Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

US Supreme Court Lifts Order That Blocked Trump’s Mass Federal Layoffs

14 hours ago

Trump to Attend Club World Cup Final, FIFA Opens Office in Trump Tower

14 hours ago

Trump Says Pharmaceutical Tariffs Could Reach 200%

15 hours ago

Rescue Teams Find Three More Bodies After Central Texas Floods

15 hours ago

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Rigoberto Simental Aguilar

15 hours ago

Trump Says He Is Not Happy With Russia’s Putin, Considering Sanctions

15 hours ago

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs to Be Sentenced on October 3

15 hours ago

Israeli Military Says It Struck Key Hamas Figure in Lebanon’s Tripoli

16 hours ago

Madera County Sheriff Logs 29 Fire-Related Calls on Fourth of July, Most in 5 Years

16 hours ago

Trump Says He May Take Over Governance of Washington, DC

16 hours ago
'Don't Let Clovis Unified Become Like City of Fresno,' Trustee Says About Election Plan
NANCY WEBSITE HEADSHOT 1
By Nancy Price, Multimedia Journalist
Published 2 years ago on
October 5, 2023

Share

Clovis Unified trustees learned Wednesday how the district’s current trustee area map compares to a nonprofit’s submitted map known as Map 201.

One of the two maps will determine how trustees are elected in the future, starting with the November 2024 election when they will be elected by area instead of districtwide.

The district is changing the method of elections to be in line with the California Voting Rights Act. Voting rights advocates consider by-area elections important for minority representation on elected bodies.

In addition, the district had received a letter this summer from a law firm warning that if it continued to elect trustees at large it could face a civil lawsuit for violating the Voting Rights Act. But district officials said plans were already underway to transition to area elections before the letter arrived.

Clint Olivier, who was elected last year to represent Area 1 and is one of the board’s two newest trustees, expressed concerns at Wednesday’s School Board meeting over whether future trustees, who will only have to win election within their area, might lose sight of Clovis trustees’ longstanding goal to consider the greater good of the district in their decision-making.

“The new system will require that they only campaign in a small area and cater to that and be responsive to that one small area. And if I get an invitation to go to Bud Rank (Elementary) to see the kids do something really fantastic, why bother? Those parents are not my constituents anymore and those parents can’t vote for me anymore, so why bother? … And, of course, it’s not my response. I like to go to everything, everywhere, all the time. But I think that when a different group comes in and the tradition and the energy and the ethos of the board changes, we’re going to become like the city of Fresno,” said Olivier, who previously represented central Fresno on the Fresno City Council.

Longtime Trustee Tiffany Stoker Madsen said that she expects district staffers will remind trustees of their responsibility toward the entire district, not just their area.

“I have to look out at this team out here and they’re not going to change the way they work,” Stoker Madsen said, referring to staffers at the meeting. And they see Clovis Unified as Clovis Unified. … I don’t see them letting that happen.”

Two Maps Vary

Jeff Tilton, a demographer with the National Demographics Corporation, explained the difference between the current trustee map and Map 201, which was submitted by the nonprofit organization Equitable Maps Coalition. Instead of taking another look at boundary lines, the district decided to use its current trustee area map, which was drawn up using 2020 Census data.

The current map includes multiple high schools encompassing each of the seven trustee areas, which trustees say they value so they aren’t identified as representing a single high school area.

Map 201 more evenly balances out district population among the seven areas — its deviation, or the difference between the biggest and smallest trustee areas, is .49%, compared to 4.6% for the current map, Tilton said. Under federal law, the deviation must be lower than 10%, he said.

Tilton said Map 201 would dilute the voting strength of people of color, particularly in the southern part of the district. The current map has two trustee areas in which the majority of voters are people of color, but Map 201 has only one, he said.

And unlike the current map, Map 201 would put the residences of four trustees into two trustee areas. Under traditional redistricting, Tilton said, efforts are made to “respect the voters” whose choices put trustees into office.

Best Practices

But Jesus Garcia, a demographer with the Equitable Maps Coalition, told GV Wire previously that maintaining the sanctity of trustee areas is not considered a best practice for demographers. Garcia said he was unable to attend Wednesday’s board meeting because of a family matter.

He previously told GV Wire that Map 201 would give greater voice to the district’s Hispanic and Asian voters.

The Clovis Unified School Board will hold a fifth public hearing on the trustee election maps at the Oct. 18 meeting and then select the preferred map. The maps then go to the Fresno County Commission on School District Reorganization, which has to hold at least one public hearing before voting to approve or reject the district’s change from at-large to by-area elections.

Four seats will be up for election in November 2024: Area 2, now held by Board President David DeFrank, Area 4 (Hugh Awtrey), Area 5 (Dr. Steven Fogg), and Area 7 (Yolanda Moore). Moore is the board’s only person of color.

Map 201

Clovis Unified trustee map proposal Map 201 submitted by the Equitable Maps Coalition

 

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Are Former Measure C Execs Pushing Their Own Ballot Measure?

DON'T MISS

San Luis Obispo’s Madre Fire Near New Cuyama Grows to 80,615 Acres, 35% Contained

DON'T MISS

US Justice Department Scrambles to Defend Its About-Face on Release of Epstein Files

DON'T MISS

US Supreme Court Lifts Order That Blocked Trump’s Mass Federal Layoffs

DON'T MISS

Trump to Attend Club World Cup Final, FIFA Opens Office in Trump Tower

DON'T MISS

Trump Says Pharmaceutical Tariffs Could Reach 200%

DON'T MISS

Rescue Teams Find Three More Bodies After Central Texas Floods

DON'T MISS

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Rigoberto Simental Aguilar

DON'T MISS

Trump Says He Is Not Happy With Russia’s Putin, Considering Sanctions

DON'T MISS

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs to Be Sentenced on October 3

UP NEXT

Fresno Unified’s Embattled Nikki Henry Exits. ‘I Own My Mistake. I Won’t Let It Own Me.’

UP NEXT

O’Brien Launches Fresno County Schools Chief Campaign by Handing Out ‘Homework’

UP NEXT

Trump’s Administration Finds Harvard Violated Students’ Civil Rights, WSJ Reports

UP NEXT

University of Virginia President Resigns Under Pressure From Trump Administration

UP NEXT

Despite $49M Deficit, Fresno Unified Gives Top Brass 5% Raise, 3% One-Time Bonus

UP NEXT

US House Committee Subpoenas Harvard Over Tuition Costs

UP NEXT

Why Is Usually Sleepy Fresno County Schools Superintendent Race Suddenly Hot?

UP NEXT

US Justice Department to Probe Hiring Practices at University of California

UP NEXT

What Does the Fresno County Schools Superintendent Do? Read This Q&A to Find Out

UP NEXT

Trump Administration Orders CA to Strip Trans Athlete of Medals

Nancy Price,
Multimedia Journalist
Nancy Price is a multimedia journalist for GV Wire. A longtime reporter and editor who has worked for newspapers in California, Florida, Alaska, Illinois and Kansas, Nancy joined GV Wire in July 2019. She previously worked as an assistant metro editor for 13 years at The Fresno Bee. Nancy earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in journalism at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. Her hobbies include singing with the Fresno Master Chorale and volunteering with Fresno Filmworks. You can reach Nancy at 559-492-4087 or Send an Email

Are Former Measure C Execs Pushing Their Own Ballot Measure?

12 hours ago

San Luis Obispo’s Madre Fire Near New Cuyama Grows to 80,615 Acres, 35% Contained

13 hours ago

US Justice Department Scrambles to Defend Its About-Face on Release of Epstein Files

13 hours ago

US Supreme Court Lifts Order That Blocked Trump’s Mass Federal Layoffs

14 hours ago

Trump to Attend Club World Cup Final, FIFA Opens Office in Trump Tower

14 hours ago

Trump Says Pharmaceutical Tariffs Could Reach 200%

15 hours ago

Rescue Teams Find Three More Bodies After Central Texas Floods

15 hours ago

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Rigoberto Simental Aguilar

15 hours ago

Trump Says He Is Not Happy With Russia’s Putin, Considering Sanctions

15 hours ago

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs to Be Sentenced on October 3

15 hours ago

Fresno Woman Sentenced to Prison for DUI Crash That Killed One, Injured Three

A 23-year-old Fresno woman was sentenced Tuesday to more than a decade in state prison for a 2021 drunk driving crash that killed one passen...

10 hours ago

10 hours ago

Fresno Woman Sentenced to Prison for DUI Crash That Killed One, Injured Three

11 hours ago

Union Files Ethics Complaint After College Chancellor’s ‘Goddaughter’ Receives $161K In Contracts

Jershawn Worthy was identified as the suspect in two Fresno shootings and is now facing multiple firearm-related charges. (Fresno PD)
11 hours ago

Fresno Police Arrest Suspect Tied to 2 Shootings, Firearm Recovered

12 hours ago

Are Former Measure C Execs Pushing Their Own Ballot Measure?

The Madre Fire near New Cuyama has burned more than 80,615 acres, injured one firefighter, and prompted multiple evacuation orders as crews work to contain the growing wildfire. (CalFire)
13 hours ago

San Luis Obispo’s Madre Fire Near New Cuyama Grows to 80,615 Acres, 35% Contained

U.S. financier Jeffrey Epstein appears in a photograph taken for the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services' sex offender registry March 28, 2017 and obtained by Reuters July 10, 2019. New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo
13 hours ago

US Justice Department Scrambles to Defend Its About-Face on Release of Epstein Files

A general view of the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, U.S., June 1, 2024. (Reuters File)
14 hours ago

US Supreme Court Lifts Order That Blocked Trump’s Mass Federal Layoffs

President Donald Trump holds the key to the FIFA Club World Cup trophy in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 7, 2025. (Reuters File)
14 hours ago

Trump to Attend Club World Cup Final, FIFA Opens Office in Trump Tower

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend