Soquel Union teachers vote no confidence in superintendent
By Calvin Men, Santa Cruz Sentinel
POSTED: 04/07/15, 5:13 PM PDT |
CAPITOLA >>
Teachers in the Soquel Union Elementary School District
voted “no confidence” in the district’s superintendent, citing a lack of
communication and respect for teachers.
Roughly 96 percent of the Soquel Education Association voted
no confidence in Superintendent Henry Castaniada’s leadership on March 25.
“This vote of no confidence is a drastic measure,” said
Ashley Edgar, president of the association, which represents the teachers.
“It’s not a measure that we take any gratification from. It’s not a happy time.
This is primarily due to the level of frustration.”
Castaniada said the no confidence vote was news to him. The
district and the association are in negotiations for teacher salary.
“We had one session, it went well. We had three other
sessions that are potential negotiation dates,” Castaniada said.
Phil Rodriguez, president of the board of trustees, said he
was also caught off guard by the news but added that the association would bring
it up eventually.
“I would guess that at some point in time, the SEA will
advise us about this. Without knowing the context, I have no opinion,”
Rodriguez said.
At the heart of the association’s frustration with
Castaniada is the perception that he doesn’t represent the best interests of
the teachers and the students. Teachers hadn’t seen a salary increase since
2008, Edgar said. In 2014, when the teachers negotiated for a 3.5 percent
salary increase, they were asked to work additional hours. The caveat to the
deal was seen as unjust given that teachers went without a salary increase to
keep class sizes manageable.
“We repeatedly ask Mr. Castaniada to advocate for us with
the board,” Edgar said. “Teachers felt like they haven’t been made a budgetary priority.”
The no confidence vote also comes during amid months of
angry parents taking umbrage over what they deem is a lack of communication
over district policy.
Adding fuel to the frustration, Castaniada’s contract was
recently renewed through 2018 by the board with a 15 percent increase in his
base salary among other changes.
“I think what they were trying to say is they wished the
board looked at all the priorities in the district and looked at those
priorities closest to the classroom,” said Susan Midori Jones, a labor
representative from the California Teachers Association. “Hiring more teachers
to reduce class size before deciding to reward people who were further from the
classroom.”
With the vote, the association aims to create dialogue with
Castaniada and the board.
“We’d like to see the board and the superintendent react in
a way that would be constructive as to what we want. How did things go wrong
and how can we not have a year like this again?” Edgar said.
