It was the end of an era last night at the Sunnyside Unified School District Governing Board meeting. With lame duck members Louie Gonzales and Bobby Garcia on the way out, sparks flew as two board members in the majority, exited and shifted the balance of power to Hernandez and Crouch.
The embattled Superintendent Isquierdo actually had his incentivized pay approved at 83 percent. It was the last item on the agenda and it wasn’t brought up till well after 11 p.m., which was undoubtedly pushed back late so that the television news media would not cover the story.
Earlier in the meeting, the Recall Election Committee chairman Richard Hernandez said, “If any action is taken tonight by this Board to give Isquierdo any more money you will have an irritated community. Is that not true?” “Yes,” the crowd shouted back. “I’m tired of these little games you guys play. We have these little Board meetings and you have this wonderful theatrical. You bring all of Louie’s friends and we cry crocodile tears over here and what do we get? The people told you. We don’t believe you. We don’t believe you.”
A few weeks ago Isquierdo asked the Board to buy him out, but last night he had a change of heart saying, “I also mean this respectfully, 4 weeks ago I said buy me out and I‘m tired. Right now, with the passion you saw of the digital curriculum advocates and what this means to our kids. I’m prepared to work with the new Board if the new Board wants me. If they don’t, then respectfully they’ll have to buy me out or we’ll have to go through a legal process… I don’t want a buyout. I don’t. I want our district to continue to move forward to treat people respectfully. If they feel we are not, then we need to look at that…” With a buyout of over half a million dollars, the new Board is on a very difficult road to navigate legally.
The Board did honor fallen hero Command Sergeant Major Martin R. Barreras. Barreras, a Sunnyside alumni, who died of wounds sustained in supporting Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. He spent 22 years as a member of the 75th Ranger Regiment and earned The Legion of Merit, Bronze Star with Valor device, Bronze Star Medal with two oak leaf clusters, and The Purple Heart. The Board unanimously approved renaming the Sunnyside Park to the Command Sergeant Major Martin R. Barreras Park. There is even a Facebook page for him here.
While there was some hesitation about moving forward with a lame duck board on some of the long term planning, there was not enough hesitation to stop the Board. When considering the SUSD 2014-2015 School Transformation Louie Gonzales said, “My concern would be is this Board or the new incoming Board really going to support this long term project… My concern is should we keep moving forward on this right now? Because I would hate to vote to spend x amount of dollars in a project that is not going to get the support of the Board so that you can go out with that energy and motivate those teachers and say we have the support of the Board to move forward with this.”
“We are going to work diligently to make sure it works.” But Isquierdo said, “This is strategic for the summer planning and I would like the Board to consider it.” The Board then approved all budgeting for the meeting unanimously.
Both Giffin and Quintero will be sworn in on June 3rd and begin serving at the following board meeting on June 10th.
Related articles:
Voters Oust Sunnyside Incumbents in Recall Election
Isquierdo wants contract buyout, accuses Board member of racism
Sunnyside administration, recall election process challenged
Gonzales, Garcia supporters send hate mail to Sunnyside voters
Sunnyside recall election dirty tricks raise legal concerns
Sunnyside Board, administration travel outrages candidates, community