Yuba City Unified School District recall, California (2016)
| Yuba City Unified School District Governing Board recall |
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| Officeholders |
Steven Scriven Paul Broughton Fred Northern |
| Recall status |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2016 Recalls in California California recall laws School board recalls Recall reports |
An effort to recall four of the seven members on the Yuba City Unified School District Governing Board was started in July 2016, but petitions were not filed by the deadline.[1] Recall supporters targeted Board President Lonetta Riley and her fellow members Steven Scriven, Paul Broughton, and Fred Northern during teacher compensation negotiations. The Yuba City Teachers Association wanted pay raises for teachers, but the governing board said the district did not have the funds for teacher salaries that the union was requesting. An agreement was not reached until teachers went on strike for seven days in September 2016.
Proponents of the recall said board members had created "an increasingly negative and hostile environment." Riley, however, said the board had tried to resolve issues "in a fair and equitable manner." Recall supporters also did not agree with the board's decision to hire Superintendent Nancy Aaberg's replacement without opening the position or looking for external candidates, despite Aaberg's assurance that the board's choice was the best leader for the job. Recall supporters had to turn in petitions by December 9, 2016, to get the recall on the ballot in 2017. They failed to meet that deadline.[1][2][3][4]
The other three members of the board—Herbert Cooley, Sharman Kobayashi, and John Amarel—were up for regular election on November 8, 2016. Kobayashi did not run to retain her seat, and both Cooley and Amarel were defeated in their re-election bids.[5][6][7]
Riley, Scriven, Broughton, and Northern all defeated at least one opponent when they were last up for election on November 4, 2014.[5]
| ARGUMENTS | |
Recall supporters
Yuba City Teachers Association President Dina Luetgens said the compensation negotiations were about priorities. She said she believed the district had the funding to ensure teachers were made a priority. Luetgens said that not every classroom in the district had a fully credentialed teacher. She said the district not only had to retain good teachers, but also had to attract new ones. "The district may not like the facts; I certainly don't like them either, but we are losing highly qualified teachers every day," said Luetgens.[2]
Sonya La Rocque, a district parent and a leader of the recall effort, said supporters were seeking "fresh eyes, ears and minds" to lead the district. "We are seeking change. A few of the board members have been board members for far too long," said La Rocque.[2] Of the board members targeted for recall, Broughton was the most recently elected, winning his seat in the general election on November 4, 2014. Scriven served on the board since 2006, Riley served since 1998, and Northern served since 1994.
A notice of recall was published in the Appeal-Democrat on July 19, 2016.
| “ | The grounds for the proposed recall are as follows: The YCUSD governing board is fostering an increasingly negative and hostile environment for our community. We have been ignored, disrespected, and treated as though we don't matter. Parents and the community have continually implored board members to reach a fair and just contract with our teachers so as to not interrupt our children's education and ensure that our teachers are paid competitively and fairly. Accountability and transparency- When notified of the Superintendents upcoming retirement the board, through several closed session meetings and with no public notification or input appointed the deputy Superintendent to the position. A person with no notable classroom or site leadership experience. This was done without first opening the position to any other candidates or external search for qualified replacements. Furthermore, the deputy superintendent was given a contract equal in pay to that of the outgoing superintendent after 11 years at the position. The board has shown us, the community that they have no time for matters such as this and so we must find people that do have the time. Our children are our most valuable resource, we need board members who will not forget this.[8] | ” |
| —Sonya La Rocque, Taylor Bugarin, Corrina La Bonte, Ana Madera, Richard Rigsby, Lorrie Landes, Amy Castelluccio, Sara Valdez, Denea Rexroad, Kathleen Childress (July 19, 2016)[3] | ||
The recall effort continued after the teachers went on strike. "This recall will go on because this has gone on too long," said Denea Rexroad, an organizer of the recall effort. "It's been almost a year of negotiations, and we seriously had to put teachers on the street before we could get a deal? That's not acceptable. So, we are done. We are putting in new people."[9]
Recall opponents
Board President Lonetta Riley said the board had tried to resolve the compensation issue with the teachers union "in a fair and equitable manner." She said the union had a different understanding of how much money was available for teacher salaries compared to the board's understanding.[2]
Yuba City Unified Superintendent Nancy Aaberg agreed with Riley that the problem with the negotiations was the difference in perception about the district's funding. She said, "The district remains hopeful negotiations will yield a resolution that is in the best interest of students, teachers, the district and community."[2]
"I think there is a long history of people being upset with the school board that predates me," said board member Paul Broughton, who was first elected to the board in 2014. "There is some intense animosity. But I do feel it's OK if they put it up for recall so that the people can decide. I'm not going to mount any campaign."[10]
Arguments against recall
The editorial board of the Appeal-Democrat wrote the following article discussing an alternative to holding a recall election.
| “ | We have an idea for an alternative to a recall election of Yuba City Unified School District Board of Trustees members.
It is to have an actual contested election for the seats up for election this year, and then again in two years. Find more than one or even two candidates for seats that are up for grabs — never let an incumbent go unchallenged. Spend some money and time and energy campaigning for new candidates with thoughtful ideas and goals. Let voters pick the best out of a field of candidates, instead of just allowing them to remove trustees. It's not that we're unsympathetic to those who seek change. We just cringe at seeing the recall mechanism used. It's a radical move. It ought to be reserved for extreme situations. And while it can be used to address a perceived problem, it doesn't necessarily solve the problem. If the recall is successful, it just removes people from their seats. The matter of finding someone to have appointed to fill the vacancies is still at hand. And while there might be some discussion and debate between recall supporters and the people under attack, the rhetoric of a recall campaign is rarely constructive. Also, there's the cost. The recall effort got a late start, so it can't be included on the November general election ballot. It would have its own special election. We're just wondering why we're going to spend tens of thousands of dollars to finance a special election for a recall effort for people who have been repeatedly re-elected for their seats. And who takes their places? It's not exactly like there is a great swell of people anxious to serve on school boards. Yet, a filing fee was paid and documents submitted. Board members targeted are Steven Scriven, Paul Broughton, Fred Northern and Lonetta Riley. If the recall goes ahead, fine. But an alternative is to recruit talented residents who are willing to serve the community and get them elected through a regular ballot. Actually, and unfortunately, the alternative might be the hardest thing to do.[8] |
” |
| —Appeal-Democrat Editorial Board (July 11, 2016)[11] | ||
Recall events
Teachers strike
On September 8, 2016, teachers in the Yuba City Unified School District began a seven-day strike after the Yuba City Teachers Association rejected the district's most recent compensation offer. The union requested a 13 percent pay increase for teachers in order to bring compensation levels closer to the state's average. The average teacher salary for the district during the 2014-2015 school year was $64,165, while the average for the state that school year was $74,090.[12]
"Thirteen percent is beyond what the budget can survive,” said Yuba City Unified Superintendent Nancy Aaberg. Yuba City Teachers Association President Dina Luetgens, however, said that administrators in the district were paid above the state average. “If the superintendent and the school board think their disrespectful actions towards teachers will have no consequences, then we have news for them,” said Luetgens.[12]
Officials in the district did say they were prepared for the strike. They had 700 substitute teachers on standby before the strike began.[12] The district also offered substitute teachers nearly triple their usual pay. Instead of the typical $125 per day, the district offered $330 per day, in addition to mileage if a substitute worked more than 30 miles from the district. A regular teacher in the district made an average of $366 per day. Luetgens said the district's high pay offer to substitutes during the strike highlighted officials' unwillingness to invest in teachers.[13]
After striking for two days, district officials and union officials met in a 16-hour session on September 10, 2016, but no deal was reached. The district offered an 11.1 percent pay increase over a two-year period, and the union offered a 15 percent pay increase over a three-year period. Both offers were rejected, and the strike continued on September 12, 2016.[9]
The Yuba City Unified School District website published a statement after the discussion failed that said: "We are deeply disappointed that these talks did not result in an agreement or bring an end to this teachers strike."[9]
Krista Smith, a Yuba City Unified teacher who went on strike, said the district's offer was rejected because the proposed raise increase came with an increase in hours. A portion of the raise was also subject to the district's funding.[9]
The two parties came to an agreement on September 19, 2016, and the teachers ended their strike after seven days. The agreement included an 11.1 percent raise over three years.[14][15] It also gave educators more of a say with the district's Local Control Accountability Plan and more influence over how collaboration days would be used.[10]
Background
Superintendent announces resignation
In May 2016, Superintendent Nancy Aaberg announced she would retire in November 2016. After receiving the news, the board unanimously approved a transition plan for her retirement. Instead of searching for outside candidates, the board appointed Deputy Superintendent of Educational Services Doreen Osumi as Aaberg's replacement.[4]
Osumi had worked with Aaberg since 2006. "From the time I got here, I worked closely with Nancy," Osumi said. "It's been nice for me having a mentor throughout my career at (YCUSD), so I understand the role of superintendent and the complexity of it in a district like ours."[4]
Aaberg approved of the board's appointment. "We're not going to find leadership outside of the district that exceeds the leadership (Osumi) demonstrated," she said. "She's absolutely the best candidate."[4]
Some community members, however, were not pleased with the decision to hire internally. In their notice of recall, leaders of the effort said Osumi had "no notable classroom or site leadership experience."[3]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in California
The recall effort was started too late to join the ballot on November 8, 2016, when the three other members of the board were up for election. If recall supporters had collected enough signatures to get on the ballot, a special election would have been held in 2017. Sutter County Clerk-Recorder Donna Johnston said a special election could have cost the district between $65,000 and $80,000. To prompt a special election, recall supporters had to collect 6,526 signatures per board member by December 9, 2016. They did not submit the petitions by the deadline.[1][2][16]
If the petitions had been turned in by the deadline, and enough signatures had been deemed valid, the date of the special election would have had to be announced within 14 days of certifying the petitions. The election would have been scheduled between 88 and 125 days after the date of the election was announced.[17]
About the district
The Yuba City Unified School District is located in Sutter County in north-central California. The county seat is Yuba City. Sutter County was home to 96,463 residents in 2015, according to the United States Census Bureau.[18] The district was the 122nd-largest school district in the state in the 2013–2014 school year and served 13,401 students.[19]
Demographics
Sutter County outperformed California as a whole in terms of higher education achievement from 2010 to 2014. The United States Census Bureau found that 18.5 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 31 percent of state residents. The median household income for Sutter County was $51,527, compared to $61,489 for the entire state. The percentage of people in poverty in the county was 15.2 percent, while it was 16.4 percent statewide.[18]
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Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Yuba City Unified School District' recall. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Yuba City Unified School District, California
- Yuba City Unified School District elections (2016)
- Yuba City Unified School District elections (2014)
- Recall campaigns in California
- Political recall efforts, 2016
- School board recalls
External links
- Yuba City Unified School District
- Sutter County Clerk-Recorder-Registrar of Voters
- Yuba City Teachers Association
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Abbey Smith, "Phone communication with Sutter County Elections," December 12, 2016
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 appealdemocrat.com, "Yuba City school district recall moves forward, but not in time for November general election," July 8, 2016
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 My Public Notices, "TO: PAUL BROUGHTON," July 19, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Appeal-Democrat, "Yuba City Unified superintendent retiring in November," May 18, 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Yuba City Unified School District, "YCUSD Governing Board," accessed July 13, 2016
- ↑ Sutter County, "Unofficial Presidential General Election Results November 8, 2016," accessed November 15, 2016
- ↑ Appeal-Democrat, "It’s official: Filing closed for all races," August 18, 2016
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 KCRA 3, "Yuba City teachers strike continues, offer rejected," September 12, 2016
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Appeal-Democrat, "Moving forward after the strike," September 24, 2016
- ↑ Appeal-Democrat, "Our View: An alternative to using the recall: Have actual contests in actual elections," July 11, 2016
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 KCRA 3, "Yuba City teacher: Strike is 'only option we have left,'" September 7, 2016
- ↑ Appeal-Democrat, "District has substitutes ready should strike happen," August 27, 2016
- ↑ The Sacramento Bee, "Yuba City teachers return to work after 7-day strike," September 19, 2016
- ↑ Yuba City Unified School District, "Press Release Post - YCTA Ratification," September 19, 2016
- ↑ Abbey Smith, “Email communication with Sutter County Clerk-Recorder Donna Johnston," August 30, 2016
- ↑ California Elections Code, "Section 11242," accessed September 22, 2016
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 United States Census Bureau, "Sutter County, California," accessed July 13, 2016
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed November 16, 2015
- ↑ Sutter County Registrar of Voters, "Presidential General Election November 6, 2012, Official Results," accessed July 14, 2014
- ↑ Sutter County Registrar of Voters, "Presidential General Election November 4, 2008, Official Results," accessed July 14, 2014
- ↑ Sutter County Registrar of Voters, "General Election November 2, 2004, Final Official Results," accessed July 14, 2014
- ↑ Sutter County Registrar of Voters, "General Election November 7, 2000," accessed July 14, 2014
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