During a four-and-a-half-hour public meeting Tuesday, Gateway’s four remaining Board members failed to come to agreement on any of the seven candidates who applied for the Board's vacant seat. They agreed to list the position one more time, in a final attempt to avoid an expensive special election.
The Board of Gateway Unified School District still needs to fill a vacancy left by the resignation of Board President Cherill Clifford in early February. On March 21, they'll consider another round of applicants for that position. They’ll also take another look at an expanded learning program run by County Supervisor Kevin Crye.
The Board's February 15 meeting held hints of normalcy not seen in many months, including reports from various school sites, spontaneous laughter, and kind words from Board members to both each other, and staff.
Henderson was one of three attorneys who interviewed to represent the Board’s legal interests last week. She says Board President Clifford guaranteed her three votes if she applied. Henderson was not chosen for the position. Clifford has not yet responded to multiple requests for comment.
The decision came just one day after the Gateway Citizens Committee filed a lawsuit against three of the Board members to compel them to follow Board policies.
At a newly-scheduled February 3 Special meeting the Board will interview legal services providers and consider approving a legal services contract. Among those being considered is Tracy Henderson, founder of California Parents United and the California Parents Union.
Board members chose to “bypass” their policy to allow them to discuss appointing a superintendent without having taken the required steps to recruit and select qualified applicants. After a somber warning from Acting District Superintendent Steve Henson, Board members chose not to move forward on appointing a new superintendent. Next steps in the superintendent recruitment and selection process are not yet clear.
Under California Education law school district boards must follow their own publicly-approved policies. For Gateway, those policies include a series of considerations regarding how to recruit and select a superintendent. The Board must also follow California law which states that superintendents must hold valid teaching and administration credentials.
The cautionary legal notice describes the actions of the Gateway Board at its latest public meeting as “profoundly undemocratic” and “unlawful,” alleging the school board violated California’s public transparency law by engaging in whispered discussions and by voting on how to recruit a new superintendent without first hearing public comment.
The meeting included a series of votes on how the district would pursue recruitment of a new superintendent. The board's process angered the public, overlooked its own policies, and appears to have violated the Brown Act.
