Outgoing Placentia-Yorba Linda School Board Majority Seeks To Lock in Controversial  Superintendent

Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School Board members are looking to marque it harder to occurrence Superintendent Alex Cherniss and to manus oversight work of their arguable Universal Sports Institute to a charter schoolhouse 2 weeks aft the November election.

Trustees volition determine astatine their 6 p.m. gathering Tuesday, which tin beryllium livestreamed connected the district’s website, if they volition adhd a clause to the Cherniss’ contract that would necessitate a supermajority of the committee to occurrence the superintendent.

They volition besides clasp a nationalist proceeding connected whether they privation the Orange County School of Computer Science, a charter school, to afloat oversee and negociate the district’s caller Universal Sports Institute – a sports show programme and authorities of the creation grooming installation for pupil athletes.

Some parents successful the territory are raising alarms that this is an effort by the existent committee bulk to fastener successful Cherniss and the sports institute helium pushed connected creating earlier a caller committee bulk takes its place.

Monday evening election results showed Tricia Quintero, a teacher, connected way to articulation the Placentia-Yorba Linda schoolhouse committee up of Candidates Ryan James Miller and Nicolas Cardenas to regenerate existent Trustee Shawn Youngblood.

Results besides showed incumbents Leandra Blades, the existent committee president, and trustee Marilyn Anderson connected way to beryllium reelected.

Blades and the committee person landed successful the spotlight for a big of arguable policies successful caller years, including banning captious contention theory, adopting a parent notification policy, violating the state’s unfastened gathering law and sparking concerns from parents astir book bans. 

Earlier this year, students raised concerns of mass firing of schoolhouse administrators and principals successful the Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District – thing that Cherniss denied.

Quintero’s predetermination could people a displacement successful the schoolhouse board’s dynamic and direction.

The existent schoolhouse committee bulk – Blades, Youngblood and Trustee Todd Frazier – voted successful enactment of the parental notification argumentation and changes to their publication enactment policy.

Blades and Youngblood besides voted successful favour of the Critical Race Theory prohibition on with Anderson backmost successful April 2022. Frazier, who was elected successful November 2022, was vocally successful enactment of the ban.

Quintero said she supports teaching humanities events accurately.

“I tin guarantee you that my 2 PYLUSD graduates were ne'er taught this world and ineligible framework. CRT is simply a graduate-level people astatine a assemblage level. I enactment an close teaching of humanities events,” Quintero said connected her campaign website. 

“Ensuring students and teachers tin person unfastened discussions is simply a important portion of creating captious reasoning skills.”

She besides has raised concerns astir the cost of the sports institute connected her run website.

A Superintendent & A Sports Institute

Cherniss, who the current committee hired to beryllium the superintendent past year, has besides faced disapproval from immoderate parents who reason the sports institute helium pushed for is simply a discarded of territory funds.

An online petition calling for Cherniss to instantly resign has garnered 777 signatures arsenic of Monday afternoon, citing successful portion the contention implicit the Universal Sports Institute.

In the midst of this ongoing controversy, committee members contiguous are proposing to amend his declaration to see a clause that would necessitate a ballot of 4 retired of 5 committee members to occurrence Cherniss – 80% of the board.

That clause would stay successful effect until December 2026 – pursuing the adjacent election.

At tonight’s meetings, committee members besides person scheduled a nationalist proceeding astir adding the Universal Sports Institute to OC School of Computer Science’s charter petition.

“As portion of this revision, OCSCS volition presume afloat oversight and absorption of the USI program, ensuring that students and families person entree to a robust and flexible learning experience,” reads proposed changes to the charter’s petition.

Also connected Tuesday’s schoolhouse committee agenda: adding 2 much meetings successful December earlier Quintero joins the board.

Meanwhile, the nationalist comments information of the gathering is scheduled aft the committee votes connected amending Cherniss’ declaration and the Universal Sports Institute.

Gwen Buchanan contributed to the reporting successful this article.

Hosam Elattar is simply a Voice of OC newsman and corps subordinate with Report for America, a GroundTruth initiative. Contact him astatine helattar@voiceofoc.org oregon connected Twitter @ElattarHosam.

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