Vote for Fidencio Gallardo for LAUSD School Board, District 5!
It was really easy for me to decide who to vote for in the primary election on March 5, 2024 for Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), Board District 5.
First of all, I’ve been friends with Fidencio Gallardo for the past five years, but most importantly, he has been working in LAUSD Board President Jackie Goldberg’s office as her Education Innovation Deputy for nearly as long, and doing an amazing job.
While working for Jackie, Fidencio has visited every single school in Board District 5. He is an excellent listener and problem solver. Most importantly, he is intimately familiar with the school board’s budget and inner workings, and will be able to hit the ground running, if he gets elected in November.
He also happens to be one of the sweetest, most kind-hearted men — absolutely beloved by everyone who knows him.
I first met Fidencio on a rainy day in February of 2019. I had volunteered to canvas for Jackie, who was running for the school board after the historic teachers’ strike one month earlier. Fidencio kindly opened up his home in Bell, for volunteers to use as a base camp. As we gathered around his kitchen table, I was struck by his warmth, hospitality and kindness. It was no surprise to me to learn that day that he’d been a teacher for 27 years, just like it was no surprise to learn, later on, that he’d quit his beloved teaching profession to work for Jackie, after she won her election by a landslide. And here we are, five years later, and it’s again no surprise that he has stepped up to run for Jackie’s seat, now that she has announced that she’s retiring.
Even better, Fidencio already has a proven track record as an elected official, both as Mayor and City Councilmember in Bell, thanks to his longstanding efforts to eradicate government corruption in his community. As Education Activist Emiliana Dore puts it in CityWatch, “Fidencio stepped up to lead a recall effort [to] replace [ all of the] Council members [who were] complicit in enriching themselves while shaking down residents. In 2015, Bell residents elected Fidencio to the Council. He continued to work as a classroom teacher even while leading reform of his city. In 2020, voters re-elected him to Council and [last] spring he was chosen to be Mayor.”
Last but not least, he is a proudly out gay man, at a time when that feels more important than ever in the public sphere.
Once again, to quote Dore’s excellent article in CityWatch, “Openly lesbian School Board President Jackie Goldberg is retiring. This [past] June, her epic rebuke to hate-mongers making false and dehumanizing attacks on LGBTQ+ students, families, and educators went viral and made national headlines. As the mother of a transgender teen who recently graduated from LAUSD schools, I am relieved and grateful that 27-year teacher Fidencio Gallardo, an openly gay board deputy to Jackie for the past four years, has stepped up to succeed her… Given the rise in anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric that has been brewing in and around Los Angeles… LGBTQ+ representation on our school board feels more important than ever. With Jackie’s upcoming departure, maintaining [this] representation on our school board depends on electing Fidencio.”
So why didn’t Fidencio get endorsed by UTLA or SEIU, the two biggest unions in our school district?
To be honest, I am baffled that the teachers union, United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA), chose to endorse Karla Griego instead. Don’t get me wrong, she seems like an amazing woman, as both a mother and a special education teacher. She has also held a prominent position in UTLA, as the North Area chapter chair for four years and is currently a member of their Board of Directors. But I feel like she could have easily continued to do all of that valuable work for UTLA, and let Fidencio run for the job he has been training for, for the past five years.
[UPDATE: Some people have suggested that Griego deserves UTLA’s endorsement because there is a huge discrepancy between the two, regarding school police. So I have added some additional information on this issue. According to Griego, in her interview with the Eastsider LA, “She favors calling the police [only] if there is imminent danger, but also advocates for restorative justice programs and other preventative measures, including funding and training psychiatric social workers and school climate advisors.”
Which honestly appears to be quite similar to Fidencio’s position:
“At school when conflicts arise, the shift to non-violent problem-solving is smart and effective in saving lives and preventing injuries. This priority also breaks the school-to-prison pipeline, which incarcerates Black and Latino boys and men and begins with criminalizing kids. Universal restorative justice programs belong in all schools. That means safe-passage programs and rigorous training for school climate advocates who can preempt crises and pro-actively interrupt and manage conflicts without calling 911 or the sheriff. I will continue the shift away from policing and toward holistic school safety, de-escalation, and restorative justice.” (Source: https://www.gallardoforschoolboard.com/mypriorities) ]
Given that Fidencio clearly wants to prioritize restorative justice while maintaining campus safety, it seems incredibly unwise to split the vote over this issue, especially considering that the two of them are running against a truly terrible candidate: Graciela Ortiz, who is endorsed by the L.A. School Police Officers Association, and bankrolled by massive amounts of corporate charter lobby money.
I’m equally shocked that the school staff union, Service Employees International Union (SEIU), chose to ignore the two pro-union candidates and endorse Ortiz instead. Not only is she supported by the police and charter funded, she is also embroiled in a horrifying abuse scandal involving a teenage student:
“Graciela Ortiz [was] named in a bombshell lawsuit in January… According to the lawsuit, Ortiz used her access to high-school students through her job to recruit a girl to work for an entity that she… set up to do campaign work… The allegations detail how [she] hired a man with a record of sexual abuse to manage [her underage volunteers], covered up his… sexual abuse of [this girl], and then retaliated against the local police officers who apprehended the perpetrator… After the lawsuit was filed, Ortiz was removed from official duties as a supervisor of pupil services and attendance (PSA) in L.A. public schools, pending an investigation of the alleged misconduct.” (Source: https://www.laprogressive.com/election-reform-campaigns/candidate-graciela-ortiz)
[UPDATE #2: California School Employees Association (CSEA) LA 500 has now retracted its endorsement of Graciela Ortiz:
“On Tuesday, February 12th, CSEA LOCAL 500, officially retracted the union's earlier endorsement of Graciela Ortiz in her race for the L.A.U.S.D. School Board, District 5. Members voted unanimously to withdraw the union's support… Such a retraction is an extremely rare event. The action by CSEA LA 500 reflects deep concern about Ortiz and the potential for damage to the union from association with her… The retraction by CSEA LA 500 leaves only one candidate in the Board district 5 contest with the union’s official endorsement: FIDENCIO GALLARDO.” (Source: https://www.facebook.com/chapter500/)
Thank you CSEA, for doing the right thing. There is still time for SEIU to rescind their endorsement as well!
[UPDATE #3: Graciela Ortiz’ campaign continues to get even uglier, with homophobic smears against Fidencio, who again, is a proudly out, gay man. Hans Johnson reports in CityWatchLA that he witnessed one of her volunteers engaging in nasty scare tactics, which Ortiz has yet to denounce:
Speaking in Spanish, the canvasser [told my neighbor]: “I am here to secure your vote for Graciela.” My neighbor, also speaking in Spanish, indicated she is a public school mom. The canvasser engaged her further and got to what might have been her mission. “You should know that candidate Fidencio Gallardo is gay,” she said in Spanish. “And the person he works for, [School Board President] Jackie Goldberg is a lesbian.” Doubling down on her appeal to homophobia, the canvasser said about Fidencio: “He is not the type of person that you want involved in teaching your kids.” From that point on, the exchange did not go well for the canvasser. My neighbor was so incensed by the fear-mongering language deployed by the canvasser that she practically ordered the canvasser off her property. The canvasser did not “secure” any “vote for Graciela.”
Given the nastiness and corruption surrounding Ortiz, it is vital that we consolidate our efforts behind Fidencio!]
It is depressing to see the absurd amounts of money being spent in this district’s election — the number of flyers that arrive in my mailbox every week is frankly overwhelming — when it is so obvious that Fidencio is the best choice.
Fortunately, many well-respected leaders in our community agree. Fidencio is endorsed by four active LAUSD Board Members (Jackie Goldberg, Dr. Rocío Rivas, Dr. George McKenna, and Scott Schmerelson), Supervisor Hilda Solis, Education Journalist Diane Ravitch, California School Employees Association (CSEA) LA 500, Parents Supporting Teachers, Feminists in Action, Stonewall Democratic Club, the NELA Climate Collective, East Area Progressive Democrats, and the LA Times.
That last endorsement may come as a bit of surprise, considering the rocky relationship the LA Times has had with public education in the past. I’ve called them out on this multiple times, most notably in a piece I wrote in late 2018 called, “What More Do Teachers Want, Why Are They Striking?” I still don’t know if their editorial board has actually managed to evolve since then, to a more progressive, pro-teacher stance, or if this is simply a case of a broken clock being right twice a day. Either way, I’ll take it!
As the LA Times explains in their glowing endorsement of Fidencio, “Departing Los Angeles Unified school board member Jackie Goldberg leaves big shoes to fill in District 5… Many [members of this community] were hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic and continue to suffer from learning loss, chronic absenteeism and other problems. They need a champion who is prepared to advocate and deliver for them from day one. Fortunately, there’s an experienced, thoughtful and fair-minded candidate to succeed Goldberg and provide the representation these often-neglected communities deserve. Fidencio Gallardo, the mayor of the City of Bell, was a classroom teacher and administrator for nearly three decades until he began working as a deputy for Goldberg in 2019. Of the four candidates running, Gallardo articulates the clearest vision for improving student achievement and well-being in the wake of the pandemic. And his breadth of experience puts him the best position to actually get things done.”
I agree whole-heartedly and can’t wait to see him elected to represent LAUSD School Board, District 5.
If you’d like to know who else I support in the upcoming primary election, please read my piece “How to Vote on March 5, 2024 in CA!” As always, I share both my recommendations as well as the alternatives, especially in races where multiple viable Democrats are running. Take a look and see if you agree!
AND PLEASE VOTE ON MARCH 5TH!