Parents and community members of Hacienda La Puente Unified School District launched an effort to remove Board of Trustee Vice President Nancy Loera earlier this year, contending they were not feeling properly represented. After review by the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s Office, the recall was halted, but the group plans to try again.
Loera represents Area 2, which includes schools that will be closed as part of the district’s reconfiguration plan amid declining enrollment. Loera has declined to issue a statement about the recall bid or respond to accusations made by its leaders.
A group of parents accused Loera of being unresponsive to messages sent by community members regarding school closures, failing to hold town hall meetings and falling short in advocating for students with disabilities and Spanish-speaking constituents.
Loera was given a “notice of intent” by the parent group during a board meeting on Jan. 23. It was then filed to the Los Angeles County registrar’s office on Jan. 29, according to the registrar office spokesperson Mike Sanchez.
“(We) hope to have a board member who represents and respects our community,” said Nayellie Diaz, a HLPUSD parent, who is spearheading the recall.
During the recall process, Loera filed her response on Feb. 5, according to Sanchez. After review by the Los Angeles County registrar’s office, in consultation with County Counsel, it was determined that the “notice of intent” filed by the parent group did not meet California Elections Code requirements, Sanchez said, and Loera and recall advocates were informed on Thursday, March 7.
Parents accused Loera of failing to connect properly with parents — especially when it came to the district’s reconfiguration, which includes the closing of four schools. Spanish-speaking parents said they felt they didn’t have proper access to translation services while in-person at school board meetings during the reconfiguration process.
Hacienda La Puente Unified School District has always provided translation services for community members, officials say. At least 48 hours before the meeting, a request for a language interpreter must be made to the Superintendent’s office. The district offers ASL, Spanish and Mandarin translation services.
In response to the parents’ concerns about the reconfigurations, district officials said they will be continuing to focus on providing support for students, families and staff who will be transitioning to new schools as the 2023-24 school year ends.
“Over the past three months, the district held several Community Connection meetings at impacted sites for parents and families to learn more about the reconfiguration plans and support resources,” said Superintendent Alfonso Jimenez in a statement. “These information meetings will continue to be held through March to ensure all families have an opportunity to learn more and ask questions.”
Jimenez said that officials at the school sites will continue to reach out to families with information, including details on the next principal sessions – designed to familiarize parents and students with their new campus.
Sites have also begun welcoming incoming students with field trips to their new campus, to promote connection with new classmates and teachers and learn about the programs and extracurricular activities available to them in the summer months and the 2024-25 school year, he said.
“Hacienda La Puente Unified is committed to providing equitable academic programs and enrichment opportunities that set our students up for excellence and enable them to achieve their goals and look forward to continuing this mission as a united community,” Jimenez said.
Nonetheless, the parent group vowed to launch a new recall effort. “We’re going to continue with the same concerns,” Diaz said.
Next steps for the group will be to write a new “notice of intent” that will include corrections provided by the Elections Division. The group will then collect signatures in Trustee Area 2, which includes about 11,998 voters — and 20% of those voters in the area are required to sign.
“They gave us corrections and guidelines,” Diaz said. “So, we’re back on the drawing board but in a way it makes it better because we now have an idea of what we’re expecting.”
