‘Foolhardy’ Fresno Unified actions killed sense of goodwill with teachers

In late March of this year, Fresno Unified School District teachers and board members met for the first-of-its-kind Education Summit in the Peoples Church. Board members in attendance listened to teachers’ comments and concerns, and by all accounts, participants felt a new sense of hope and encouragement that the district would now be able to make progress in several crucial areas.

Now, only a few months later, the district has succeeded in squandering all the inspiration that the summit fostered. By failing to address teachers’ concerns in a forthright and productive way during the negotiation process, FUSD leadership has killed the sense of goodwill and cooperation nurtured during the summit.

Their foolhardy actions have cast a pall over the district that will linger for months and maybe even years to come. One has to wonder if this sort of abject behavior on the district’s part “meets standards” in any area whatsoever.

This story was originally published November 1, 2017 at 2:11 PM with the headline "‘Foolhardy’ Fresno Unified actions killed sense of goodwill with teachers."