Turmoil! District’s After School Program Director put on leave

By J. NOEL ESPINOZA
Special to the News

 

 

After 14 years with the San Benito School District, district officials last week placed After School Program Director Jack Garcia on administrative leave, with pay.

According to attorneys for Garcia, it was supposed to be a trip to a chess competition in Houston similar to previous years until SBCISD Superintendent Dr. Nate Carman allegedly changed the itinerary to reach the city where the event is scheduled to happen.

According to Edward A. (Tony) Conners, an Austin lawyer representing Garcia, the administrator has been coordinating the trip for many years using a credit card issued under his name, but with authorization to make expenditures for school district activities.

Conners said Garcia, who is also the district chess coordinator, paid, by way of credit card, about $17,000 to purchase a group rate flight through Southwest Airlines to take about 50-plus students (K-12) to Houston for a chess competition to be held in March. However, he said Carman instructed Garcia to cancel the flight, lease buses, and reimburse the school district the non-refundable money spent on the flight.

 

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.sbnewspaper.com/2019/03/01/turmoil-districts-after-school-program-director-put-on-leave/

2 comments

    • Justice is pending on March 9, 2019 at 2:43 pm
    • Reply

    Carman, Phillips, school board president ignored my request to transfer to another campus.. even after they promised everyone would have a job this past school year..the school administrator.set me up.and another teacher up… when the other guy .. Phillips . told me to find another job.. and that he wouldn’t accept my resignation I knew she had gotten to him already.he even had the balls to tell me to ask her for a letter of recommendation. Can you imagine what went on in my mind..anyways..yet on the payrolls Dept system.. the women that work there told me it said I resigned..which was BS.. I was so happy when I found out that Phillips was gone!.. Karma is a real… @#&#.. just waiting for it to come full circle. By the way.. Jack Garcia.. don’t give up..the way I almost did.. but I still have hope.. and don’t let those people ruin your career.

    • Former San Bene taxpayer on March 9, 2019 at 12:47 pm
    • Reply

    Huh, if Cayman came in and made changes without advising department heads or employees, then how can one know what they’re thinking? Huh Cayman, you want to bus your students to save money and at what cost? These young minds who chose to learn, represent and play chess have to be in the right mind frame to properly represent and hopefully bring back trophies or ribbons.
    But, because you want to shave dollars and probably for you and the school board to use on supposed fruitful trips, or wine and dine, you suspend a very good role model for doing his job, like he always has done.
    Oh Cayman, why were there so many terminations all of a sudden?

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