MADERA – Usually when you hear of incidents in public schools involving alcohol it is involving an under-aged student that makes a stupid choice. Madera Police are currently investigating an incident at Madera Unified’s Parkwood Elementary School in which the ‘stupid choices’ were made by the administrators who had been put in charge of the students.

Four administrators from three local elementary schools are now looking for jobs and one administrator is being reassigned back to the classroom following a World Cup Soccer party held on Parkwood Elementary School’s campus where alcohol flowed freely between administrators from Parkwood, Sierra Vista and Caesar Chavez Elementary schools. Those are the facts of the case; the mystery is why five Madera Unified administrators would risk their careers?

The incident was uncovered when Caesar Chavez Vice-Principal Ismael Munoz reported to his campus for a previously scheduled job evaluation with alcohol on his breath. He was questioned about it by the Principal of Chavez Stephanie McPherson, who took appropriate measures in contacting the district office and law enforcement.

Munoz ‘spilled the beans’ on the other administrators involved and an emergency closed session meeting of the Madera Unified Board of Trustees was held on June 21^st at 5:45pm for a Public Employee Discipline/Dismissal/Release/Reassignment/Resignation hearing. By the end of the meeting Madera Unified received the resignations of Parkwood and Sierra Vista Elementary Principal’s Omar Jeronimo and Kathleen Nekumanesh as well as Vice-Principal’s from Sierra Vista and Chavez Elementary Saul Gallegos and Munoz.

Parkwood Elementary Vice-Principal Suzanne Grady was also involved in the incident but because of her faith did not consume any alcohol, but also did not report the incident to the district. According to our source at the school district, for her complacency she is being reassigned to the classroom. Her next assignment for Madera Unified may possibly be to fill a currently vacant sixth grade teaching position at Pershing Elementary School.

Madera Police Detective Sergeant Mark Trukki said officers responded to Caesar Chavez Elementary School on June 21^st in regards to a school employee possessing alcohol on campus. The detective said the investigation is ongoing and a report would be forwarded over to the Madera County District Attorney to determine if charges would be filed.

BVN has received several calls from teachers with the district questioning why these elementary administrators would risk their careers over watching a soccer match with alcohol on campus, when the prudent thing would have been to simply move the event to a local bar. Each of these administrator’s schools are relatively close to the Vineyard Restaurant, a very popular place for administrators from the city, county and school district.

None of the administrators involved would return our calls for comment. Madera Unified Superintendent Todd Lile said he was unable to comment on the incident because it was a personnel and closed session matter. So we may never know what was going through these now unemployed administrators heads.

Following her resignation Nekumanesh’s photo was removed from the Sierra Vista School website. The photo we are using is from her Facebook page.

Omar Jeronimo	Kathleen Nekumanesh	Ismael Munoz	Saul Gallegos	Suzanne Grady
Parkwood Principal	Sierra Vista Pricipal	Chavez Vice Principal	Sierra Vista Vice Principal	Parkwood Vice Principal
RESIGNED	RESIGNED	RESIGNED	RESIGNED	REASSIGNEED