Teachers' union and parent push Pomona Unified for stronger evaluations, insurance relief and superintendent search

At the Pomona Unified special board meeting on March 21, Mary Morales, speaking for Associated Pomona Teachers (APT), urged the board to support a community workforce agreement that she said would create apprenticeships and local job opportunities and called for equitable evaluations and greater insurance affordability for educators.

"It is vital that we find ways to bridge a gap in insurance cost," Morales said, describing how some early-career educators face unaffordable health premiums. She also said APT is conducting site-leader evaluations to highlight administrators' strengths and to provide educators a safe way to raise concerns without fear of retaliation.

Morales asked the district to ensure equity across employee groups (PACE, CSEA and APT), to allow reclassification opportunities for staff, and to develop a districtwide plan to support students and educators affected by violent outbursts.

Parent and community ambassador Claudia Cano urged the board to begin a superintendent search and said the district needs a strategic plan to accelerate student achievement. "PUSD system is broken," Cano said, and she urged the board to seek a transformative leader who can unify stakeholders and prioritize student-centered culture.

Superintendent Mr. Knowles told the board staff was pulling agenda items 2.02 (district goals and priorities) and 3.03 (community workforce agreement) to return them at a subsequent meeting with greater community participation; he said the workforce-agreement item was pulled at the request of the trade union to address a technical issue.

The meeting record shows no formal action on the workforce agreement or district goals at this session; both items were deferred for additional review and community input. Several public commenters and union representatives emphasized the need for supports to retain teachers and better systems for managing behavioral incidents that affect classrooms.