To School Board: "We Are Losing That Faith"

Speaker after speaker took to the podium to express a lack of faith in the school district’s leadership at Thursday night’s televised school board meeting.

It was a continuation of the to address the controversy over . During a public comment session that stretched on for an hour and a half, community members repeatedly called for the district to make a change and spoke of their own disappointment with the recent graduation decision, top-down leadership styles and staff turnover.

Many of the speakers were teachers and district staff, and the loud applause after most speakers testified to their frustration and low morale.

“The district is facing challenges with its academic integrity and the credibility of its leadership,” said Ashley Gray, a social studies teacher at . “The bottom line is the board is responsible for the actions of its appointed cabinet. Instead of blame shifting, the [graduation] issue should have been resolved within a day or two.”

“I would like to see that current administration and current leadership not say they’re accountable, but act accountable,” said teacher Laurie Dolly, noting that city residents had shown faith in the district by passing the Measure J bond. “They must be saddened at this dogfight that’s going on right now.”

“In the past, I’ve said we have lots of faith in you, but we are losing that faith,” said parent Saima Abdullah. “You have a treasure in this district. I don’t want you to lose that.”

The discontent with Acting Superintendent Adolfo Melara’s decision to allow 41 students who hadn’t completed graduation requirements to participate in the graduation ceremony has magnified existing rifts between staff and administration. Teachers say the decision degrades standards, but they also criticize the way it was made, which they see as emblematic of Melara’s perceived top-down leadership style.

Melara instructed South San Francisco High School Principal Michael Coyne and Principal Adele Berg on Thursday that he would allow students who had five to ten credits to complete over the summer to participate in graduation. Berg was opposed to the decision, and a member of El Camino’s campus security aid said publicly at Tuesday’s meeting that Berg was told she would be forced to step aside if she didn’t comply. Melara said he had no knowledge of this, and Assistant Superintendent Bob Thompson denies it happened.

Some community members turned out to defend the graduation decision, including Ricardo Zaragoza, 17, one of the South San Francisco High School students who participated in graduation but didn’t earn a diploma. He spoke about the challenges he faced in completing his education and said he didn’t get enough help from teachers.

“If they’re really trying to help us stay out of the streets, why didn’t they help us from the beginning?” he said.

Zaragoza said he came to the meeting to defend Melara, who stood next to him as he spoke.

On Saturday, the board will interview four to five candidates for the position of superintendent. Hiring the right candidate will be crucial to establishing stability in the district, said Board Trustee Philip Weise.