Former trustee Amina Khemici fears community is losing trust with school district
n By Marilyn Dubil Staff Writer
Morgan Hill – During her four years on the Morgan Hill School Board, Trustee Amina Khemici saw budget cuts and construction woes, but her successor, newly-elected Trustee Bart Fisher, is stepping into a morass of labor issues.
“What really stands out for me, during my time on the board, was how challenging and difficult it all was in the beginning, because the community was really upset, and we had to regain the trust of the community,” Khemici said. “I think we’ve worked hard to do that, and I’d hate to see that trust go away.”
In the Nov. 7 election, Khemici and incumbents Mike Hickey, Don Moody and Shelle Thomas were re-elected to a second term. Bart Fisher, the only candidate to run alongside the four incumbents, came in third out of the five in the number of votes received.
Fisher and the three incumbents were sworn in Thursday before a special school board meeting. Khemici was recognized with a reception during the last regular board meeting Nov. 28.
The district is currently at an “impasse” with Service Employees International Union employees, who say the district has not made a fair offer for salary and benefits, while district officials say union members would be getting a fair deal if they accept the district’s offer.
Another of the district’s unions, the Morgan Hill Federation of Teachers, has filed several grievances against the district for what union officials say are violations of their contract.
Khemici said one of the ways she and fellow trustees worked to regain community trust after their election in 2002 was to ask questions and avoid being a “rubber stamp” for the superintendent and district officials.
Though the questions sometimes created friction between the new board members and the incumbents, she said, the community that elected them expected that kind of scrutiny of district actions.
Some in the community may have gotten the impression that she and trustees that were elected with her – Hickey and Thomas – were not supportive of Sobrato High School, for example, because of their diligence in questioning the finances to prevent the “constant cost overruns” that occurred when Barrett Elementary was built.
Khemici said she looks back on the years when the district had budget cuts in the millions of dollars – between 2001 and 2004 – with sadness but with respect for the district’s classified employees, who took the brunt of the cuts in personnel. Now, she said, she sees contract discussions with the SEIU at an impasse and wishes there could have been a resolution.
Fisher will inherit the labor issues. While he knows there are challenges ahead he sees bright spots in the district’s future as well. Fisher campaigned on improving accountability, championing development, increasing outreach and valuing and respecting employees. He’s looking forward to working with his fellow trustees, asking “respectful questions.”
“I know I’m really looking forward to the board workshop that (Board President Mandel) Peter is calling in January,” he said. “I think in general, we need to be in a questioning mode, but it’s clearly not a case of ‘I don’t trust you,’ it’s because we are the stewards, if you will of the district. We need to be able to show the public why an action is necessary … If these things are not a part of the role, then, to my mind, why have a school board at all?”
Marilyn Dubil covers education and law enforcement for The Times. Reach her at (408) 779-4106 ext. 202 or at md****@*************es.com.
