Peralta trustees endorse incumbents in November elections

Peralta trustee incumbents get support from other trustees in November 2 election. One trustee challenger splits dual endorsement

With the November 2 election a little less than two weeks away, candidates for the Peralta Board of Trustees are preparing to make a final push for their campaigns.

With three incumbents running for office – and one who won’t appear on the ballot – at a time when the board has been under major scrutiny, it’s not a surprise that the the incumbents are backed by their board colleagues.

"I can work with whoever wins.
Abel Guillen
Peralta Board President

Trustee Dr. William “Bill” Riley, the board’s longest serving member, is facing opposition for the first time. The three-term incumbent has been endorsed by a majority of the board.

Riley has been endorsed by trustees Cy Gulassa, Linda Handy, and Oakland mayoral hopeful Marcie Hodge. Board President Abel Guillen endorsed Riley earlier this year and contributed to his campaign.

In Area 3, two-term incumbent Trustee Handy has been endorsed by most of her board colleagues. Trustees Gulassa and Bill Withrow have both endorsed Handy. Trustee Riley has also endorsed Handy and contributed to her campaign.

Peralta Board President Abel Guillen endorsed Handy early on, but later decided to endorse Monica Tell. Four years ago, Guillen became the first Latino on the Peralta board when he successfully unseated two-term incumbent Alona Clifton.

“I can work with whoever wins,” Guillen said of his dual endorsement.

Trustee Nicky Gonzalez Yuen did not respond to a request for comment on this story. He is not listed on any candidate’s website as an endorsee.

Riley’s opponent, William J. Mattox, has not received any endorsements from sitting trustees.

Riley is also supported by former Peralta trustees Amey Stone and Darryl Moore. Handy is also endorsed by former trustee and current Berkeley City Councilmember Moore. Both are supported by Marlon McWilson, a member of the Alameda County Board of Education who ran against Marcie Hodge in 2008.

Read more...

Peralta staff union endorses two candidates in Area 3 race

The union representing Peralta’s classified staff workers has decided to endorse both candidates in the Area 3 trustees race and no one in the other races.

The Peralta Chapter of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1021 voted in late September to dually endorse incumbent Linda Handy and challenger Monica Tell for the November 2 elections.

Some classified staff were surprised that the union voted to endorse Handy, suggesting that the two-term incumbent had been “unsympathetic” while numerous employees were laid off last year.

“She acted like she didn’t even care,” said one union member who requested anonymity, referring to meetings in the summer when classified employees cried out to save their jobs.

The Peralta Report discovered that Tell may be ineligible for office since public records indicate that she lived at a Castro Valley residence until recently.

Additionally, Tell is supported by both Oakland mayoral candidate and former State Senator Don Perata and Oakland City Councilmember Ignacio de la Fuente. Tell was formerly an aide for Peralta when he was in the state assembly.

The “unethical cloud” has cast some doubt on Tell’s candidacy. For nearly a month, members of the union representing Peralta’s classified staff have been fighting over whether or not to rescind their endorsement of Tell, and how to do so legally.

“Based on The Peralta Report article, we have to evaluate and reconfirm our endorsement,” Mike Donaldson, interim political coordinator of the Peralta Chapter of SEIU Local 1021 said in an interview. “We have to see what our legal obligation is, but we tentatively have a dual endorsement.”

However, an email received under the California Public Records Act shows classified staff distrustful of Tell based on her residency and property tax records, as well as her concealing some of her supporters.

“She’s already proven that she can’t be trusted, and she is simply not the kind of person we want to have on the Board with all the issues we have coming down the road at us,” said one union member.

“If she lied about her residence she is 1) ineligible to run for the seat and b) subject to criminal penalties for perjury,” writes another employee. “If she lied to accept a property tax reduction, she is unethical and can’t be trusted in fiscal matters. If she accepted a property tax reduction from ignorance, she is likely to vote irresponsibly and ignorantly.”

SEIU has yet to rescind its endorsement. The union made no endorsement in the Area 5 contest between three-term incumbent Dr. William “Bill” Riley and William J. Mattox.

The union chose not to endorse incumbent Abel Guillen because he’s running unopposed and will not appear on the ballot.

Read more...

Alameda County Greens make no endorsements in Peralta Trustees Election

The Green Party of Alameda County announced it does not endorse any candidate in the Area 3 or Area 5 races for the Peralta Community College District Board of Trustees election.

Their “Green Voter Guide” outlines in depth the party’s understanding of current issues facing the Peralta district, citing issues such as the district’s lack of accurate budgets, spending priorities that do not serve students, inappropriate expenditures by trustees and administrators. It also cites the district’s accreditation status and the recent Alameda County Grand Jury report.

Greens endorsed two-term Area 3 incumbent Linda Handy in 2002, when she successfully ousted then-two-term incumbent Brenda Knight, but said Peralta constituents have found her “mercurial and unsupportive.”

Handy’s promotion of the District’s first ever, full service Student Health Clinic is cited, as well as her understanding of Peralta issues. However, he lack of finance background and attitude perceived interactions with Peralta stakeholders was a turnoff.

“She is an active Board member who promotes initiatives and projects,” the guide states. “However, she lacks financial acumen, and during her current term, many Peralta faculty, staff, and students have found her mercurial and unsupportive.”

Area 3 challenger Monica Tell impressed the Green Party with her questionnaire and ideas in support of student employment, such as a proposal to require all District vendors and contractors to post their job openings and applications on Peralta’s website. However, her limited knowledge on Peralta and political affiliations

"Tell seems to know about Peralta's administrative problems, but has little familiarity with their depth, and would have a long learning curve." The guide then mentions that Don Perata and Ignacio DeLa Fuente are supporting Tell. "Because of this support, plus Tell's limited experience with community colleges, we are reluctant to endorse her."

In Area 5, the Green Party has also chosen not to endorsement incumbent Dr. Bill Riley or challenger William J. Mattox.

"His 12 years on the Board have been undistinguished, and Peralta's problems persist," the guide states. The party has not endorsed Riley in the past either.

Although Mattox's response to the Green Party's questionnaire was brief, he showed "some awareness of Peralta's problems" and offered "commitment and skill to provide leadership" according to the guide.

"However," the guide continues, "his knowledge about peratla is limited, and his workign experience in higher education consists of a year as a part-time community college instructor. We cannot endorse him either."

The guide explains that board president Abel Guillen is running unopposed and "Because local public entities can opt not to pay for an election when there is only one candidate, this race will not appear on the ballot.

“We wish they (Peralta Trustees) would watch more carefully, giving more serious attention to what they say is their focus – students,” the guide states.

Read more...

OakPAC endorses challengers in Peralta trustees races

Challengers for two seats on the Peralta Colleges Board of Trustees Monica Tell, left, and William Mattox. Tell is running in Area 3 in East Oakland while Mattox is running in Area 5 in Piedmont and Oakland's Rockridge District.

---

Oakland’s largest Political Action Committee (PAC) has announced its endorsement of two challengers for the Peralta Community College Board of Trustees elections on November 2.

OakPAC, an influential PAC affiliated with the Oakland Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, represents the business community and has been a factor in Oakland elections since its founding in 1997.

“OakPAC supports candidates for local elected offices that are business friendly and that understand the business agenda,” said Scott Peterson, executive director of OakPAC.

On September 24, OakPAC announced its endorsement of challenger Monica Tell against two-term incumbent Linda Handy in Area 3 and of challenger William J. Mattox against three-term incumbent in Area 5.

Handy and Riley are the board’s most senior members. Mattox is a human resources consultant. Tell, a graduate of the chamber’s Leadership Oakland program, is a public relations specialist at PG&E.

“Peralta Community Colleges are desperate for accountability and deserve new representation. The business community depends on Peralta Community Colleges to prepare students for higher education and the workplace,” OakPAC Vice-Chair Mike Jacob said in a September press release. The statement references the recent Alameda County Grand Jury report that was highly critical of the district and recent issues with the accreditation.

“There’s been some real publicly known problems at Peralta, that ultimately rests with the Board of Trustees,” Peterson said. “OakPAC’s endorsement indicates a concern that there is a need for new leadership.“

Although stated OakPAC’s interest in the Peralta Colleges relates to ensuring Oakland has a highly skilled and educated workforce, others have suggested the endorsement relates to contracts, particular as Peralta still has money from Measure A, the $390 million bond passed by voters in 2006.

“Tens of millions in construction and other contracts are ultimately approved each year by the Peralta Trustees,” wrote journalist Sanjiv Handa in an August post on OaklandSeen.com about November 2 elections. “Changes on the board of trustees likely would shift awarding of those contracts.”

Peterson said that OakPAC endorsed Abel Guillen, Peralta’s current board president, in 2006 when he successfully unseated two-term incumbent Alona Clifton. “OakPAC’s endorsement was pivotal to his election,” Peterson said. OakPAC did not endorse Guillen this year because he ran unopposed.

OakPAC also announced its endorsement of mayoral candidate Don Perata, and Oakland City Council candidate Libby Schaaf in District 4.OakPAC has not yet decided how it will support the endorsed candidates. In 2006, OakPAC played a key role in incumbent Oakland City Councilwoman Pat Kernighan’s race against Aimee Allison in the city’s district 2.

For more information about OakPAC, visit www.oakpac.com.

Read more...

Peralta Faculty Endorses Incumbents in Trustees Races

The union representing faculty at the Peralta Colleges has endorsed incumbents Dr. Bill Riley and Linda Handy for the November 2 trustees races in Area 3 and Area 5.

The Political Action Committee (PAC) for the Peralta Federation of Teachers (PFT), the union representing faculty at the four college district voted on September 2 to endorse three-term incumbent Dr. William Riley in Trustee Area 5.

The incumbents of the beleaguered board are being endorsed primarily because they voted to extend PFT’s contract.

“Riley shows a clearer understanding of Peralta’s challenges than Mattox does,” said Matthew Goldstein, chair of PFT’s PAC. “Further, Riley supported our contract extension last year, and he’s been unequivocal in his support for maintaining employee benefits at their current levels.”

Although the PAC voted to endorse Riley the same night, it appears there was much debate in the race for Area 3. After weeks of discussion, PFT’s PAC voted to endorse two-term incumbent Linda Handy.

[/caption]“She (Handy) vowed to keep employee benefits in place and to make a bigger effort to respond to faculty needs and concerns in the years ahead,” Goldstein said. “Further, she’s a strong campaigner with lots of community support. Faculty would only benefit from cultivating a better working relationship with her.”

Goldstein added that Tell might be a factor in a future election.

“Tell is an appealing candidate in many ways, but her command of the practical aspects of campaigning appears unsure, and her positions on key issues sometimes seem under-considered,” Goldstein explained as the reason for the extended debate. “She may well be a legitimate contender in future races.”

Many were surprised that faculty would endorse incumbents on a board that has been rocked by controversy over the past year. An Alameda County Grand Jury found that the board did not know its own policies and failed to provide oversight, jeopardizing the district's accreditation.

“Doing the same thing over and over, and over, that’s insanity,” said Mattox in an interview at Laney College on September 28. A total of three seats are up for up on the trustees board.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="250" caption="Trustee Abel Guillen"][/caption]PFT unanimously endorsed current board president Abel Guillen back in June. The early endorsement was unprecedented, leading some to speculate it is the reason he is running unopposed.

“He’s been the faculty’s most reliable advocate on the board for the last four years,” Goldstein said. “We wish all board members would return emails and phone calls as dependably as Abel.”

In 2006, PFT’s support of Guillen was crucial in his campaign to unseat two-term incumbent Alona Clifton. Running unopposed this year, his name will not appear on the ballot.

“Memorably, PFT PAC's work over the last decade helped oust powerful incumbents who supported failing chancellors and voracious developers over faculty interests,” Goldstein said of PFT’s influence. “We don’t control outcomes, but our enthusiastic backing can make a significant difference.”

Read more...