Special to El Rrun-Rrun
On a motion by Dr. Sylvia Atkinson and a second by Laura Perez-Reyes, a majority on the board of the Brownsville Independent School District tabled two items that would have added two more administrative positions in midyear, including one which would have given City of Brownsville commissioner – and school teacher – a cushy $85,000 gig as BISD Marketing Director.
Those voting against were Atkinson, Reyes, Minerva Peña and Phil Cowen. Those voting for the creation of the marketing director position and awarding it to Longoria were Cesar Lopez, Carlos Elizondo and Joe Rodriguez.
The inclusion of the Longoria job by the administration raised questions on the timing, since the board elections are scheduled for Tuesday and Lopez is not running for reelection, and depending on the mod of the BISD electorate, Elizondo and Rodriguez may not emerge among the winners.Depending on the outcome of the election tomorrow, the item may not be brought back soon.
This issue was raised by Atkinson, who questioned why those two new administrative positions were included in the agenda.
"We are prepared to provide the personnel necessary for the campuses now," she said. "Adding two administrative positions can wait until later at budget time."
The motion to table and the second drew the ire of Rodriguez who said that by tabling the agenda item the board was going against the administration instead of supporting their recommendations.
Surprisingly, trustee Minerva Peña schooled Rodriguez on the function of the board when she told him that the voters didn't elect board to be the superintendent's rubber stamp but to vote based on their "conscience."
After the item was tabled, another had to deal with compensating BISD employees with stipend that had not been paid in the past four years. One of those items read:
8. Recommend approval to compensate professional employee (C.D.E.) for a stipend earned but not paid in the following fiscal school years: 2014-2015, 2015-2016, 2016-2017 and 2017-2018
When Atkinson questioned whether Elizondo could vote for the item since it dealt with his wife (Cindy Elizondo), Atkinson called or legal counsel for his guidance."I can vote or abstain for whoever I want," Elizondo said.
But board counsel Baltazar Salazar told him he would have to abstain from voting since it involved a relative and he would be conflicted out of voting and forced to abstain, and Elizondo grudgingly accepted his ruling.
After four years on the board, it is strange to see that Elizondo does not understand a basic premise of public service: that as an elected official entrusted with the public's dime, you are not allowed to vote on a benefit to a relative, in this case, his wife.