Some Millville School District employees describe turbulent last year under new district leadership

This story includes information shared by sources who spoke to us on the condition that we withheld their names from publication, due to fears of professional reprisal. Shasta Scout vets such sources to ensure they’re connected to the stories we publish in the ways they claim to be. We grant anonymity only in cases where there are legitimate fears of retaliation or other harms, in compliance with the SPJ code of ethics.

After decades working at Millville Elementary School, some employees say they’ve never experienced a year like the last one.

A superintendent change a year ago followed a budget shortfall in the years before. Since then, the district has become deeply divided over its future, with staff describing a chaotic last year while the new superintendent, Jimmie Eggers, argued that the normal growing pains of transition have already begun being addressed. 

Millville opened its doors for the 2026 school year last week. In the weeks leading up to the start of school, interviews with five of the district’s roughly two dozen staffers, who spoke with a reporter on the condition of anonymity due to fears that their jobs could be impacted, painted a consistent picture of what they said was deteriorating communication, support systems and longstanding routines following the arrival of Superintendent Eggers in mid-2025. 

Eggers said he could not speak to all issues raised due to personnel and legal concerns but acknowledged issues with communication. He added that concerns raised by employees have been documented, and said that district leaders are working to improve policies and procedures. He added that he expects the school year that’s just begun to be significantly stronger as he works to address budget issues.

“I will always say that I can improve,” Eggers said. “I also stated that communication is two way, what is received and what is said needs to be monitored. We have put multiple procedures in place to improve communication.”

Millville School District Board President Taryn Ham declined to comment on the record or issue an official statement, while the remaining board members did not respond to requests for comment.

The K-8 school, which serves about 200 students, has consistently been ranked as among the best in the county, outperforming state averages when it comes to testing. During his interview, Eggers unfailingly praised Millville’s teachers and staff as highly professional and qualified, even while responding to complaints. 

When Shasta Scout visited Millville for an interview, Eggers gave a tour of the charming, flower-filled campus. He repeatedly emphasized the district’s strong academic performance, describing the school’s staff, students and parents as “high quality people” and sharing praise for the Millville community as a whole. 

Two perspectives on Millville Elementary leadership 

All five staff interviewed by Shasta Scout for this story consistently pointed to communication as their biggest concern with Eggers’ leadership. They said the superintendent rarely communicated by email last year, something the superintendent responded to by saying email is “not his leadership style.” 

That failure to use email, staff said, sometimes resulted in him missing time-sensitive information and deadlines. He responded that communication was a “pre-existing problem” adding that “multiple procedures” have been put in place to improve communication. 

All five employees also described Eggers as largely absent from the day-to-day life of the school last year, saying he often left campus early without notice, rarely visited classrooms or attended school events, and made little effort to learn the names of students and staff. 

“That’s their perception,” Eggers responded in person, adding later by email that “spending time in classrooms is based on need.” He also said he intends to spend more time in classrooms this school year.

One staff member also described what they referred to as retaliation, claiming they were excluded from communication channels and meetings after questioning Eggers’ leadership decisions, although they have not submitted a formal complaint. Eggers did not respond to a request for comment. 

Two others claimed that instructional aides faced frequent schedule changes to the detriment of classrooms. Eggers responded by saying scheduling is always student-focused. “That is and will always be the first consideration for staffing,” he added.

Problems came to a head right before spring break, employees said, when instructional aides were given layoff slips. Those employees then received notices during the break offering them back revised positions with reduced hours. Two employees said they were not able to work the new schedules they were offered, with one adding that seniority was not followed in how the new hours were assigned, a standard required by California education law. 

As Eggers noted during his interview, the practice of issuing layoff slips and later rescinding them isn’t uncommon, since California school districts are required to make preliminary decisions about layoffs by March 15, months before final state funding is known. Eggers said his goal has always been to restore as many instructional aide positions as finances allow, and emphasized again that scheduling was determined by student need. He did not respond to the issue of whether seniority was followed in staff scheduling. 

This spring, frustrated employees said they worked to organize an internal survey, the results of which were presented to the board in May. Twenty-two staff members — almost all of the district’s staff — participated in the survey, which found that 95.5% disagreed that the administration communicated effectively while only 9% said district leadership has created a positive work environment. Eggers said he was not going to comment on the staff survey.

All five employees who spoke to Shasta Scout expressed disappointment that the board did not listen to the concerns raised by the survey in May. None of the district’s board members provided comments for this story. 

Sharing about how the burden of how leadership decisions has impacted them, one staff member said they’ve begun to take anxiety medication before going to work, adding that they ask themselves as they leave home, “What hell is going to await me today?” 

Eggers said he’s focused on finances, communication, new charter school

During his in-person interview, Eggers offered more insight on the school’s first year under his leadership, saying transitions into new districts take time as administrators learn the school’s culture, traditions and established practices.

He said he inherited a difficult financial situation and had to make tough choices as a result. Budget documents from the Shasta County Office of Education back this claim, documenting the district entering the year facing a structural budget deficit — a roughly $400,000 gap between total revenues, about $3.6 million, and total expenditures. As a result, Eggers said, the district began discussing staff reductions months before he was hired, following guidance from SCOE. 

Financial records reviewed by Shasta Scout found that the district received a qualified certification from SCOE for its first interim financial reports for both of the last two years, meaning there was concern that the district might not be able to meet its financial obligations. By the second interim report under Eggers’ leadership, however, the district had returned to a positive certification — meaning the district projects that it will have the ability to meet its financial obligations moving forward.

Eggers said that he has now documented more than 20 areas that staff have identified for improvement and has begun implementing changes, including monthly parent meetings, more written communication, revised staff schedules and additional opportunities for employees to provide feedback. 

Since his appointment as superintendent, Eggers has also succeeded in his efforts to bring an online charter school under Millville’s school district jurisdiction, something that was approved by the board earlier this year. The charter is intended to serve students whose educational needs are not being met by the district’s traditional campus, Eggers said, including homeschool families and those who are opposed to California’s required vaccine schedules. He added that from his perspective, the charter complements rather than competes with Millville Elementary. 

How did the district get here, and what might come next?

Before Eggers was appointed, Mindy Desantis served as the district’s superintendent for more than 20 years. All five staff members who spoke to Shasta Scout for this story described her as a highly involved and competent leader, with one mentioning the frustration that some parents experienced as a result of her compliance with state law during the pandemic, specifically when it came to following hybrid learning and masking procedures. 

The result of that parental dissatisfaction was a class action civil lawsuit against Desantis in 2020. One parent involved in the lawsuit was elected as a board member in 2022, and the board voted 4-1 not to renew Desantis’ contract when it expired in 2025.

Last spring, three other candidates interviewed for the position of superintendent, and Eggers, who had previously served as superintendent of Big Creek Elementary in Fresno County, was ultimately chosen. He began his term in July 2025.

One staff member said they believe this fall’s school board election, in which four of five seats are up for election, will determine not only the board’s oversight of Eggers but the direction of Millville Elementary itself. Two said whether they remain at the school may depend on whether district leadership changes, even though they shared they cannot imagine working anywhere else.

“These are my people, and this is my place,” one employee said, explaining that while they have been looking for other work, they do not want to leave the school community they have served for decades. “I just try to have hope that it’s going to get better,” they said.

Another, who is considering a job offer at another school, echoed their desire for the kind of improvement that would make continued employment possible. “I want to stay at Millville,” they said. 

Maya Nelson is a student at Brown University. She’s reporting for Shasta Scout as a 2026 summer intern with support from the Nonprofit Newsroom Internship Program — created by The Scripps Howard Fund and the Institute for Nonprofit News.

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August 18, 2026 5:58 p.m.: We’ve updated the story to clarify that one board member, not three, was involved in the 2022 lawsuit.

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