Milton Fields remains to be the superintendent of Judson Unbiased Faculty District.
After holding a particular Saturday assembly to debate and take doable motion on the superintendent’s employment, trustees voted in opposition to taking any motion to put Fields on administrative go away.
Judson’s board room was packed in the course of the midday assembly, crammed with supporters of Fields.
Fields has been superintendent since 2023, after serving Judson as a deputy superintendent and principal at Wagner Excessive Faculty for a number of years. He additionally graduated from the district.
It’s not the primary time the board has mentioned the superintendent’s employment. On Dec. 9, Judson held a particular assembly to “think about and take doable motion concerning the employment, analysis and duties of the Superintendent.”
No motion was taken by the board in December however Board President Monica Ryan mentioned Saturday’s assembly was a continuation of it.
Ryan declined to remark on the conclusion of Saturday’s five-hour assembly. A lot of the assembly was held in closed session.
The board evaluates Fields twice a yr and his subsequent analysis is ready for the tip of January.
“I’m hoping that we don’t should see this difficulty once more,” however any board member might convey the difficulty again up once more for any purpose, mentioned Trustee Jose Macias Jr. after the assembly.
However the precise nature of the difficulty being raised by some board members stays unclear.
Help for Fields splits Judson board
The Could 2025 elections introduced in three new faces on the seven-member board: Amanda Poteet, Lesley Lee and Stephanie Jones.
Since then, a number of board votes regarding the funds have typically been cut up amongst longer-serving trustees and the brand new guard, together with Ryan who was elected in 2023 and stepped into the board president place final yr.
The extra tenured trustees — Macias Jr., Laura Stanford and Suzanne Kenoyer — are inclined to vote in step with suggestions from district administration, whereas Ryan and new board members dissent.
Public feedback from dad and mom, district workers and even a former Judson board member typically obtained emotional, blaming newer board members and Ryan for the district’s hesitancy in making concrete budgetary selections to handle the deficit.
“Judson ISD wants studied and skilled management. Dr Fields has offered that,” mentioned Arnoldo Salinas, a former Judson worker and trustee who misplaced his seat on the board to trustee Poteet final yr.
“The conduct and the imaginative and prescient we have now seen on the board degree is unacceptable,” Salinas mentioned. “Public disputes and private agendas undermine belief and harm the credibility of this district. Most significantly, they damage college students who deserve stability and clear course.”
Most feedback additionally criticized board members for occasionally appearing divisively, micromanaging and infrequently being at odds with the district administration, together with Fields and his senior directors.
Imprecise ‘experiences of considerations’ spark newest motion
Questions on whether or not the board might even legally maintain the Saturday assembly arose.
Trustee Kenoyer, who’s been on the board since 2017, mentioned there ought to have been no assembly within the first place since Judson coverage says the superintendent ought to put together agendas for all board conferences.
However it was Lee who put the merchandise regarding Fields’ employment on Saturday’s agenda
“It’s violating board coverage. Not applicable,” Kenoyer mentioned.
Lee, elected to the board final yr, mentioned Fields “is an effective man” who she has identified since her son was enrolled at Judson.
Then, with tears in her eyes and after almost two hours of public feedback, she moved to alleviate the superintendent of his duties and place him on administrative go away pending “investigation of reported considerations” with pay.
Lee later withdrew her movement after the board went into closed session twice to talk with authorized counsel over the cellphone.
It’s unclear which reported considerations Lee was referring to and Macias, a supporter of Fields, mentioned he didn’t know what the live shows have been about both.
Trustee Stanford additionally mentioned the board had no thought what the investigation was about.
“I’m clueless what that is about, and I shouldn’t be,” Stanford mentioned.
“I’ve no freaking clue what Ms. Lee is speaking about,” Kenoyer added.
Throughout the assembly, Ryan publicly accused board members of mendacity about not understanding what Lee’s considerations have been about.
Tense funds discussions
Judson ISD is at the moment dealing with a $37 million funds deficit — the subject of a number of tense discussions in current months.
Final Could, the board obtained very shut in approving a budgetary plan that might’ve saved Judson hundreds of thousands via campus consolidations and employees reductions.
Getting neighborhood pushback and feeling like suggestions to shut colleges was too near the tip of the varsity yr, the board voted in opposition to closures and delayed taking budgetary motion.
Later, Judson went after a voter accredited tax fee election in November that might’ve unlocked hundreds of thousands of {dollars} Judson deliberate to make use of on the deficit, improve salaries and assist instructor packages.
Taxpayers overwhelmingly mentioned no, with 60% of 14,701 voters opposing the proposition.
Funds discussions have grown particularly tense within the months after, resulting in outright spats and pointed Fb posts from board members.
The most recent funds discussions occurred in December, when the district administration deliberate to current a monetary solvency plan with proposals for consolidations and rightsizing of employees.
However Ryan, together with Poteet, Lee and Jones voted to desk the merchandise, citing considerations over “last-minute” adjustments to plans beforehand shared with the board.
Fields mentioned Ryan’s considerations have been “disingenuous,” since Ryan has typically requested the administration to write down and rewrite monetary plans to handle the funds deficit.
The board has additionally rejected Discipline’s efforts to rent a chief monetary officer. Now, Judson has gone with out a CFO since October, when Tony Kingman stop after working on the district for less than two months. Earlier than that, Larry Guerra held the place for simply over a yr earlier than resigning in July.
Over the previous three years, Judson has gone via 4 CFOs.
Final yr, the board accredited hiring an out of doors monetary marketing consultant, spending hundreds of {dollars} — an effort spearheaded by Ryan.
What comes subsequent
Karl Hanner is Fields’ private lawyer. In an interview with the Report, Hanner mentioned Fields formally employed him when Saturday’s agenda assembly was first posted, however has identified the superintendent for years.
Hanner mentioned the board can’t cancel Fields’ contract on their very own, solely allowed to put him on go away pending investigation. If the board had voted to put him on go away, Hanner mentioned Fields would’ve enchantment.
“There’s nothing. There’s no documentation to assist them doing this,” Hanner mentioned.
After the assembly ended Fields was crowded by members of the neighborhood who have been there to assist him.
He declined to talk with media however addressed the room.
“I don’t know what it’s about, however thanks a lot on your assist,” he mentioned.
