On Wednesday, Clovis Unified teachers gathered from across the district to hear a live broadcast from administration saying that they will not interfere with unionization efforts.

As part of an order from the quasi-judicial Public Employment Relations Board, the district broadcast to certificated staff assurances that, among other things, they will no longer get in the way of the Association of Clovis Educators or retaliate against employees involved with the organization.

It also compelled the district to break from the Clovis Unified Faculty Senate, rescind a 2021 email from then-Superintendent Eimear O’Brien criticizing ACE, and provide the association with access to information.

In a previous statement after the ruling was issued in June 2024, Clovis Unified Spokesperson Kelly Avants said:

“Regardless of the eventual outcome of this case, our administration remains committed to supporting and valuing every single one of our employees and will always respect their decisions about how they want their voices.” Avants said the district would not provide a further statement.

Following the employment board ruling, the senate independently opted to disband, said ACE Vice President Kristin Heimerdinger.

The decision comes after Heimerdinger said the district broke the law on multiple occasions.

“The anti-union rhetoric definitely instilled a lot of fear that there would be retribution and retaliation if you even spoke of being in a union,” Heimerdinger said. “So, it is significant that the employees heard that that sort of fear the district was instilling was illegal and must stop.”

Employment Board Ruled Against Clovis Unified Previously

In June 2024, the employment board issued a ruling against the district following three charges from ACE accusing Clovis Unified of retaliating against employees and for interfering with the Faculty Senate.

Reading of the notice is only one of the remedies ordered by the employment board, Heimerdinger said. Another requirement extends how long signatures from teachers to unionize remain active.

Both the district and ACE have requested appeals.

Years ago, Clovis Unified created the Faculty Senate to represent teachers, Heimerdinger said. The problem was that the senate was district funded and controlled.

“Which means that teachers never really had an equal voice in decision making,” Heimerdinger said.

This isn’t the first time the employment board has ruled against Clovis Unified. In 1984, the board similarly found the district threatened a union organizer and favored the Faculty Senate over the Clovis Unified Teachers Association.

Doc Buchanan ‘Spinning In His Grave’: Olivier

Heimerdinger said Clovis Unified’s anti-union behavior goes back to the founding superintendent, Dr. Floyd Buchanan. She said the district has worked to keep teachers from unionizing despite classified employees being represented by a union.

Clovis Unified Board Member Clint Olivier, however, said Buchanan’s vision helped push Clovis Unified to the successful district it is.

“Doc Buchanan was a sage and a visionary. His commonsense words ring as true today as they did during decades past, when he dedicated his life to the hundreds of thousands of kids who went through CUSD,” Olivier told GV Wire in a statement. “Here we are in 2025, and his wise words have been declared illegal and erased from history. I’m outraged, but Doc must be spinning in his grave.”

ACE Wants Prep Time for Teachers, Smaller Classes, Better Pay

Some of what ACE wants includes dedicated prep time for elementary school teachers, class-size maximums, and compensation for out-of-the-ordinary work performed by teachers, Heimerdinger said.

She said elementary school teachers don’t have time during the day to develop lesson plans, contact parents, or meet with colleagues. She also said it’s not uncommon to have 40 students in a high school classroom.

Teachers often get asked to do work they’re not paid for, she said.

“This is a theme throughout public education, that you depend on the goodwill of the employees to do things because, ‘it’s for the kids,’ ” Heimerdinger said. “Nobody wants to not do a good job on behalf of the future and behalf of children, but it is also work that takes our time and that work deserves to be compensated.”