WESLACO — Superintendent Priscilla Canales narrowly escaped being suspended pending the results of an ongoing forensic audit Thursday evening after the Weslaco Independent School District Board of Trustees voted 4-3 against doing so.
After an hour in executive session Board President Armando Cuellar broke a tie vote between two three-member factions of incumbents and board newcomers in favor of the old guard — and against the suspension.
That doesn’t mean Canales is out of the woods yet.
“Obviously there are concerns. There are issues,” Cuellar said. “And that’s why we invested in an audit group to come in and address these concerns, and they’ve been given quite a few and I don’t think it’s gonna stop yet.
“They will take care of any concerns that are brought to their attention,” he continued. “And with that being said, I’m gonna put my faith in that audit and not lose focus of a bigger picture here, and that is WISD. I don’t know that a change right now, that we’re looking at, is going to significantly change anything that the audit is gonna reveal.”
It’s still not clear precisely what wrongdoing trustees expect that forensic audit to reveal.
The slate of new trustees called for it to be conducted earlier this year, directing it to investigate financial statements for local, state and federal dollars, as well as construction expenditures, searching for conflicts of interest and background searches on vendors.
It will likely last through April or May.
“I also took a personal oath that every single decision I make is going to be based off of facts,” Marcos De Los Santos, one of the newcomers, said Thursday.
De Los Santos was the most vocal trustee when the board discussed the scope of the forensic audit and has frequently described himself as pro-fiscal transparency and efficiency.
“When I see something or I evaluate something, that’s gonna dictate my decision, I have to actually see,” he said.
Days after the audit launched in February, Canales, 54, announced plans to retire at the end of the 2020-21 school year, characterizing the decision as a choice to focus on her personal life.
It’s still not clear what trustees expect the audit to uncover that would warrant Canales’ suspension. Board members contacted before Thursday’s meeting either said they weren’t aware of any reasons to suspend her, did not return phone calls or declined to answer, citing legal counsel.
Jaclyn Sustaita, one of the board newcomers, made the motion to suspend Canales on Thursday. She said that she didn’t see the sense in drawing out the matter any longer.
Despite voting in favor of the suspension, Sustaita praised the superintendent before the vote and hinted at the problem at the district being something she sees Canales as indirectly responsible for.
“Like I told her in closed session, I think she’s a caring, genuine individual,” she said. “I just think sometimes leaders — everything falls back on a leader, and unfortunately this is a position she’s been placed in by her — you know, she’s the leader of the ship, so it’s nothing personal at all. She’s a great, intelligent woman.”
Incumbents on the board have voiced their support for Canales. Both Isidoro Nieto and Andrew Gonzalez said they would vote against a suspension before Thursday’s meeting, although Nieto originally made a motion to table the suspension before rescinding that motion and voting against the suspension.
Prior to Thursday’s vote, both of them said they weren’t aware of anything that justified a suspension, despite closed session deliberations addressing administrative or personnel issues concerning Canales on Feb. 26.
Incumbent Trustee Jaimie Rodriguez also voiced his support for the superintendent Thursday and expressed concern over losing her as a leader.
“I believe Dr. Canales has been doing a great job leading our district,” he said. “And, like I said before, I know we’re not perfect. There’s a lot of room for improvement. But I think at the current time, present time, our students need to be our focus and I hope that after tonight we can get back on track and focus on our students and our principals and all our WISD employees.”
Based on the trustees’ activity over the last four months, Board President Cuellar will likely play a key role in any future action taken on Canales and the audit.
Prior to the call for the audit, Canales’ retirement announcement and the effort to suspend her, the faction of newcomer trustees spearheaded a drive to oust the district’s general counsel that was resisted by the incumbents.
Cuellar sided with them on that matter.
