Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1522302
a group of 6th graders on the first day of school by telling them that if they disrespect him, he will disrespect worse; and more. It was unbelievable and heartbreaking." Recordings of a few testimonials were spliced together with examples of emotional intelligence, for example, to demon- strate the long-term damage the Superintendent's actions were causing the students and the community. In one video, the PTO president, who was disparaged in the leaked video for her soli- darity with her children's teachers, bravely recounted how she was sexually harassed by the superintendent and gaslit when she complained. e video spliced her testimony together with a YouTube video on gaslighting and superintendent emails to show evidence of the damage being wrought on the community. The CUFS Facebook page exploded . The videos received thousands of views and as the coalition gained strength, activists found their collective voice. Dillard led the community in a process to surface the values they want in a school board member and to generate a list of board com- mitments: meet with school staff and the PTO regularly, be on campus regularly, and run in the fall election. "Our board president resigned first and we had a CUFS coalition meeting. A spectacular PTO volunteer stepped for- ward. We helped her get appointed to the board in January with videos highlighting her background and commitment to our school, provided workshops on school finance and other information to prepare her and she won," said Dillard. Continued community pressure at board meetings, on social media, and even the local newspaper helped force out both the superintendent and next board president. "I was at the CTA Issues Conference in Las Vegas. Early Saturday morning, watching the special board meeting in the convention hallway, I screamed when they announced the resignations!" Everything happened quickly afterwards: CUFS held several more meetings to identify and support more candidates by consensus as board resignations occurred. In the end, the coali- tion was able to win the appointment of four new "CommUNITY Board Members," as they are known in Camino. Immediately after a majority of CommUNITY Board Mem- bers were sworn in, they voted to fire the law firm bleeding the district with legal fees. In an attempt to punish teachers, the previous board illegally reduced CFA's 20-minute board presen- tation time to three. Because four board seats were appointed, all will be up for election this fall. CFA and CUFS will organize and work to defend seats and win the last remaining seat. In the meantime, one of the most important responsibilities of the board — selection of a n e w sup erint endent — i s in th e tr ust ed h a n d s o f C o m m U N I T Y B o a r d Me m b e r s . Hope and renewal have replaced dread and stress on campus. "I grew up here, Camino made me," empha- sized Dillard. "My children go to this school. I was not going to give it up without a fight. A C TA c o m m u n i t y e n g a g e m e n t g r a n t supported CUFS with food and childcare so families could par- ticipate in actions. But we didn't have paid release time. We are a small chapter, but our community has a huge heart and when we organize for our students, we all win!" Dillard was a selected presenter at the NEA National Leader- ship Summit in Chicago in March to share CFA's successes and inspire educators nationally to build power. Said CTA Board Member Mike Patterson by video to the packed audience, "Camino is a model for small rural chap- ters across the nation on how to organize, how to get your parents and community behind you, and do the right thing for your students." Follow Camino United for Students on Facebook: facebook.com/61553478551482 CFA President Cora Dillard. Camino Faculty Assn. members at work. "We are a small chapter, but our community has a huge heart and when we organize for our students, we all win!" —Camino Faculty Association President Cora Dillard 21 S U M M E R 2 0 24