Coachella Valley Unified board approves Resolution 2025-56 authorizing certificated staff reductions as teachers and paraeducators urge fairness

The Coachella Valley Unified School District governing board approved Resolution No. 2025-56 authorizing a reduction in force for certain certificated employees during a special meeting; the action drew emotional public comments from displaced staff and colleagues about the effect on students and staff morale.

The resolution, presented by Dr. Monica Makowitz, was moved and seconded and approved by the board after a brief roll call vote; the board announced the motion passed. The resolution pertains to reductions affecting certificated employees; the transcript records the board approving the proposed decision on “Resolution number 2025-56 for the reduction in force for certain certificated employees.”

The vote came after several members of the district workforce spoke during the meeting’s public-comment period for closed-session items. Margaret Quigley, who identified herself as an elementary educator, said she had been included in the reductions and described the move as “not just a shift in placement. It's a shift in identity, and it hurts.” Quigley told the board she has spent 10 years as an elementary teacher and that being moved to a middle-school assignment would feel like losing part of herself.

Jose Galvez Acuna, a behavioral support paraeducator who said he has worked for the district four years, told trustees that his position and “the positions of 7 of my colleagues were eliminated” as part of recent cuts. He questioned why contracted staff in district wellness centers were retained while district employees were cut, asking, “If 2 people are doing the same essential work for the same students, shouldn't the employee directly hired, trained, and evaluated by the district be afforded some measure of protection?”

Another speaker, identified in the record as Damon Bridal and who described himself as a teacher at Seabee High School, thanked the board for the opportunity to serve and spoke about his experience teaching in the district.

Board discussion of the resolution on the public record was brief; Dr. Monica Makowitz introduced the proposed decision and the board moved to a vote. The board did not provide a numeric roll-call tally in the public announcement of the motion for this item in the transcript excerpt provided; the meeting record states only that the motion passed.

Speakers and commenters framed their remarks around two recurring concerns: the personal and professional toll on certificated staff being reassigned or released, and perceived inequities between district employees and workers hired under outside contracts. Commenters repeatedly emphasized potential downstream effects on students, including loss of continuity and relationships.

No implementation details, appeals processes, or specific employee names implicated beyond those who spoke were provided in the portions of the transcript available. The board announced other items during the same meeting and proceeded with its agenda after approving the resolution.