Simi Schools Chief Faces 1st Test

He has met with school board members and custodians. He has dropped in at PTA meetings and DARE graduations.

He has learned the names of teachers, principals, bus drivers and cafeteria workers.

But in his first 100 days as superintendent of Simi Valley schools, Dan Flynn has not managed to overcome the doubts of his school board critics.

Chosen to lead the county’s largest school district on a split vote in October, Flynn faces his first test Tuesday night as trustees evaluate his job performance.

Those who opposed his hiring say they don’t believe Flynn has learned crucial aspects of the job--specifically, handling the budget and developing a vision for the district.

“Dan’s been good at visiting people,” trustee Carla Kurachi said. “But he finds it hard to make decisions and, unfortunately, he says that at many meetings. . . . We don’t pay him not to make decisions without checking with the board. I expect him to come up with his own judgment and follow policies with ease and leadership.”

But board President Norm Walker, who pushed Flynn for the job, dismissed those complaints as nit-picking.

“It’s time to stop criticizing,” Walker said. “We’re expecting him to walk on water, but let’s get realistic. People need to get behind him and reconcile that he is the superintendent of our schools. . . . He wasn’t asked to do anything concrete at first, except to build bridges, which he has done with a real abandon. . . . I am putting out a plea to be charitable here.”

Trustee Janice DiFatta, who originally voted to hire Flynn, said she preferred not to comment on the superintendent at this time, because the board soon will be evaluating him formally.

Observing the casual way he gives colleagues warm squeezes and shortens his assistant’s name from Kathy to “Kath,” it’s hard to tell that Flynn has led the Simi Valley Unified School District for barely 100 days.

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At every board meeting, the upbeat Flynn proudly announces the people he has met and the campuses he has visited since starting work Oct. 22. He rattles off what he has done: hung bulletin boards at district headquarters to display children’s artwork, linked the district to a community youth soccer foundation and spoken at a Republican women’s luncheon.

At a recent welcoming party, Flynn was the ideal host, making his staff feel comfortable over cake and coffee on school district property--a spot where most have worked much longer than he.

His assistant, Kathy Bartik, calls him the best boss she’s ever had, even though she often stays to work late, trying to catch him up on how aspects of the district work.

“I can talk to him about anything,” she said. “He’s really gotten morale up around the office.”

Community members too have noticed the superintendent’s efforts.

“I’m really impressed,” said PTA Council President Sandy Barnett. “I’ve seen him at all the schools, visiting classrooms and teachers, making himself accessible. . . . Superintendents have occasionally come out, but it’s not a thrust like it is for Dan Flynn.”

Last Thursday, Flynn, 45, reached the halfway mark of his six-month trial period. Although his first contract evaluation is not due until March 31--when his $96,000 salary could be boosted by $5,000--trustees are meeting Tuesday to discuss Flynn’s job performance.

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He came into the job facing unusual hurdles. First, the board was looking for its seventh superintendent in seven years, after dismissing two of his predecessors.

Also, he was the only candidate interviewed for the post as the board majority opted to forgo a nationwide search.

Finally, he had never run a school district before, serving most recently as a principal of Ventura County’s juvenile court schools and Head Start coordinator in Los Angeles County.

Under the circumstances, it is natural that Flynn has spent most of his energy getting to know the community now, said his former boss, Charles Weis, Ventura County Superintendent of Schools. That is something that is normally done through an extensive hiring process, which Flynn did not go through.

“That just wasn’t available in this case,” Weis said. “His hiring was short-circuited.”

That’s exactly the point that Kurachi and trustee Diane Collins made against hiring Flynn in the fall. They also argued that the Simi Valley school district should not have to suffer because its superintendent is inexperienced.

Three months into his tenure, their concerns remain.

“It’s worse than I thought,” Collins said. “I thought he’d rush in and try to learn the job. He’s getting paid a lot of money and taking a lot of risk. I would think he’d roll up his sleeves and learn how the district is run. . . . In the grand picture, it just hasn’t come clear to me what direction we’re going in.”

She is especially worried about his ability to direct how the district spends its money.

“We have met zero times dealing with the budget,” said budget chief Dave Kanthak, who in less than two weeks is leaving his post to take a similar job in Riverside County.

“Coming from my perspective as the money manager, I feel money is the most important aspect of the district. Generally, if a district is in financial trouble, the individual who is terminated first is the superintendent. He is ultimately responsible.”

But Walker said he is comfortable with Flynn’s approach.

“Nobody can figure out the money,” he said. “I’m serious. That’s why we have people on staff to do that.”

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It was at the 100-day mark, though, that Flynn began to delve into school budgets. Just last week, he attended an annual superintendent’s workshop in Monterey where he attended seminars on financial matters and board agendas. He also is enrolled in a seven-weekend superintendents academy in Los Angeles, where he will learn a variety of administrative skills.

As for his knowledge of the district’s financial department, Flynn acknowledged that he is “taking it piece by piece.” He has already met with officials from food services and transportation, and he plans to meet with maintenance staff and Kanthak before the budget chief leaves the district.

Ginny Jannotto, the teachers union president, said that in addition to finances, she is worried that Flynn doesn’t know how to lay out a path for the future.

She said the previous superintendent, Albert “Bud” Marley, who filled in for about four months, sat down with her every week and give her a synopsis of upcoming board agendas six meetings in advance.

But Flynn has not done that, she said, pointing to the last school board meeting, where there were no discussion items on the agenda because the notes Marley had left Flynn were finally used up.

“Dr. Marley looked ahead. He projected where we were budgetwise, where we’d need to sell schools,” Jannotto said. “Since he left, there has been no agenda. That concerns me. Nothing yet has come from him. I don’t know where we’re going.”

But Flynn said it has taken him all this time to push the trustees to identify 50 overall objectives in meetings held during the last two weeks.

Now, he can finally turn these plans into specific proposals--determining technology requirements for graduates, investigating a community mentorship program and exploring International Baccalaureate courses--and put them into action.

“These action plans will be coming up as agenda items,” Flynn said. “There are going to be plenty more things on that calendar we can talk about.”

Trustee Caesar Julian said he applauds Flynn’s style of proceeding with caution.

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“He has to move slow,” Julian said. “Marley was aggressive and reorganized things without informing the board--he said he didn’t have to ask us things. I, for one, resented it.”

What’s even worse than picking on Flynn for every move he makes, Julian continued, is that some critics accuse him of being the board’s puppet.

“That’s an accusation that has criminal overtones,” Julian said. “He has never called me or asked me what to do. . . . It just smacks me as political assassination.”

Critics say Flynn is a pawn of Walker, the board president, and his conservative philosophy. Walker denies this.

“It would be perfectly normal for him to come to me,” he said. “The superintendent is supposed to go to the board president and ask what he should do.”

And Flynn’s answer?

“No, no, no. A thousand times no. I am not Norm’s pawn.”

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While he admitted that he came in “a little softer” than someone else might have--since he was hired on such a controversial split, 3 to 2--Flynn understands how trustees could think he would be ripe for manipulation. But over the last several weeks, he has stopped getting the frequent calls from board members giving him input or questioning his decisions.

For the months ahead, he plans to focus on finding replacements for the vacant business services and director of elementary education slots, understanding top administrative posts, writing school board reports, planning a telethon and working with the principal of the new Wood Ranch Elementary School.

“I’m working harder than I ever have in my life and loving it,” he said. “I plan on staying here forever. My heart is in the right place. And you know what? I’m going to make some mistakes along the way. But I’m asking the community to bear with me.”