By Edmond Ortiz
Many Judson Independent School District residents say they are angered and confused by the school board’s decision to suspend the district’s superintendent.
What you should know
A special board meeting on Jan. 10 started with an agenda item calling for trustees to consider Superintendent Milton Fields’ employment status and duties.
Five hours and two closed sessions later, in spite of a previous motion to terminate Fields based on allegations of financial mismanagement, the board voted 6-1 to place Fields on administrative leave and have assistant superintendent Lacey Gosch serve as acting superintendent until further notice.
No board members did not explain this action upon approving it at their meeting, but rather a brief press release from Judson ISD later that night confirmed Fields’ suspension. No district officials have offered any formal comments.
Fields, a Judson High School graduate and a U.S. Air Force veteran with a doctorate in educational leadership, was appointed permanent superintendent in May 2023, replacing Jeanette Ball who had abruptly resigned as superintendent the prior fall.
Still, multiple JISD residents and employees used the Saturday afternoon board meeting or social media to vent their frustration over what they called an unjustified attempt by the school board’s effort to discipline or dismiss Fields.
More than 30 people signed up at the called meeting to speak over a two-hour period of public comments, with parents, employees and former trustees voicing support for Fields and lambasting the current board with claims of incompetent leadership and micromanagement. The meeting also featured heated exchanges between some board members.
Most audience members said they feel a slight majority of school board members want Fields to be a fall man of sorts given Judson ISD’s battle with a budget deficit and worries that unpopular cost-cutting measures may lead to school closures and more employees leaving the district.
Other speakers accused board President Monica Ryan and a few fellow trustees for ignoring constituents and prioritizing personal agendas. A few more speakers blamed the board for not yet hiring a permanent chief financial officer to take budget-related matters off Fields’ plate.
What they are saying
A number of meeting attendees say firing Fields for no legitimate reason not only will further lower morale in an already embattled school district, but that JISD and taxpayers may have to foot the bill for a severance package, any post-termination litigation, and a search for a new permanent superintendent.
Others such as Converse Elementary School Principal Miriam Huerta thanked Fields for his support for employees, and his efforts to steer JISD through financially turbulent waters.
“Despite the opposition you face from some board members, thank you for trying to keep our district united in spite of those whose goal it is to create division,” Huerta said.
P.J. Cabrera, a former JISD journalism teacher, said regardless of how some trustees may feel about Fields’ performance, suddenly firing him would be “disastrous” for the district.
“You are welcoming and driving chaos in the district, especially with morale being as low as it is,” Cabrera said. “You will lose control of the message, which if you put my academic hat on, you guys have already lost.”
When trustee Lesley Lee motioned to remove Fields, a slim minority of board members pushed back, wondering about a purported investigation of financial mismanagement allegations on Fields’ part.
Trustee Jose Macias moved to have the board go into two executive sessions during the Jan. 10 meeting so trustees could consult with district attorneys.
Before entering a second closed session – a two-hour period – Ryan said trustees have had opportunities to talk with legal counsel and had all the information and legal advice they needed to proceed with a vote to fire or retain Fields.
That assertion prompted a few other trustees to counter that Ryan did not adequately lay out the extent to which board members had heard from district attorneys prior to the special meeting, and that they had no idea why Fields was being considered for termination.
A visibly frustrated Macias claimed a slight board majority was conducting a “witch hunt” with Fields as their target.
“We’re going to vote (on firing Fields) and we have no idea what the investigation is about,” Macias told the audience. “I can just tell you that this is manipulation, it’s misleading and it’s disgraceful.”
What is happening
Following the second closed session, Lee withdrew her original motion to remove Fields and advance a new motion based on a suggestion put forward during the briefing with legal counsel, which JISD officials later confirmed was to suspend Fields indefinitely. The board passed this action 6-1 with Macias in opposition.
Macias also cast a dissenting vote in a follow-up board vote where trustees pledged to get more advice from district attorneys about the next steps to be taken.
