VENTURA : Teachers Union Acts Against Caldarelli

Leaders of the Ventura Unified Education Assn. have voted to ask the school board to postpone evaluating the contract of Supt. Cesare Caldarelli until after the November board elections, a union official said Tuesday.

The decision was made Monday at a meeting of about 40 teachers representing the district’s 23 schools, said association President John Gennaro. Each teacher had consulted with the schools’ staffs, he said.

Caldarelli has a three-year contract that is reviewed annually by the board after the end of the school year. During each review, the board may elect to extend the contract for another year.

During the board’s annual review last July, the teachers’ association objected to the terms of the contract.

The complaints came shortly after a majority of the teachers who were polled voted no confidence in the superintendent. In September, however, the board voted 4 to 1 to extend the contract.

Gennaro said teachers still have the same objections to the contract and are unhappy with the way the district is run.

“We think there should be a termination point at which the contract ends,” Gennaro said.

“We feel it’s bad business practice to do it the other way. There’s not enough accountability.”

He said that a letter asking for a postponement of the vote will be presented to the board at an upcoming school board meeting.

“I think teachers are generally concerned about the tone and the climate in the district,” Gennaro said. “Right now, they’re not very happy.”

School board members Barbara Myers and Vincent Ruiz are up for election in November. Myers has indicated that she does not plan to seek reelection.