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LYNWOOD — By a 5-0 vote early Wednesday morning, the Lynwood school board placed Firebaugh High School Principal Jonas Silverio on administrative leave effective immediately, amid a pending investigation by the Sheriff’s Department’s Special Victims Bureau.
The board’s vote came about 12:15 a.m. after a closed session that lasted nearly three hours.
Because of the ongoing investigation, the Sheriff’s Department told school district officials not to disclose information to the public, because they could be cited with obstructing an investigation.
Lt. Michael Rosson of the Century Sheriff’s Station last week confirmed that an investigation was was under way regarding a school district administrator. “I can’t disclose the name of the person but there is an ongoing investigation regarding a principal in the school district,” he said.
Calls to Silverio at Firebaugh High School prior to the vote were not returned.
It was discovered that Silverio had been out on sick leave several times within the last month. An office assistant at the school site told The Wave this week that she didn’t know when he would be back, and that it had been a while since he had reported to school. “We’ve been told that he’s been sick,” the assistant said.
One source, who asked to remain anonymous, said Silverio had already submitted his resignation, effective June 30, but no one was able to confirm that information.
Superintendent Dhyan Lal would not confirm that Silverio had resigned.
“The only thing I know is that Mr. Silverio is very, very sick,” Lal said in an interview on May 7. “He has lost 20 pounds. … He is ill, Jonas can’t lose 20 pounds.”
Lal added that parents of Firebaugh students also are concerned about the principal.
“They know the amount of hours he was putting in,” he said. “One time that happened to me too, years ago.”
But Lal said during the May 7 interview that Silverio was not officially out on sick leave.
“He hasn’t officially filed for sick leave, but the doctor has been taking him off work for a couple of days here and a couple of days there,” the superintendent said. “But yesterday, I was told that he can’t return to work. … That he may not be back for a while.”
It was learned on Wednesday morning that Silverio has filed for sick leave.
Between late Thursday and late Monday, no new information ensued from calls to school board members or to the district’s legal counsel overseeing the matter.
In a second interview Wednesday, Lt. Rosson said he had not been told that the school district had put anybody on leave. He again said he could not comment on an open investigation.
“It wouldn’t be fair to the person because the case is still open,” he said. “You wouldn’t want to disparage anybody needlessly, so until all the facts come in, we don’t have any comment at this time.”
Martina Rodriguez, a former school board member who was denied a chance to speak to the school board Tuesday night in closed session, was shocked to hear the news about Silverio. She said she and a few other parents wanted to speak to the school board in closed session to ask why another teacher in the district who had been arrested in the last month was not placed on administrative leave, reprimanded or disciplined, but rather transferred to work in the district office.
School board President Jose Solache, citing his need to meet with counsel before all five members of the board could meet with Rodriguez in closed session to discuss a personnel matter, gave Rodriguez the option of meeting with two members of the board and the superintendent — to not violate any Brown Act laws — or state her case publicly in under three minutes before the board went into closed session.
Board member Rachel Chavez, however, disagreed with Solache saying that board members in the past have met with members of the community in closed session, and didn’t see why now it was a problem.
While it seemed Chavez was backed by three of her colleagues, upon being called to closed session, Rodriguez was met by only two board members and the superintendent. Rodriguez told the two that she wanted to speak to all five members, not two, and thus rescinded her request to speak with them.
“[I think] they thought I was going to talk to them about the Firebaugh principal,” Rodriguez said stunned. “I mean, many of us in the community have heard the rumors and allegations about the issue, but we figured if some of that were true, then the district surely would be handling it. We didn’t know it would ever get this far.”
It is not certain why or how the matter came to a head on Tuesday night, but it is certain that it was placed on the agenda for the meeting under closed session items.
Lal was asked during the May 7 interview if Silverio had resigned. “Not yet,” he said. All of the rumors and allegations out there, he said, “could easily be said about you and me. … When he resigns, it will go to the board.”
Silverio has been one of the top principals in the school district. He is credited with leading Firebaugh High School’s International Baccalaureate program and helping to form an active Parent Booster Club that was recently honored by Rep. Linda Sánchez, D-Cerritos. But despite the school’s many accolades, and its award-winning architecture, its principal has been at the forefront of controversy on many different levels in the past, including allegedly hand-picking students for test score purposes, not disciplining students who allegedly got drunk on a field trip to Sacramento and for allegedly asking students to work late hours on campus.
Upon being informed officially this week that there was an ongoing investigation into allegations against Silverio, the board members agreed that putting the principal on administrative leave was the best course of action.
“No comment,” were the two words for the morning after the 5-0 vote. Board members said they could not comment on the matter.
School board Vice President Alfonso Morales said May 7 that he had no knowledge of an ongoing investigation, or Silverio’s alleged resignation.
“Obviously this would be a very sensitive issue you’re talking about,” Morales said. “And not only is it that, but it would be a personnel issue. If anybody were to speak on such a matter outside of the appropriate setting, they would be exposing themselves to liability for talking about a personnel issue. … I will tell you right now, that if there was a personnel issue, such as this, I am confident that the school district will take the necessary steps to investigate and protect the children of the district. … Allegations like this, are very detrimental for everybody involved,” he said. “Enough, that there are no winners in this type of situation.”
Morales on Wednesday, said, “I’m sorry, but I can’t comment on the matter.”
A call to Solache on Wednesday was not returned by press time.
An official statement was released on Wednesday afternoon, approved by the board members and by the district’s legal counsel.
It stated: “The board of education, after a 5-0 vote, has placed Jonas Silverio, principal of Firebaugh High School on administrative leave, effective immediately. The board of education on a 5-0 vote, has elected Dr. Cheri Tuinstra as the acting principal at Firebaugh High School.”
In similar instances, including one that occurred here about seven years ago, individuals being placed on administrative leave usually have to abide by several restrictions, including being prohibited from returning to their campuses and from contacting any students. It is not certain if Silverio’s administrative leave includes such restrictions.
A call into the detective handling the case also was not returned by press time.
Late Wednesday, it was learned that many parents and students from Firebaugh High School stopped at the School District's headquarters to show their support for Silverio and to question why he was placed on administrative leave.
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