SANTA PAULA : School Board Scraps Business Services Job
The Santa Paula Union High School District Board of Trustees, in an effort to comply with state and county recommendations, has unanimously voted to eliminate the position of assistant superintendent for business services as of June 30.
About 30 members of the community attended a meeting Tuesday to show their support for Robert Villa, who holds the job, and to try to persuade the board to vote in favor of retaining him.
Rachel Bustillos, local California School Employees Assn. president, who said she spoke for those assembled, stated that she found it “hard to understand some of the things the board does. . . . Is this the reward for doing a good job?”
Hope Mata, an instructional aide, said: “We so quickly forget and make decisions that affect how we feel here at school. Is this a vendetta? I don’t think so , but consider all he has done for the district. . . . He handled so many jobs under pressure and didn’t give up. Make your decision in good conscience.”
Board member Donna Nelson replied that the decision was by no means a vendetta, and added that all the members appreciate Villa’s work.
“I would have been lost without him,” Nelson said. She explained the move as simply cost-effective, saying no district the size of Santa Paula can afford to support three top administrative posts. The other two are principal and superintendent.
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