Greater Orange News Service

Mt San Jacinto Trustees vote not to renew OUSD Trustee John Ortega’s Police Chief contract

In a February 23rd story, the Orange County Register is reporting that Mt. San Jacinto Board of Trustees decided at their February 9, 2012 meeting not to renew Orange Unified School Board Trustee John Ortega’s $115,000 contract as Police Chief of the college’s police force. The paper is also reporting that Ortega will remain on leave “pending further board action”. The story just quotes the college spokes person as saying it is a personnel matter.

OC REGISTER story

On February 4, Orange Net News reported the story that the Liberal OC Blog had broke in Orange County about Ortega being placed on administrative leave after a sex scandal involving Ortega and women on his staff.

ONN story

ORANGE Unified Schools INSIDE
a news service of Orange Net News /O/N/N/
Independent insight into OUSD

OUSD looks to maximize lease of Peralta site

At its February 16, 2012 regular Board Meeting the Orange Unified School Board will vote on a resolution to authorize requests for proposal for leasing the 19.5 acre Peralta School site at 2190 Canal Street in Orange. The current lease to the Peralta Golf Partners expires in 2015. Agenda Action Item 12 A explains that OUSD wishes seeks a ground lease for “maximizing an income stream to supplement its annual operating and capital project budget”.

Peralta Junior High School was closed due to declining enrolment in 1985. The site has been leased to the golf company since 1994. The resolutions’ Executive Summary states that the land, which was declared surplus, is zoned as single family residential, but that that zoning is inconsistent with the City of Orange 2010 General Plan.

Surridge agendized Legal Services vote
In an unprecedented move, OUSD Board President Tim Surridge has agendized Action Item 12 E for the OUSD Board to consider and vote to direct staff to procure legal services from the legal firm of Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Rudd and Romo for services related to surplus properties. The Fiscal Impact is list as up to $50,000.

Items to authorize legal services have traditionally been on the Consent Agenda, and only discussed if an individual board member pulls the item for discussion. In the past, OUSD legal fees have been controversial. Surridge’s move to place the item on the Action Agenda for Board consideration is an unprecedented move by an OUSD Board President.

Rocking Horse Ridge II files to leave OUSD and join Tustin Unified
Located between Orange Park Acres, Cowen Heights and North Tustin, the hilltop community of Rocking Horse Ridge II has filed a petition to transfer its neighborhood from Orange Unified to Tustin Unified.

The obscure Orange County Committee on School District Organization will hold two hearings on the change on March 14th, 2012, one in Orange Unified at 6:00 pm, and a second meeting in Tustin Unified at 8:00 pm.

The OUSD Administration will make an informational presentation to the OUSD Board at the February 16, 2012 meeting (Agenda item 13C).
For more information on Rocking Horse Ridge CLICK ON:
RHR

OTHER ITEMS:
Agenda Item 9 D: Proclamation of March 5-9 as Week of the School Administrator.
Agenda Item 13 B: OUSD and Stat of California Budget Update

Former Superintendent Godley’s Estamated Retirement Bonus
Running total (beginning 8/2008)
$50,640.00*

* The Godley Retirement Bonus presented here is an estimate of the amount in “bonus retirement” accrued since the Superintendent’s retirement on 6/30/08 using a 6% lifetime formula calculated here at $1210 a month since 8/08. The actual retirement plan the former OUSD Superintendent opted to take is not public information and the figures presented are only as an estimate of the taxpayer costs after the OUSD trustees voted against an amendment to exclude Godley from the retirement program. The on-going estimated figure is presented as a reminder to the community of the high cost in educational tax dollars the OUSD Board vote to allow the former Superintendent to participate in the 6% retirement incentive cost the OUSD education community in tax dollars. Godley retired from OUSD on June 30, 2008 after he worked for the school district for a little over five years.

NEXT BOARD MEETING February 16, 2012
Next OUSD Board Meeting Thursday February 16, 2012 -OUSD BOARD ROOM
CLOSED SESSION- 6:00 pm
OUSD Regular Session: 7:00 pm
For AGENDA-CLICK ON: OUSD

For more information call the OUSD Superintendent’s office at 714-628-4040
For budgeting questions call Business Services at 714-628-4015

ORANGE Unified Schools INSIDE
is an independent news service of /O/N/N/
“Independent Local Insight”
WATCH FOR Orange Net News newest investigative series:

Orange Unified’s Grade Inflation Out of the Box or Out of Control?

Villa Park Councilman and Foothills Sentry columnist
dies at the age of 79. The Councilman's unexpected death came one day after the celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Villa Park's incorporation.

SPECIAL REPORT
A news service of Orange Net News /O/N/N/

OUSD Trustee John Ortega in alleged sex scandal

The Liberal OC Blog is citing sources in Murrietta that Orange Unified School Board Trustee has been placed on Administrative Leave by the Mt. Jacinto College. Ortega, a former Orange Count Sherriff Deputy, left that department and served as a police captain for the Montebello Unified School District Police Department. In March of last year, he took the position of Police Chief for the Mt San Jacinto College Police Department.

According to the Liberal OC posting, the Mt Jacinto College administration is citing the issue as a personnel matter. The blog also cites the college campus rumors and campus sources that the paid leave and replacement of Ortega was because he is allegedly accused of having sexual relations with more than one member of his staff.

Santa Ana blogger Art Pedroza reported in November of 2011 that Ortega was lining up to challenge Congresswomen Loretta Sanchez. Ortega was elected to the OUSD Board in 2001 as part of the Citizen’s Board in the Orange Recall. He has never faced a challenger in his Trustee area – Trustee Area #2. His current term is up in November of this year.

Ortega has gone through a metamorphosis on the Board. While an Orange County Sheriff, his missed meetings caused tension on the Board as some fellow Trustees opposed his being granted pay for those missed meetings. Ortega also had some now famous run-ins with the eccentric Steve Rocco. In one he hovered over Rocco in a Board meeting after Rocco brought up the death of Ortega’s brother who was an OUSD employee. Currently, Ortega is now allied with the more conservative majority on the OUSD Board.

The Administrative leave was effective December 12, 2011, just days after the December OUSD Board meeting which Ortega attended. The story of Ortega’s leave hit the Murretta press on January 6, 2012. Ortega was absent from the Regular January 19, 2012 Orange School Board meeting. The Liberal OC broke the story on Friday Feb 3, 2011 in Orange County.

Murrieta Patch Story:PATCH
Posting from Liberal OC Blog:

Orange School Trustee John Ortega On Leave – Sex Scandal Allegations?
February 3, 2012
By Chris Prevatt

Orange School District Trustee John Ortega, who was named Chief of the Mt. San Jacinto College Police back in March of 2011, was placed on paid Administrative Leave by the school on December 15, 2011 for an undisclosed reason. Ortega has been rumored as a potential challenger to Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez in Orange County’s 46th Congressional District.

Murrietta Patch reports:
Ortega, who took the position as the top cop March 1, 2011, was on leave as of Dec. 15, MSJC Spokesperson Karin Marriott confirmed. She declined to comment on why, as it was a personnel matter, she said.
Ortega, 42, was listed as an Orange County Unified School District board member. Before he was hired at MSJC, he served as a police captain at Montebello Unified School District. Prior to that he served in the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.
MSJC, which serves students from much of western Riverside County, lost its former police chief, Kevin Segawa, in 2009. Segawa was charged and later pleaded guilty to eight felonies and two misdemeanors, mostly for directing the majority of towing profits to one company in exchange for gifts. He resigned shortly after his arrest.
Currently serving as interim chief for MSJC is Terry Meadows, a retired Riverside County Sheriff’s lieutenant, Marriott said. Meadows also served as interim when Segawa left.

We looked up campaign finance reports to see if Ortega has raised any money and thus far he has not filed any reports. Ortega is one of those right-wing darlings who touts family values. While the Mt. San Jacinto College administration isn’t talking, the rumor mill on campus is full of insight into the reason for Ortega’s sudden paid vacation.

We are hearing from anonymous campus sources that Ortega has been placed on leave for allegedly having sexual relations with more than one member of his staff. If this allegation sounds familiar, its probably because it is the same scenario that caused Santa Ana Councilman Carlos Bustamante to lose his job with the County of Orange Public Works we department last year.

LINK Liberal OC story: LIB OC

LINK to FINDLAW


SPECIAL REPORT
is a news service of Orange Net News /O/N/N/