Local opinion: Trujillo's conduct undermines TUSD mission, accountability

The following is the opinion and analysis of the writers:

During the Feb. 24 regular public TUSD Governing Board meeting, Superintendent Gabriel Trujillo exhibited dismissive and insolent behavior toward four of us. The lack of respect has been witnessed before, but not with such overt intention.

We are each long-time residents of TUSD who have demonstrated our individual commitment through decades of dedicated, voluntary work, much of which supports the interests of students and parents. While our work has been mostly independent of one another, we respect one another's efforts and tenacity in presenting impartial, well-researched information to TUSD officials and members of the public as part of the ongoing effort to raise awareness toward TUSD's systemic improvement.

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Dr. Trujillo has long made clear that he is not tolerant of public input offering suggested remedies for systemic problems related to the budget, desegregation matters, policy recommendations, or instructional programs. It has been common practice for him to leave the dais when specific speakers have addressed the Board, or to attend to his electronic apparatus while arrogantly disregarding the speaker. Some speakers have pointed out his inattentiveness, passive-aggressiveness, and rudeness, which seemed to correct his conduct to some extent.

Still, Dr. Trujillo's hostility came through in his seemingly shrewd actions to manipulate the Board agenda by moving public hearings and/or controversial items far down the public agenda, resulting in the items being dealt with late into the night while most attendees had already departed. It is an objectionable, chilling, and silencing strategy. At times, those seeking to speak depart the meeting, but those who remain do so before a thin, mostly tired and uninterested crowd, which, of course, is the Superintendent's objective. Within the last decade, meaningful parent engagement through the School Community Partnership Council (the largest parent-school engagement group in TUSD history) and an outspoken Title I parent group were each abandoned by the Administration, leading to their collapse. After the Federal District Court terminated its supervision of the desegregation court decree, parent and community engagement continued to plummet in addressing areas specifically relevant to student academic achievement and discipline, as well as in allocating program and school budgets.

Two opportunities to address the Board appeared early within the posted agenda: Item 5: Call to the Audience, and 7.1: "Public Hearing TUSD 2024-25 Annual Report," which provides an opportunity for those seeking to provide public comment early in the evening, as well as during the meeting's peak attendance, allowing for broader sharing of information. It also allows those addressing the Board the freedom to leave the meeting after speaking.

The Board Meeting was filled to capacity. It was attended by individuals seeking to speak during the Call to the Audience against job eliminations due to budget cuts, the merging of two desegregation departments, the Annual 2024-2025 Comprehensive Financial Report, the Annual 2024-25 Desegregation Report, etc.

Early in the meeting, Superintendent Trujillo was asked by Board President Ravi Shah whether there were any agenda adjustments, to which he rattled off numerous items to be moved above the Public Hearing, including presentations by paid consultants and administrators, administrative appointments, and the Consent Agenda. Public comments are limited to three minutes per speaker, and only four individuals indicated an interest in speaking during the Public Hearing, totaling 12 minutes. In contrast, the items moved up within the agenda consumed hours.

At 9:47 PM, the Public Hearing was announced, and four of us took our turns speaking to a room emptied of its school employees and community members. Only administrators and Board members remained. We each spoke and were summarily dismissed, as planned and certainly not reflective of TUSD's overarching Mission, which explicitly states that one of its core values is acting with respect and honesty to ensure integrity, equity, and accountability. TUSD's goal in its Family and Community Engagement Plan is to increase overall family and community engagement, but this goal is continually undermined. Policies and plans are meaningless without their adherence by TUSD's top leaders.