Well it certainly has been an interesting day on the Front Porch as a couple of deliveries were dropped in my lap. First it appears embattled Long Beach Unified School District Board Member Michael Ellis is running from more than a recall petition sponsored by the Greater Long Beach Chamber of Commerce. As you can see on a document from the website of the Orange County Courts – click here to view it - Mr. Ellis has had his probation revoked for his drunken driving conviction. Perhaps more importantly, the Orange County Court has Ellis listed as a “fugitive.”
I am not an attorney but I watch a lot of television and read a lot of books—they tell me that a fugitive is an individual wanted by law enforcement. Mr. Ellis, if you are reading this please present yourself to the Orange County District Attorney as soon as possible. And it would be very helpful if on the way to Santa Ana you stop by the District offices and tender your resignation from the Board, not only because you are apparently a fugitive from justice, but also because since your friend Scott McVarish was fired for the second time as the Executive Director of the Teachers Association of Long Beach you have not been present at any school board meeting. You seemingly abandoned principles quite a while ago, now you are also abandoning your position as a school board member. Do the right thing. Please, resign.
Speaking of Mr. McVarish, the other document – click here to view it - I had dropped on the Front Porch today is the Executive Summary of the Forensic Investigation of the Teachers Association of Long Beach. It does not take long to discover that the TALB board of directors had it right last summer when they fired McVarish the first time. Given this report, how dues paying members of TALB have not filed for a criminal investigation yet is remarkable. If they do, McVarish may save some money by hiring Ellis’ attorney—sort of a group discount.
I have seen many audit letters in my day, but none contained the phrases “certain checks were forged…,” “checks were signed by an unauthorized TALB executive,” “little control over the use and access to the TALB credit cards,” as this one does, to name a few that stand out. After reading this report any member of TALB should be outraged at the misuse of their dues and the leadership that allowed the fiscal irresponsibility to not only continue but defended the person responsible. For the past year several TALB board members whom I have labeled The Nine in previous posts, have been treated horribly by TALB senior staff and it President Michael Day and other board members as they tried to correct the financially sinking TALB ship. This audit summary vindicates these board members for their efforts and every teacher in the LBUSD should be grateful for their persistence and diligence.
Some very important elections are coming up and as voters head to the polls I hope they keep these two documents in mind. First we see the character of one of TALB’s hand picked candidates for the school board and must question the judgment of those responsible for political endorsements at TALB. Second we see the egregious fiscal mismanagement that has been on-going at TALB, much of it apparently abetted by elected TALB officials and board members, seriously calling into question their abilities to run the organization.
TALB members have elections upon them to vote for new officers and board members. My advice to them is (with the exception of the Nine board members responsible for bringing the activities of McVarish and others to light) to clean house. With the exception of these nine board members your union has been horribly managed, financially ruined and taken over by the state organization. It is time for teachers to stand up and take back your union so you get the leadership, direction and representation you deserve.
Second, we have critical elections approaching for the Long Beach Unified School District. Incumbents Jon Meyer and Felton Williams are facing competition from TALB backed candidates among others. Our district, like all districts, is facing severe funding challenges due to the state budget crisis. Williams and Meyer have worked hard with other board members Mary Stanton and David Barton (I would include Ellis but he is never there) and Superintendent Chris Steinhauser and his staff to make very difficult decisions on how to cut $20 million out of next year’s budget. There are no easy choices but choices have to be made to continue the excellent quality of education my children and 90,000 others receive at LBUSD campuses. After reading the documents included in this post can anyone feel positive about the financial decisions being made by TALB sponsored candidates?
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