The battle between two of our potential congressional candidates (the county judge and the president of the EPISD school board) is heating up.
We are beginning to see articles in the Times that shine light on problems relating to the EPISD superintendent and the board president. It would be nice if these articles were the result of the Times doing good investigative reporting about our local governments. Instead, it looks to us that the Times is trying to influence the upcoming election. Without regard to their motivation, we are thankful for their coverage.
The latest article dealt with travel expenses racked up by the superintendent and the board president. Evidently the superintendent and board president have been living it up while traveling on district business.
The Times informed us that the superintendent said he wasn’t familiar with state laws regarding government employee’s travel expenses. What a shame. They also told us that the superintendent has “severe health issues” and must travel in first-class on longer trips. Try applying for a job at the district with “severe health issues”.
We can expect to hear more about this as teachers are being asked bear the brunt of the district’s financial problems.
We deserve better
Brutus
elpasospeak 
In today’s scaled down domestic air travel, not sure what the superintendent gets in first class that isn’t available in coach. There may be a meal (they are even cutting back on that) and the legroom is better, but he’d also have similar legroom in exit row or bulkhead seating on coach. Most corporations allow excutives first class seating on flights of four hours or more duration, but based on the length of the logical connecting flights, there would be very few flight legs that qualify. Not being aware of state travel policies suggests just how fiscally out of control the district is because normally the head of accounting would be providing that feedback the first time an expense report went through that wasn’t in compliance. The fact that it didn’t happen suggests fear of the boss overpowers fear of violating state policies. When was the last time that happened? Oh yes, the last superintendent….
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School Districts have very clearly drawn travel requirements, but not surprisingly, those on top of the food chain have higher allowances for travel, and fewer restrictions. Just one of the perks designed to further separate the worker drones from the “queens” at the top of the hive.
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I couldn’t care less what the Times’ motivation is. I’m glad they are exposing the elitist attitude, waste and graft that is this superintendent. And the uselessly gullible and idiotic school board forgets that their job is to protect their constituents from this kind of abuse. But their answers to the Times are almost exactly what the previous board, you know-the board that got removed by the Texas Education Agency, said about Garcia! So, Chupacabrera’s idea of being a superintendent is that he is a professional LOBBYIST and, about all that education and learning stuff, he’s got underlings that do that unimportant stuff… except that his new deputy superintendent was on target to be fired from her previous district for DOING THE SAME THING CHUPACABRERA DOES WITH TRAVEL!!!
PEOPLE, CABRERA WAS GONE ALMOST 160 DAYS OUT OF A 226 DAY CONTRACT! By comparison, the children are in school for 180 days a year. He missed an entire instructional year!!! So, GO EL PASO TIMES AND KTSM! Next look at
Shady and Fishy Hiring Practices
Culture of Retaliation
Misuse of State and Federal Money
External Contractors and Following the Money
Screwing Over The Kids in favor of political agendas
The Sham Contract with El Paso for the Bond
(He must be laughing his a@@ off because he bilked El Paso into believing he would sell buildings to charters…Foolish rubes…he’s NOT selling!! He’s giving and lending! So he’s not technically violating the contract! Don’t you just hate contracts written by LAWYERS!!). It was his plan all along!
WAKE UP EL PASO!!
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TGIBNCLN — Big props for using the ChupaCabrera reference. Thank you.
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Well of course, Cabrera and the Board President have a BILLION$$$ slush fund that they have to blow-off BEFORE they leave town. Too much to carry in a “Carpetbag”. Would think that with all the lawyers that they, EPISD has, some of THEM would be explaining the LAWS to him, them. Lorenzo Garcia, De Ja Vous.
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Cabrera should know the law. He’s a lawyer.
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Yes, but just because something is legal doesn’t make it ethical or the right thing to do. For example, if I divert my time and energy away from my primary job responsibilities and use the financial resources of my current employer to take trips and attend events to further my own career or if I make bad decisions for my company because they will benefit people who might be able to help me after I leave my current employer, those are not illegal, but most people would consider those things to be unethical.
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So, reading the Times article, here are some takeaways:
Trent Hatch would approve trips to Austria, Australia, the Ukraine, the Moon, Mars and Saturn because Anything Cabrera Does is OK. Moron.
Bob Geske puts his head in the sand, doesn’t read current events and hopes it all goes away! Moron.
Diane Dye would approve an 8 day cruise on the Pacific Princess (The Love Boat) for our two intrepid voyagers because ‘he’s doing a good job…’. Moron
Chuck Taylor has no problem with expensive hotels and trips because it’s all STATUS! So I guess the other superintendents will MAKE FUN OF HIM if he doesn’t stay at the Trumpet Hotel in DC??? Moron.
New Board President Byrd spikes the uh…uh…uhh… foot…uh…ball . SAVVY POLITICAL OPERATIVE
Al Velarde is going to personally look into the matter (as long as he doesn’t find something that ‘spirals’ out of control… NOT SO SAVVY SOON TO BE SACRIFIED TO THE POLITICAL MACHINE BUT WILL BE VICE PRESIDENT.
And Cabrera and Fenenbock, in order to not cross stories like they did last week (she campaigned…wait she didn’t…but….she really did…but she didn’t), wants the media to submit written questions…WRITTEN QUESTIONS (?!?h for them to respond to instead of doing an interview?!?
Who do these idiots think they are? As AFT President Moore said,” GEEZE!!”
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It’s not Cabrera and Fenenbock anymore! It is Cabrerenbock! World travelers!
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Nice back-handed compliment. The Times can’t win even when they do a good job. You could have just said ‘nice job’ or ‘good job for once,’ but you chose to bitch slap them after giving them a pat on the head. Where’s your sense of objectivity and fairness?
If you look back at The Times’ body of reporting over the past 15 years, you would see that they have consistently, doggedly reported on top of issues in the local school systems. Not just EPISD; all systems. Quality reporting on education appears to have continually been one of their top priorities. They started tackling issues related to Cabrera long before Fenenbock expressed interest in running for Congress.
If you want to question their motives now, just remember. They have been reporting on EPISD for years. Now, the EPISD board member makes noise about running for congress. Now, you have a superintendent who thinks he has one of the hardest jobs in America and spends money like he is a rock star or Fortune 100 CEO. What would you have The Times do? Stop reporting because some people might think their motives are impure?
Thankfully, the few people who are left at The Times keep doing their job even if they aren’t always perfect or at their best. They, too, deserve better.
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Woodstein
The complaint with the El Paso Times is they are one side with their hit piece articles. Since they love Vero they will not say much or anything about the failures under her watch at the county. All the people of El Paso will get about Vero are puff pieces how time after time Vero rode in like Joan of Arc or some saint and saved the day for the poor peasants and down trodden peoples of El Paso . Then any one of with critical thinking understand not to expect much from the progressive fly by media such as the El Paso Times in El Paso.
Oh as to the issues with the EPSID the Times and other media in El Paso were told long before anything was done that their were big problems with EPSID,they set on their thumbs and did nothing and flow air cover.
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I’ll have you know that I have a Ben Bradlee award. I got it for reporting on the EPISD cheating scandal. Sometimes late at night when everyone is asleep I sit in the dark and just stare at it.
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Question, has anyone interviewed the secretaries/executive assistants to those who who are a part of the cheating scandal? Dr. Garcia, Dr. Murphy, etc……
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After all my decades serving EPISD, I have never felt so disrespected than I did by the 1% pay raise I got this week. But Super gets to keep his $45K and I hear rumors that his administration group got 3% raises. I have a disability too. Not sure if it will give me perks in my job. I just heard that Chief School Officer has left too. No Surprise since she was overlooked for the Deputy position that went to lady with financial issues from her previous district. We are hearing rumors that nobody from EPISD was interviewed for that cushy little job.
We principals are afraid to speak up for fear of retaliation but can guarantee we were at our schools during testing not in Washington DC. Not that it mattered, HE is never visible. But now we know he is always living it up with his connections, Tom Vanderak, Hector Montenegro, his private mentors, TALAS cronies and those charter school promoters. Sad days for EPISD.
This principal will not give him any more of her time. I am DONE!
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If they see this post, yes you probably are done. It won’t take much for them to identify you. Then you’ll be toast.
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Wondering if Deputy Dawg got the 3%. Guessing he did.
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