Tuesday night’s special school district board meeting was called to discuss the effects the state’s budget cuts could have on the Valley’s schools. Instead, supporters of Dunbar teacher Dawn McIntyre turned out in force to lay siege to board members about her recent receipt of a pink slip.
“Where is the rationale behind firing a teacher with an impeccable track record?” said a parent of a Dunbar third grader. “I count on a teacher of this caliber to be there to teach my son.” He went on to accuse the district of having a covert reason for the firing and challenged them to rethink administrative positions rather than lay off non-tenured but highly regarded teachers.
“When we said the Pledge of Allegiance at the beginning of this meeting, we pledged liberty and justice for all. Where is the justice in firing a teacher without giving a reason for doing so?” said former McIntyre student Aaron Dabney.
In all about 20 people spoke on McIntyre’s behalf, including parents, other teachers, students, and relatives. They all had the same thing to say: McIntyre was an exemplary person who doesn’t deserve the proverbial ax. Many wondered whether her dismissal was due to her almost-tenured status. Others questioned the wording on her release letter stating she’d been let go because she “doesn’t fit the district.”
Whatever the case, board members remained mum. “The board is legally prevented from discussing this matter this evening,” said board president Dan Gustafson before he opened the floor for public comment. “I’ve read all of the letters I was sent today regarding this matter and I understand your great frustration. As board members, we take your comments very seriously.”
After a half hour of public comment, Gustafson closed the floor and proceeded with the remainder of the meeting.
McIntyre was initially hired at Dunbar three years ago as a temporary employee. In October, she was changed to probationary status year two, retroactively making last year her first probationary year. During that time, she has taught three different grade levels under three different school principals. She is up for tenure next year.
McIntyre said she was given the option to write a letter of resignation or to become a second-year probationary “non-reelect,” which isn’t the same as being fired, but would mean she wouldn’t be rehired next year. Her understanding is that the matter is in the hands of the school board.
“I’m extraordinarily sad. This is a community I love, a staff I adore,” said McIntyre. “It absolutely breaks my heart to hear the words that are generically used in other districts. Instead of saying, we don’t have money … it’s very, very sad to hear ‘No, we don’t think you are a good match.’”
McIntyre visited her grandparents in the Valley as a child and has lived in Sonoma for ten years. She previously worked in Rohnert Park and Cotati. If the pink slip goes through, she wouldn’t be rehired in the Sonoma district unless there was some sort of change of administration.
Budget update: District prepared to go into deficit to maintain programs.
Justin Frese, the district’s assistant superintendent for business discussed what the drastically reduced state budget means for Valley schools. “We’re looking at adopting a plan to go into deficit for the next three years,” said Frese. “Yes, this plan is risky but it will allow us to live off of our savings while we see what happens at the state level.”
Frese’s ballpark figure for the three-year deficit totals $800,000 with $300,000 being used this year, $450,000 next year and $50,000 the year after that.
District Superintendent Pam Martens said that, while nervous about risk-taking, she felt this is the right move for the district at this time. “It’s not all gloom and doom,” she said, “but we need to continue to be cautious. Having this little information at this time of year is simply unprecedented and it’s made decision-making difficult.”
A portion of the money local schools receive is based on property taxes. A record number of reassessments have made it impossible to predict exactly how much money this will generate. Frese said the district is working to get the tax predictions locked down.
One thing is no longer up for discussion – the elimination of class size reduction, which brought a sigh of relief from those in attendance.
“When March 15 rolls around we’re still going to have reductions,” said Frese. “There has been a dip in enrollment at the high school that will require the elimination of some certificated staff positions and we’re also looking at certificated staff reductions.
Frese pointed out that the $800,000 deficit figure was calculated before taking staff reductions and early retirement into consideration. “This is a worst-case scenario but it is manageable,” said Frese. “Eighteen months ago the district cut spending and began saving as we realized there was an impending fiscal state of emergency. Now that we know what the budget is, we can begin dealing with it.”
More information will be forthcoming at next Tuesday’s board meeting.
During the meeting, the board also approved March 13 as “Stand up for Schools Day of Action,” which calls on districts throughout the state to hold before- and after-school events and activities to protest continued cuts to education funding.
