Hayward school board President Lisa Brunner
scolded the City Council Tuesday night.
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HAYWARD | Relations between the Hayward City Council and its school board has been sour for years, but recent contentiousness between the two government bodies spilled out in public view Tuesday night.
Hayward school board President Lisa Brunner ripped some Hayward City Council members for publicly interfering in the school district’s matters, namely the strong support offered in recent months by some councilmembers for a political action committee set on defeating a majority of the school board this November.
“Stay in your lane. You were elected to manage the city,” said Brunner, She scolded the city council on numerous occasions during the public comment period at Tuesday night’s meeting. Brunner said she was speaking as a resident and not as a school board member.
“I support the police chief, and I like her as a person,” Brunner said of Hayward Police Chief Diane Stuart, currently on administrative leave for unspecified reasons. “However, like the rest of my board members, I don’t plan on starting a PAC or joining a PAC to bring her back. I respect the process and I respect the position of other elected officials, unlike all of you sitting up there.”
Brunner, though, excluded Councilmember Marvin Peixoto, who has mostly stayed out of the debate over the embattled Hayward Superintendent Stan “Data” Dobbs, who was placed on leave by the school board in June while an investigation runs its course over alleged misconduct. Peixoto nodded affirmatively after Brunner acknowledged his neutrality.
However, the rest of the council appeared to sit in quiet anger as Brunner also lambasted their handling of other city matters, primarily the city budget and its past treatment of public employees. Councilmember Al Mendall peered at Brunner while standing tense and Mayor Barbara Halliday shuddered when Brunner used the word “corruption” while referring to Hayward.
Brunner also tore into Councilmember Sara Lamnin, who has taken a lead in organizing the group of faith and business leaders advocating for Dobbs to keep his job. Pending a forthcoming report on Dobbs’ action, he could be terminated by the school board as early as this week. Brunner is not up for re-election until 2018.
“I got the impression that Ms. Lamnin doesn’t read,” said Brunner in an attempt to compare and contrast the city and school board’s most recent budgets. Brunner then claimed the school board has doubled its reserves, while the city’s treasury languishes under the council’s direction.
“Your own budgets say that the city reserves will be completely depleted in 2019, at the rate you’re going,” said Brunner. “Every year you have borrowed against it. You’re below your emergency reserve level and you claim you have a balanced budget. You have done it by imposing employees.” Brunner added the city budget would have been “further in the hole,” if not for a number of recently approved tax measures.
The Hayward Unified School District, though, has not been without its own fiscal problems over the years, but in the past, criticism from public officials in the city was muted with the realization a certain degree of autonomy exists between the two elected bodies.
Former Hayward Mayor Michael Sweeney was often the most vocal critic of the Hayward school district, but his comments were mostly political rhetoric that fell short of advocating and forming a grassroots apparatus for fomenting change on the school board. Sweeney, however, is also part of the PAC seeking to save Dobbs’ job, along with the campaign to elect a slate of three handpicked school board candidates.
@3:11 you are 100% and that is why I will vote again for Reynoso
@dzzuy you are completely wrong. I am a teacher and I can tell you that if it was not for Dr. Reynoso I would not have a job today. He has stood up for so many teachers and for classified staff too for 8 years, He has not changed . He is still the same sole voice against corruption. So , I guess the person above is right and I don't know you but you must be corrupt too.
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You'r right..Reynoso is smart man, because he know how to kick ass on right time , he did that on his second term election , now he try to do it again ( during his eight year trustee in the HUSD.. he made HUSD got worse) . This is time we need to clean the whole house …All NEEDS TO GO
I am a Asian American parent in the HUSD..As far as I'm concerned, HUSD has always had serious problems and always will. The low performance of students in HUSD has been going on for decades,
How can you have a healthy district when those at the head of that district only care about furthering their own agendas? When all is said and done, they could care less about the students. They care even less about the teachers, most of whom are hard-working and dedicated. And the classified staff isn't even on their radar. Continue fighting for your child, Very Concerned Parent. In a school district like HUSD, your child NEEDS your voice.
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@dzzuy I know who you are and I must say you are very corrupt. Talking about the pot calling the kettle black. Yes we do need Reynoso since he is the only one with any backbone to put his foot down and take a stand against the Stan Dobbs, CLASS pop cycle stick trash monkey candidates….lol
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current Hayward school board member Luis Reynoso “a disaster” for the district.He is somebody who causes dissent,“One person can ruin a board; a bad board can ruin a school district. That is happening right now. I can’t think of any more reason to support these people up here running than to get rid of Luis Reynoso.”he is just like Trump…)
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Unfortunately, Reynoso needs to go as well. He is not as pure as new fallen snowflakes. He is just as bad and does have many skeletons in the closet that he does not want exposed. On many votes during Board meetings, he should have abstained yet didn't. Truly a conflict and he voted… Like I said before…. he needs to go
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Improving Hayward, find yourself a fact checker. #1: The school board is not $66 million in debt. They have a healthy budget for the next two years, and the third year out, they may be under water, but not by that much. #2 Teachers got a MODEST raise, not a big raise. It was about 3%, which barely keeps up with cost of living adjustments. #3: Teachers do NOT start in the low 80s or 90s, they start at $61K. You can check the salary schedule on the HUSD website. #4: Many teachers do NOT make over $100,000/year. The maximum teacher salary in Hayward is $102,734. You need to be teaching for 18 years and have a Master's degree or significant post-BA education to earn that, most teachers make far, far less. Again, this is all public, it's not a mystery. The mystery is why you are making things up or at the very least didn't take the time to do a quick google search before writing. #5: “The public makes half of what the teachers make”. Actually, when you compare teachers' salaries to salaries for other professionals with the same amount of education and experience, that part of the public makes far more. #6: “Teachers lowered students test scores to pass them through.” WHAT? I don't know what you mean, but this does not seem to make sense.
With the new common core standards, students are taught to cite evidence to justify their opinions and support their arguments. They are doing a better job than you are. Please improve your argumentative essay skills while the rest of us go about improving Hayward.
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right on Improving Hayward!!!
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I am so proud of Brunner. I am even prouder today after the school board fired Dobbs. When you read the charges against Dobbs: a filthy mouth, slamming doors and having an affair and blaming it on Reynoso, he truly is despicable. I am so glad this sow’s ear, in a designer suit is fired. Dobbs had an affair and blamed it on Reynoso. Dr. Reynoso should sue him for slander. I hope Dobb’s wife still loves him, or does she know about the affair? Mrs. Dobbs gave a speech saying how pure Dobbs is. Did she know she was sharing her husband? Someone advise her to get a VD check.
Dobbs never admits guilt for anything thing and always blames someone else. He is raising 5 children like that. He is NOT a mentor for any one’s children. Take a good look at the teachers, the parents and the made in Hayward students, who defend Dobbs, no matter what! Walker and Taylor have to go next. We have had enough of their lies on public record and corruption. They are big supports of the violent “ F… Y..” door slamming Superintendent. This is why the wealthy new people in this city do NOT want their children in Hayward’s public schools.
The teachers got a big raise and the school board is $66 million in debt from their unfunded pensions. Teacher’s start at high 80’s and low 90’s thousand and want the public to support them for low income housing. Property owners will be getting a tax on your property within the next 3 years, for the homeless and low income earners the city councils have created with their redevelopment.
Many teachers make over a hundred thousand in Hayward. The public makes half of what the teachers make. What teacher would go into teaching to bankrupt a school district?
Teachers lowered the students test scores to pass them through. “Makes their job easy.” A year ago Hayward kids were failing. How come they got so smart in one year? Dobb’s certificate giving was a marketing or PR show, to make these kids think they are smart and the parents feel good. Students will find out, in college, they will be taking high school classes at college prices to make up for what they didn’t learn in high school. Dobbs and the teachers did you no favor.
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Halliday, Lamnin, Marquez, Salinas, Mendall and Zermeno are Hayward residents, but they all were elected to represent the interests residents of Hayward. They are not the school board. If they want to quit and join the school bosrd to help the kids, then they should do it. Lamnin made a failed attempt to win a seat on the school board in the pat. She wasn't up to snuff, that's why she got a council seat. Bought and paid for by the unions.Why after decades of low test scores and failiing grades, does city council care so much? They “care” about Dobbs. Mot the shame and embarsssment that he has caused our city. Their puppet candidates won't improve the situation. Look at how council runs the city of Hayward if you don't believe it. Seven homicides in 8 months, while they are grooming their puppets to get elected to the school board and raisimg funds for their PAC.
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walker honor her last name greatly yesterday!!! she walk away from her responsability .What a disrespect to all the people that stay until the end of the meeting!! but what else is new, right she alwals walk away in the critical times or desicion making specially when is related to dobbs. whit no doudt she is devoted to dobbs!! lest get rid of her!!!
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Elected officials are also citizens. They have a right to organize and speak their mind. Where was Walker and Taylor when Dobbs was fired? Voters will remember in Nov- VOTE CLASS SLATE!
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finnaly the board of education is taking action !! stop council members from interfering whit HUSD…Isnt that illegal ? public entitiey interfering whit the other, in this case city council!!.Way to go Mrs Brunner..
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City council doesn't like answering for their own failures and lack of common sense leadership. Spending 90 million dollars + on a library across the street from The Hayward Fault, the fiasco that is the Infernal Hayward Loop, illegally imposing on their lowest paid workers, retaining a sloppy drunk Fire Chief, their idiotic choice to support Stan Dobbs who had been run out of the San Diego school district, over developing Hayward with high density housing, the proposed spending on a 180 million dollar police station and channeling $2.6 million dollars into a new radio system for compatible equipment that works with the county's system which if it had been done a few years ago, it would have been cheaper. There have been many more blunders by council. Brunner got it right. Council needs to take care of its own problems before throwing stones at the school board. Lamnin is Sweeney's sacrificial lamb. Hayward politics is crooked and council is corrupt. Anyone one of them would be angry if the school board interfered with their business. They got pissed that Brunner confronted them. They get pissy with Hayward residents Wynn and Jim every week. They need to practice what they have been preaching to the school board.
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