Board accepts superintendent's recommendation to terminate teacher Alyssa Plaza after public comments

YUMA — The Yuma Union High School District governing board on Wednesday voted to accept Superintendent Tim Brianza’s recommendation to terminate Alyssa Plaza from employment, effective April 19, 2025, after a public-comment period that included students and parents speaking both in favor of and critical of district handling of student-safety concerns.

Superintendent Tim Brianza read the recommendation during the action portion of the meeting and a board member moved that the board accept the superintendent’s recommendation; another trustee seconded the motion. The board then voted by voice; the motion carried with all members saying "aye." The record does not show a roll-call tally by name.

Public comment before the vote included multiple speakers. Student speakers told the board that coach and teacher Alyssa Plaza had been a mentor and positive influence. "She wasn't just my coach. She was someone I trusted," said Maya Chavez, who identified herself as a student and described Plaza as a mentor who supported students during family and personal problems. Maria Lopez, another student speaker, described Plaza as a "mentor, a listener, and a protector" and asked the board to allow Plaza to continue in the role.

Other public commenters raised concerns about the administration's handling of separate bullying and conduct complaints, questioned investigative procedures and asked why some incidents were treated differently. One speaker said their son was questioned with a parent present and alleged repeated questioning that they described as confusing; the speaker said district administrators had dismissed an earlier bullying report as a joke and asked why district policy apparently was not applied consistently. That commenter asked why anonymous reports were handled with greater seriousness than other reports and criticized the language used in district documents when describing students.

The public commenters who asked that Plaza be reinstated framed her removal as damaging to students who relied on her as a mentor; speakers said several students felt they had lost a key support figure and that the team and campus had been negatively affected.

During the action, the board moved to accept the superintendent’s recommendation to terminate and authorized the superintendent to send required notices and take related actions. The motion passed by unanimous voice vote.

Ending — Trustees then proceeded to other business, including a call for an executive session later in the agenda and approval of a superintendent evaluation and performance pay. The termination motion includes the effective date of April 19, 2025, as read into the record.