While Jackson Elementary was waist-deep in the alleged misdeeds
by its former principal Garry Dudley, the school is urging it’s
time to move forward and refocus on supporting students and
teachers.
While Jackson Elementary was waist-deep in the alleged misdeeds by its former principal Garry Dudley, the school is urging it’s time to move forward and refocus on supporting students and teachers.
The agent of change to lead the effort is Ernie Zermeno, who has been named Jackson’s Program Improvement specialist by the Morgan Hill Unified School District.
The former Gilroy High Principal will have an office on campus and work as a liaison among the district, school and parents with a focus on the Hispanic community who said they felt alienated and not welcome at Jackson under Dudley’s tenure.
Zermeno hails from Gilroy, where he was the principal at Brownell Middle School and Gilroy High School in the 1980s.
Zermeno was introduced to the English Learners Advisory Committee meeting Sept. 9 at Jackson, where he listened to Padres Unidos co-founder Roberto Aguirre dialogue with the about 20 Hispanic parents. Aguirre created an after-school homework club to support students who are learning English.
Aguirre started a similar after-school homework study group at Paradise Valley where his children attend and praised the school for opening every Saturday for students.
“Any ideas that you have I want to know,” Zermeno said Sept. 9. “I want to know what is happening in Jackson Elementary and I want to hear from the parents, and the Latino parents.”
Zermeno will be on campus about three days a week. His duties include writing monthly reports “representing the movement of the staff towards the Single Plan for Student Achievement identified goals are developed,” quarterly presentations to the school board on Jackson’s progress and he will monitor classrooms to ensure the school’s goals are followed through.
Jackson is the only school in the district that did not improve test scores in results released Sept. 13.
The school is also in its fifth year of Program Improvement – given to schools and districts when students fail to meet the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 requirements – which is determined by state test scores.
In California, only schools and districts receiving Title I funds are placed in Program Improvement if they fail to make Adequate Yearly Progress under No Child Left Behind, according to the California Department of Education website.
A school must show growth on the AYP scale for two years to move out of PI.
The announcement of Dudley’s resignation comes on the heels of a Sept. 3 story that reported 18 complaints were filed against Dudley in the past two years alleging sexual harassment to verbal abuse of students. Eleven of those claims were found to have merit.
