Teachers and staff press Ventura Unified for healthcare transparency and safety fixes; kitchen workers cite 100–115°F heat

Multiple union leaders and classified staff used public comment to press Ventura Unified for clearer information and workplace fixes.

Cara Miller, vice president of the VUA and a Citrus Glenn teacher, said open enrollment forces educators to choose health plans without knowing the district’s contribution or how plans will affect paychecks: "We are being asked to make a binding decision to select a plan blindly without the facts," she said. Certificated union president Sarah Mclofflin echoed that concern, calling the lack of contribution and HSA detail a source of stress for employees.

Kitchen staff raised separate but related workplace concerns. Lori Walker, a Foothill Technology secondary manager who oversees her school’s kitchen, said only two of the district’s 25 kitchens have air conditioning; during a recent heat wave some back‑of‑house spaces reached "115 degrees," she said, and employees were at risk of heat exhaustion. "A small school can make up to 300 meals a day. Our larger schools are making 1,400 meals a day," Walker said. Trustees and staff acknowledged the scale and said full kitchen HVAC upgrades would be expensive, and staff promised to produce cost estimates and alternatives for trustees.

Other public commenters described understaffed school offices (one speaker said a site’s office staff fell from 11 to six), calling the cuts a safety issue that can leave students without needed services. Facilities employees also criticized staffing experiments such as split shifts for reducing teamwork and accountability.

Trustees asked staff to return with clearer numbers on the district’s contribution to employee health plans and to outline the costs and constraints of kitchen HVAC options. The district said it will follow up with the requested budget details and operational impacts.