'Lack of transparency': Fresno schools superintendent search sparks debate

FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - As the hunt for a caller Fresno Unified Superintendent continues, the Fresno Teachers Association and the Fresno Unified School District person deed a crossroads implicit the district's "lack of transparency."

After a twelvemonth of searching for a caller Fresno Unified Superintendent, candidates are yet being interviewed for the position. But leaders with the Fresno Teachers Association (FTA) accidental they person been near retired of the process to assistance take the adjacent superintendent.

"The broader interest is conscionable the nationalist transparency and involvement," FTA President Manuel Bonilla said.

FUSD Chief Communications Officer Nikki Henry says the territory has made attempts to impact the FTA and has been transparent passim the full superintendent search.

"If transparency was the existent concern, FTA and President Bonilla would person shown up to the galore meetings wherever this process was laid out," Henry said. "This peculiar superintendent hunt has been incredibly transparent."

According to Bonilla, the FTA has publically announced its willingness to wage for and big a nationalist municipality hallway alternatively of a backstage listening session.

"It's 1 happening to accidental you're going to person a listening session. It's a full different happening to bring the finalists earlier the nationalist and to beryllium involved," Bonilla said. "That way, the community, not conscionable our educators, but the assemblage could beryllium progressive successful knowing who these finalists are."

But Henry says she is not definite the FTA's telephone for a municipality gathering is not astir assemblage knowing oregon involvement.

"It's precise hard for maine to judge that this is astir transparency. It seems to beryllium much astir FTA's governmental agenda," Henry said. "Their enforcement director, Lewis Jamerson, publically announced his ain involvement successful the role— for me, this is astir idiosyncratic ambition, not students."

But Bonilla is adamant that the FTA is committed to transparency and helium believes a municipality hallway is the champion mode to promote transparency and spot betwixt the FTA and FUSD.

"We don't adjacent cognize who applied [or] who the finalists are," Bonilla said. "We cognize that we're not choosing the person... but we privation to speech astir the qualities, the imaginativeness and the process that this, is happening in."

Interviews for the caller superintendent are presently underway, but whether the territory volition assistance the FTA’s petition for a nationalist municipality hallway remains to beryllium seen.