Santa Maria Times
By Julian J. Ramos
A former Santa Ynez Valley Union High School principal said Monday he plans to appeal a judge’s finding that the district’s Board of Education did not violate the state’s open meetings law in early 2008.
In Santa Barbara County Superior Court in Santa Maria on Friday, Judge Arthur Garcia ruled against Norm Clevenger who claimed the school board violated California’s open meetings law, the Ralph M. Brown Act.
Clevenger contended the district had violated the law because it failed to publicly disclose any “complaints and charges” against him in an open meeting in February 2008 even though he exercised his right to have those issues aired in a public meeting.
Reached for comment, Clevenger said he plans to take the case to an appellate court.
“That was the plan probably all along,” Clevenger said of the appeal.
His attorney, Bob Bartosh of the Hathaway Law Firm in Ventura, “wasn’t surprised by the ruling,” Clevenger said.
Bartosh could not be reached for comment.
In a statement released late Friday, SYVUHS Superintendent Paul Turnbull hailed the judge’s ruling.
“The district is pleased with the ruling and is looking forward to moving on and focusing on the tremendous education programs offered to all of its students,” he added.
Turnbull could not be reached Monday for comment about the appeal.
On Feb. 14, 2008, then-superintendent Fred van Leuven told Clevenger that he was being suspended immediately, with pay, and escorted off campus. Five days later, the school board voted not to renew his contract for the next school year.
Clevenger had been principal of the high school for nine years before his dismissal.
In the lawsuit, Clevenger also sought lost wages and employment benefits and claimed the district’s actions caused him emotional distress.
Clevenger was hired as principal at San Marcos High School in Goleta in June 2008.
Although he had sought reinstatement to his position at SYVUHS, Clevenger has said he would not return even if the school board were ordered to rehire him.
After the school board’s decision, a campaign of parents and Santa Ynez Valley residents organized Reformation of Santa Ynez High (ROSY), which collected petition signatures to recall all five school board members.
The lack of a public explanation for the popular principal’s departure was a point of contention between school district officials, Clevenger and the recall proponents.
In an exchange of several letters, in which Clevenger pressed him for an explanation for the actions, van Leuven said a conversation between the principal and the school board president had caused van Leuven “to lose confidence in your (Clevenger’s) ability to represent the district and me in the community.”
The recall group dropped its campaign after one of the two board members whose terms were ending did not file to run again in November 2008.
Copyright 2009 Santa Maria Times