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Douglas Unified board denies one-year leave request for behavior specialist Andrea Mora
Summary
The Douglas Unified School District governing board denied a one-year unpaid leave request for Andrea Mora, a behavior specialist whose position was funded by ESSER grants and later cut from the district budget; the superintendent said she may approve a shorter unpaid leave covering the employee's remaining contract weeks.
The Douglas Unified School District governing board voted to deny a requested one-year leave of absence for Andrea Mora, a district behavior specialist, at a special meeting.
District staff told the board that Mora initially submitted multiple letters that created confusion about whether she intended to resign or request leave. At 9:36 a.m. on the day of the meeting, the employee emailed the district to clarify she was not requesting a resignation but instead asked to be considered for a leave of absence, the district administrator said.
District officials said Mora was hired Oct. 16, 2021, under a provisional certificate issued by the Arizona Department of Education and was originally paid through ESSER grant funds. Later in 2024 district staff moved her into a behavior specialist position so she could remain employed after the provisional certificate lapsed. That position was one of three ESSER-funded posts the district moved into the maintenance-and-operations (M&O) budget; the three positions were not funded for the 2024–25 school year and were cut.
Staff also told the board that Mora previously used 12 weeks of family and medical leave last year and therefore did not qualify for additional FMLA leave in the relevant 12-month period. Legal counsel reviewed the FMLA calculation, staff said.
Under district leave policy (referred to in the meeting as GCCC/GCC), a superintendent may approve unpaid leave up to 12 weeks; leaves longer than 12 weeks require board approval. District staff explained that because Mora’s position was eliminated, approving a one-year leave would not guarantee a position on her return.
Board member Smith moved to deny the one-year leave request; Mister Lindeman seconded. The motion passed by roll call with recorded “yes” votes from Mister Smith, Mister Lindeman, Mister Ramos and Mister Bryant; Miss Salchow was excused.
After the vote, the district administrator said she would consider, at her discretion, approving an extended unpaid leave covering the roughly seven weeks remaining in Mora’s contract, and would confirm that decision in writing to the employee. The transcript does not record the employee’s statement at the meeting.
