Deal Unravels on Interim Chief for L.A. District

A bid to negotiate an end to Los Angeles Unified’s 3-week-old power struggle appears to have failed, leading Ramon C. Cortines to say Wednesday that he is no longer interested in temporarily filling the district’s top job.

“I have withdrawn my name from consideration as of this morning,” said Cortines, 67, renowned for navigating school districts through troubled times.

Cortines broke the news to Genethia Hayes, the president of the district’s board of education, in a telephone call Wednesday morning. It followed two days during which the former superintendent of Pasadena, San Francisco and New York schools had tried to draft an agreement to allow Ruben Zacarias, the current superintendent, to stay on during a transition period.

Such an agreement would let Zacarias retire with dignity, cool the anti-school board fervor in the community and give Cortines time to gain trust and focus on numerous substantive issues--rather than having to fight political ones. Accordingly, the deal quickly gained widespread support among Latino political leaders and board members.

Even so, the plan encountered problems, some fundamental, some having to do with the personalities and personal circumstances of those involved.

Some board members objected to Zacarias staying on, even for only a few months. Cortines reportedly divulged Monday night that he wanted to advise Zacarias, not replace him, and work only part-time.

Some board members reportedly felt they had been misled about his intentions. But Cortines said he too came to feel betrayed. He had urged Hayes to delay any key decisions while the deal percolated. Instead, the board finalized a contract Tuesday with Chief Operating Officer Howard Miller, who has been at the center of the leadership battle.

The rapidly changing situation provides a clear example of how awkward and politically messy the board’s effort to resolve the leadership crisis has become. In addition, the apparent loss of a highly regarded Latino candidate no doubt will be seen in the community as another example of the board’s insensitivity.

It also casts doubt on any hope that the district might soon emerge from the chaos that has all but paralyzed it, especially with no new superintendent in sight.

In an interview, Cortines called the district the “most dysfunctional district in America.”

News of Cortines’ withdrawal caught board members by surprise, and they reacted with shock and disappointment. Sources said that, even after they heard the news, they refused to give up hope that a compromise could bring Cortines aboard in some advisory capacity.

Meanwhile, the board was supposed to meet today, ostensibly to finalize a buyout of Zacarias and install Cortines. But given the events Wednesday, it was unclear what, if anything, might be done.

Zacarias, who had been in close contact with Cortines since Monday afternoon, learned of his change of heart Wednesday morning. “Ramon called me and said, ‘Ruben, I’m tired of being jerked around by the board,’ ” Zacarias recalled. “It’s very unfortunate, but I can appreciate his frustration.”

State Sen. Richard Polanco (D-Los Angeles), a supporter of Zacarias who has been investigating the possibility of having the state take over the district, was even more blunt.

“These knuckleheads already received a vote of no confidence from the state Little Hoover Commission,” he said. “Now, they have received a vote of no confidence from their own handpicked person.”

Moving Quickly to Remove Zacarias

Board members Wednesday defended the need to move quickly in removing Zacarias and said they would recover from the loss of Cortines.

“We just have to find somebody else,” Caprice Young said. “There are a number of people I think ought to be in line next, but I don’t want to surface any of those names because I don’t want to happen to them what happened to Cortines.”

Some school district officials suggested that Cortines had attempted to keep Zacarias on board after succumbing to pressure from Latino community leaders and lawmakers. But Cortines said that was “absolutely not true.”

“If anything, in my last conversation with some of them last evening, it was them encouraging me to do everything possible to help,” he said.

Cortines said in an interview Tuesday night that his plan would have seen Zacarias leaving his job by January, with Cortines serving as an advisor until then and as an interim superintendent after that.

As part of that pact, Miller, the ex-school board member and attorney who was elevated Oct. 12 to a position of authority over all aspects of the district, would fill a reduced role as chief of facilities, finance and school safety. Miller had been promoted by a four-member board majority that had lost confidence in Zacarias’ management.

Cortines wanted the school board to delay for a couple of days any action on Miller’s contract or any other matter related to Zacarias.

Board member Victoria Castro, a staunch supporter of Zacarias, expressed dismay at the loss of someone she viewed as highly qualified as Cortines.

“Cortines presented the board with a win-win situation on a silver platter,” Castro said. “Then the board majority went ahead and gave him a toxic message by approving Miller as chief operating officer at $191,000 a year.

“Where that leaves the district, I have no idea.”

Hayes refused to comment on the transition plan Cortines had proposed. But she was incensed that its demise--and Cortines’ withdrawal--had become public.

“The board was not given anything but a very vague outline of a plan,” she said.

She also said the board was not responsible for Cortines’ decision to back out.

Cortines said one reason for his decision was that the board on Tuesday appeared to be willing to consider other candidates.

“I said, ‘Hey . . . you don’t need me,’ ” Cortines said. “I don’t mean to be arrogant but I am not going through a screening process . . . ever again in my career.”

Beyond that, Cortines said he was concerned about jeopardizing the $100,000 a year he receives as a retired California educator. He added that the issue could have been resolved.

With no clear fall-back candidate in view, Miller could become de facto leader of the district, at least for a short period.

But sources said Miller is not interested in serving as interim superintendent.

“It’s hard to believe anyone would want to come into the superintendent’s position with all the hysteria, demoralized employees and general frustration districtwide,” said board member and Zacarias supporter Julie Korenstein.

Cortines, a Pasadena resident, was drawn into the fray two weeks ago.

As heat mounted on the Board of Education from Latinos who saw the move to promote Miller as a slap in the face for Zacarias, the board contacted Cortines through intermediaries Gloria Molina, a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, and Antonia Hernandez, the executive director of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund.

“I told them I would do anything to provide a settling down of the system,” Cortines said. But he also told them that he wouldn’t get involved unless Zacarias himself asked for his help.

The reason for his interest, he said, had to do as much with what he called “economic development” as it did with education. “This is not about a school system. This is about 600,000 kids and their futures. They’re going to affect your economics and my economics.”

On Sunday, Cortines said, Zacarias called and asked to meet with him. On Monday, Cortines drove to Los Angeles from a ranch he owns near Sequoia National Park. And at 4 p.m., they began discussing their futures.

The two men, only three years apart in age but quite different in temperament--Cortines impulsive and fiery, Zacarias calm and deliberate--began to talk.

An Intense and Emotional Effort

An account by Cortines, which was confirmed by Zacarias, reveals an intense and emotional effort over a 36-hour period to heal the district--and the community it serves.

Cortines laid the cards on the table, one superintendent to another. You want to get out gracefully, Cortines said. Yes, Zacarias agreed. You want to leave on your own terms, he told Zacarias. Yes, Zacarias agreed again. Then Cortines began talking about what he called “transition dates.” Jan. 1 would make a clean break. Or the end of March. Or, perhaps, the end of the school year, although Cortines knew in the back of his mind that board members would not agree to wait that long.

Instead of raising that point, though, he moved on to other issues.

At that point Cortines asked Zacarias, “How can I help you?” The two men proceeded to talk about the district’s plan for ending social promotion, the nine labor contracts with district employee groups that are to expire next year, the district’s ineffective reading programs and which staff members would have to be removed.

So Cortines thought he had an agreement. But, to make sure, he made a conference call. Molina was part of it. So was Hernandez, of MALDEF. Cortines reviewed the points on which he and Zacarias had agreed, and they endorsed the plan. Neither Hernandez nor Molina could be reached for comment Wednesday.

Cortines left Zacarias’ office at 5:15 p.m. He then called board President Hayes and reported that progress had been made. He wanted her to agree not to execute a contract with Miller, finalize a buyout with Zacarias or name Cortines as his replacement.

He wanted her to give Zacarias until Friday to put their agreement in writing. But she insisted that everything be wrapped up by Thursday. Still, Cortines remained hopeful.

“I felt we were in a win-win situation for the city of Los Angeles,” he said.

Deal Quickly Came Unraveled

Abruptly, however, the deal began to fall apart. In a conversation with Hayes, Cortines raised the sticky issue of his compensation. He would also have to give up money he earned from consulting work he does.

Hayes seemed to be bothered by the issue, wondering why he hadn’t raised it earlier, Cortines recalled.

On Tuesday afternoon, Cortines joined the school board, which was meeting in private, by telephone.

“I talked to them as if they were my board,” he said. “I told them, ‘You can’t agree on everything, but if I were superintendent, all of you would receive all of the information all of the time and I would work with all of you regardless of whether you voted for me.’ ”

He told them that the district would have to cut its budget, hire a superintendent and begin putting together a leadership team.

According to Cortines, some of the board members were concerned about the proposed arrangement. They were unsure whether, with Zacarias still in office, Cortines could make the needed changes.

“I told them, ‘I’ll get it done,’ ” he said.

When the conversation ended, Cortines thought he had the support of all seven board members. He also thought they had agreed not to move ahead on Miller’s contract.

But board members later did just that.

On Wednesday, Zacarias and Cortines spoke by telephone, and Cortines urged Zacarias again to set a date for his departure and to establish a working relationship with Miller. In addition, Cortines offered to serve as a go-between. But he also told Zacarias that he was no longer interested in becoming interim superintendent.

Zacarias called Cortines later that day and asked him to continue as a “guiding light” for the district.

“If he agrees,” Zacarias said, “I’ll call Cortines and Howard Miller and say, ‘Let’s meet and leave the attorneys out out of it . . . and define our working relationships.’ ”

But Cortines wonders if the board even wants peace.

“They could have been winners in all of this,” he said.

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Times education writer Doug Smith contributed to this story.

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