Garvey School District Board Member Janet Chin at a Sep. 28 press conference – Photo by Jim E. Winburn
According to the teachers’ association, its petition for recall was approved by the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk on Jan. 2, and the association now has begun its campaign to collect signatures.
In a statement released by Michael Drange, president of the Garvey Education Association, the notice says, “The Garvey District community demands Ms. Chin be recalled in order to restore integrity to our School Board and District.”
The group is accusing Chin of conflict of interest and voting for a contract extension and pay raise for the district’s superintendent Dr. Sandra Johnson.
As part of their ‘Grounds for the Recall,’ the association claims that Chin voted to extend Superintendent Johnson’s contract and spend over $40,000 more per year to keep her as Superintendent despite a “$2,000,000 budget shortfall, parents speaking at Board Meetings against her contract renewal and salary increase, no raise for any other employee for 5 years, [and] two overwhelming ‘No Confidence’ votes by teachers and classified employees.”
Chin responded with an open letter to the community on Jan. 7, defending the accusations made against her by the association, specifically those related to her support for the superintendent.
“Superintendent Dr. Johnson is a highly qualified leader who was unanimously hired by all five board members to lead the district,” Chin said in her statement. “We saved money by hiring her as a ‘retired’ superintendent, like many school districts do.”
At a Sep. 28 press conference held by Garvey School District officials, Drange told this reporter that the board gave the superintendent an annuity equivalent to the money they would have paid into her retirement and a tax shelter to do it.
“And they don’t want us to call it salary, they want STRS (State Teachers’ Retirement System) to call it salary,” he said. “Call it what you want, but that’s spiking your pension.”
In an email following the Sep. 28 press conference, Chin explained how the district saved money by keeping Johnson as the superintendent. “By not using an executive search firm, we already saved $30,000, plus we saved the district time since we wouldn’t have to undergo a six-month executive search process, saved money on the acclimation period, and the $40,000 is not money going into her monthly paycheck – it goes into an annuity,” she said.
Chin is also accused in the notice of recall petition of being “engaged in a conflict of interest when she voted on fees for after school programs including her Foundation.”
But Chin said she has abstained from voting on anything that may be perceived as a conflict of interest.
“I do not receive any financial benefit from being a founder of a non-profit charity who donates money to help fund things like the teachers’ annual mini-grants, special programs, school musical equipment, and sports equipment,” she said in her statement. “This non-profit charity raises money through yard sales, fundraisers, and corporate donations to give away to the district’s students and schools, NOT take things away!”
Although the association claims, in its harshest rhetoric, that she has “betrayed the public trust [by] failing to listen to district stakeholders while abusing her power as a Garvey School Board Member,” Chin said that such a recall effort at this time would ultimately hurt the district financially.
“The Los Angeles Registrar Recorder estimates that this special election recall will cost the Garvey School District $210,000 to conduct,” Chin said in her statement. “I find it a waste of precious time, energy and resources and ask Mr. Drange, to instead, join in my efforts of fundraising for the students’ needs. This recall petition is just harming the students and the community.”
Chin was first elected in 2007 and re-elected in 2011 to the Garvey School Board. She has served twice as president of the Board and is the communications director for Senator Dr. Ed Hernandez, O.D. of the 24th Senate District.
On Dec. 12, Chin announced her candidacy for Rosemead City Council for the Mar. 5, 2013, municipal election. Outlining her vision to “Build a Better Rosemead,” she said her campaign priorities are to include support for small businesses, public safety, senior and youth programs, as well as emergency preparedness.
For more information on the Garvey School District, visit www.garvey.k12.ca.us or call (626) 307-3444. For more on the Garvey Education Association, visit their web site at www.garveyea.org or call (626) 576-2488.