither the truth nor the law matters. I love having the above statement about why I was fired in writing. It's a clear violation of the Constitution as well as state law. Can you believe that they openly and brazenly fired me for filing grievances, tort claims, and a lawsuit?"

CVESD paid $100,000s of tax dollars to obtain this decision and cover up the truth in the case. Attorney Daniel Shinoff, who was in charge of litigation for CVESD in San Diego Superior Court, wanted the case decided in the Office of Administrative Hearings. Attorney Mark Bresee pulled the job off with the help of phony documents.

Second-grader Mariachis at Castle Park Elementary

See U Tube video HERE.

PETER BARRON STARK: SCHOOLS MASK PROBLEMS INSTEAD OF SOLVING THEM

In times of crisis, schools hire consultants to calm everybody down instead of addressing the basic problem: teachers who can't think straight.

Helix High School in San Diego Unified School District has suffered from a rash of teacher-student sexual encounters. Since this makes the news, the school is doing something about it: hiring an ethics advisor.

Castle Park Elementary School in Chula Vista also hired an advisor, Peter Barron Stark, a few years back, in the mid-90s, when teachers were so hostile to bilingual education that they were using staff meetings as an emotional outlet to scream at their opponents.

Peter Barron Stark's advice didn't them help much. It seems that Castle Park Elementary teachers needed help with thinking skills and basic human decency. All they learned was how to conduct a meeting without yelling at each other. In other words, problems were covered up instead of being addressed.

According to Stark's website, the following educational institutions have hired Peter Barron Stark and Associates.

It's hard to miss MiraCosta College and others with legal problems on the list; many of these problem schools use Daniel Shinoff as their lawyer.

Is the failure of consultants caused by the fact that these institutions were asking for the wrong thing? They wanted to keep everything calm and quiet, when open, honest discussion was needed. Instead of hiring PBS consulting, they should have hired ethical lawyers, teachers, and administrators. Clearly, CVESD needs new board members.


PBS Consulting's education client list:

...Butte County Office of Education
Cal Poly Pomona
Chula Vista Elementary School District
Edison Charter Academy
KPBS
MiraCosta College
National School DistrictPoway Unified School District
Project Concern
San Diego County Office of Education
San Dieguito Union High School District
San Diego State University - College of Extended Studies
San Diego Community College District
Soquel Elementary School District
Southwestern College
Southwestern Christian School
University of Phoenix

Mr. Stark says, "I view each client I have the privilege of working with as the beginning of a lifelong relationship. I am committed to providing you with a customized presentation that begins long before I take the stage and doesn't end until your expectations have been exceeded."

I think you have some work left to do at Castle Park Elementary, Mr. Stark. And while you're at it, a visit to MiraCosta College might be in order.

CVESD trustee Judd wants another term

At the CVESD board meeting on April 8, 2008 Pat Judd "announced that he will run for reelection in 2008 to assist and guide the District through this troubled time with his knowledge and expertise."

Are you planning to remain in San Diego County, Mr. Judd?

Have you sought employment in Los Angeles Unified School District?

What caused your mysterious leave from Mountain Empire School District in February 2008, and why did you never go back to work as superintendent?

How CVESD can stop my complaints without paying a dime

Most schools use public money to improve. CVESD uses public money to make things worse. They use the money to pay lawyers to cover up wrongdoing.

But Lowell Billings and Castle Park Elementary teachers want me to stop telling the public that they have used $100,000s of taxpayer dollars to keep Castle Park Elementary circling the drain for the past seven years.

Nothing would please me more than to be able to say that Billings and the CVESD board are doing the right thing.

Here's how CVESD can stop my complaints without paying a dime:

All Billings and the board have to do is to stop the coverup and start dealing with the felony-serious problems at the district, the teachers union, and Castle Park Elementary.

Simply replace the corrupt culture at CVESD with a culture that values honesty, the rule of law, and the education of children.

And then CVESD and the teachers at Castle Park Elementary can get off the merry-go-round of lies, attacks, and dysfunction that they have been riding for the past seven years.

In Danielle Cozaihr case, CVESD has switched lawyers two times in 6 months

Why is the CVESD board (David Bejarano, Pamela Smith, Bertha Lopez, Pat Judd and Larry Cunningham) staggering around like a group of drunks searching for the next whiskey bar?

Instead of a bar, however, the board keeps searching for the perfect lawyer who will help them get away with wrongdoing.

In six months, they've fired two different law firms in the Danielle Cozaihr case. They are now back to the firm that caused them so many problems in the Maura Larkins case: Stutz, Artiano, Shinoff & Holtz.

The board and Superintendent Lowell Billings seem to suffering from an inability to deal with reality. When they don't get what they want, they fire someone. Billings has placed 11 principals in 11 years at Castle Park Elementary.

Here's a suggestion for the board: obey the law. Then you will save $100,000s in litigation costs, and you won't have to corrupt entire schools the way you corrupted Castle Park Elementary with your demands that teachers and administrators commit perjury.

Why don't I put my head in the sand, too?

The teachers at Castle Park Elementary want to forget about the crime wave that happened there.

I also would forget about it except for one thing: the culture that triggered these crimes is harming students. If it were just me, I'd forget it. The fact is that I witnessed CVESD's culture of teacher politics superseding the wellbeing of children for two-and-a-half decades before I myself fell victim to that culture.

At that time I learned that the problem isn't just small-minded teachers in the classrooms. It turns out that many of these power-hungry individuals have risen to positions of influence in both the administration and the teachers union. It seems that frequently (not always, of course) those who can't teach, administrate or unionize. What else can a poor or mediocre teacher do to succeed? Politics is the only way.

POSTSCRIPT TO YESTERDAY'S "NOTE TO LOWELL BILLINGS"

Castle Park Elementary teachers don't want to deal with reality

Dear Mr. Billings,

After I wrote yesterday's post, I engaged in further discussions about what you said on June 4, 2008 at Castle Park. I believe I now understand your message better.

It seems you said that the teachers don't want to have anything to do with me. Well, of course not.

The reasons are both clear and illegal.

1) First of all, those who were my friends in 2001 were viciously attacked by guilty teachers and administrators. In 2002, Castle Park Elementary teachers were made to understand that Chula Vista Educators (the teachers union), expected them to report to Peggie Myers any contact they had with me. (At that time, Peg Myers, the current CVE president, was CVE representative for the school.)

2) The district and its lawyers wanted to make sure that I had no access to witnesses. Daniel Shinoff and Kelly Angell of Stutz law firm even asked the court to forbid me from contacting ANY AND ALL CVESD EMPLOYEES. The judge refused. He informed the lawyers that "parties are allowed to talk" and that I had a right to contact witnesses.

3) The teachers didn't want to be contacted because they were covering up crimes. Like ostriches with their heads in the sand, they were in deep denial, ignoring the consequences of a criminal cover up. They continued to punish children for lying or other transgressions, but they believed that a different morality applied to them. They were teachers, they made the law in the school, they didn't have to follow it.

4) Sadly, new teachers have been effectively inducted into the "Castle Park Family," the group of teachers that believed that they have the right to make personnel decisions for the school. This is the reason that problems are as severe as ever at Castle Park Elementary. Teachers who have left are still powerful because they stay in contact.

The culture of the school remains the same. It is a culture of anger and hostility to anyone who would question the arbitrary power of the teachers who control the school. Like you, Mr. Billings, they believe that might makes right, and the law has little force in their decision making.

A CANCER OF IRRATIONAL ANGER PERMEATES CASTLE PARK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND THE DISTRICT OFFICE. YOU WON'T SOLVE THIS PROBLEM WITH "STRICTNESS." CVESD NEEDS TO DEAL WITH THE REALITY OF WHAT HAS HAPPENED, TO ADDRESS PROBLEMS HONESTLY, SO THAT IT CAN FINALLY LAY THEM TO REST.

See all posts about Peg Myers.

The clever Mr. Billings undermines the demonstrators he claims to support at Castle Park Elementary

CVESD superintendent Lowell Billings has clearly failed to get the staff at Castle Park Elementary to work as a team. But it appears that this was never his goal.

Mr. Billings seems to think that Castle Park Elementary must be run with an iron hand. His constant refrain on the evening of June 4, 2008 was that Alicia Moreno, his new choice for principal at the school, will be very "strict" and will make big changes if necessary.

But that was the precise assignment that Billings gave to Carlos Ulloa, and Ulloa did it so well that the staff refused to do any work beyond the contracted hours.

Billings apparently doesn't remember that a work slowdown is also what the staff did three years earlier to get rid of principal Ollie Matos.

Billings seems to be stuck on a merry-go-round and he can't get off. He keeps hiring principals to clamp down on Castle Park teachers, and when that fails, he gets rid of the principal.

Maybe "strict" isn't the answer.

Maybe "honesty" is the answer.



NOTE TO SUPERINTENDENT LOWELL BILLINGS

Let's face it, Mr. Billings: you have no control over Castle Park Elementary because you have lost your authority. Castle Park teachers (particularly the one writing this) know better than anyone else exactly what your unprofessional and illegal actions have been.

Why can't you come up with a plan other than another cycle of brute force and clever lies?

One of those lies occurred on June 4, 2008. You announced to the families at the Castle Park Elementary parent awards ceremony that you supported the rally that started at 5:30 p.m.on June 4, 2008. At around 7 p.m. you welcomed the group of demonstrators, which included me, into the auditorium. You promised to meet with parents.

But first, you decided to undermine them. You wanted to eliminate the person in the group who knew the most about the problems at Castle Park Elementary. After you shook my hand, you told me to leave. I asked why, and you refused to say. I left immediately.

Then you set out to divide and conquer.

The demonstrators were asking for an investigation into why there have been 11 principals at the school in 11 years. Since an investigation at Castle Park would result in the exposure of illegal actions by you and the district's expenditure of $100,000s of taxpayer funds to lawyers hired to cover up wrongful actions, you were determined to snuff out that possibility at the very start.

You tried to break the strongest link in the demonstrators' chain. You told the parents that I was a bad influence on kids. That smear was clear.

I've been getting confusing feedback about the rest of what you said.

I gather that you indicated that I was trying to get money from the district. What I want, Mr. Billings, is this: (1) Reverse the damage done to Castle Park Elementary since Feb. 12, 2001; (2) Stop the corruption that persists in the CVESD school board and their allies in the administration and the union; (3) Replace the corrupt culture at CVESD with a culture that values honesty, the rule of law, and the education of children.

For years you allowed Stutz, Artiano Shinoff & Holtz to basically write its own checks, squandering $100,000s of taxpayer dollars. Isn't it time this stopped?

There's a way for you to win, Mr. Billings.

You don't have to give me a dime, Mr. Billings, even though you've committed and covered up crimes against me.

All you have to do is to tell the truth.

That costs ZERO dollars.

Spill the beans, admit the facts, and say you're sorry. The statute of limitations has passed, so there would be no prosecutions. Wait, what am I saying? I reporting this case to Bonnie Dumanis years ago, and she refused to investigate. There was never any danger of criminal prosecution.

If you come clean, obviously, you won't have to pay anyone to be silent.

This is exactly what Hollywood stars do when they find out the media is about to expose one of their secrets: they go to a media outlet they prefer, and tell the story. It's a perfect trick to keep profits away from the outlet that was about to expose them. Why don't you try it?


And then you and the teachers at Castle Park Elementary can get off the merry-go-round of lies, attacks, and dysfunction that you have been riding for the past seven years.

How do you cover up abuse? You ban critics from speaking.

The CVESD board tries to keep secret the harm it has done to children and the laws it has broken.

One of the ways it does this is to prevent people with direct knowledge of the problems from speaking to parents, employees and students.

The Catholic Church is similar to CVESD in this respect.

Tonight retired Catholic Bishop Geoffrey Robinson, who in the 1990s investigated abuse of children in Australian churches, will speak in San Diego, defying Bishop Robert Brom and Cardinal Roger Mahony.

Robinson is banned from speaking on church property in several dioceses in the U.S.

Church leaders don't like the fact that Robinson has questioned whether the church's policy of celibacy for priests has led to the culture that allowed child sexual abuse to run rampant.

I feel that I have something in common with Robinson.

Superintendent Lowell Billings and the CVESD board don't want me to question whether their violations of law have led to the out of control situation at Castle Park Elementary.

I believe that the policies of Billings and the CVESD board are a bad influence on kids.

I also believe that institutions--including both churches and schools--tend to operate to protect the powerful people who control them, not the people they pretend to serve.

Why are organizations like ACORN necessary in order to obtain adequate education for our children?

Teachers are simply not allowed to advocate for their students. Examples of this are the Mary Anne Weegar and Coach James "Ted" Carter cases in San Diego, and many other cases across the country.

Since teachers must be silent, it is necessary that parents and community members organize discussion groups that are independent from the schools. These groups could then advocate for students.

Richard Werlin has surfaced again

I like this story because it involves the school where I went to kindergarten and part of first grade--Washington Elementary in Point Richmond.

My old nemesis Richard Werlin seems to have some sort of weird attraction to schools where I was a student. He not only got a job in Richmond, but he also worked in Chula Vista Elementary School District, where I attended all of first grade except the first month, and most of second grade.

Werlin didn't have a lot of fans in West Contra Costa County Unified School District (WCCCUSD), but he must have pleased Kay Burnside while he was there, or she wouldn't have chosen him as auditor when she moved to a new school district, Compton Unified School District.

From the Los Angeles Wave
March 20, 2008
"...By those she worked with, Burnside’s leadership is credited for turning around Point Richmond’s Washington Elementary School. It was in 1991, when the elementary school neared closure due to its failure to meet minimum academic standards. Burnside stepped in as principal and oversaw all responsibilities — managing finances, test scores and enrollment status. Today, Washington Elementary School is flourishing and boasts a waiting list for potential students..."

If Billings and the board could go back and do things differently at Castle Park Elementary, they would

If Billings and the board (Cheryl Cox, Bertha Lopez, Pam Smith, Patt Judd and Larry Cunningham) could go back and do things differently at Castle Park Elementary, they would. But they refuse to change course even though they realize they have made terrible mistakes. They prefer to spend $100,000s of taxpayer funds to cover up those mistakes. Clearly, they care more about their own power than they care about the education of kids.

Community rallies at Castle Park Elementary

Parents, kids and grandparents of Castle Park Elementary, with the support of Chula Vista ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) rallied to ask for an investigation of the highly unusual and constant dismissals and transfers of teachers and principals from the school since 1995.

They waved signs reading "11 (eleven) principals in 11 (eleven) years" and "New principal: How long will she stay?" Clowns and a unicyclist performed. Vehicles honked their horns. Many drivers called out their support.

See all posts and pictures of this event here: link.

Lowell Billings can not fix Castle Park because the school board requires him to protect perjurers

The "Castle Park Five" teachers won the right to return to Castle Park Elementary because the Chula Vista Elementary School District board could not tell the truth about what some of them had been up to. Nikki Perez, Peg Myers, Stephenie Parker-Pettit and Robin Donlan had helped cover up wrongdoing at Castle Park--but so had Lowell Billings and the members of the school board: Cheryl Cox, Bertha Lopez, Pamela Smith, Patrick Judd and Larry Cunningham.

Lowell Billings will almost certainly keep covering up crimes as long as the board tells him to do so. He's clearly not a man who takes principled stands against the powers that be, and this is exactly why the board pays him so much, and keeps him in his position year after year. He's paid to be a front man for the board, not an individual with integrity.

Parents and ACORN stage rally at Castle Park Elementary School

Parents, kids and grandparents of Castle Park Elementary rallied with Juan Carlos Vera of Chula Vista ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) to ask for an investigation of the highly unusual and constant dismissals and transfers of teachers and principals from the school since 1995.

They waved signs reading "11 (eleven) principals in 11 (eleven) years" and "New principal: How long will she stay?" Clowns and a unicyclist performed. Vehicles honked their horns. Many drivers called out their support.

See all posts and pictures of this event here: link.

As superintendent Lowell Billings arrived, he spoke to a group of parents. I was impressed that he communicated so well in Spanish. He that they would be big changes soon among the staff. Apparently teacher Nikki Perez, the target of several parent complaints, will be tranferred out of the school next week.

Lowell Billings had transferred Perez in 2004, but she challenged him to tell her the reason for the transfer. He could hardly say, "Because you are part of a group of teachers that has committed crimes, damaged student learning, and prevented anyone other than yourselves from having control over the school." The reason he couldn't say these words was that he himself was involved in the wrongdoing and the coverup. So an arbitrator ruled that Perez should be allowed to return to the school. Lionel Richman, the mediator, is probably quite unhappy with both Lowell Billings and the teachers union for concealing the truth from him.

Tonight Mr. Billings entered the Castle Park Elementary auditorium to join a crowd of over 100 that had come to cheer parents who were to be awarded diplomas for completing "Parents Institute" classes that had been brought to the school by principal Carlos Ulloa.

Parents are unhappy that yet another principal has been pushed out of the school by the group of teachers that calls itself the "Castle Park Family." This group of teachers seems to be fully in control of personnel decisions at Castle Park Elementary. They have attacked Billings in the press quite ferociously, but he still humbly gets rid of anyone whose ouster is demanded by the "Family."

At one point parents burst out with chants of "Let him stay!" ("¡Que se quede!")

Alicia Moreno, who has been associate principal at Vista Square Elementary in CVESD, will take Carlos Ulloa's place. Billings told parents that Ms. Moreno is very strict and will be very good for the school.

Billings didn't say if Moreno would be strict with the teachers who have caused so many problems with the school. A better idea would be to sit the teachers down, talk about the real problems of dishonesty and constant battles for power. If Moreno doesn't deal with those problems, no amount of strictness will help. The dishonesty and power battles, the anger and fear of discovery, will continue.

CVESD Superintendent Lowell Billings spreads joy and confidence at Castle Park Elementary

A group of women listened to CVESD Superintendent Lowell Billings in front of Castle Park Elementary on June 4, 2008.



Billings told the audience inside the auditorium that he supported the demonstrators, but the look on his face said otherwise.

CVESD Superintendent Lowell Billings talks to families of students

See all posts and pictures of this event here: link.

June 4, 2008 rally at Castle Park Elementary

A student is left wondering what is going on with the adults in the school.

Parents asked, "Who will bring order to Castle Park (Elementary)?"


A man on a unicycle asked, "How many more principals?"

Robin Leon, who fought mistreatment by CVESD, wins biliteracy award

Robin Leon, who joined CVESD teacher Frank Luzzaro in challenging the district's decision to dock their pay because they left a staff meeting at the suggestion of their principal at Feaster School in the 1990s, seems to be doing very well.

Leon and Luzzaro were transferred out of Feaster School against their will.

From CVESD website:
downloaded 06/04/08

LITERARY LEADER-Teacher Robin León reads aloud to Montgomery Elementary students. León was among two Montgomery Elementary honorees for 'Leadership in Biliteracy.'

"Robin León has been a bilingual teacher for 32 years. Parent Ana Mendoza has served as chairwoman of the District English Learner Advisory Committee. León and Mendoza each are integral to the success of John J. Montgomery Elementary School. Now, they are also recipients of the 2008 “Leadership in Biliteracy” Award through the San Diego County Office of Education. The two Montgomery Elementary honorees were formally recognized at the recent 10th Annual Biliteracy Symposium.

"León has been in the Chula Vista Elementary School District for 22 years. Each fall, the bilingual kindergarten teacher goes out of her way to help parents understand the importance of their decision to opt for the bilingual program. She gives generously of her time to provide guidance to parents on how to support their child’s learning at home..."

Parents stage rally at Castle Park Elementary School

Parents, kids and grandparents of Castle Park Elementary, with the support of Chula Vista ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) rallied to ask for an investigation of the highly unusual and constant dismissals and transfers of teachers and principals from the school since 1995.

They waved signs reading "11 (eleven) principals in 11 (eleven) years" and "New principal: How long will she stay?" Clowns and a unicyclist performed. Vehicles honked their horns. Many drivers called out their support.

As superintendent Lowell Billings arrived, he spoke to a group of parents. I was impressed that he communicated so well in Spanish. He that they would be big changes soon among the staff. Apparently teacher Nikki Perez, the target of several parent complaints, will be tranferred out of the school next week.


Lowell Billings had transferred Perez in 2004, but she challenged him to tell her the reason for the transfer. He could hardly say, "Because you are part of a group of teachers that has committed crimes, damaged student learning, and prevented anyone other than yourselves from having control over the school." The reason he couldn't say these words was that he himself was involved in the wrongdoing and the coverup. So an arbitrator ruled that Perez should be allowed to return to the school. Lionel Richman, the mediator, is probably quite unhappy with both Lowell Billings and the teachers union for concealing the truth from him.

Tonight Mr. Billings entered the Castle Park Elementary auditorium to join a crowd of over 100 that had come to cheer parents who were to be awarded diplomas for completing "Parents Institute" classes that had been brought to the school by principal Carlos Ulloa.

Parents are unhappy that yet another principal has been pushed out of the school by the group of teachers that calls itself the "Castle Park Family." This group of teachers seems to be fully in control of personnel decisions at Castle Park Elementary. They have attacked Billings in the press quite ferociously, but he still humbly gets rid of anyone whose ouster is demanded by the "Family."

At one point parents burst out with chants of "Let him stay!" ("¡Que se quede!")

Billings told the audience that he supported the demonstrators, but the look on his face when he saw them said otherwise.

See all posts and pictures of this event here: link.

Castle Park Elementary's House of Cards needs a foundation in law and truth

A group of teachers and parents is working to fix Castle Park Elementary. Each of us has encountered serious wrongdoing by the group of teachers who call themselves the "Castle Park Family." Although our experiences are different, they tend to overlap, because the culture of hostility fostered by the "Family" has contaminated so many parts of the school, including some of the newer teachers who have apparently joined the group.

We want an open, honest airing of problems at Castle Park. No more secrecy. The problems have been made public by the family itself.

Half a million dollars spent on lawyers didn't fix Castle Park Elementary; how about trying honesty and respect?

Why has Castle Park Elementary had 11 principals in 11 years?

Because past is prologue.

Hiding a seminal event, such as the moral collapse that occurred in 2001, serves only to exacerbate its causes.

He who fails to learn from history is fated to repeat its mistakes.

Teachers and administrators and board members have relied on their lawyer, Daniel Shinoff, to do whatever is necessary to hide the truth about Castle Park, regardless of the cost to the taxpayers. It's time to stop charging the taxpayers for the wrongdoing of public officials and public employees.

The learning curve of those who control Castle Park Elementary has been flat for more than 11 years. When things don't go well, they just get rid of their principal.

But principals aren't the only people they get rid of.

The serious problems at Castle Park Elementary started when the bilingual program was introduced in 1994. Many teachers were furious that the school had a new kindergarten teacher that year-a bilingual teacher named Heather Smith. They got rid of her that very year; she was dismissed by the district. (The district does not make any effort to determine why teachers have been targeted for dismissal; district administrators allow school politics to make those decisions.)

The bilingual program added a teacher a year until it had a final total of four bilingual teachers in September 1997.

Many teachers refused to allow bilingual classes into their teaming arrangements.

Rae Correira, a district administrator who tried to arrange teaming in the 1997-1998 school year was suddenly transferred to a different job in the middle of the year. The teachers ran the school. The principal did exactly what teacher leaders told her to do. And that included dismissing another bilingual teacher--Maura Larkins.

Other excellent teacher forced out of the school for political reasons only include Luci Fowers, Heather Coman, and principal Ollie Matos. Matos was clearly targeted for allowing ELAC parents to have a voice in the school.

Unfortunatley, the teachers committed crimes to achieve their goal, and the district and teachers union also committed crimes at the teachers' request. Then the district spent roughly half a million dollars for Daniel Shinoff's work in covering up the crimes. The teachers became drunk with power. They felt untouchable.

Castle Park teachers seem to think they live in some country where they can silence public discussion of public issues.

It's time to start dealing with reality. I offer to have an open and honest discussion with the Castle Park teachers. It's the only way to solve the problem. Hiding wrongdoing is rarely the best way to bring peace. It's time for the truth dodgers to deal with the problems they have caused.

Castle Park Elementary teachers want to hide their heads in the sand while a Superior Court Case is going on regarding crimes committed at the school.

I've started a new blog in Spanish about these issues.

Oops! I forgot about Lowell Billings' problems at Castle Park Elementary

I withdraw my suggestion that Chula Vista Elementary School District superintendent Lowell Billings take it upon himself to bring order to Castle Park Elementary instead of appointing yet another principal to perform as torero at the school. Obviously, Billings lost his personal standing when he came to the school a few years ago, threw around his big smile and personal charm, and ended up making things worse than ever.

Since Lowell is out at a possibility, I would like to suggest Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources Tom Cruz as acting principal of Castle Park Elementary until law and order is restored.

CVESD insistió que la profesora Maura Larkins regresara

Reporte de Maura Larkins de Castle Park Elementary:

Yo fui despedida porque falté a trabajar. Mi razón era que mi escuela era peligrosa para mí por acoso en mi contra.

Yo dije al distrito escolar de Chula Vista en 2001 que era necesario que hicieran una investigación sobre el reporte de las dos maestras en mi escuela que me acusaban de que yo las iba a matar. Claro que el distrito debía de haber investigado algo tan serio. ¿Dos profesoras reportando que temían por su vida?

Pero el distrito nunca investigó.

Ahora, después de siete años, todavía hay problemas enormes en Castle Park Elementary. El problema NO es que alguien va a matar a alguien.

Eso fue mentira.

La realidad del problema es que profesores sin honestidad y sin respeto están arruinando la escuela. Han tenido 11 directores en 11 años (septiembre 1997-septiembre 2008). Los profesores están fuera de control.

Ahora el distrito CVESD debe de hacer la investigación para que Castle Park Elementary pueda funcionar normalmente.

En 2001, sin investigar nada, el distrito me invitó a regresar a trabajar. Obviamente, eso es una prueba de que no creyó a los maestros. Yo regresé y una de las mismas profesoras que mintió la primera vez, hizo otra queja falsa, y me mandaron a mi casa. El acoso continuaba.

Luego el distrito quería que yo regresara otra vez sin ninguna investigación y ninguna garantía para mí. Pero yo tuve miedo de que los maestros hicieran más mentiras contra mí, por eso no regresé.

Luego yo hice una demanda en contra del distrito.

Entonces el distrito me despidió en contra de la ley, Labor Code section 1105.2. También fue en contra de la constitución de nuestro país, que dice que todos tenemos el derecho de pedir ayuda del gobierno cuando alguíen nos hace daño en contra de la ley.

Ahora ya es tiempo de no seguir ocultanco la verdad. Es hora de resolver los problemas, y de que la verdad salga a flote. ¡Nuestros niños de Castle Park Elementary lo agradeceran! Urge una solución.

Por favor, visite mi nuevo blog en español.

Lowell Billings, you should serve as principal of Castle Park Elementary

Lowell Billings, it's clearly impossible for anyone to bring order to Castle Park Elementary when the district, the teachers union, the "Castle Park Family" and even the mayor of Chula Vista have so much invested in keeping the truth hidden.

Come to the school and deal with the situation. Don't go looking for some unfortunate person to sit in the vacant principal's office.

You should serve as principal of Castle Park Elementary until order is restored.

What does the "Castle Park Family" do when someone speaks out about problems?

Photo: Chula Vista Educators President
Peg Myers














The morning after the May 27, 2008 meeting at Castle Park Elementary, one of the parents who spoke out at the meeting took her children in to the school, and came back to find that someone had thrown cereal and milk on her car.

Children are not normally allowed to leave the school cafeteria with milk and cereal, where breakfast was being served at the time of the vandalism. At least one adult who is connected to the "Family" was in the cafeteria.

What interest would a child have in someone else's mother who spoke at a meeting? The speaker's own children are too young to come to the attention of kids old enough to pull a stunt like this.

But several staff members and teachers at Castle Park Elementary have demonstrated out-of-control hostility in recent years, attacking fellow teachers and principals with shocking malice. The current leader of the Castle Park Family is Peg Myers, the president of Chula Vista Educators. Two of the last three CVE presidents (Peg Myers and Gina Boyd) have come to the CVE presidency directly from Castle Park Elementary, and the other one, Jim Groth, aided the cover-up of wrongdoing at the school.

Note to Superintendent Lowell Billings: It's time to end this before somebody gets hurt. It's impossible for anyone to bring order to Castle Park Elementary when the "Family" has so much invested in keeping the truth hidden. Come to the school and deal with the truth. Don't go looking for some unfortunate person to sit in the vacant principal's office. You should serve as principal of Castle Park Elementary until order is restored.

What is going on with CVESD board member Patrick Judd?

UPDATE: This question was finally answered HERE.

I'm wondering why so many people are doing searches for Pat Judd, the recent Mountain Empire School District superintendent who retired under mysterious circumstances.

My access logs tell me the most common searches that bring people to my website and blogs, and "Pat Judd" is right up there at the top, along with "CTA lawyers" and "Cheryl Cox" and a few others.

I assume that many of the searches are related to Sue Sherbondy's lawsuit against Judd. (Her allegations may have played a part in his leaving Mountain Empire.)

But that doesn't explain all the searches by Los Angeles Unified School District. Has Judd applied for a job in Los Angeles?

The upside of a Judd move to Los Angeles would be that he would have to resign from the CVESD board. But I'm saddened by the thought that LAUSD might not be able to find someone better. On the other hand, perhaps Judd is exactly what they want. After all, they have a reputation to live up to: a graduation rate for Latino males below 30%. For that, you need someone who likes to make life miserable for those who are different from himself.

CVESD tries to keep Castle Park Elementary parents off-balance

On May 27, 2008 Castle Park Elementary parents spoke of their frustration with CVESD's plans to lay off low seniority teachers while protecting hostile veteran teachers who were causing problems for children.

I listened as two different groups of parents announced concern to district represenative Leonard Hernandez. (Each of five tables in the Castle Park auditorium served approximately ten parents who formed a group; one member of each group announced the group's conclusions.)

I wondered why it was that Dr. Leonard Hernandez kept listening to these worries without telling parents the truth: the layoffs had been ruled out 5 days earlier.

I had read the news in Voice of San Diego:


"Chula Vista Teachers Saved"
by EMILY ALPERT
May 22, 2008
"Chula Vista Elementary School District plans to cancel layoffs of all 274 educators who were slated to be terminated due to state budget cuts...the district faces a $7.5 million cut -- $3.5 million smaller than originally expected, said district spokesman Anthony Millican."

I began to wonder if the pink slips were a way to intimidate teachers and take parents' minds off their other concerns about school performance in Chula Vista.

I raised my hand and told Dr. Hernandez that the parents apparently didn't know that the pink slips were a thing of the past.

Hernandez immediately developed an urge to share the good news with the crowd. The parents applauded vigorously.

I wonder what the district won't do to keep parents from knowing what is really going on at some schools?

On May 30, 2008 another interesting article appeared in Voice of San Diego. Emily Alpert wrote about one teacher who had already accepted a job in the technology sector before his layoff was reversed.

People who can get better jobs are perhaps not the teachers we want to lose. I think we need a two-tiered teacher work force, master teachers and regular teachers. The master teachers should have more responsibility and be better paid, and not be among the first to be laid off.

Quotes from VOSD article:

..."It's a crazy way of doing business," said Anthony Millican, spokesman for the Chula Vista Elementary School District, which cancelled 274 planned layoffs for classroom teachers, but is still planning to slash more than 140 other positions. Its budget gap narrowed somewhat, from $11 million to $7.5 million, based on Schwarzenegger's revision...

Chula Vista Elementary School District spent about $40,000 on substitute teachers during a two-day hearing, said Millican. Like San Diego Unified, its legal costs have not yet been totaled. The school district hired the firm Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud & Romo, whose partners and senior associates charge $210 an hour.

Dr. Leonard Hernandez continues CVESD's policy of hiding Castle Park Elementary secrets

On May 27, 2008 Dr. Leonard Hernandez from the CVESD office asked a group of about fifty Castle Park Elementary parents what kind of person they wanted as their twelfth principal in under fifteen years, and then told them that the district would make a decision within about two weeks.

He told parents he didn't want to discuss why yet another principal is leaving Castle Park.

He also didn't want to discuss the group of teachers that holds power at the school. Of the five teachers that the district transferred from the school in 2004, one has returned (Nikki Perez), and others exert great influence from outside the school, particularly from the teachers union office (Chula Vista Educators).

The teachers who control the school call themselves the "Castle Park Family," and they have been able to call the shots at the district office for seven years now.

After the district and its lawyers (Stutz Artiano Shinoff & Holtz) made the serious mistake in 2001 of covering up crimes committed by some of these teachers, the district ended up paying $100,000s of dollars to the lawyers.

Then the district found, to its surprise, that the teachers were not grateful at all. Instead, the teachers were determined to keep calling the shots, making it impossible for the district to transfer trouble-making teachers out of Castle Park Elementary.

I believe that Castle Park Elementary (which I attended in the fifties, and worked at from 1997-2001) will never return to normal function until the district engages in some open and honest discussion, modeled on South Africa's "truth and reconciliation" committees.

The district and Castle Park Elementary teachers should quit hiding the crimes and other wrongdoing, say they're sorry for the harm done, and start some honest discussions about human decency and appropriate professional behavior for teachers. Then instead of worrying about how to keep their secrets hidden (as Dr. Leonard Hernandez demanded at the meeting), they could put all that energy into helping children become healthy, strong, honest, law-abiding, well-educated citizens.

Felicia Starr, former school board candidate, involved once again in Castle Park Elementary principal attack

Felicia Starr (in pink sweatshirt), former CVESD board candidate, Chula Vista ethics committee member, Castle Park Elementary PTA president and site council chairperson who worked closely with Kim Simmons to attack the previous principal Ollie Matos in 2004, showed up at the meeting on May 27, 2008 at which parents discussed the traits they wished to find in their next principal.

Many of the approximately 50 parents at the meeting told district representative Dr. Leonard Hernandez that they want someone just like Carlos Ulloa, the current principal (who will be leaving next month).

But Felicia Starr and the "Castle Park Family" (a group of teachers and union honchos who have chewed up and spit out one principal after another for the past fifteen years, and forced many excellent teachers to leave, as well) made it impossible for Carlos Ulloa to stay.

Cheryl Cox has to keep CVESD's secrets for 18 more years to beat this record

I really thought that Cheryl Cox, Pamela Smith and Bertha Lopez, board members of Chula Vista Elementary School District, would do the right thing in my case. I didn't expect much from Patrick "Pat" Judd and Larry Cunningham. But I was wrong. The three women were as bad as the men. They all paid $100,000s of taxpayer money to Stutz, Artiano Shinoff & Holtz to cover up wrongdoing at Castle Park Elementary. They knew that this required intimidating witnesses and pressuring employees to commit perjury.

All I lost was a job--at a sick school. I've watched as my fellow teachers have become more ill over the past seven years. I was not the only one harmed. The teachers who told falsehoods under oath, and the teachers who were silent, were harmed, too. But the kids were hurt even more.

Alton Logan (story below) was damaged by the same kind of people who damaged Castle Park Elementary. People who present false testimony to a court, and tell the public, as Cheryl Cox did, that their life is "an open book." The truth is 180 degrees to the contrary.

If I had been in the shoes of these two lawyers who kept the secret of Alton Logan's innocence, I believe I would have come forward with the truth, and risked being disbarred. But then, I'm not a lawyer. I think 90% of lawyers have lost their sense of right and wrong, which is why our justice system so frequently helps the guilty and punishes the innocent.

26-Year Secret Kept Innocent Man In Prison
May 25, 2008
60 Minutes (CBS)
Lawyers Keep 26-Year Secret

...This is a story about an innocent man who languished in prison for 26 years while two attorneys who knew he was innocent stayed silent...

Alton Logan was convicted of killing a security guard at a McDonald's in Chicago in 1982. Police arrested him after a tip and got three eyewitnesses to identify him. Logan, his mother and brother all testified he was at home asleep when the murder occurred. But a jury found him guilty of first degree murder...

Alton Logan's story cuts to the core of America's justice system.

Simon met Alton Logan in prison, where he's spent almost half of his life.

Asked if he still counts the months and days, Logan told Simon, "There’s no need to count the months and the days. Just count the years."

Logan said that during the first five or six years he was "consumed" by anger. "Then I come to the realization that 'Why be angry over something you can't control?'"

Logan, who maintains he didn't commit the murder, thought they were "crazy" when he was arrested for the crime.

Attorneys Dale Coventry and Jamie Kunz knew Logan had good reason to think that, because they knew he was innocent. And they knew that because their client, Andrew Wilson, who they were defending for killing two policemen, confessed to them that he had also killed the security guard at McDonald's - the crime Logan was charged with.

"We got information that Wilson was the guy and not Alton Logan. So we went over to the jail immediately almost and said, 'Is that true? Was that you?' And he said, 'Yep it was me,'" Kunz recalled.

"He just about hugged himself and smiled. I mean he was kind of gleeful about it...

"How did you interpret that response?" Simon asked.

"That it was true and that he was tickled pink," Kunz said.

"He was pleased that the wrong guy had been charged...

"Well, ...we have to maintain client confidentiality, just as a priest would or a doctor would...

Asked if they contemplated doing something about it, Coventry told Simon, "We wrote out an affidavit. We made an affidavit that we had gotten information through privileged sources, that Alton Logan was not in fact guilty of killing the officer, that in fact somebody else did it..."

"But the minute he was not sentenced to death, the minute he was sentenced to life in prison, you decided to do nothing?" Simon asked.

"Yes," Kunz said. "I can't explain it. I don't know why that made the difference but I know it did."

"There is no difference between life in prison and a death penalty. None whatsoever. Both are a sentence of death," Logan told Simon...

(CBS) "What did you do to see if there might be some loophole to get everyone out of this fix?" Simon asked the attorneys.

"I researched the ethics of attorney-client privilege as much as I could. I contacted people who are involved in making those determinations. I know Jamie did the same thing," Coventry said.

"I could not figure out a way, and still cannot figure out a way, how we could have done anything to help Alton Logan that would not have put Andrew Wilson in jeopardy of another capital case," Kunz added.

"Couldn’t you have leaked it to somebody? To a reporter, to an administrator, to the governor, to somebody?" Simon asked.

"The only thing we could have leaked is that Andrew Wilson confessed to us. And how could we leak that to anybody without putting him in jeopardy?" Kunz replied. "It may cause us to lose some sleep. But, but I lose more sleep if I put Andrew Wilson’s neck in the in the noose."

"He was guilty and Logan was not. So, yes his head should be in the noose. And Logan should go free. It's perfectly obvious to somebody who isn’t a lawyer," Simon pointed out. "Andrew Wilson was guilty, was he not?"

"Yes. And that's up to the system to decide. It's not up to me as his lawyer to decide that he was guilty and so he should be punished and Logan should go free," Kunz said.

"Do you think you might have been disbarred for doing that, for violating attorney-client privilege?" Simon asked.

"I don't think I considered that as much as I considered my responsibility to my client. I was very concerned to protect him," Coventry explained.

"But here is a case where two men, you two were caught up in this bind. And chose to let a man rot away in jail," Simon remarked.

"In terms of my conscience, my conscience is that I did the right thing. Do I feel bad about Logan? Absolutely I feel bad about Logan," Coventry admitted.

The attorneys say they were so tormented over Logan's imprisonment that they convinced Wilson to let them reveal that Wilson was the real killer after Wilson's death. Late last year, Wilson died. The two attorneys finally took their affidavit out of the lockbox, and they called Logan's lawyer, pubic defender Harold Winston.

Winston had already been trying to get Logan a new trial. He'd found two eyewitnesses who swore Logan was not the killer. Now, with Kunz and Coventry's affidavit, he thinks Logan will finally go free.

[Blogger's note: From what I've seen and read over the years, prosecutors hate to admit they've prosecuted an innocent person. More often than not, they prefer to let the innocent rot in jail.]

"...Everything that was dear to me is gone," Logan, who missed his mother's funeral, told Simon.

His brothers Eugene and Tony told 60 Minutes they've shared Alton's pain, and they always knew that he was no killer. "My brother ain’t got the nature to do nothin' like that in his soul. He ain’t gonna take nobody else's life. We weren't raised like that," Tony said.

"Your brother is 54 now. Can he start again at the age of 54?" Simon asked...

But Alton Logan is still behind bars. "They are quick to convict but they are slow to correct they mistakes," he said...




Cheryl Cox's prosecutor pal Bonnie Dumanis is one of the prosecutors Alton Logan was talking about when he said they are slow to correct mistakes:

Marine Wife Murder Case Still Active
05-30-2008
Cox Communications

(San Diego, CA) -- A judge ruled he still has the authority to completely dismiss the case of Cynthia Sommer who was found guilty of killing her husband and spent a few years in jail, but later had the charges dismissed "without Prejudice". Judge John Einhorn says he may dismiss the case "with prejudice" which means the case could not be re filed, "without" means the prosecution could re file murder charges against Sommers who was alleged to have poisoned her husband in 2002.

Chula Vista Teachers Saved

Chula Vista teachers have been saved from Arnold Schwarzenegger's budget cuts. But who will save them from their union, Chula Vista Educators?

Voice of San Diego
EMILY ALPERT
Thursday, May 22 2008

Chula Vista Elementary School District plans to cancel layoffs of all 274 educators who were slated to be terminated due to state budget cuts. Under Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's revised budget proposal, the district faces a $7.5 million cut -- $3.5 million smaller than originally expected, said district spokesman Anthony Millican...
There are no current plans to reverse layoffs for other employees, he said...

Ethics Complaint Forbidden Against CVE President

Why is the root of Chula Vista Educators' constant problems? Possibly the main cause of strife is the result of CTA lawyers helping CVE leaders to stifle complaints.

CTA lawyers help the presidents and executive directors of local affiliates to silence complaints--in Long Beach and Chula Vista, and in other school districts in California.

When the CTA-chosen executive director of the Teachers Association of Long Beach, Scott McVarish, misused funds in 2007, CTA wouldn't let the TALB board of directors fire him. Instead, CTA paid for a lawyer to defend him when he slandered one of the directors.

Finally CTA realized too much money was being lost, but instead of turning over power to the directors, it took over the union itself and gave control to ex-CTA president Barbara Kerr.

The directors have filed suit to get their union back.

This all familiar to those of us who know about the actions of Barbara Kerr and CTA head counsel Beverly Tucker in Chula Vista Elementary School District.

Tim O'Neill the executive director chosen by CTA for South County Teachers United (CTA), informed Chula Vista Educators member Maura Larkins in December 2002 that she was forbidden from making a complaint to her union affiliate Board of Directors or Representative Council about unethical behavior on the part of the president. Why was she forbidden? Because president Gina Boyd herself refused to allow a complaint to be made about her.

You can't expect much in the way of ethics from an organization like this.

An open letter to CTA head counsel Beverly Tucker's sidekick at the CTA Santa Fe Springs legal office

Hi Mike:
I just noticed that someone hacked my CTA webpage that had the quote of you saying that you and the rest of the public don't care if my due process rights were violated.

You shouldn't be any more ashamed of your attitude than Beverly Tucker or Carolyn Doggett or the officers of CTA should be ashamed of their attitudes. I hope they aren't making you feel bad about it. They should be nothing but grateful to you for doing what they paid you to do.

Ironically, your hostility was actually a measure of your humanity.

You couldn't have done the job that you were assigned to do if you hadn't dehumanized me. You had to believe that I didn't deserve the protection of the law or my union. You had to believe this, or it would have been impossible for you to help your clients get away with their multiple crimes against me. So hold your head up high when you are in the presence of CTA bigwigs--or 90% of lawyers. You might, however, want to bow your head in the presence of children.

Maura Larkins

P.S. You shouldn't be any more ashamed than Chula Vista Educators (CVE) officers Gina Boyd, Tim O'Neill, Jim Groth, or Peggie (Peg) Myers.

Greg Cox fails to address question of how the Steve Castaneda case was initiated--and why the investigation of Cheryl Cox wasn't.

Bob Castaneda, the brother of Chula Vista Councilman Steve Castaneda, raised important questions about the two prosecutions carried out by the San Diego District Attorney's Public Integrity Unit.

Bonnie Dumanis appointed Peter O'Toole to bring in two political opponents of Chula Vista mayor Cheryl Cox for questioning. Both of them were charged with lying during these odd investigations. How did these investigations get initiated? Why were two men prosecuted for felony perjury even though the investigations uncovered no crimes?

Why has a complaint about Cheryl Cox and her agents at Chula Vista Elementary School District been ignored by this "Public Integrity Unit"?

Supervisor Greg Cox has written a letter that does absolutely nothing to answer the questions that have been raised. Of course Cox protests that he has done nothing wrong. But how will he restore the credibility of the District Attorney's office? He makes no effort to do so.

My website has a comparison of the letters by Bob Castaneda and Greg Cox.

The question remains: was the PIU tipster a friend of Cheryl and Greg Cox?

The answer seems sort of obvious, doesn't it?