The Civil Grand Jurors’ Association of California has granted its Best Grand Jury Report Award to the 2021-2022 San Joaquin County Civil Grand Jury for its report, “Stockton Unified School District: A Failing Grade in Public Trust.”
The Award was presented at CGJA’s Annual Conference and received by Bruce Frank, a member of that Grand Jury, along with other members of the San Joaquin Chapter of the CGJA.
The Grand Jury found multiple examples supporting the conclusion of poor business practices, inadequate care by the administration and board of the Stockton Unified School District (SUSD), and a lack of transparency to the public and board, potentially risking the district’s solvency.
The district appeared headed toward at least a $30 million deficit by fiscal year 2024-25. If SUSD continued to operate as is, the district deficit would likely escalate.
The nominated report must have been published within the preceding five years – allowing sufficient time for responses and implementation.
Highlights from the report include recommended actions for SUSD to take to avoid a possible state-ordered takeover by San Joaquin County Office of Education, including:
Align the Business Services Department (BSD) software to that used by San Joaquin County Office of Education;
Develop new policies to address specific issues in purchasing;
Reinstate the Grant Development Office;
Complete all California School Board Association (CSBA) Masters in Governance (MIG) trainings; and
Shift the salaries of essential department directors, teachers and support staff from one-time money to the appropriate general fund category to better reflect the status of solvency.
The complete report may be viewed at 2025 Best Grand Jury Report Award Winner.
The Grand Jury also uncovered board agenda items having minimal information and limited discussion by trustees, board of trustee conflicts of interest, board lack of preparedness for meetings and the inability of trustees to recall how they voted on major contracts. In addition, the grand jury had difficulty reviewing board actions as many board meeting minutes were not publicly posted and the district did not fully comply with a subpoena for minutes and recordings.
The Civil Grand Jurors’ Association of California is an all-volunteer, nonprofit organization 501(c)3 dedicated to promoting, preserving and supporting the civil watchdog function of California grand juries. Each year, CGJA provides training to grand juries to help them more effectively fulfill their state constitutional authority to, among other things, investigate and report on the conduct of local government as an arm of the Superior Court.
