May SVEA Scoop

05.13-16.26 NEA Presidents' Conference

05.19.26 Mediation Session 3 (wear SVEA shirts)

05.19-20-26 Lobbying in Sacramento

05.20.26 Deadline to declare candidacy for site rep

05.26-29.26 Site Rep Voting ✅

05.25.26 Memorial Day

05.26.26 Retiree Dinner

06.03.26 Notification of 2026-2027 Site Reps

06.04.26 Last day of School

08.03.26 Open Enrollment Begins (all employees need an appointment) 🔏

08.20.26 FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL (Thursday) 🍎

As we close out another school year, I want to take a moment to say what an honor it is to serve as your representative and president. This work is only possible because of each and every one of you. Your commitment, participation, and willingness to stand together have made this one of the strongest years of power-building our association has seen in a very long time.

This year, our members truly stepped up. You showed up to actions, supported our agendas, engaged in organizing efforts, and helped us continue the important work of bringing dignity back to our profession. The growth in member participation and collective action has been exponential, and that growth matters.

Unfortunately, while we have been building our collective power, SVUSD has done everything they can to prevent that growth. As a result, we have had to utilize every available avenue to protect our members and enforce our contract, including PERB violations, grievances, impasse, mediation, and arbitration.

It is important to remember that SVEA has always given SVUSD the opportunity to resolve every issue before moving forward with legal action. We do not pursue these measures lightly. We pursue them because protecting our members and defending our contract requires us to hold the district accountable.

So where do we currently stand?

• PERB Violation: the Unpaid Training Unfair Labor Practice charge is currently awaiting judge review and next steps.

• PERB Violation: the Direct Dealing with Nurses Unfair Labor Practice charge is also awaiting judge review and next steps.

• ARBITRATION: the Walk-Through Grievance has advanced to assigned attorneys, and we are currently in the process of selecting an arbitration date.

• GRIEVANCE: the 10-Minute Meeting Grievance is in the arbitrator selection process.

• GRIEVANCE: the Partnership Grievance is currently in Level II review with Dr. Turner.

• IMPASSE: negotiations remain in mediation. We expect May 19 to be our final mediation session.

• CTA attorneys are also actively working on the FSA issues that were created this year.

While much of our work has involved defending our contract and our profession, we have also had important victories this year.

Together, we:

• Built a strong parent co-op with more than 600 members supporting our goals.

• Developed another parent-led group dedicated to supporting SVEA bargaining efforts.

• Held two rallies in support of class size protections.

• Provided SVEA shirts to all members.

• 77% of members signed the Prop 55 Extension Petition.

• Addressed hundreds of member issues across the district.

• Brought lunch to all but two school sites this year (sign up for next year!).

We still have more work to do, but we are making progress, and we are building the kind of organization that can create real change.

I also want to extend my deepest gratitude to our Executive Board. This work would not be possible standing alone, and I am incredibly blessed to work alongside leaders who believe in a bright future for SVEA and for public education. This was the first year with a broader Executive Board structure, and I am so grateful for the perspective, leadership, and commitment each of you brought to the table. Thank you to Beth Anderson, Erin Maguire, Toni Fields, Juli Stowers, Kerry Nahas, Corey Murphy, Brittany Case, Jessica Hokerson, Kathryn Jaronczyk, Andi Suter, and Frank Oppedisano for your dedication and countless hours of service to our members.

Our bargaining team has been simply outstanding this year. The dedication, preparation, and collaboration this team has demonstrated has been incredible to watch in action. I truly believe this is the most prepared and cohesive bargaining team we have ever had, and it probably explains why the district has not presented district-drafted proposals of their own — because they simply cannot hold a candle to the proposals developed by our team. Thank you for your tireless work and commitment: Andi Suter, Kathryn Jaranczyk, Corey Murphy, Tracy Ross, Tina Martin, Gretchen Sites, and Stacey Garduno.

Looking ahead to next year, I encourage more members to step up and volunteer. We have a clear plan for 2026–2027, and achieving the progress our members want will take all of us working together. Our strength has always come from collective action, and next year will be no different.

As you wind down from this school year, I encourage you to ignore the summer committee emails, take time for yourself, recharge, and reset for 2026–2027. You have earned that time.

Thank you again for your dedication, your courage, and your solidarity. It is truly an honor to serve alongside all of you.

In solidarity,

Mandy

A Nonpublic School (“NPS”) is a state-certified educational placement designed to serve students whose disabilities or behavioral health needs cannot be adequately met within a traditional public school setting. Because these programs often serve highly vulnerable students—including children with autism, emotional disabilities, intellectual disabilities, and significant mental health needs—school districts have a heightened responsibility to thoroughly vet providers for safety, compliance, staffing qualifications, oversight practices, and student protections.

Public agencies such as SVUSD are entrusted not only with ensuring students receive a free and appropriate public education, but also with protecting the physical and emotional wellbeing of children placed in outside facilities. Given the extensive history of lawsuits, abuse allegations, criminal investigations, staff convictions, and multimillion-dollar verdicts associated with Devereux facilities across multiple states, stakeholders have serious reason to hold SVUSD accountable for failure to exercise due diligence before contracting with or placing students at Devereux programs. By failing to adequately investigate publicly available reports of systemic abuse, neglect, and safety failures, SVUSD has exposed students to foreseeable harm while undermining the trust of families, educators, and the broader community.

The FCMAT report paints a troubling picture of district leadership’s failure to responsibly manage the district’s finances despite years of clear warning signs. The report identifies repeated deficit spending, overreliance on one-time funds, inadequate financial planning, weak staffing and budget controls, inconsistent coordination between HR, payroll, and budget departments, and the absence of meaningful long-term corrective action. FCMAT also found that critical expenditures such as substitutes, stipends, and overtime were not fully tracked, administrators lacked formal budget-management training, and the district had no formal internal audit process.

These are not isolated mistakes — they reflect systemic leadership failures that jeopardize the district’s financial stability, erode trust, and threaten the programs and people who serve students every day. SVEA members have every right to demand transparency, accountability, and responsible leadership from those entrusted with managing our schools and our community’s resources.

Congratulations on reaching this incredible milestone. Thank you for the years you dedicated to your students, your colleagues, and this profession. We wish you endless joy, rest, adventure, and freedom in this next chapter of life. Please know that all of us are more than a little envious as you move on to mornings without alarm clocks, meetings, or email notifications. We hope retirement brings you all the happiness you deserve.

Congratulations!

SVEA's Mediation Supposal was presented in advance of the session. We are awaiting SVUSD response.

Site Representative elections are now underway. If you are interested in running, please look for information from your site rep regarding the nomination and election process. If there are fewer candidates than available positions, no election will be necessary. If there are more candidates than positions available and the site rep(s) are candidates in the election, the election will be administered by the appropriate Executive Board Director.

All elections must be completed by May 29, 2026.

Stipend: $599

The Orange County awards dinner was held on Wednesday, May 6th at The Vintage Rose in Orange. Winners were awarded by SVEA's own, District N Board Member Denise Bradford.

Interested in being more active in SVEA? Join us this July at Summer Institute!

The CTA Summer Institute features 10 different and intensive trainings designed to grow your skills as a local leader and prepare you for success. OSCC and SVEA will cover your costs!

Learn more: www.cta.org/summerinstitute

Please log-in to CalSTRS with you new log-in credentials and verify your data, use your retirement calculators, and explore your retirement options. Do not use your phone number, if you inadvertently use the wrong number it triggers at phone call in, wait times are excessive. Try not to call unless its an emergency, save yourself!

NEW TEACHERS: start planning your retirement NOW—don’t wait until you’re 40. If you’re considering purchasing service credit, it was cheaper yesterday than it will be tomorrow, so act early. And remember, any stipend position feeds into your Defined Benefit Supplement account—take those opportunities now, so your contributions have the maximum time to grow with interest. 💲📈

Teachers are reminded that under Education Code, you have the protected right to suspend a student from your classroom for acts of willful defiance and violence. Importantly, the student may not be placed in another teacher’s classroom during the day of suspension or the following day. School administration cannot prevent you from exercising this right, regardless of the student’s grade level, age, or IEP status. Special Education students are also subject to teacher suspension, with additional requirements after the fifth (10 days) suspension. When suspending a student, you are required to make an attempt to conference with the parents, which may be conducted by phone.

SVUSD emails

Superintendant Crystal Turner: crystal.turner@svusd.org

Trustee Suzie Swartz: suzie.swartz@svusd.org

Trustee Amanda Morrell: amanda.morrell@svusd.org

Trustee Barbara Schulman: barbara.schulman@svusd.org

Trustee Dan Walsh: daniel.walsh@svusd.org

Trustee Michele Sparks: michele.sparks@svusd.org

President: Mandy De Groote president@mysvea.org

Vice President/Organizing Chair: Beth Anderson vicepresident@mysvea.org

Secretary & Membership Clerk: Erin Maguire secretary@mysvea.org

Treasurer: Toni Fields treasurer@mysvea.org

Tk-6 Director/PAC Chair: Juli Stowers TK6Director@mysvea.org

Intermediate Director: Kerry Nahas IntermediateDirector@mysvea.org

High School Director: Corey Murphy HighSchoolDirector@mysvea.org

SPED Director: Jessica Hokerson SPEDDirector@mysvea.org

Itinerant Director: Brittany Case ItinerantDirector@mysvea.org

Student Services Director: Kathryn Jaronczyk studentsupportservices@mysvea.org

Bargaining Chair: Andi Suter bargainingchair@mysvea.org

CTA Rep: Mike Bartetzko ctareps@mysvea.org

CTA Primary Contact Staff: Frank Oppedisano foppedisano@cta.org

SVEA would like to provide important clarification regarding caseload expectations for Educational Specialists and related service providers (e.g., Speech-Language Pathologists) under California law.

It is critical for members to understand that consultation is not discretionary. It is a required, legally defined component of your role and is to be included in your caseload numbers.

Under California Education Code § 56362(a), the Resource Specialist Program must include:

• Consultation, resource information, and materials provided to parents and staff

• Coordination of services between general and special education

• Monitoring student progress and participating in the IEP process

• Ongoing support and collaboration to ensure student success

Additionally, 5 CCR § 3051.1(a) clearly defines related service provider responsibilities (including Speech-Language Pathologists), which explicitly include:

• Consultative services to students, parents, teachers, and school personnel

• Coordination of services within the student’s educational program

• Participation in IEP development, review, and progress monitoring

What this means for members:
Consultation is not something that can be excluded from your caseload. It is:

• A core, legally mandated responsibility

• An integral part of your caseload

• Essential to providing a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) to students

District Responsibility
The District is required to follow and implement California Education Code and corresponding regulations as written. They do not have discretion to reinterpret, minimize, or exclude consultation responsibilities from caseload calculations.

Failure to appropriately account for consultation:

• Undermines legally required services to students

• Places staff in a position of unsustainable and noncompliant caseload expectations

• May result in violations of state and federal special education law

SVEA Position
SVEA will continue to advocate for:

• Accurate recognition of consultation as part of caseload

• Alignment between District practices and California law

• Workload expectations that reflect the full scope of legally required duties

If you have questions or concerns about your caseload or workload expectations, please reach out to your SVEA representative

In solidarity,
Jessica Hokerson, SVEA Director Special Education

Kathryn Jaronczyk, SVEA Director Student Support Services