The report from the Siskiyou County Civil Grand Jury concluded the county "fails its most vulnerable students."
The grand jury’s investigation focused on issues such as special education, workplace conditions, board governance, and hiring and fiscal practices.
The grand jury found "systemic deficiencies" in special education, including unqualified aides teaching classes and failure to follow federal law.
Students receiving special education services must have an individualized education plan laying out their learning needs. The grand jury report found IEPs aren't being completed in a timely manner and a school psychologist doesn't consistently participate in meetings as required.
In addition, the superintendent "fired or pushed out most of the qualified teachers that were previously involved in drafting the IEPs." IEPs are often written by teacher's aides, which violates students' legal rights.
In a statement, Office of Education Superintendent Allan Carver said they’re reviewing the allegations, "including an assessment of their factual and legal accuracy."
"The Siskiyou County Office of Education remains focused on serving the students and families of Siskiyou County and looks forward to providing further information at the appropriate time," the statement reads.
The resulting report also critiqued the Board of Education, noting inadequate oversight.
To investigate the SCOE and SCBE, the grand jury reviewed budget documents, meeting minutes and agendas, board policies, IEP documentation, hiring records and a variety of other documents.
The grand jury says the board lacks documented criteria and performance review procedures for the superintendent, a failure of its core responsibilities. That includes approving a recent salary increase without a documented performance evaluation.
According to the report, the Board of Trustees president for the Siskiyou County Board of Education testified to the grand jury "that they approved the County Superintendent's pay increase because 'He was there and his heart was beating, so he got a raise.'"
Board of Education trustees didn’t respond to requests for comment.
The report noted wide disparities between administrator and teacher salaries and found leadership used funding to create a luxurious administration lounge rather than address mold in classrooms.
In addition, the report mentions concerns about "a toxic and hostile work environment," including failure to investigate employee complaints and possible retaliatory treatment of employees who raise concerns.
The investigation also found issues regarding "fiscal transparency and the equitable allocation of SCOE education funding resources." The report notes the Office of Education has a budget reserve of approximately 118%, far above the usual 20-25% range for other similar districts, even though "staff are routinely advised that budgets are insufficient for classroom needs."
The grand jury report includes a series of recommendations that should be implemented within 90 days to address these problems.
They include auditing credentials of both teachers and administrators and implementing an IEP compliance tracking system.
The report also recommends developing a written policy for superintendent performance evaluation, hiring mold inspection professionals to remedy the issue before the start of the school year and revising harassment complaint procedures.
