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Parents describe bullying and a student found with a gun; board approves comprehensive school safety plans
Summary
Multiple parents told the board about repeated bullying incidents and a student who brought a pellet gun to campus; trustees acknowledged concerns and approved the district’s 2025–26 comprehensive school safety plans aiming to strengthen prevention and response.
Several parents and community advocates used public comment on Nov. 20 to describe ongoing bullying at district schools and to press the Fairfield-Suisun Unified School District governing board for greater protection and accountability.
Dr. April Harris, who identified herself as a former FSUSD employee, told trustees she had filed a uniform complaint against a principal and alleged retaliation and nonpayment tied to that complaint. “I have experienced retaliation and nonpayment equivalent to about a month worth of overtime spent ensuring student success and systemic legal compliance for children with IEPs enrolled in FSUSD,” she said.
Parent Cassandra Ruiz recounted repeated incidents in which her 8-year-old daughter was bullied, described an episode in which a boy slapped another child and later allegedly brought a pellet gun to school, and said she was not notified by school staff: “I was never notified by the school,” Ruiz said. She described withdrawing her children and seeking alternative placements.
Advocate Allegra Taylor, CEO of Village Advocates and representing the family, told the board their review of district bullying policy showed required steps were not followed. “When a parent brings this to the attention of the administration and it’s not addressed, we come to the district board and put it on the record,” Taylor said.
Trustees responded to public concern and then considered item 11a — the district’s 2025–26 comprehensive school safety plans with disaster response manual. Trustee comments praised the months of work to prepare the plans and noted the importance of the plans in light of public testimony about student safety. The board moved, seconded, and approved the safety plans without additional public testimony.
The board’s approval adopts updated site-level safety procedures and a district disaster response manual; staff said these were months in development and intended to increase consistency across schools.
