School District Will Expand Superintendent Search; Hoch Alleges Board Misconduct

A board meeting to deliberate over appointing a new superintendent ended in controversy when board member Shirley Hoch stormed out of a closed-door session alleging that the board broke state transparency laws.

The board deliberated for nearly two hours on Saturday afternoon over replacing Superintendent Howard Cohen, who resigned in December.

Board President Maurice Goodman announced that the board decided to expand the search beyond what’s been widely reported as a race between two insiders when the board reconvened in open session shortly after Hoch’s bombshell.

Hoch marched out of the meeting about 90 minutes in.

“I don’t want to violate the Brown Act,” Hoch said by phone shortly afterwards when asked why she left the meeting. “I cannot say anything more than that.”

Hoch wouldn't talk specifics, but implied the board delved into nonagenda items, a Brown Act no-no, she said.

“We can only go into closed session for the reasons that are listed on the agenda,” she said.

When asked about Hoch’s reasons for walking out of the meeting, a startled Goodman appeared to be unaware of the allegations.

“That’s an allegation she made against the board? Did she say that?” Goodman said. “I really don’t know exactly what she’s referring to.”

When asked if he was certain the closed-door meeting stuck tightly to script (the superintendent appointment was the only listed agenda item), Goodman replied “correct.”

“If she’s making an allegation of the board violating the Brown Act, she would have to deal through the appropriate channels, and we would have to respond as a board,” Goodman said. “It’s very serious for her to make that accusation against her fellow board members.”

Hoch seemed to understand as much.

“I know I’m not going to be in good graces with my board members, but I’ve been on the board for 21 years, so I have an idea of what I’m doing,” she said.

The board’s decision to expand its superintendent search followed two meetings where the board deliberated between two candidates and members of the public expressed concern that the board was rushing into a decision without looking at a wider field of options. 

The board  interviewed Acting Superintendent Adolfo Melara and former Superintendent George Kozitza The interviews and the board's deliberations were closed to the public, but meeting attendees were able to make comments at the start of the meeting.

Goodman earlier this month that limiting the search would save the board $17,000 to $25,000 in consulting fees generally associated with conducting an expanded search.

He did not specify how much the expanded selection process would cost, but said he was authorized to contact multiple firms ahead of the board’s March 24 meeting.

Melara, whom many community members regarded as the front-runner, was tapped by Cohen as associate superintendent. His ties to Cohen, who in December after disagreements with the board, have contributed to his unpopularity with some residents and district employees.

Anne Barreto, a longtime district employee until a month ago, described Melara as “unqualified” during the public comments section of Saturday's meeting.

She said Melara’s overly rigid management style alienated many in the district.

“[Cohen and Melara] came in and said ‘we’re going to establish some reform, ‘ta-da,’ we’re going to save South San Francisco, but they did not take into account the culture that people had for years,” she said.

“There were some things that needed to change, but they threw the baby out with the [bathwater].”

Melara supporter Jolene Malfatti, a California School Employees Association chapter president who said she was speaking to the board as a private citizen, deflected the notion that Melara is a Cohen crony.

She pointed to his track record of improved test scores in districts with growing Hispanic populations whose demographics mirrored South San Francisco’s, and described him as a figure who could unify a district that’s become increasingly factionalized over the last decade. Melara previously held a number of roles at Stockton Unified School District, including serving as the first program improvement director.

Malfatti said she’ll submit a petition to the board in support of Melara with signatures about 50 district employees.

“He’s made positive changes and he’s been a steadfast leader through this tumultuous period with Dr. Cohen leaving and all of this,” Malfatti said.

Goodman wouldn’t confirm whether Melara or Kozitza were still viable candidates, but he acknowledged that the public outcry over limiting the search figured in the board's decision to expand the search.

“I think it impacted it,” he said. “I wouldn’t say it made a great impact, but it definitely played a role because we value all of our community’s input.

“We are the voice of the community, so for us not to take into account what the community is saying would be a disservice,” he said. “In essence, it would be malpractice.”