Community and staff accuse board of repeated, opaque superintendent evaluations; board chair says item is an agreed check‑in

A prominent theme of the evening’s public comment period was community defense of Superintendent Dr. Terry Walker and criticism of what several speakers described as repeated, unexplained superintendent evaluation items on board agendas.

Christine Turner opened the block of public comment by asking why the superintendent’s evaluation keeps appearing on the agenda and suggesting the pattern looks like “targeted harassment,” naming a subset of board members she said repeatedly raise the issue. Turner asked that if there are performance concerns, the board state them publicly and provide evidence.

Multiple district staff, teachers, union representatives and community members echoed that view. Jennifer Raider, speaking on behalf of teachers, urged unity, fair compensation and consistent contract enforcement, while other speakers described the item as lacking transparency and asked the board to focus on students and staffing needs. Brian Hahn, vice president of the Adelanto District Teachers Association, led a public‑testimony refrain thanking Dr. Walker repeatedly and urging board support.

Several speakers directly tied the criticism to concerns about treatment of Dr. Walker as a Black woman in leadership; others described the superintendent’s responsiveness to families and staff and cited specific programs and school successes.

President So to responded that the evaluation item on the agenda that evening was an informal check‑in the board had agreed to conduct and clarified that the intent was not harassment; Trustee LaFrenche interjected that she had not agreed to the inclusion, and the exchange underscored board disagreement over procedure and transparency.

No formal personnel action was reported in open session; the board later reported closed‑session personnel and student discipline actions separately.