‘We are in chaos.’ Merced City School District board under fire amid superintendent search
Words like “crisis” and “chaos” were used to describe the current state of the Merced City School District School Board during Tuesday’s board meeting. And those words came from one of the board members.
The main topic during Tuesday’s emotionally charged school board meeting, held in a packed room at Ada Givens Elementary, was the search for the district’s new superintendent.
The Board of Trustees came under fire from district teachers, staff and community members after the board’s decision to fire the search firm McPherson and Jacobsen, LLC, which it had hired to help secure a new superintendent.
The decision to fire the search firm was made during a special board meeting on Friday night. In a split vote, board president Allen Brooks and board members Birdi Olivarez-Kidwell and Jessee Espinosa voted to terminate the contract of McPherson and Jacobsen.
Two board members — Beatrice McCutchen and Priya Lakireddy — voted against the move.
Tension between board members was obvious during Tuesday’s meeting as both McCutchen and Lakireddy spoke about other board members questioning their vote.
“The line of questioning I was subjected to was unprofessional. It was hostile,” Lakireddy said during Tuesday’s meeting.
“We are in a crisis,” Lakireddy added. “We have a leadership crisis, we have a board that is in utter chaos. Whatever we want to say, we are in chaos. I’m going to say it, we are in chaos, so we need to work on those issues. So next time — or anytime — no trustee should be questioned after their vote. That should never happen.”
McCutchen said she thought her votes were questioned as well.
“I have witnessed bullying, harassment, intimidation, causing a hostile environment for myself and another trustee,” McCutchen said. “Things are becoming out of hand and personal. We need help.”
District in chaos
It’s been a tumultuous few years for those who held the district’s top job.
The board fired former superintendent Diana Jimenez during a special board meeting on April 25. Jimenez was terminated after less than a year serving as superintendent in the district.
Jimenez was selected as superintendent after former MCSD superintendent Richard “Al” Rogers resigned on July 1, 2021, following a civil complaint filed against him alleging sexual harassment.
Many staff members complained about the working culture in the district under Rogers and Jimenez.
Associate Superintendent Brian Meisenheimer has been acting superintendent since Jimenez’s dismissal.
“Since January 2020, we’ve had four superintendents,” Merced City Teachers Association President Diane Pust said during Tuesday’s meeting. “We’ve lacked clear direction in those years. Teachers are stressed and in survival mode.”
“Do you understand what chaos and the adult problems plaguing our district the last few years have done to our students? Our job is to help them succeed, not to survive the chaos created by district management,” Pust said.
Search firm fired
In June the school board announced it had hired McPherson and Jacobsen to help in the search.
Four months later, the board announced it fired the firm. Brooks said the board will release its reasons in a letter this week. He stated the board never received a high-level report that summarized information gathered in meetings with district stakeholders.
The termination of McPherson and Jacobsen coincides with the release of a report from the firm after meetings held with stakeholders. The report has been seen by many district employees, but Brooks said only one trustee has seen the report.
“This document is not a report; this document is a gathering of opinions that was put into a summary,” Brooks said during Tuesday’s meeting.
“The search firm did not vet this information and make sure the information was valid and coming from different, individual sources,” Brooks added. “The board asked the firm to provide a high-level summary of the information that was gathered, which we still have not received.”
The report, which was obtained by the Merced Sun-Star, states that the firm conducted meetings with district stakeholders in August to gather information about the search for the new superintendent.
The firm met with 77 people in person and received 172 online responses to a survey. Stakeholders were asked four questions:
▪ Tell us what is good about your community.
▪ Tell us what is good about the district and the schools.
▪ What are the issues a new superintendent should know about when coming to this position?
▪ What are the characteristics, attributes and skills one should have to be successful in this position?
Many of the district teachers and staff opined that the board fired the firm because of unflattering comments made about the board and district management that showed up in the report.
Some of the comments from stakeholders that showed up in the report included: “You can’t speak out without fear of retaliation” in the district and “there is not a professional atmosphere.”
Stakeholders said the school board “micromanages,” described the board as “divided and not cohesive” and stated “the current school board is intolerant of problem solving or truthful constructive criticism.”
Pust criticized the board’s decision to fire the firm after many stakeholders took the time to voice their opinions in the meetings.
“Over 200 people, parents and community members spoke and shared their visions and concerns,” Pust said. “And you do not want to be accountable for the results of the people who elected you. That is disrespectful. Firing McPherson and Jacobson because you don’t want to be accountable for the results cost our school (district) four months, $25,000 and our trust.”
Rosie Nuno, who has worked as a staff member in the district for 30 years, says it took a lot of courage for the people who attended the meetings set up by the firm to speak up.
“You’re firing the company that you hired, you vetted, you approved,” Nuno said. “Now there is a survey. Why are you squashing our voices? Do you know how hard it was for us to have the courage to speak up?”
The majority that voted to fire the firm defended their decisions. Both Olivarez-Kidwell and Espinosa said people will understand when all the information comes out.
“Every decision I make is for our students, our staff and our teachers, and I trust once the information comes forward every one of you, as trustee Espinosa said, will understand and would choose to do the same,” Olivarez-Kidwell said.
Brooks cautioned people not to rush to judgment.
“Firing the firm was just the beginning,” he said. “Now we have people trying to write the story for our district. People will say that the board doesn’t want the information to come out because we are not transparent. This is not true. The board is open to hearing all voices in the community.”
Possible solutions
So where does the school board go from here in the search for a new superintendent?
One option is for the board to hire a new firm and start the superintendent search process over.
Other alternatives brought up during the meeting included having the board seek help from the Merced County Office of Education or leaning on the Merced Union High School District for help and leadership.
“What is sadly very apparent to the community is the children are not the focus,” MUHSD Board President Erin Hamm said to the board. “If you don’t see this, you have blinders on. The district has been leaderless since April, and that’s unacceptable.”
MUHSD deputy superintendent Ralph Calderon informed the board that the high school district is there to help.
“We are willing to support you however we can, that may include the loaning of senior administrative staff or what many believe is the best option — one district office serving both districts on an interim basis of your choosing.”
Calderon said the MUHSD superintendent has already received approval from the high school board of trustees to assist MCSD if needed.
McCutchen said she would like to see the MCSD seek help.
“I feel the firing of the search firm that was assisting us in acquiring a superintendent has set our process back and we should be open to the assistance of MCOE or Merced Union High School District,” she said.
Hamm also implored the board to seek help of find an interim superintendent.
“I know that means admitting things are a mess, but they are,” Hamm said. “Understand the problem, accept responsibility and find a solution.”
This story was originally published September 27, 2023 at 2:14 PM.
