Southwestern College trustee Humberto Peraza calls for Sweetwater Superintendent Ed Brand to resign

Humberto Peraza

Several years ago I tried, with no luck, to interest Humberto Peraza in the problem of school corruption and dysfunction. I presented evidence of wrongdoing by Bertha Lopez and her fellow trustees at Chula Vista Elementary School District. It sure took a lot to get Peraza to speak up. He waited until Bonnie Dumanis indicted fifteen school officials and their associates. In fairness, I must admit that Peraza was very polite and respectful to me. Perhaps he would have done more if his boss at the time, Bob Filner, had given him the go ahead. But Peraza shouldn't pretend that Brand's sins are of recent vintage. Ed Brand was behaving badly long before Jesus Gandara came to town. I assume Peraza doesn't want to talk about that because too many powerful people might get unwanted attention if officials started taking an interest in what was going on at Sweetwater and other districts BEFORE all those famous dinners with contractors took place. For the record, the corruption I was talking about was directly harming students. It was not just about squeezing a few meals out of contractors.

Trustee Peraza calls for resignation of SUHSD chief Ed Brand
Written by: Jaime Pronoble / News Editor
Southwestern Sun
03/14/2014

As the Sweetwater Union High School District careens toward a possible March 18 teachers strike, Southwestern College Trustee Humberto Peraza called for the immediate resignation or termination of the district’s superintendent, Dr. Ed Brand.

Ed Brand

“This superintendent should be fired right away,” said Peraza. “We should not wait and just sit there for his contract to run out (in November)when he’s completely destroyed this district and continues to do damage to it on a daily basis.”

Peraza said he is “disgusted” by Brand’s handling of the negotiations with the district teachers and his use of threats and bullying tactics.

“Ed Brand was supposed to come in to help fix the situation from what was a corrupt regime,” said Peraza. “I don’t know who in this community thought that it could be any worse than what (former superintendent Jesus) Gandara did, but somehow, someway, Ed Brand has found a way to make this situation far worse than it was.”

Community leader Stewart Payne also called for Brand’s immediate resignation saying he has made conditions at the district “unhealthy.”

“(The district) had issues before he came back,” Payne said, “but (Brand) has certainly made conditions and the environment in the district worse.”

After more than a year of unsuccessful negotiations between the district and the Sweetwater Education Association (SEA), the teacher’s union, classroom teachers are gearing up to strike as early as Tuesday. SEA President Roberto Rodriguez said the district is not negotiating in good faith and has not cooperated with state mediators.



“(The district) has been showing up for mediations, they have been here every meeting,” said Rodriguez, “but after four sessions of mediation, we got our first proposal from them at the last session, and it wasn’t a credible proposal from our point of view.”

Peraza, said the situation at SUHSD has gotten out of hand.

“The fact that the leadership of this district has allowed this to come to a point where they are about to strike and leave a lot of kids without an education for who knows how long is unbelievable,” said Peraza.

Rodriguez said striking is not what the teachers want to do, but most have indicated they feel they have no choice.

“Our goal isn’t to strike, it is to settle the contract with the district as soon as possible,” he said. “However, we want to make sure the district understands if they keep dragging their feet the way they have been, our members are ready to take the ultimate action.”

A letter from Brand said it is unlawful for the SEA to threaten a strike while engaged in impasse mediation, but Rodriguez said his claim is not true.

Rodriguez said the SEA filed an unfair labor practice with the Public Employee Relations Board (PERB) on a contract violation by the district. He said district negotiators changed the amount of money the district contributes toward teacher health benefits.

“We negotiated an agreement last year,” said Rodriguez. “In October, the district unilaterally announced they were going to contribute less money than had been negotiated. By changing the condition of the contract unilaterally, that is a violation of contract.”

District negotiators denied any violations.

Peraza acknowledged that it might seem unusual for a trustee of the community college to call for the resignation of the superintendent of the high school district, but he said he could no longer stand by quietly.

“Sweetwater has a lot of great teachers and dedicated employees, but the place is a train wreck and Brand is driving the train,” he said. “We owe it to the kids in our community to fix this mess and we can’t start to do that until Brand is gone. He needs to leave right now.”

Southwestern College Elections 2012
October 20, 2012
Southwestern Sun
Compiled by: Albert Fulcher, Thomas Baker, Angelica Rodriguez, Amparo Mendoza, Serina Duarte, Enrique Raymundo

Governing Board Vice President Humberto Peraza was appointed last August during a time of turmoil and controversy. He said he decided to run for election to the board to continue his work to reform SWC and clean up the college’s reputation following the “pay for play” scandal that led to numerous felony charges against former college administrators and board members. He is a small business owner, and formerly policy director for San Diego City Council President Ben Hueso, regional director for Senator Barbara Boxer and district chief of staff to Congressman Bob Filner.

Married with two young boys, Peraza said he has coached soccer, football and Little League baseball. His wife is also a professional.

“We are a family that is constantly on the move,” he said. “That is a full-time job in itself. My parents, my aunts and my wife’s parents all live here so our family is a South Bay family. This is our home and I want to make sure that the education is good for our kids.”

Peraza said he brings experience and knowledge of the community to the college and this has fueled his efforts to reform old policies and demand transparency.

“Ultimately, I want to do something that leaves something for our children,” he said. “I am running so that the board stays on the right track. It has pushed in the right direction and hired a new superintendent. We have done more things in one year than most boards and governmental entities have done in three or four. You have instructional, ethics and campaign reform. We started the community benefits agreement. Countless things in between are happening and have been accomplished.”

Peraza said community members still have concerns about accreditation, Proposition R and past corruption. He said the current board majority is reforming the college and that “house cleaning” continues. “(The previous) board has been completely wiped out,” he said. “There is a new superintendent in town and she wiped out the (corrupt) staff. We continue to push and create reforms.”

Peraza said it takes people of courage to stand in the face of adversity.

“I have enjoyed working with this board and the superintendent to continue changes,” he said. “It has been my honor and I would consider myself lucky if I can continue to do it for four more years. We are still in the tunnel but we can see the light at the end. Perception is important. Doing the right thing, being a transparent, open government creates trust on campus in the community. I am running to continue to make those reforms, see that finished and see Southwestern College become the shining example for the rest of the region.”

Peraza said budget is the biggest challenge today and if Proposition 30 fails SWC faces “devastating” cuts to classes and programs.

“My hope is if that Prop 30 passes, that gives us a little more flexibility to stay within the budget, to be able to handle the services for the people and the students that we service right now,” he said. “That is important to make sure that we can actually educate people and that we have the faculty, staff, teachers and counselors. I don’t think anyone can come up with a sweeping solution and if they say they can, they are lying to you. If someone has a solution for a $10 million budget cut, I would love to hear it. I think that our solutions have to be looked at long term.”

Peraza said he has advocated for revenue generation as an alternative to constant cutting. He said the stadium is an example of an underutilized college resource and could generate revenue hosting local and international professional soccer, rugby and concerts.

“I have heard from experienced educators that up to 25 community colleges will close and cease to exist if the tax initiative does not pass and that is a very scary thought,” he said. “Things (in California are) getting worse and worse.”

Peraza said Senate Bill 1456, based on the Student Success Task Force Recommendations, has good ideas but is also troubling. Passed last month, the legislation narrows the mission of community colleges to transfer and certificate attainment. It will require all incoming freshmen to declare majors and have an educational plan aimed to get them through community college in two years instead of the current average of four.

“The whole thing about having people coming in and deciding what their major is going to be and turning it into almost like a factory, you are in and out in two years, not everybody works that way,” he said. “There are many students that do not know what they want and they come to community college for exactly that reason.”

Working students have it much tougher these days, Peraza said, and cannot take as many classes as the new legislation will require.

“Some will be left out in the cold and that is my biggest concern,” he said. “Not everybody is the same. It cannot be this cookie cutter ideal that everybody fits into this one box. It doesn’t work that way.”

Speech and press freedom are essential, Peraza said. He pledged to always fight for First Amendment rights for all while he is on the board.

“Student reporters (in colleges have) freedom of the press,” he said. “To me, the free press is untouchable. It should not be impacted in any way or influenced by anyone on this campus, including myself, and the administration. There should never be a time, like the (past) administration that tried to block printing of the newspaper just because they do not like what you write.”

Peraza said he is working to introduce a local hiring process that helps veteran and disabled-owned companies.

“One of the reasons is to ensure that local people get (college construction) jobs,” he said. “People that are paying for those bonds should be the ones (who benefit). If we can do that we can revitalize our local economy rather than money going somewhere else.”

Peraza said he is able to make tough decisions.

“We need the people with the most courage,” he said. “I am not worried about where else I am going to go, or where I am going to be. I am here to make sure that students get educated when there are cuts. What is the most important thing on this campus? Educating students, period.”

Quinones, Ricasa, Cartmill, Cabello weigh pleas vs. fighting

The district attorney does not want trials in school official corruption cases because too much information would come out. I consider it a joke to be prosecuting officials for having dinner with contractors when far more serious corruption exists in San Diego County schools.

Quinones, Ricasa, Cartmill, Cabello weigh pleas vs. fighting
Annie Malcolm loans a crucial $500
By Susan Luzzaro
March 21, 2014

No one can estimate the cost to taxpayers for the South Bay scandal that involved pay-to-play charges and millions in Southwestern College and Sweetwater Union High School District bond money. But the costs continue to add up for defendants.

Sweetwater trustee Pearl Quinones plead guilty to one felony and one misdemeanor March 18. In a phone conversation March 19 Quinones said, “I made the decision to plea because of my family. The pressure and the expense are too much. Even at the last minute though, when I was standing in front of Judge [Ana] Espana, I still wanted to keep fighting.”

Quinones noted her felony charge was just over $500. Her plea stated: “In 2007, I was an elected School Board member of the Sweetwater Union High School District. I accepted gifts from Henry Amigable in 2007 with a total value in excess of $500 and I did not report them. The maximum amount of gifts one may receive from one source per year as of 2007 was three hundred and ninety dollars. Henry Amigable provided these gifts with the intent to influence my vote on business awarded to Gilbane, his employer.”

There is some confusion about whether Quinones will step down from the board immediately. It was not part of her plea agreement. According to deputy district attorney Leon Schorr, trustee Arlie Ricasa had indicated prior to accepting a plea deal that she would step down. Quinones made no such agreement.

Clouding the issue of Quinones’s trustee seat, Judge Espana has recently boiled some corruption felony charges down to misdemeanors — it’s anyone’s guess what will happen April 28 when Quinones is sentenced. (Southwestern College’s vice-president, Nicholas Alioto, for example, plead guilty to a felony, which Espana later reduced to a misdemeanor.)

Sweetwater’s attorney Dan Shinoff was contacted by email regarding Quinones’s trustee seat, however he did not respond by the time this story was filed.

Prohibitive legal costs compelled former Sweetwater trustee Arlie Ricasa and trustee Jim Cartmill to start defense funds.

Ricasa pleaded guilty in December to a misdemeanor. Her largest defense donors were family members. New Image Computers also donated $5000 to her defense.

Cartmill has been charged with wrongful influence, filing a false instrument and accepting a bribe among other things. Through his business Let’s Talk Health, he loaned his defense fund $20,000. Annie Malcolm, wife to David Malcolm, a former port commissioner who was obliged to step down due to conflict of interest charges, donated $5,000 to Cartmill’s defense.

Justice has been meted out for South Bay corruption defendant Gary Cabello in a different way. Cabello worked for several bond underwriting firms and was involved in transactions for both Southwestern College and Sweetwater Union High School District.

On October 28, 2013 he plead guilty to two felony counts.

In addition, on March 18 the Securities and Exchange Commission barred Cabello from association with any broker, dealer, investment adviser and barred him from participating in an penny stock offerings.

No doubt as the April 28 trial date approaches — the remaining defendants will be weighing the price of a plea bargain against the price of a trial.

Mayor Cheryl Cox confronts Sweetwater Union High School District; CVESD Supt. Escobedo needs to do a LOT MORE than work on "relationships"

Mayor takes aim at Sweetwater during speech
Chula Vista Mayor Cheryl Cox delivers final state of the city, addresses issues at Sweetwater
By Allison Sampite-Montecalvo
SDUT
Feb. 25, 2014

CHULA VISTA — Chula Vista Mayor Cheryl Cox delivered her final state of the city address Tuesday night to a packed city hall, using the forum to zero in on the Sweetwater school district, which she said needs to improve its relationship with the community...

Cox said the Sweetwater Union High school District's problems continue to affect the city’s reputation and students’ future. A major issue in the district has been the prosecution of four of five school board members on corruption charges. One has since pleaded guilty and resigned...

Cox said she’s done watching poor governance get worse.

[Maura Larkins comment: I see no indication at all that Sweetwater has gotten worse. Mayor Cox seems to be forgetting decades of bad behavior. Or perhaps Cox is only worried about contractor kickbacks, not the deeper corruption that affects students directly.

Does Mayor Cox think that the Mary Ann Weegar case was a result of better governance than what SUHSD has at present? And does she think Bonny Garcia gave better legal advice than Dan Shinoff does? Just over two years ago attorney Dan Shinoff took over Bonny Garcia's duties as SUHSD's lawyer for day-to-day advice. Shinoff continues, as he has done for over a decade, to defend the district when it gets sued. The board seems to think that Shinoff is good at silencing public comment about the district, but Mr. Shinoff seems to have lost his touch in that regard. He doesn't appear to have been much help to San Ysidro School District recently. Does Mayor Cox think that perenniel SUHSD Supt. Ed Brand suddenly became corrupt?]

See all SDER posts re Dan Shinoff.

“I am compelled to confront Sweetwater’s current problems through my ability to convene community members in constructive conversation,” she said. “It’s clear that the district is an asset that reflects on perceptions the city.”

In essence, she said it’s time for the district to overcome its bad reputation.

...In a statement released the following day, Sweetwater district superintendent Ed Brand said that putting learning first has been and will continue to be, the commitment of the district.

“Is the Sweetwater Union High School District going through a difficult time? Yes," Brand said. "Are there actions that we can take to improve the district? Of course there are. We appreciate the concern of Mayor Cox and welcome a dialogue on how to move forward."

Francisco Escobedo, superintendent of the Chula Vista Elementary School District, said her comments were poignant.

“I understand where she’s coming from and I look forward to improving our relationship and collaboration with Sweetwater,” he said.

[Maura Larkins' comment: Escobedo is right not to attack Sweetwater. He needs to clean up corruption at CVESD, but he has shown absolutely no interest in any such effort.]

Councilman Rudy Ramirez said he was glad to hear her weigh in on the issue.

“I like that she stepped out on Sweetwater,” he said. “It was a little uncharacteristic and edgy for her.”

[Maura Larkins' comment: Edgy? Are you kidding, Mr. Ramirez? It's about time someone made an issue of school corruption.]

Cox also discussed the concept of unifying the Sweetwater district with local elementary school districts, a proposal brought up last month by fellow Councilwoman Mary Salas.

“The idea of unifying K-12 was … in response to what I perceive to be frustration with the Sweetwater district,” she said. “First, it doesn’t address the issue of better governance, and second, minus the support of districts themselves, unification is dead on arrival.”

[Maura Larkins' comment: Good point! The unification project does NOT address the issue of better governance. Cheryl Cox knows that there are problems at CVESD. I suspect that she was pretty disgusted with CVESD by the time she left.] Cox, who will be termed out of the mayor's office in the fall, said the culture at Sweetwater should change at the top before a conversation about unification can be had.

“We’ve turned things around at city hall in the face of dire circumstances,” she said. “The same can be done at Sweetwater.”...

Alioto, Dominguez, Salcido, Wilson plead guilty

Why did this case result in puny plea bargains? My guess is that no one in downtown San Diego wants the public to learn about the true scope of corruption in our schools. This whole circus seems to have been about who gets to stay in the education establishment rather than actually cleaning up the establishment. There's absolutely no reason why business as usual will not proceed in our educational institutions.

It's not that I wanted harsher punishment for these defendants. Absolutely not. I think these people are just fall guys. I would like to see a public trial in which these people could talk about the culture they encountered when they first got involved with Southwestern College and Sweetwater Union High School District.

Alioto, Dominguez, Salcido, Wilson plead guilty
Written by: Lina Chankar / Senior Staff Writer
Southwestern College Sun
01/28/2014

Four more former Southwestern College officials pleaded guilty to felonies and misdemeanors in the South Bay Corruption Case. Former administrators Nicholas Alioto and John Wilson along with former trustees Yolanda Salcido and Jorge Dominguez all likely avoided prison sentences by admitting guilt to one count. They joined former superintendent Raj. K. Chopra as former college officials guilty of crimes related to Proposition R funding.

College employees expressed disappointment over the lenient sentences approved by Judge Ana España and the San Diego County District Attorney, but also relief that the scandal and criminal proceedings may be finally winding down. Of the 15 defendants in the case, 12 had direct links to SWC either as officials, employees or contractors. Defendants originally faced 262 charges in what District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis called the “largest corruption case in the history of San Diego County.” As of press time, 11 of the cases have been settled through plea bargains.

Salcido was originally indicted on 14 counts, including extortion, perjury and accepting bribes. She pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor for filing a false document. Her sentencing is April 22.

Also pleading guilty to criminal charges were former SWC contractors Paul Bunton, Henry Amigable, Jeff Flores and Gary Cabello. SWC EOPS Director Arlie Ricasa pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor for crimes committed as a Sweetwater Union High School District trustee (see adjacent story). Charges against former SWC Interim President Greg Sandoval, a former SUHSD trustee, are pending. Sweetwater trustees Jim Cartmill, Pearl Quiñonez and Bertha Lopez still face charges, as does former Sweetwater superintendent Jesus Gandara.

All defendants had extensive affidavits detailing the charges against them. Most were more than 100 pages. Chopra originally faced 13 charges — nine felonies — including perjury, receiving a bribe and conflict of interest. He pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of filing a false document. Chopra will not make any more court appearances, said his attorney Michael Attanasio. Chopra was fined and will perform community service, said Attanasio, but amounts are pending.

Former SWC facilities director Wilson pleaded guilty to one felony, as did former trustee Dominguez. Former vice president of business Alioto originally faced 12 counts, including bribery and perjury, but was allowed by the DA to plead guilty to just one felony. Alioto, Chopra and Wilson will be sentenced Jan. 7.

Former Seville Construction executive Amigable cooperated with prosecutors in exchange for a misdemeanor plea deal. An email he sent to SWC construction contractor Flores explaining how Dominguez could influence Chopra was described in an affidavit.

“Had a good dinner this evening with George (Jorge) Dominguez Board member at Southwestern College, his wife, Greg Sandoval and his wife and Angela and I,” wrote Amigable. “Greg encouraged George to support us to get the Program management assignment at Southwestern College. Right now the President of the college Raj Chopra has gotten real close to George. George believes he can influence Chopra right now because he needs his board support. He is going to set up a lunch with the President and let us pitch to him directly why they need to hire a PM (program manager) right away they want to go over John Wilson. In addition, George is going to try and influence who will be put on the selection committee.”

SWC officials were treated to expensive dinners, extravagant wine and cocktails, theatre tickets, sporting events and other gifts in exchange for support and favors for Proposition R contractors and hopefuls. Some dinners approached $3,000 with wine and bar tabs of nearly $600.

Proposition R-related events have rattled the college since 2008 when the $389 million construction bond passed. Chopra punished college employees who spoke against passage of the measure and layed off at least one classified employee for not supporting the bond.

Chopra, Alioto and Salcido engaged in an assault on the student newspaper and its faculty when it began investigating irregularities in contracting, campaign contributions, extravagant gifts to college administrators, and secretive transactions at the college’s educational foundation in 2009. Alioto twice froze newspaper funding, refused to authorize payment of printing bills and publically accused the adviser of financial mismanagement. Chopra physically assaulted a journalism student and the newspaper adviser, then offered the adviser “whatever it is you want” to influence his students to stop the investigations. In 2010 Alioto ordered campus police to arrest three staff members of The Sun. When four armed officers approached the newspaper building the adviser locked them in his office and refused to turn them over. A two-and-a-half hour standoff ensued and a crowed gathered. Police left when Professor Robert Unger, a lawyer, convinced them that their action was illegal and they needed to leave.

Alioto also took control of the newspaper’s advertising revenue and failed to collect more than $11,000 over a period of 12 months. Journalism students billed the college for the funds in 2011, but the request was ignored. In September 2010 Chopra directed former Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr. Mark Meadows to order The Sun to cease publication until after the November 2010 governing board elections. Journalism students raised private funds and printed the September 2010 issue of The Sun in Los Angeles County. The issue broke the story of Alioto accepting luxurious vacations and other gifts from contractors and potential contractors. The Sun also published investigations about unreported campaign contributions to Salcido, Dominguez and current board president Terry Valladolid. Valladolid cooperated with the DA and has not been indicted.

Salcido and Dominguez were defeated at the polls by Norma Hernandez and Tim Nader. Days before the new board majority assumed office, Salcido, Dominguez, Valladolid and former trustee Jean Roesch voted to give Chopra a $100,000 severance package and he resigned before he could be fired. Alioto resigned in March 2012, followed by more than a dozen other Chopra allies in the administration, including the VP of human resources and the campus police chief.

CVESD teacher removed for requesting massages: another member of the Castle Park Family causes a scandal

Stephenie Parker-Pettit

Comments regarding this post can be found HERE.

Stephenie Pettit has been placed on administrative leave for requesting massages from students. (See Channel 10 News story below.)

No one, including the police, has found that there was any hint of wrongdoing in Ms. Pettit's classroom--only bad judgment.

(Updated Mar. 14, 2014) But a parent has made me realize that Ms. Pettit's actions could result in serious harm to students in the future because they conditioned children to touch an adult on request. Even worse, kids were given class currency to do the touching. If CVESD used my plan for master teachers, this would not have happened. Our system puts untested teachers in full and solitary control of classrooms right after getting their teaching credentials. There is no close oversight or support to guide them.

Superintendent Francisco Escobedo will need to be careful in this case. A couple of members of his administration have more to hide than a few massages.

Asst. Supt. Sandra Villegas-Zuniga and Human Resources director Peg Myers will want to go easy on Ms. Pettit. They will want to continue the district's policy of avoiding investigations. It's a good policy when the people with the most to hide are not the ones the district is targeting. Ms. Pettit might say more than they want to hear if she were pressed for information.

WHAT KIND OF INVESTIGATIONS DOES CVESD CONDUCT?

Let's compare two situations: kids giving massages in the current case versus a report that a teacher might come to school and shoot everybody in an earlier case involving Peg Myers and Stephenie Pettit. Why was there NO investigation in the earlier case, while the police were called in in the second case? Because no reporters were interested in the earlier case.

The fact is, CVESD doesn't do thorough investigations to keep kids safe. Instead, it tries to protect its reputation. Too often this means covering up truly illegal actions by staff. As soon as as a report of child molestation surfaces in any school, a district administrator runs over to the school and threatens all the teachers that they'd better keep quiet. And they do keep quiet. The public has the right to vote for board members, but clearly does NOT enjoy the right to know what's going on at school districts.

Stephenie Pettit would NOT be the target of any investigation in the earlier case, but she'd be a star witness. She knows the truth about the reports of "fear for their lives" by teachers Jo Ellen Hamilton and Linda Watson when they taught at Castle Park Elementary in 2001. Pettit knows the role that Peg Myers played in the cover-up of crimes by Robin Donlan and other teachers.

And Sandra Villegas-Zuniga and Francisco Escobedo also know, or they should know.


Asst. Supt. Sandra Villegas-Zuniga might want to review her bizarre dealings with Peg Myers.


Peg Myers at her deposition

When Myers was the site representative at Castle Park Elementary School about ten years ago, she kept a tight rein on Stephenie Pettit in order to make sure that illegal actions were kept hidden. Stephenie Pettit was not involved in the original illegal actions, but she did keep her mouth shut after she found out about them. Later, when Myers was President of Chula Vista Educators (CVE), she continued to use her position to cover-up events at Castle Park in 2000-2001.

When she was President of CVE, Myers apparently impressed Villegas-Zuniga as someone who would help the district manipulate teachers. After sitting across from Myers at the bargaining table for a number of years, Villegas-Zuniga convinced Myers to clamber across the table to the other side and accept the job of Director of Human Resources. Obviously, Peg's intimate knowledge of individual teachers, and the workings of the teacher union, have been very helpful to the district in intimidating teachers. [Yes, I know that the district website claims that Myers is in charge of "classified" staff. Don't be fooled. She spends at least some of her time intimidating teachers.]

So here's the problem in the current situation. Stephenie Pettit knows the details of who was involved, and what actions they took, during the years when a large number of violations of civil and criminal laws were committed at Castle Park Elementary School, the district office, and the teachers union. The near-destruction of a school by power-hungry teachers and administrators was just the boost Peg Myers' career needed, and she has catapulted dramatically to higher positions since she was just an ordinary teacher at Castle Park Elementary in 2001.

CASTLE PARK ELEMENTARY

The effects of the decade-long teacher meltdown at Castle Park Elementary--that resulted in the school having 11 principals in 11 years--continue to ripple through the district.

It staggers the imagination to realize how many teachers involved with Castle Park Elementary's descent into a miasma of dysfunction have continued to make news long since the Chula Vista Star-News and San Diego Union-Tribune lost interest in supporting a troublesome group of teachers, parents and administrators that brought the school to its knees during their years of arbitrary power.


Pam Smith and Larry Cunningham

Current Chula Vista Elementary board members Pam Smith and Larry Cunningham oversaw the cover-up of illegal actions by CVESD employees at the school in 2000-2001. (I was a teacher at Castle Park Elementary, with Stephenie Pettit and Peg Myers, at that time.)


Former CVE president Jim Groth wanted a replacement who would continue the teacher versus teacher culture that he had helped create. Peg Myers fit the bill perfectly. See all Jim Groth blog posts.

It should be mentioned that current member of the statewide CTA board of directors Jim Groth played a big role in the concealment of illegal actions. He was then, and still is, a member of the Chula Vista Educators board. I imagine he's already hopped in his car and driven over to the district office to remind the administration that the district and the teachers union need to continue the cover-up.

After the district paid $100,000s of taxpayer dollars in legal fees to lawyers Dan Shinoff and Mark Bresee for their successful efforts to protect teachers and administrators who had committed crimes, the prevailing teachers apparently felt invulnerable. They delighted in their arbitrary power to do whatever they wanted and get away with it. What else could the district expect when it had fired a teacher (me!) simply for demanding an investigation, and for refusing to come back to work until something was done about the relentless harassment of me by teacher thugs.

Kids are being harmed every day in CVESD classrooms by cruel and/or incompetent teachers and administrators as well as those with faulty judgment. The district needs to take steps to prevent and mitigate harm to children.


Former CVE President Gina Boyd. See Gina Boyd's deposition HERE.


Robin Donlan, notorious along with her husband for $7 million Wireless Facilities stock options fraud case. See Robin Donlan's deposition HERE.

The rogue teachers were led by Robin Donlan, a personal friend of both Peg Myers and former CVE president Gina Boyd. Gina Boyd was a member in extremely good standing of the self-styled "Castle Park Family". The self-styled "Castle Park Family" resisted all efforts by a string of principals (averaging one principal per year for 11 years) to get them to settle down and do their jobs. I myself was a target of the ruling teachers. Administrators Libia Gil and Rick Werlin did the bidding of those teachers.

Before my lawsuit was even finished, five teachers were transferred out of the school during the summer of 2004. Stephanie Pettit was one of the "Castle Park Five" group that included the notorious Robin Donlan, Peg Myers, and Nikki Perez.

This district keeps finding that its favored employees have big problems. Perhaps an effective evaluation system for teachers would help? But no, that would interfere with the politics that currently guides employment decisions at the district. And the district wouldn't have hired Peg Myers if it didn't want to keep politics in the forefront of district decisions.

I doubt that the district will try to fire Mrs. Pettit. She knows too much about criminal actions by teachers and administrators. I predict a settlement.

And as far as the parent who says Stephanie should not teach again, I don't see how voluntarily giving a massage to a teacher could seriously harm a child. The situation is no more serious than if Stephanie were rewarding kids to fan her. The problem with the behavior is that the students are being asked to treat the teacher like a queen rather than a professional. The touching was clearly NOT sexual. It's only wrong because kids shouldn't be performing personal services for teachers--like combing hair, cutting hair, shining shoes, etc. Of course, Stephenie used poor judgment, but she's been taught by the district and the teachers union that she and other teachers with political connections are free to indulge any whim without repercussions.

A more important issue is that kids are being damaged by teachers every day in CVESD classrooms. There is psychological damage being done by cruel, rigid teachers who take pleasure in causing pain. Stephanie did not cause pain to the kids who volunteered to give her massages.

It would be interesting to know what else was happening when the kids were giving the teacher a massage. Was she teaching them at the same time? This could very well be the case. But there are so many classrooms where teachers spend huge amounts of time NOT interacting with their students that it would be very dangerous for anyone to criticize Stephanie even if she had not been teaching while receiving a massage. She could easily get plenty of witnesses to talk about the time wasted in classrooms while teachers are doing something other than teaching. I could write a book about it.

Stephanie deserves the due process than she herself helped to deny to me. Lawyer Dan Shinoff of Stutz Artiano Shinoff & Holtz took tax dollars for his successful efforts to keep Stephanie from being deposed in my case. I would be happy to deposed in any case she might file--which is exactly why I think that the district won't try to fire her. Here's my deposition in the current defamation lawsuit against me by Stutz Artiano Shinoff & Holtz. Stutz is quite miffed, it seems, that the Court of Appeal says I have a constitutional right to discuss the lawyers who act on behalf of public schools.

Though I was not able to depose Stephanie, I was able to take the depositions of Castle Park Family members Gina Boyd, Peg Myers and Robin Donlan. (I recommend clicking on these links for these depositions if only to see the hilarious expressions on the faces of teachers who don't like being asked to tell the truth.)

NEWS COVERAGE

Channel 10 News and San Diego Union-Tribune have covered this story. Let's see if Channel 10 will investigate further the failure of school districts to do meaningful evaluations of teachers. The SDUT has been covering up for CVESD for years. I hope they will start to cover the real stories instead of only the sensationalistic ones.

EVALUATING TEACHERS

Researches say that 10% of teachers are doing a bad job, failing to add value to their students' academic abilities. Many teachers have serious personality problems. But the fact is that CVESD really doesn't know its teachers. I never met a principal who really observed and really talked to staff members to find out what they were up to.

It's time that ALL teachers in CVESD were properly evaluated.

Chula Vista teacher removed from job, accused of soliciting massages from students
Kandiss Crone
10 News
02/13/2014

CHULA VISTA, Calif. - Some parents at a South Bay elementary school told 10News they couldn't believe what their kids said went on inside their third-grade classroom.

"This behavior, to my son, has become so normalized that he did not report it to me," said parent Andy Stumph.

Some parents say Salt Creek Elementary School teacher Stephanie Petitt solicited massages from the students during reading time in exchange for $10 in class money. The parents also say Petitt also encouraged the third graders to give each other massages.

"The most children I've heard at any one time that was massaging the teacher was seven -- one on each leg, one on each arm, one on each shoulder, one playing with the hair," Stumph said.

The parents voiced their concerns at a school board meeting Wednesday night but weren't happy with the outcome, so they contacted 10News.

Chula Vista Elementary School District Superintendent Francisco Escobedo said Chula Vista police were called in to investigate but did not find any criminal wrongdoing.

"This behavior is absolutely not acceptable. We have professional standards at Chula Vista," Escobedo said.

Escobedo said Petitt is no longer teaching at the school, but is still employed with the district.

"She's on administrative leave; these allegations we take very seriously and we have to do due process to investigate," Escobedo said.

Parents say that's not enough, and they worry the teacher's actions could have a lasting impact on their kids.

"If there's a goal to be had ... Mrs. Petit would never be able to teach again," parent Samantha Trickey said.

Three parents pulled their children out of the school, 10News learned.

The district says a long-term substitute will replace the teacher.

Teacher on leave over massage claims
U‑T San Diego
Feb. 14, 2014 - She reported back to work Monday and taught her class after investigations by the Chula Vista Elementary School District and the Chula Vista ...

Arlie Ricasa pleads guilty, resigns Southwestern College board position

UPDATE: See new guilty pleas in Feb. 2014 by officials and contractors connected to Southwestern College.


Arlie Ricasa is Southwestern College's EOPS Director. She pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor for crimes committed as a Sweetwater Union High School District trustee.

See all posts on Arlie Ricasa.
Ricasa pleads guilty, resigns board position
Lina Chankar
The Sun, Southwestern College
01/28/2014

SWC EOPS Director Arlie Ricasa pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor in the South Bay corruption case and resigned from her position on the Sweetwater Union High School District Board of Trustees.

Ricasa, who faced 33 criminal counts, including 16 felonies, will avoid prison by admitting to a single count of filing a false instrument.

Deputy District Attorney Leon Schorr said Ricasa made the following admission of guilt:

“I received, reviewed, understood and biannually voted on Sweetwater’s conflict of interest code delineating the Form 700 reporting requirements sent to the Sweetwater Board by the Superintendent. In 2009, I was an elected School Board Member for the Sweetwater Union High School District. I accepted gifts from Rene Flores (SGI) in 2009 with a value of $2,099 and I did not report them. The maximum amount one may lawfully receive from one source per year is $420. Rene Flores provided these gifts with the intent to influence my vote on business awarded to Seville Group Inc.”

District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis originally charged Ricasa with the most counts of any of the 15 people indicted in the sweeping corruption case. According to a D.A. Affidavit For Search Warrant, Ricasa had accepted the following items:

1) $1,741.70 – Dinner and wine with her husband Ed Bagaporo, and SGI President Rene Flores.
2) $313.18 – Amigable for dinner with her husband.
3) $3,600 – SGI contribution to Ricasa’s campaign for State Assembly District 78.
4) $13,600 – From SGI for various political campaigns in 2007 through 2010.
5) $1,380.22 – From Henry Amigable to “wine and dine.”
6) $208.78 – Dinner with Amigable on May 12, 2007.
7) $132.98 – Dinner with her husband and Amigable.
8) $3,600 – Contributions from SGI for 2008 State Assembly campaign in June 2007.
9) $1,800 – SGI paid for the sponsorship of Ricasa’s daughter, Natalie Bagaporo, for Leadership Council in July 2009.
10) $5,000 – from SGI for campaign contributions in Sept. 2010.
11) $5,000 – from SGI for campaign contributions in Oct. 2010.

These and other gifts and contributions need to be reported on California Form 700, Schorr said. Ricasa failed to report any gifts or other reportable interest in 2008 and 2010, which is signed under penalty of perjury. The D.A. affidavit stated that Ricasa, trustee Pearl Quinones, trustee Greg Sandoval and superintendent Jesus Gandara all violated the California Political Reform Act Government Code section (8711-91014).

After a lengthy investigation that included raids on their homes, defendants were accused of bribery, perjury, conflict of interest, filing false instrument, offering a thing of value to a member of government and conspiracy to defraud another of property.

After Ricasa’s guilty plea, Schorr said that in every case there is the potential to negotiate an agreement to settle the case without going to trial.

Ricasa’s supervisor, SWC dean Beatrice Zamora-Aguilar, said Ricasa is a dedicated educational professional who cares about students.

“I trust her judgment,” Zamora said. “All of the work she does, anything that has to do with any kind of reporting and budgeting, I provide oversight to. I’m a very careful and meticulous manager and I feel comfortable with any of the information she puts forward.”

Schorr said he is moving forward with the case against other Sweetwater officials and the D.A. is prepared to go to trial.

SWC President Dr. Melinda Nish said she referred the matter to the acting vice president of human resources Lynn Solomita and the college’s legal counsel to see if the guilty plea has an impact on Ricasa’s $125,000 position.

“It was in her capacity as a Sweetwater elected official that the violation occurred,” said Nish. “Unless there is some nexus with her employment here, it has no bearing on her employment. So I’m asking for both HR and legal advice, and that’s where we’re at with it.”

Nish said if any disciplinary action is taken it would be a personnel and confidential matter and would not be discussed publicly. She said she would like to see Sweetwater issues put to rest.

“I’m really pleased that Southwestern has done a lot of work to clean up what it does and how it does it,” she said. “Sweetwater is our educational partner and I would hope the sooner they get their business cleaned up the better for all of us in the South Bay. So I’m looking forward to this coming to closure.”

SCHOOL ATTORNEY BONNY GARCIA CLEARED ARLIE RICASA IN 2009

But that's why Bonny Garcia was hired by the district, right?


Trustee cleared in flap over contract
Company listed wrong address
By Chris Moran
June 6, 2009

CHULA VISTA — No, everyone seems to agree now. The construction firm that got a $7 million contract from the Sweetwater Union High School District board last week is not located in the home of a board member's relative.

A construction industry Web site that compiles such minutiae mistakenly gave Rialto-based RC Construction a Chula Vista address. No big deal, except that the erroneous address happens to belong to the nephew of board member Arlie Ricasa.

“Peculiar,” Ricasa called it. “Bizarre,” said the school board's attorney.

To the attorney for a construction company that competed against RC Construction for the job but lost, it's suspicious.

“How is it possible that the address that they put to RC Construction, out of all the millions out there, belongs to Arlie Ricasa's (relative)?” asked Andrew Berman, attorney for HAR Construction in Chula Vista.

In an e-mail to Sweetwater attorney Kris Vaca that was part of the public record of the meeting, Brian Tyson of Reed Construction Data wrote, “We mistakenly added RC Const. Chula Vista, a company that had been in our database since 1995.”

Tyson did not return a phone call and an e-mail seeking further clarification.

Tyson's e-mail states that Reed has corrected its mistake and now lists RC Construction's proper Rialto address. RC Construction says it has never had a Chula Vista address.

“This is information that was totally inaccurate,” Ricasa said.

She said that neither she nor anyone she knows of in her family has a connection to RC Construction. Her nephew Domingo Ricasa, who owns and lives in the home at the Chula Vista address, works for a telephone company, she said.

Sweetwater attorney Bonifacio Garcia vetted the matter, concluded that it was all a big mistake and cleared Ricasa to vote on the contract. Ricasa said she regularly recuses herself on votes that affect Southwestern College, where she works, or community organizations for which she serves as a board member.

But she has no connection whatsoever to RC Construction, she said, and she participated in the vote on May 27.

In 2003, a grand jury report faulted Sweetwater – but not Ricasa specifically – for appointing Ricasa's husband to the volunteer citizens committee in charge of overseeing the work done through a $187 million bond measure passed in 2000. The grand jury did not allege any wrongdoing.

Why does "fiscal conservative" John McCann want to spend $1.4 million on special election instead of simply appointing a successor to Arlie Ricasa?

John McCann discussion with Mary Adato
Photo from San Diego Reader


Kevin O'Neill


Arlie Ricasa. See all posts on Arlie Ricasa.

Board must act
Carlos R. Davalos
Chula Vista Star-News
Jan 23 2014

Outspoken critic of the Sweetwater Union High School District, Kevin O’Neill, urged district officials to take immediate action to fill a vacated seat at a Thursday press conference in front of the district headquarters.

“I, as a resident, of this district have great concern about the district’s seemingly inability to move the appointment process forward on the vacancy with Ms. Ricasa’s force(d) removal,” said O’Neill, who is a member of the district’s bond oversight committee.

O’Neill accuses district officials of purposely letting the “clock run out” on a provisional appointment, so that the district can go to a special election.

O'Neill has expressed interest in either being appointed or elected to the position.

“I believe that they can better control the outcome of an election then they can of an appointment process,” he said.

At a special board meeting in January, Trustee John McCann said he wanted to move forward with a special election by mail.

O’Neill said he questions McCann’s intentions as to why he wants a mail ballot.

“A mail ballot particularly in a special election is going to favor white male Republicans and you’re not likely to get a good response from the general district,” O’Neill said. “On the other hand, voters in this district have never done a mail ballot.

O’Neill notes in the press conference that McCann used the stance of being a fiscal conservative when running for the district, and O’Neill said he can’t understand why McCann wants a special election if the district can’t afford the $1.4 million for the election.

He also said Superintendent Ed Brand is on a two-weeks vacation during a time when a decision on the process of filling the seat needs to be made.

“The timing of it all leads me to believe that the power block doesn’t want an appointment and that they don’t mind spending the money to get what they think will be a better outcome for their interest.

In the end, O’Neill said he just wants the district to publicly make a decision of what their plans on filling Ricasa’s seat entail.

O’Neill said he has sent e-mails and called board members to ask for an update of the process. None of his correspondence has received a reply.

McCann did not return calls from The Star-News seeking comment. A district spokesman was also available for comment.

Mary Salas proposes unifying Chula Vista Elementary and Sweetwater Union High school districts

Mary Salas with Hillary Clinton

I'm pleased that Mary Salas and others want to clean up Sweetwater Union High School district, but simply turning the place over to Chula Vista Elementary School District isn't going to accomplish that. CVESD has ethics and performance problems, too.

Voters need to take responsibility for the way their schools are run. CVESD isn't as bad as Sweetwater, but it's performance is nowhere near what it should be. Voters don't like to think that the policemen who guard them or the educators who teach their kids are less than completely trustworthy, but citizens should screw up their courage and demand transparency from public agencies. Once problems are exposed, they can be solved, or at least prevented from becoming more serious.

Schools have too much secrecy. Wrongdoing thrives in darkness; sunshine alone will go a long way to preventing future abuses of the public trust. If CVESD and SUHSD do combine, transparency must be required of the new district.

But what if exposing CVESD and SUHSD secrets would result in too many people being exposed as corrupt? How will you run the new district if too many people must resign or be fired? Where would you find trustworthy people to take their places? Will you go to districts that are carefully guarding their secrets? That doesn't make much sense, does it? You won't have any real basis to think that those people would be any better.

It's sort of like the war in Iraq: Bush's big mistake was disbanding the Iraqi army. Instead of getting rid of everyone with a history, you keep them on board to keep doing the job, and watch them carefully. The US should have followed the advice of its own experts and kept the Iraqi army intact. Give amnesty, then keep discussions and documents out in the open, not behind closed doors.



Corruption is widespread, and most of it is in schools whose officials have NOT been indicted. There's no reason that the people of San Diego County should have to foot the bill for a slew of prosecutions. The new district should tell the voters the truth, release information and documents--perhaps redacting names--and then make sure that bad acts are not repeated.

Voters need to know exactly what went wrong when they weren't looking, so they'll know what to watch out for in the future.

Proposal: Combine Chula Vista School Districts
The proposal would place elementary schools and Sweetwater high schools in Chula Vista under one district
By Rory Devine
NBC San Diego
Jan 29, 2014

Students in Chula Vista go to schools in the Chula Vista Elementary School District for grades K through 8, then high schools in the Sweetwater Union High School District. A city councilwoman is proposing the two districts combine amid the Sweetwater scandal. NBC 7’s education reporter Rory Devine has more.

A Chula Vista City Councilmember has presented an idea that would change the way school districts in the city look.

Students in Chula Vista go to schools in the Chula Vista Elementary School District for grades K through 8, then high schools in the Sweetwater Union High School District.

Councilmember Mary Salas wants to unify elementary schools and those Sweetwater high schools located in the city of Chula Vista under one district.

“A lot of parents have expressed extreme satisfaction with the elementary school district. Yet by the time they get to middle school, then they start shopping around for different options,” Salas said.

“The continuing of education is the number one priority,” she said.

The idea of merging the school districts has come up before, but has taken on renewed importance in light of a corruption scandal brewing in the Sweetwater Union High School District.

National City Mayor Ron Morrison says the shuffling would impact schools in surrounding areas.

“That’s going to be my biggest concern, how the finances are going to work out on this,” Morrison said.

On Tuesday, Salas told the council that details of a potential merger would be worked out by the San Diego County Office of Education. But she says the process must begin, especially given the ongoing scandal in the Sweetwater Union High School District.

“I don’t think it should be looked at as a complete answer, but certainly if the high school district has been mired in conflict and dysfunction for years and years, it does affect a lot of things,” she said.

Sweetwater board member John McCann supports this idea.

The Chula Vista Elementary School District says this is a complicated process and more research is needed.

If the proposal does move forward, Salas says she thinks it could be done in a year.

Advice to Doug Luffborough: don't go down the same path as CVESD trustees Pam Smith, Larry Cunningham and Bertha Lopez

Chula Vista Elementary School District
board member Dough Luffborough

Doug Luffborough's photo from attorney
Peter Fagen's Google+ page on Jan. 17, 2014.
The page seems to have been taken down since then.

I got interested in Mr. Luffborough when he was attacked for his work promoting Common Core. I believe that criticism was caused by teachers who simply didn't know how to teach basic concepts, and who transferred their anxieties to their students. Common Core is a carefully-designed approach to education to help the United States compete with countries that already use these successful methods.

But there is something about Mr. Luffborough that troubles me: his "friendship" with lawyer Peter Fagen of Fagen Friedman Fulfrost.


Attorney Peter Fagan of
Fagen Friedman Fullfrost;
also, see posts on education attorneys.

I worry that Mr. Luffborough may be headed in the unethical direction of Pam Smith, Larry Cunningham and Bertha Lopez (yes, that Bertha Lopez). Smith, Cunningham and Lopez maintained an unethical relationship with Stutz Artiano Shinoff & Holtz for many years.

In 2005 Smith, Cunningham, and Bertha Lopez apparently authorized public CVESD funds to be spent on protecting the law firm from obstruction of justice charges in a lawsuit to which CVESD was not a party! What law firm was used to protect Stutz Artiano Shinoff & Holtz? Stutz Artiano Shinoff & Holtz!

Pam Smith, CVESD board member and
Director of San Diego County
Department of Aging

Then in 2009 Pam and Larry spent public funds again to protect themselves from having to testify in a private defamation lawsuit brought by their pals at Stutz law firm against this blogger (Maura Larkins). They hired lawyers to quash deposition subpoenas they had received. What law firm was used? Once again, to Stutz Artiano Shinoff & Holtz.


Larry Cunningham

It should be noted that public entities are not allowed to sue for defamation; obviously, they also should not use public money and their status as public entities to support private defamation suits.

But wait, you say. How do I know that CVESD actually paid Stutz? Is it possible that Stutz filed secretly on behalf of CVESD in the first case above, pretending that CVESD was supporting the firm, without ever asking for money from CVESD for filing the paperwork? Well, that would be quite outrageous--are you suggesting that Stutz not only fraudulently filed the papers, but also fraudulently used CVESD's status as a public entity to avoid paying the court filing fee for those papers?

I was curious, so I did a public records request for San Diego County Office of Education--JPA's billing invoices for the case.


SDCOE Risk Management Director (and former
lawyer with Stutz law firm) Diane Crosier
did not provide ANY billing invoices for 2005.

Here's how Diane Crosier responded:

Invoices for the Stutz firm relative to work done for Chula Vista Elementary School District from January 1, 2005 through January 1, 2006 - we have no documents responsive to this request.

It appears that Stutz did not make a request for payment through San Diego County Office of Education JPA. And how could it? The school district was no longer a party in the case.

So I did another public records request, this time to CVESD, to find out if CVESD had paid Stutz directly, rather than through its liability insurer SDCOE-JPA. CVESD did not provide any record showing that it had paid Stutz for the work.



Bertha Lopez (indicted as Sweetwater
trustee in 2013) should have stayed
at CVESD, remaining safely under Bonnie
Dumanis' radar along with
Pam Smith and Larry Cunningham.

But if Stutz had secretly used CVESD's name to perpetrate a fraud on the court, why would CVESD continue to do business with Stutz? I provided all this information to CVESD years ago, but CVESD has continued to offer contracts to Stutz.

It's hard to figure out, isn't it? I have a couple of thoughts. First, any obstruction of justice by Stutz would have been done on behalf of CVESD. So CVESD would have an interest in keeping any such question from being examined in court. Also, perhaps Smith, Cunningham and Lopez were anxious to shut down my website. Stutz may have pleased them enormously when it filed its private defamation lawsuit against me. And friends don't expose friends' wrongdoing, right?

WHY DIDN'T PAM SMITH, LARRY CUNNINGHAM AND BERTHA LOPEZ SIMPLY COME FORWARD AND DISCUSS THE ISSUES VOLUNTARILY?

One might ask why Smith and Cunningham did not simply come forward and willingly testify on behalf of Stutz law firm in the defamation case. (See all SDER blog posts about the case HERE.) Clearly, they were afraid that wrongful actions by themselves and Stutz would come to light.

Pamela Smith was so afraid of being deposed that she refused to come out and take her seat at the CVESD board meeting when she learned that board members were being served the deposition subpoenas at the meeting. The public waited and waited for Ms. Smith to appear, and finally David Bejarano left his chair and went into the back room. Perhaps he explained to Mrs. Smith that it is illegal to evade service of a subpoena, and it is especially unbecoming in a public official, and that the subpoena could simply be served on CVESD after three failed attempts to serve Ms. Smith in person. A short while after Mr. Bejarano returned, Mrs. Smith came in and was served.

WHEN BOARD MEMBERS AND PUBLIC ENTITY LAWYERS ARE PALS

School board members who are pals of law firms can be a huge asset to those firms, but not necessarily to the public. Board member Kelli Moors in Carlsbad recently caused a scandal when she received a huge reward--a cushy job-- shortly after voting to renew the law firm's contract. The district ended up rescinding it's decision to rehire Fagen, Friedman Fulfrost. Yes, that's the same firm that has made "friends" with Doug Luffborough. What exactly is it that caused Mr. Luffborough to make friends with CVESD's lawyer? A genuine, personal connection? Or something else?

Another possible service that can be provided by friends on school boards is back-channel communications of messages that a lawyer would never dare utter on the record during a meeting, even a closed-door session. (Unless, of course, the lawyer had first advised the board NOT to record the session even though the district attorney had requested that the session be recorded, as Dan Shinoff did HERE.)

I HAVEN'T FORGOTTEN ABOUT DOUG LUFFBOROUGH

I'm still trying to figure out how Dough Luffborough fits into all this. According to his website, "His core values and belief in faith, discipline, action, and hard work" account for the recognition he has received.

But what are his core values?

Clearly, Dough Luffborough is successful. And he is a role model for how to rise in this world. But besides his own success, and his efforts to help other individuals follow in his path, what exactly are his goals? There are lots of different types of success. For example, George W. Bush and Barack Obama have both been successful, but their goals were very different. In fact, their goals were almost diametrically opposed.

Seriously, what are Doug Luffborough's goals?

From Doug Luffborough's website:

Doug Luffborough is an over-comer! Raised by his mother, a housekeeper, Doug grew up in an impoverished environment. As the oldest son in a single parent family, he was thrown into the role of father figure to his three younger siblings while lacking a strong male role model for himself. Doug’s greatest ambition was to become the first member in his family to attend college – a dream challenged when his family became homeless during his senior year in high school. Despite homelessness and discouragement from his guidance counselor to attend college, Doug continued to work hard and was eventually accepted into Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts to pursue a Business and Human Resources Management degree.

Five years later he was chosen as the Student Commencement Speaker for his class and preceded then President of the United States, Bill Clinton. President Clinton was so impressed with Doug’s tenacity and drive that he invited him and his mother to the White House.

After working with a national community service organization, Doug went back to school to receive his master’s degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Education with a concentration in Administration, Planning, and Social Policy. After Harvard he was chosen to receive a Fellowship degree from the prestigious Center for Social Innovations at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business, Executive Program for Non-Profit Leaders. Currently, Doug is getting his PhD at the University of San Diego School of Leadership Studies with a concentration in Nonprofit Management and Leadership Consulting.

Doug has spent over 20 years working with organizations as a leadership consultant, social entrepreneur, and advocate for social change. Extremely devoted to youth development and family empowerment, he has created and directed social service programs throughout the United States and Asia.

Doug was recently recognized as a recipient of the esteemed San Diego Channel 10 Leadership Award as a caring resident “who goes above and beyond to make San Diego a better place to live by improving the quality of life for those who need it most.”

His core values and belief in faith, discipline, action, and hard work led to special appearances at the Fleet Center (formerly the Boston Garden), the White House, the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum, and the Crystal Cathedral’s “Hour of Power” television broadcast. Doug’s life is a tale of inspiration and hope for the American dream which has impacted hundreds of institutions and thousands of young people across the world.

Today he lives in Chula Vista, CA with his wife Claire, daughters Faith Lily, Makenna Joy, Micaela Elsa and Meilani Lea, and son Douglas Dante. Currently, Doug serves as Chief Managing Consultant and School Board President with the Turning the Hearts Center and the Chula Vista Elementary School District.

Partial Client List

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Iota Alpha Omega Chapter, Poughkeepsie, NY.
Antelope Valley Youth Mentoring and Education Task Force, Lancaster, CA.
Aroma Housewares, Co., San Diego, CA.
Boston Public Schools, Boston, MA.
City Year, Inc. (Nationwide), Boston, MA.
Communities In Schools, McAllen, TX.
Cornerstone Church of San Diego, National City, CA.
Crystal Cathedral “Hour of Power," Garden Grove, CA.
Education, Training & Research Associates, Santa Cruz, CA.
Fleet Center, Boston, MA.
Francis Parker Upper School, San Diego, CA.
From the Barrio Foundation, Chicago, IL.
GEAR UP (Nationwide), San Diego, CA.
Gear Up for Excellence, Phoenix, AZ.
Harvard University Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA.
Holy Name High School, Worcester, MA.
IDEA Public Schools, Donna, TX.
John Fitzgerald Kennedy Library, Boston, MA.
LA Conservation Corps, Los Angeles, CA.
Los Angeles Unifield School District, Beyond the Bell Afterschool Programs, Los Angeles, CA.
Maine State GEAR UP, Rockport, ME.
Mesa College, San Diego, CA.
National Univeristy Academy, San Diego, CA.
Northeastern University Residential Life, Boston, MA.
Office of Family Planning of Health Services, Sacramento, CA.
Oval Office of the White House, Washington, DC.
Pine Street Inn, Boston, MA
Quinsigamond Community College, Worcester, MA.
Renaissance Learning, Inc. National Conferences, Orlando, FL.
San Diego City Schools, San Diego, CA.
San Diego Mesa College, San Diego, CA.
San Diego State Upward Bound, San Diego, CA.
San Diego Urban League, San Diego, CA.
San Diego County YMCA, San Diego, CA.
Simon Scholars Program, Santa Ana, CA., and Atlanta, GA.
S.T.E.M. Summer Bridge, Mt. San Jacinto College, Menifee, CA.
Seeds Training, La Jolla, CA.
Stanford Graduate School of Business Executive Program for Non-Profit Leaders, Palo Alto, CA.
Sweetwater Union High School District, Chula Vista, CA.
Teach For America, McAllen, TX.
U.S. Department of Labor, Washington, DC.
United Way of Dutchess County, Poughkeepsie, NY.
UMass Amherst, Amherst, MA.
University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA.
Walnut Hill School for Performing Arts, Natick, MA.
Warm Springs Middle School, Murrieta, CA.
Western Wyoming Community College, Rock Springs, WY.
Woodcraft Rangers, Los Angeles, CA.
Worcester Public Schools, Worcester, MA.
Young Presidents Organization, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia

William J. Clinton
Remarks at a Meeting With Doug Luffborough and an Exchange With Reporters
July 1, 1993

The President. Hello, everybody. Those of you who travel with me regularly will, I think, recognize the young man on my right, Mr. Doug Luffborough. He was the student speaker at Northeastern University in Boston the other day. This is his mother, whom I introduced from the audience; got a big hand. He's here with President John Curry of Northeastern and Senator John Kerry, his Senator. I invited him and his mother to come visit me in the Oval Office, so they didn't wait long to take me up on the invitation. [Laughter] I'm glad to see them here today.

You may remember also that he brought the house down. He not only gave a great speech, but he sang at the beginning of his speech. I thought to myself, if I could sing like that I wouldn't be giving speeches today. [Laughter]

Mr. Luffborough. Well, it was a wonderful opportunity for me and a wonderful opportunity for my family and especially for my mother. I've been waiting for an opportunity like this, and I'm just really thrilled. And I'm really glad that Northeastern was the place you decided to come. It's been a pleasure and an honor to be here today. Thank you.

Q. Mr. President, what was it about Doug that impressed you so much?

The President. First of all, that he had come from such humble circumstances to go to college and to stay in college and that he had made the most of it. He obviously never felt sorry for himself. He obviously had a mother who helped him to believe in himself, as many others do. And the fact that his fellow students picked him to be the spokesperson for their class showed that they identified with the values and the inner strength and drive that took him to the success that he enjoys. I was very impressed. And I just thought it would be neat if they could come down here and see me.


HERE'S AN ARTICLE THAT DOESN'T DEAL JUST WITH MR. LUFFBOROUGH, BUT WITH THE ENTIRE BOARD AND TOP ADMINISTRATORS OF CVESD


Left to right: Left to right: Russell Coronado (moved out of town and was replaced by Glendora Tremper), Former superintendent Lowell Billings, Larry Cunningham, Pamela Smith, David Bejarano (came to board in 2007, replaced by his daughter in 2012), Doug Luffborough (came to board in 2009); four out of five current members came to office without running for election.

Chula Vista school board: Pre-meeting sessions raise questions about open meeting violations
Donal Brown
First Amendment Coalition
September 2010

The Chula Vista Elementary school board says that their gatherings before board meetings in the superintendent’s office to eat take-out food and to ask one-on-one questions of the staff are open to the public and not in violation of California’s Brown Act, the state’s open meeting law. -db

San Diego Union-Tribune
September 2, 2010
By Ashly McGlone

Chula Vista Elementary school board members have been gathering in the superintendent’s office before their public meetings, asking questions about agenda items and eating restaurant take-out food paid for by taxpayers.

State law generally requires elected officials to post public notices so citizens can attend when public business is discussed with three or more board members. But district officials say the pre-meeting sessions are not subject to those requirements.

The practice raises the possibility that a consensus could be reached in private, depriving the public of the right to know what went into board decisions.

The Watchdog reviewed minutes of all board meetings from December 2008 to the present. Of 130 motions, 129 passed unanimously. The one split vote, in February, concerned the order of agenda items.

Records obtained by The Watchdog under the California Public Records Act reveal $2,035 in meals have been billed to the district’s general fund since December 2008.

According to board vice president Larry Cunningham, food is “always there. If we have a board meeting, it’s there.” He said the meals have been standard practice since he joined the school board more than 16 years ago and no one has ever raised a concern.

The informal gatherings give board members a chance to grab a bite to eat and get their questions answered by staff members, Cunningham said.

“If you have a question to ask staff, you have a chance to go ask staff about that. It is nothing. We don’t meet with closed doors. The doors are always open,” Cunningham said. “We find it is easier to do that than ask a lot of questions at board meetings. We feel the board meetings are there for input for the public.”

Max Batangan, assistant to the school board and the superintendent, distributes meeting agendas and notifies members of any changes, according to the superintendent and board members.

Superintendent Lowell Billings, who is set to retire in December after nine years as superintendent, said, “It is a staging for the main board meeting which is held in open session. Meaning, you gotta have a place to show up, and I hold it in my office, so I am the gatekeeper.”

Generally, board members said the meeting allows them to ask one-on-one questions of staff members for clarification.

“I read the packet myself. The protocol is to take any questions to the superintendent or other district staff for more verification or information,” board member Douglas Luffborough said.

The idea of one-on-one questions may be a key distinction, experts said, as any group discussion of issues in the pre-meeting would be forbidden under the state’s open-meetings law, known as the Ralph M. Brown Act.

[Maura Larkins comment: How can it be one-on-one, Doug, if all your fellow board members are present?]

Dan Hentschke, a former Oceanside, San Marcos and Solana Beach city attorney and current general counsel for the San Diego County Water Authority, conducts trainings for elected officials on open-meetings law. Briefings on changes to the night’s agenda could be an issue, he said.

“Updating collectively, that’s a problem,” Hentschke said. “If they are hearing collectively information, that should be held in an open meeting.”

“These kinds of meetings are ones that we use as an example of ones that can be very problematic,” Hentschke said. “The law is very clear that gatherings of a majority of a legislative body have to be open-noticed and public if there is any discussion among the board members of public business. Gatherings of this nature can be held in compliance, but it is very difficult because they cannot talk about matters of agency business.”

Attorney Michael Jenkins, chair of Brown Act Committee for the League of California Cities, also said that a notification of agenda changes would be considered school business.

“Under the Brown Act they are not allowed to hear, discuss or deliberate on any matter of district business. That’s a problem because that’s business that pertains to the school district. It’s just not a good idea to have them all together,” he said. “I can’t say if their particular practice is a violation. I will say it could be under certain circumstances that they need to avoid.”

Theresa Acerro, president of the Southwest Chula Vista Civic Association and a retired teacher, said, “I would be really concerned about that. I think those questions should be asked in a public meeting because it is likely that members of the public would have those same questions.”

Former district board member and retired economics professor Peter Watry, 79, also expressed concern over the board dinners. Watry — who said the meals were not present when he served on the board from 1976 to 1980 — currently serves as vice president and acting president of the nonprofit Crossroads II, aimed primarily at monitoring land use decisions by the Chula Vista City Council.

“If they are following the Brown Act, they shouldn’t be doing it,” said Watry. “Even that one-on-one gets tricky. If you talk to a third person, you violate the Brown Act. My guess is they are just not paying attention to the strictness of the rules, but they should not be doing it.”

A favorite meal for the board sessions was the $110 large kabob pack from Daphne’s Greek Cafe. Other meals came from China China restaurant and Pat & Oscar’s. Some food was also prepared by the district’s Child Nutrition Services.

The spending on meals comes despite the financial issues facing most school districts in the state.

At Chula Vista, managers are taking seven furlough days this academic year and next, while classified staff will take two to six furlough days and teachers will take 5.5 furlough days, two of which are class days shortening the school year. No furloughs were in place last year.

Also, this year is the first year the district’s 20:1 class size cap has been removed. Average class sizes this year are 19.9 children for kindergarten through third grade, and 28.9 children for fourth through sixth grade. Last year’s average was about 18 students.

Billings said the food is for board members and other district staff but members of the public could come to the pre-meetings.

“Anybody can walk in and see them and I am there to be the sergeant of arms of board members,” Billings said.

[Maura Larkins' comment: This means, and I speak from personal experience, that anyone can walk in, but Billings will tell them to leave if he doesn't want them to hear what's going on--or he doesn't want the visitor to be heard.] But Acerro countered, “That’s no public meeting, and besides they have to have publicly notice meetings, and if it’s not a meeting, they shouldn’t be all together discussing school business,” she said.

Billings contends there is no Brown Act violation.

“Everybody in the work knows that these meetings take place. They are really not meetings, but a gathering place,” Billings said. “If a board really wanted to violate the Brown Act, they would be more secretive or subversive or meet in a covert matter.”

No process yet to replace Sweetwater trustee Ricasa

Arlie Ricasa. See all posts on Arlie Ricasa.


Daniel Shinoff

No process yet to replace Sweetwater trustee Ricasa
Only three board members show up at special meeting
By Susan Luzzaro
San Diego Reader
Jan. 15, 2014

No one was surprised to see that the Sweetwater Union High School District board failed to agree on a process to replace former trustee Arlie Ricasa at a January 14 special meeting. (Ricasa pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor December 18 and was obliged to resign). However, many who attended the meeting wondered if the lack of agreement was the usual dysfunction — or orchestrated dysfunction.

Only three board members were present at the meeting — trustees Jim Cartmill, John McCann, and Bertha Lopez. According to Cartmill, trustee Pearl Quiñones could not attend due to a trip to see her ailing mother in Texas.

The meeting began with the district’s attorney, Daniel Shinoff, outlining a process in which an ad hoc committee might be composed of the board president, vice president, and the mayors of Imperial Beach, Chula Vista, and National City. Following a review of applications, the ad hoc committee would interview candidates and forward prospects to the board. Public comment would be integrated into the process.

Trust in the district is so low that many speakers argued against anyone in the district office handling the applications; some suggested that all applications pass through the attorney’s office.

Lopez, a consistent critic of schools superintendent Ed Brand, argued that she was neither president nor vice president, so the proposed process excluded her. She suggested an alternative selection process that had been used by Southwestern College, one that she felt was more inclusive of all stakeholders.

The twist in the evening came when McCann called for a special election —which he said he favored in the interest of democracy. When McCann campaigned in 2010, his website declared that he “stands for Fiscal Responsibility” and that he “will require a balanced budget for the District and ensure that District Bond money is spent wisely.”

McCann’s insistence on a costly vote seemed inconsistent — and foreshadowed the direction and possibly the way the replacement process will go.

The district must fill the seat within 60 days from the time of Ricasa’s resignation — they are already 27 days into the countdown. There are only two choices: get a selection process going or hold a special election.

A special election would cost more than a million dollars for a position that would last less than a year. Former chief financial officer Albert Alt and former interim CFO Rick Knott have expressed concern about the district’s continued deficit-spending.

On the heels of McCann’s statement, Cartmill stated that it was obvious that three votes could not be attained for a selection process. He appeared to be shepherding the dais to option two: a special election.

But before Cartmill could close the discussion, Lopez stated she felt “cheated.” She said that the district knew beforehand that Quiñones would not be attending the meeting; why had they not made every effort to arrange for Quiñones to weigh in via Skype or telephone, she asked.

Then the meeting teetered out of control, with the attendees calling for a vote, for clarification, and for a process.

Cartmill made a motion in favor of the process Shinoff had outlined but warned the other trustees that only a dissenting voter could ever return this proposal to the board. The motion died for lack of a second.

Finally, Lopez urged that the board make every effort to reach Quiñones by Friday and find out if there is a way she can participate. Lopez said a special election would rob the district of resources needed for the students.

The district has until February 17 to fill the seat. Ricasa pleaded out exactly 60 days before the corruption trial is due to start. Curious timing, according to some.

Stakes are high for the vacant seat and possibly highest for Brand.

School superintendents often move their agendas forward by relying on the vote of three trustees. Sweetwater superintendent Ed Brand has enjoyed the fairly consistent support of trustees Jim Cartmill, John McCann, and Arlie Ricasa.

In September 2011, Brand told the Reader that his staying on as superintendent is conditional. He said: “If it ever gets to the point that they stop accepting my recommendations, then the good news from my perspective is, I have the wherewithal to say, ‘Thanks, it’s been fun.’”