There have been some concerning “opinions” and actions over the last few months designed to disallow any form of checks and balance and to strip board trustees of their important roles and responsibilities.
1) At the May
24, 2017 meeting, the Board Attorney said it was her opinion that the board can’t
have a “personnel committee”. Most
districts have “personnel committees” as well as committees for “buildings and
grounds”, “curriculum”, “finance”, “technology”, etc. Committees make recommendations and provide
oversight. Committees don’t take actions. Lodi has no committees.
2) Past
practice has been: the board votes to confirm
authorization before filing a claim with the insurance provider to retain legal
representation for any trustees.
Apparently, that layer of checks and balance has been stripped away. The responsibility of board members has been
transferred to the superintendent.
3) Without any
board approval, “employees” authorized attorney Anthony Sciarillo to represent
the board in an election matter. Thousands
of dollars have been wasted on a case that Lodi had no business in. Employees decided what side of the case the
attorney would take on behalf of the board without consulting the board. The side chosen by the employees was
detrimental to the board’s interests. There
never was a possible benefit or gain by their actions.
It is not the role of board trustees to show up to a
meeting and rubberstamp whatever a few political employees decide behind the
scenes. Lodi deserves some form of
checks and balance, some form of oversight, and a clear understanding of different
roles.
