‘This must end.’ Fresno schools trustee criticizes Terry Slatic’s ‘bullying tactics’

The war of words between Fresno Unified School Board Trustee Terry Slatic and top district officials took another twist Wednesday when one of his fellow trustees criticized Slatic’s “temper tantrum tactics.”

In a statement to The Bee’s Education Lab, Trustee Keshia Thomas described Slatic, a retired U.S. Marine Corps major, as a “bully.”

“While I very much can appreciate Mr. Slatic’s service to our country, when it comes to the business of Fresno Unified School District, he continues to be a nuisance and a liability,” Thomas said.

As with much of the criticism Slatic has faced previously, the Bullard-area trustee brushed off Thomas’ comments Wednesday.

”The ridiculousness of Trustee Thomas with her previously six-vote majority, now five-vote majority of women of color who are now having their time or who are saying they are fearful of a 100% disabled Marine is laughable,” Slatic said in response during a brief telephone interview. “If this board had five or six people who looked like me, the ACLU or NAACP would have 500 lawyers. This is another example of Trustee Thomas’ typical histrionics.”

Slatic’s tenure serving on the board of California’s third-largest school district has been fraught with in-fighting, but tensions boiled over a week ago when Slatic appeared to stage a kind-of filibuster during FUSD’s regular school board meeting.

FUSD Board President Valerie Davis ended the school board meeting after less than a full hour following numerous failed attempts to silence the disgruntled trustee. But Slatic continued to speak even after his microphone was shut off and parents were trying to address the board directly.

Slatic later told The Bee that he was already frustrated by another new rule limiting the time trustees can spend with the superintendent one-on-one. Slatic said he used to meet with Superintendent Bob Nelson “two to three times a month” and said his fellow trustees have “taken away” that opportunity.

But the fight escalated again this week when Slatic publicly accused four trustees, including Thomas, as well as the superintendent, of violating California education laws that require the district to inform teachers when a transfer student has a history of violence. Slatic also said he’d filed a formal complaint with the Fresno County District Attorney’s Public Integrity Unit.

Jerry Stanley, Fresno County’s assistant district attorney, said the prosecutor’s office was still reviewing the complaint on Wednesday, and “additional information is being gathered.”

Nelson fired back at Slatic, accusing Slatic of violating California’s public meeting laws, also known as the Brown Act, as well as several school board bylaws. Nelson said Slatic was wrong and said the district had already shown Slatic how they follow the law.

Responding to Slatic’s allegations on Wednesday, Thomas also said Slatic’s complaint was baseless, saying, “Mr. Slatic has continued to fabricate so much information that it is unreal.”

“This is one of his temper tantrum tactics and one of his bullying tactics. He bullies us, his fellow trustees, Superintendent Nelson, staff, students, and now he has literally dismissed parents during a school board meeting,” Thomas said. “Let me just say that I am tired of him being a bully and threatening me. This must end.”

She also said she tries to avoid being alone with Slatic.

“His demeanor toward me and his actions behind closed doors are making me fear for my well-being when I am in his presence,” Thomas said. “I have not been alone with him since he approached me in a threatening manner last school year during a board meeting.”

Thomas on Wednesday also joined Trustee Veva Islas in saying the board should consider censuring Slatic once again.

“Honestly, I believe that we should revisit censure options at the least,” Thomas said.

Slatic has said he “doesn’t care” if he’s disciplined again.

Slatic’s 2019 censure from the Fresno Unified School Board

In 2019, the school board formally censured Slatic following multiple incidents at Bullard High School. The incidents involved an Army recruiter, a wrestling coach, and a time when Slatic grabbed the backpack of a Bullard student, and an altercation ensued.

However, the school board had just recently lifted the 2019 censure against Slatic before the meeting debacle on Aug. 25.

“It’s sad that a person has been censured for 3/4 of their term,” Thomas said.

Slatic said the fact the board removed the censure should be evidence that it was unnecessary.

“They removed the censures, so I guess it wasn’t that important, was it?” Slatic said.

On multiple occasions, trustees have accused Slatic of racism, a charge he has denied each time.

Last year, a prominent Latino pastor in Fresno said Slatic told the pastor to “go back to the barrio” after an argument erupted during an informal meeting. Slatic flatly denied using the phrase and said the pastor was “bearing false witness.”

Thomas said Slatic had accused her of labeling him a racist, which she denies.

“I do not by any means think that he is racist, but his actions are sometimes questionable ( such as telling the pastors that they can go back to the barrios!) Who speaks to spiritual leaders in that manner?” Thomas said in a follow-up response to The Bee.

Other trustees also criticized Slatic in October after he cast the lone “no” vote on a resolution formally declaring Fresno Unified an anti-racist institution. Slatic said the resolution was unnecessary and “political.”

He’s frequently at odds with trustees, voting against the majority on many issues, including changing Fresno High School’s decades-old logo and naming Fresno’s newest school campus.

Slatic has also taken to criticizing some of his fellow trustees in the media.

In June, he appeared on the conservative talk show The Constitutionalist with Terry Collins on TalkRadio 1550 KXEX and described his fellow school board members as “witches” and “racist.”

What happens next?

While it remains unclear whether the board will take action against Slatic, last week’s school board meeting left a lot of unfinished business on the table, including discussions over potential redistricting and a community proposal to change the name of Forkner Elementary School.

FUSD spokesperson Nikki Henry has said any agenda items the board failed to discuss would be moved to a future meeting, likely the upcoming Sept. 8 agenda.

The Education Lab is a local journalism initiative that highlights education issues critical to the advancement of the San Joaquin Valley. It is funded by donors. Learn about The Bee’s Education Lab on our website.

This story was originally published September 2, 2021 at 8:00 AM.