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Citing a need for new leadership for the Mountain View Whisman School District, Superintendent Craig Goldman will step down at the end of December. District officials are now looking for an interim superintendent to replace him.
In a special meeting on Nov. 13, the school board met in closed session and unanimously approved Goldman’s resignation, effective Dec. 31, along with an agreement to pay him an additional 12 months’ salary.
The resignation agreement includes a lump sum payment equivalent to 12 months’ salary by no later than the end of January, as well as medical benefits for one year unless he’s “employed otherwise” during the year, according to board president Bill Lambert. The lump sum payment, according to Goldman’s 2014-15 annual salary, will be $227,027.
Goldman said there is a growing disparity in the “priorities and the methodologies” between him and the board, and that the district has since lost most of the trustees that hired him.
Only two of the five board members who selected him to replace former superintendent Maurice Ghysels in 2010 are still on the board — Ellen Wheeler and Phil Palmer; Palmer appears to have lost his re-election bid to district parent Greg Coladonato.
“There is a difference in approaches to issues that has to be aligned between district administration and the board,” Goldman said.
He said he was the one who proposed resigning to the board, viewing the move as an “obligation” to improve the way the board and district staff work together on issues.
“Nobody was happy about it, but agreed it was in the best interest of the district,” he said.
Goldman said he hasn’t decided what to do after his resignation. He said he probably will continue in the education field, likely as an administrator, but that he hasn’t identified for himself what that will be.
At the meeting, the board also established an ad hoc committee to start the process for choosing the next superintendent.
“It was a shock and a disappointment,” Wheeler said.
Lambert said he got the opportunity to get to know Goldman, and understands his decision to move on. He said Goldman, even in his resignation, was thinking about the district, and chose to resign with the “best timing” to replace him at the end of the year.
It was revealed at the meeting that board members had been talking about Goldman’s resignation for about a month in closed session meetings.
Though the meeting was short and took place mostly in closed session, a few people came out to thank Goldman for his 16 years of working for the district, and bid him good luck.
Former board member Fiona Walter said losing Goldman represents a “tragic loss” for the district, and that it was losing a student advocate, a person of integrity and an amazing educator.
As a Huff and Graham parent, Walter said she remembers meeting Goldman for the first time in August 2002. “He was on the shouting-end of a bullhorn at Huff Elementary School telling me to put my dog back on the leash,” she said. “Thus began 12 years of friendship, collaboration, trust and respect.”
During Goldman’s first year as the district’s chief business officer, Walter said, he succeeded in getting bus passes for all bus-riding students in the district “for the first time ever,” and saved the district the equivalent of his entire salary.
She said that Goldman was a visionary who “dreamed big” on how to improve all nine of the district’s school sites.
“The facilities plan is not called a master plan – it’s called the student facilities improvement plan because it is for the students,” Walter said. “Craig’s input to this plan was invaluable.”
Walter, along with Wheeler and Palmer, chose Goldman as superintendent after Ghysels stepped down. As superintendent, Walter said, he shepherded the Measure G school bond and went out of his way to be publicly visible in the community and answer questions.
“Craig is one of those people who leave a lasting, positive impact on your life,” Walter said.
Parent Laura Blakely said she has felt privileged to work with Goldman when she worked on the Measure C parcel tax campaign, the Share Shoreline team and the Mountain View Education Foundation.
Blakely said she was both heartbroken and angry that the school board members could not work collaboratively to “retain” Goldman as their superintendent, and insisted that trustees set aside their differences to foster a better relationship with their next superintendent.
“As trustees of the Mountain View Whisman School District, you owe every resident of our community and student in our schools a fiduciary duty to act in their best interests,” Blakely said. “Not in the interest of your own personal agenda, nor of your political future, nor the limelight you may garner in the local media.”
The board has been criticized for the dysfunctional and, at times, hostile relations between board member Steven Nelson and district staff, as well as his fellow trustees, leading the board to censure Nelson late last year. Tensions between Nelson and Goldman ran particularly high at times.
The district also recently emerged from a polarizing battle with its teachers union over salaries, and Goldman was criticized for his role in contract negotiations that led to widespread support for teachers from parents and students who packed district meetings this fall.
A district press release about the resignation listed Goldman’s accomplishments as superintendent: API scores for the district increased from 826 to 863 during his tenure, including larger increases for socioeconomically disadvantaged students; three schools were recognized as distinguished schools; a 10-year agreement to receive Shoreline Community funds was passed; and $3 million in grant money from Google was received to improve access to technology and improve mathematics achievement.
Although Goldman will resign in less than two months, he said there’s still work to be done. Prior to his leaving the district, the board still needs to decide whether or not to turn Castro Elementary School into two schools, splitting the school’s two academic programs.
As a parent of 3 children in the MVWSD for the past 10 years I have found Craig Goldman to be dismissive, grandiose, unable to compromise and unwilling to collaborate in the best interest of our children. To quote him when our child couldn’t read in third grade, “We offer a 3rd grade education mandated by the State of California. We are doing our job.”
GOOD RIDDANCE.
I agree. He’s been arrogant & dismissive in my dealing with him. I’m glad he’s leaving.
Goldman disrespected parents and teachers and his autocratic leadership style will not be missed. Just check out the Mercury News article based on his own leak of a cartoon he felt was offensive. See http://blogs.mercurynews.com/internal-affairs/2014/10/02/respond-bullies/
Someone posted on Facebook a cartoon depicting him jumping in anger, shouting “How dare you speak out! I am the superintendent!” and wearing a bicorne – a two-cornered naval hat associated with Napoleon. He argued that he was being ridiculed based on his height, rather than his dictatorial tendencies.
To which I would say, c’mon, Goldman, put on your big-boy pants (and don’t go running to air our dirty laundry in public)! Even the Merc quipped:
“We wonder if this is how Mt. View-Whisman teaches students to deal with online ridicule.”
You would think with all of the controversy surrounding his behavior the Voice would have included at least one critical voice in their coverage!
I recall when the Santa Clara County Grand Jury criticized the very generous salaries of Superintendents and made specific recommendations to change. After I posted a comment about how wise it would be to follow some of their recommendations and moderate the incredible “compensation”, Daniel Debolt of this publication replied that Grand Jury Reports are “a dime a dozen”, but getting a really good candidate for leader was well worth the several hundred thousand $. Probably any of t he experienced Principals in this district would have been a better choice, and at significantly less money. Somebody doesn’t work out and gets a full year’s farewell gift?
I agree with the above. Goldman has an autocratic leadership style that has fostered distrust and resentment. That was unfortunate for the district.
Mr. Goldman was a wonderful superintendent. @James Hall, Mr Goldman was the principal for Huff school when it opened for nine years I believe. Even then he had his law degree and I believe his MBA along with his teaching credentials. He moved up the ranks bringing his passion and love to provide better education to the children of Mountain View. Mr. Goldman will be missed by many.
If Goldman is resigning and not being fired, why does the district have to pay him $227,027.
Craig Goldman could do one last service: Write an open letter to his successor passing-on candid advice on how to lead MVWSD. It doesn’t look easy.
We need to consider the possibility that the board asked him to leave now. The timing follows the timing of the election which makes such a conclusion seem rather obvious. The board wins from scapegoating the superintendent. And the board we have now definitely flaps in the wind and takes the cake for scapegoating. They probably offered him the resignation package for mid-year. He could easily have stayed on until June and conducted his own job search on the side. That would have been acceptable. Instead we, the taxpayers, get stuck with a huge bill. Way to go board. If I were Mr. Goldman I would call in sick or take my vacation days beginning on Monday.
The article said,”He said he was the one who proposed resigning to the board”. That sounds like he resigned on his own accord. Therefore, I’d also like to know how someone can quit and still a year’s salary? Board members obviously read these comments. Can someone clarify this for us in the name of transparency?
Here is how you know that Goldman is not a leader: He has no followers.
Could the Voice please look into the legality of providing this severance package? Did he resign or did they ask him to resign? Even if they asked him to resign, the board is not obligated to provide a severance package, as would be the case in trying to get rid of a tenured teacher. It’s almost certain that Goldman asked for the severance package, just as he negotiated his 5% raise.
Even though his last day of employment is December 2014, the lump sum will be paid in January 2015 so as not to affect his taxes. Plus medical care for a year? Plus a pension? This $227,000 is about equivalent to a $1000 bonus per teacher. What if $227,000 were spent on the students instead of a golden parachute for an already highly-paid administrator.
Did they want him to leave, or did he want to leave? We’ll never know, it’s a secret. It’s an opaque system. Decisions are made in “closed session” and the board “can’t comment on personnel matters.”
There IS no transparency at MVWSD.
“There IS no transparency at MVWSD.” Boy, that stings. There are personel issues involved that are covered by state Ed Code, and the Contracts that we (MVWSD Board) signed with Mr. Goldman last year and signed at the meeting reported. The original contract is a Publc Document, and the new Contract is a Public Document.
Other than ‘sensationalist’ headline (Andrea!), my opinion is that the reporter, and the public release from the District (administration) on the MVWSD website represent what can be disclosed, in the most transparent manner possible Under-These-Circumstances.
Mr. Goldman did have a very large following as a leader! This seems to be the Goldman detractor posting site, while the other article, has much more Goldman supporter postings. ‘The truth is …’ my world view …’complex.’
Steven Nelson is a Trustee of the MVWSD and his comments are restricted by Contract, and a regard for the delacacies of Ed Code. These comments are, as always, his own.
@Elaine: I don”t believe the Board asked him to leave. He resigned. Craig is highly qualified for just about any job in the Education sector and will be easily picked up by a district that recognizes what an asset he is. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if a number of districts have not already contacted him once his resignation was announced. He is highly, highly respected in the local education community.
Unfortunately, one of the trustees has created a hostile working environment which no professional is going to tolerate. The losers here are the community and students – it is going to be extremely difficult for the district to attract highly qualified candidates for the superintendent position as long as this person is allowed to continue on the Board. The Board has already censured him – it is now time for the community to step up and recall him.
Anyone know why tonight’s board meeting isn’t being broadcast. I would like to see it!
I’ve only known Craig Goldman for 3 years as Superintendent. I’ve liked his style. You always knew what he was thinking. His ideas and comments always seemed reasonable to me.
I for one am sorry to see him go on bad terms. I think the last fight with the teachers was the last straw. I don’t blame him. The behavior of the teachers was infantile.
He’s being paid to leave. $212 thousand dollars to resign. Good for him, bad for us.
It is with real sadness that I read the news that Craig Goldman is leaving the MVWSD. He was principal at Huff when my son started school in 2004. I remember him doing gymnastic flips and running awesome Halloween parades. When my son was in second grade, I asked him what he liked about school he told me, “I love my principal.” Given that most principals are seen by kids as mean disciplinarians, I thought this was quite a compliment. As superintendent, Craig worked with our family on a sensitive school-related issue, and I was reminded again of what an effective child advocate he was. People are complaining about his “style,” when they should focus on what he has done for the children of this district. I am so disappointed that Craig’s resignation could in any way be viewed as a good solution to the problems in the MVWSD.