EPISD board to take up superintendent's status — again

Yahoo

31-05-2025

EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — After a five-hour marathon meeting to discuss the employment status of Superintendent Diana Sayavedra, the El Paso Independent School District Board of Trustees is scheduled to take up the topic again in a special meeting on Tuesday, June 3.
The meeting will be held at 4 p.m. Tuesday at the EPISD Administration Building, 1014 N. Stanton St.
The agenda for the meeting said they will consult with legal counsel concerning issues relating to the superintendent's duties, responsibilities and employment status.
Any action will be taken in public session either at this meeting or at a future meeting, the agenda said.
Possible actions listed included: discussion and action to approve a voluntary separation agreement with the superintendent; discussion and action on the superintendent's duties, responsibilities and employment status; and discussion and action to appoint an interim superintendent.
It is not clear if there are enough votes to end Sayavedra's tenure as superintendent.
El Paso ISD board takes no action on superintendent after marathon meeting
During an emotionally charged meeting on May 27, the board discussed Sayavedra's employment status and possible future with the district for five hours, before adjourning and not taking action shortly after 10:30 p.m.
Speaker after speaker defended Sayavedra, who has led the district since January 2022 and received a five-year contract extension last year.
Some also warned that such a move would destabilize the district and force it to spend money on a buyout.
The district is estimating that it is facing a $17 million shortfall for the 2025-26 school year.
After hearing public comment, the board went into executive session for about two hours, came back out and heard more public comment.
Briefly, the board discussed the superintendent in public session and that's when sparks flew among the board.
Trustee Daniel Call said that new Board President Leah Hanany was leading the effort to oust Sayavedra 'not because of poor performance or scandal, but because she wouldn't bend the knee' to Hanany.
Call also said that during the board's last search for a superintendent, Hanany advocated for a candidate who was a 'crony' and that is what she was seeking to do again, if she was successful in ousting Sayavedra.
Hanany made a brief statement before adjourning the meeting without the board taking any action.
Hanany accused Call of lying and violating a non-disclosure agreement from the superintendent search. She said she would not violate that same agreement and said that made defending herself impossible.
Also, during the past week, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) confirmed that a complaint had been filed against Hanany.
TEA: Complaint filed against EPISD board president
'TEA can confirm that a complaint has been filed and is currently under review. As is the case for all complaints submitted to the agency, the complaint is reviewed to determine what next steps, if any, are necessary,' reads part of TEA's statement.
All this comes after the shape of the EPISD board was drastically altered after the May 3 school board election.
Two incumbents — Israel Irrobali and Isabel Hernandez — were defeated for re-election. Newcomers Mindy Sutton and Robert Osterland were elected in their place.
Also, Hanany and fellow incumbent Jack Loveridge were elected to new terms. Loveridge, who had been appointed to his seat after Josh Acevedo was elected to the City Council, was elected to a term in his own right.
When the new board met for the first time, Hanany was elected the new board president and Loveridge as vice president.
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