FUEL Statement on the Interim Superintendent and Permanent Superintendent

Dear FUEL Community,

FUEL Statement on the Installation of LBUSD Interim Superintendent and Permanent Superintendent

Tonight, the LBUSD Board majority made two of the most consequential decisions a school board can make, and they did it behind closed doors.

In closed session, the board voted to appoint Manoj Roychowdhury as interim superintendent. Then, in a 3-2 vote, they approved a contract naming Don Austin as the next superintendent of LBUSD, effective July 1.

No public notice. No community input. No opportunity for the families, staff, and residents of this district to weigh in on the single most important hiring decision a school board makes.

Here is what makes this worse.

The closed session ended around 5:50 PM. The next portion of the meeting began around 6:00 PM. At 6:29 PM, a ParentSquare message went out to the entire district community from the Board President.

That message was not a brief notice. It was a fully produced press release, complete with prepared quotes from Board President Sheri Morgan, prepared quotes from Dr. Austin himself, multiple paragraphs of background, and a media contact line listing Morgan's direct phone number and email address.

That press release was not written in 39 minutes. It was not written after the meeting. It was written before it.

What that timeline tells us is this: while the community was left completely in the dark, Board President Morgan was coordinating outside of closed session with the incoming superintendent to craft communications around a predetermined outcome. The vote was a formality. The decision had already been made.

We want to be clear about something. This is not a commentary on Don Austin's qualifications. His record speaks for itself and we wish him well. This is about how this decision was made, and what it reveals about how this board majority continues to operate.

Transparency is not optional. Stakeholder voice is not a courtesy. And a board that hides predetermined outcomes behind closed session procedures is not serving this community. It is controlling it.

FUEL will continue to document this pattern. We will continue to show up. And we will keep working toward a board that governs the way this community deserves.

November is coming. We hope to see many of you at the Farmers Market this Saturday.

With Resolve, FUEL Board