By Becky Brewster
Culberson County-Allamoore ISD (CCAISD) Board of Trustees met in special session on September 18. The purpose of the special meeting was to hear oral arguments and consider a grievance filed by former CCAISD employee Julie Uranga. The Board initially planned to convene in Executive Session, but upon an objection by Lisa Soto, attorney for Uranga, agreed to make the deliberations public.
Board president Letty Hernandez reviewed the protocol for the hearing and each side was given 10 minutes to present their arguments. Rosemary Marin, Attorney for CCAISD reviewed the circumstances leading to the discrimination and retaliation complaint filed by Uranga. She noted that the Board amended its policies regarding an exception to Chapter 21 contracts which then resulted in the Board finding its contract with Uranga void. Uranga was then terminated on August 14, 2017. Soto argued that Uranga’s Masters degree was sufficient under “permissive discretion” of the district when the initial employment contract was executed and was therefore, not voidable.
After hearing the presentations and being provided with backup documentation for support to the arguments, the Board retired into executive session to deliberate on the issue. Upon returning to open session, the Board voted that the grievance be denied, that the decision to terminate Uranga be upheld, and all relief sought in the grievance be denied.
