The Fresno Unified School Board last month approved settlement offers with three veteran nurses who filed an age discrimination lawsuit against the district earlier this year in Fresno County Superior Court.

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Details of the so-called “998 Offers” were not made public. The board’s vote, which was reported in open session at the Aug. 28 board meeting, was taken in closed session.

The School Board’s vote was 6-0-1, with Board President Susan Wittrup and Trustees Claudia Cázares, Veva Islas, Elizabeth Jonasson Rosas, Andy Levine, and Keshia Thomas voting yes and Board Clerk Valerie Davis abstaining.

The three nurses, Joni Kolb, Janell Beamon, and Heidi Sagaser, had complained in their lawsuit that they were passed over for management or professional development committee jobs because of their age.

The suit alleged that Liz Torres, executive director of health services, referred to nurses over the age of 50 as the “older nurses” and that she told Sagaser that she “did not like the older nurses, as they always ask for extra pay when they are asked to do extra work, and that they are afraid of COVID.”

They had sought damages for lost income, emotional and mental distress, and violation of their “civil and statutory” rights.

The suit was filed by Sagaser’s ex-husband, attorney Howard Sagaser. He did not return several phone calls last week and this week seeking comment.

Update: Sagaser said after this story was published Tuesday that the nurses are rejecting the district’s settlement offer.

“They do not even begin to take into account all the emotional distress and the hostile work environment that these people have endured,” he said in a voicemail to School Zone. “We’re very encouraged by what we’re uncovering in discovery. We want to expose what type of work environment is at Fresno Unified.”

The Judicial Branch of California offers this explanation of the 998 process:

A 998 offer “(t)ells the other side that you are offering to settle the case for a specific amount, and provides a form to accept the offer. If the offer is not accepted, the other side may be responsible to pay the costs of the case from after the offer is rejected, if the other side doesn’t do better than the offer at trial.”

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Less Chat, More Consequence

Fresno Unified School Board meetings will be targeting the district’s goals — improving student academic outcomes and customer service — and might be a bit shorter starting with the Wednesday, Sept. 25 meeting. Interim Superintendent Misty Her announced at last Wednesday’s board meeting that she and the board would no longer take time during the start of each meeting to deliver an interim superintendent report or board-superintendent communications.

The reports by Her and her predecessor Bob Nelson and by the board members typically recapped events occurring since the last board meeting and gave district officials the opportunity for shoutouts and kudos.

Although they traditionally were on the agenda early in the board meetings, the board-superintendent communications were moved to the end of the meeting during the term of Bullard Region Trustee Terry Slatic because of his filibuster tactics, which he said he employed to get answers from Nelson.

The shoutouts and kudos will continue to be shared on social media and in newsletters, Her said. But after the Labor Day weekend retreat with consultants from the Council of the Great City Schools, “we are committed to student outcome focused governance. And with that, you are going to see some drastic changes in our board meetings starting on the 25th,” she said last week. “We will be focused on monitoring our goals of improving student outcomes and our discussion and business will start to reflect that.”

The decision to drop the board-superintendent communications and interim superintendent report came from “all of us and the consultant (at the Labor Day retreat). When we were assessing our agenda we realized there are things we can take out,” Her told GV Wire on Tuesday.

Related Story: FUSD Interim Supt. Misty Her Unveils 100-Day Plan for Improved Learning

Recognizing Child-Friendly Businesses

First 5 Fresno County annually recognizes five businesses dedicated to prioritizing employees and their families.

The Child-Friendly Business Award, which First 5 has handed out for the past 18 years, celebrates the importance of creating work environments that value work-life integration.

This year’s winners are 3D Realty &Property Management, Best Buddies, BMY Construction, Inc., Ohanian’s Drywall, and TETER Architects & Engineers.

They were selected because of their dedication to “an intentional, family-oriented culture, offering benefits such as flexible work schedules, time off for their children’s events, maternity support beyond state requirements, and company facilities that encourage whole families to be part of the parent’s workplace community,” First 5  Fresno County said.

Children’s Book Author Visits FUSD Schools

Edward Dennis, a children’s book author and illustrator, is visiting Fresno Unified schools to talk about his new book, “The Boy from Mexico Becomes a Farmworker.”

Dennis’ visit is in conjunction with Fresno Unified’s celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month.

He will start at Manchester GATE Elementary, 2307 E. Dakota, on Monday from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. and will tour other schools.

Dennis’ book is the second in a series inspired by the experienced of his great-grandfather. He is an AmeriCorps alumni and former educator who wants to inspire children to tell their stories. All the district’s second graders will receive a copy of his book.

“We are pleased to welcome Edward Dennis to our schools to share his great-grandfather’s story of coming to the United States from Mexico. His story will resonate with many of our students whose families had similar journeys,” Interim Superintendent Misty Her said in a news release.