After a decade of receivership and repressed wages and funding for quality education programs, most people are unaware of the hidden alliance that has maintained this condition in the Inglewood Unified School District.
A union with no unity and leadership with malice towards its membership, coupled with an exploitive district administration that capitalizes on the chaos to misinform about the financial situation in Inglewood Unified is what has taken away local power, and bought Aba Ngissah’s silence.
Plainly stated, a sell-out is in the house.
DEMOCRACY OR DICTATORSHIP?
ITA’s current president Aba Ngissah should not have been able to run for office as she had reached the term limit for the office. However, the ITA by-laws were changed to allow her to remain in office. This occurred without the knowledge or the vote of the full membership. There are many questions surrounding the legitimacy of this action and the subsequent voting afterward and you thought Trump was bad.
How and why is she still in office? IUSD Administration knows they have a trusted ally who will work to keep the teachers in their place. The lowest paid, weakest, and least represented in the south bay.
ONE HAND WASHES THE OTHER
Aba Ngissah is listed as the first sponsor in favor of the last bond measure I $240 million although she is not listed as an Inglewood resident. She actively advocated for its passage for the good of Inglewood students. She knew of the plans to close schools. This was a misrepresentation to Inglewood voters. One of the items listed in the bullet points of the argument in favor of passing measure I under the section measure will do is: “improve college and career preparation”. After the passage of the measure, Ms. Ngissah was promoted from her classroom assignment and given the position of CTE advisor (career and technical education). Is that position a reward for the hard work promoting measure I and deceiving the public? Would she have been selected CTE advisor which is a secondary school position coming from an elementary school if not for her position as ITA president?
FUNDING FRATRICIDE
According to Transparency California, Ms. Ngissah went from earning $86,012.85 in regular pay in 2020 to $137, 917.81 in 2021. It also lists her as CTE advisor in 2021 a position she wasn’t approved for until 2022.
Ms. Ngissah has also been given multiple extra-duty pay allotments that are not associated with her assignment nor accessible to regular ITA members. She is authorized for up to 80 hours per month at the per diem rate of extra duty. She asks teachers to sacrifice while she hoards extra-duty opportunities and functions from a place of privilege and condescending countenance. She has coaxed teachers to buy into the false narrative that there is no money to keep up with the cost of living adjustments (COLA), and competitive salaries, and most importantly she has shown no advocacy for the students and families of Inglewood who need it the most, those displaced and uprooted because of school closures.
Where was the advocacy for justice and fairness when it comes to the deplorable conditions and failed leadership under the county administrator on student enrollment and school closures? It’s nonexistent. Why has she been so silent on school closure, but was so vocal on securing money from the citizens of Inglewood using the conditions of the exact schools that were closed as the reason to justify measure I? Her silence now has been bought and paid for. Her deception is betrayal. Her self-aggrandizement is appalling.
Inglewood has the worst teacher contract in the South Bay but she earns more than principals with all of the extra-duty pay she receives. It’s clear that she has served her own interest but not the interests of the teachers, students, and families of Inglewood. ITA has failed its members miserably for years and Ms. Ngissah should resign from her post immediately or be recalled! Nepotism, favoritism, and preferential treatment from district administration are more important to her than is the Inglewood community. Inglewood is not for sale and neither should its leadership!
She has to go now!
Respectfully submitted,
The Immediate Independent Inglewood Incentive
5 Comments
Did anyone see the latest board meeting where Hughes Questioned Ngissah’s CTE position? He made valid points about her position and the lack of qualifications, her position being the only TOSA position without an expiration date of 3-years, and the fact that she is a walking conflict of interest by being both a an “advisor” of CTE and the ITA president! Now, is this the will of the district? How could Dr Morris and his team overlook this?
The ITA president is a bully! When is the next ITA election? She is working as a teacher on special assignment but also trying to make admin decisions by questioning what schools are offering and inserting teachers that many not be good for students for Career Technical Education. She forced a high school to take on the “8-block” schedule or revert back to an all periods schedule when the school basically lost their WASC accreditation. The school has many educators that have resigned but the ITA president wants more Career Technical Ed courses on campus. She will not get approval from admin before she makes a move and is acting as if she is one by making decisions that may not be in the best interest of students. She needs to pick a side, she needs to focus on reprimanding and getting rid of educators who are historically bad for the classroom and students. Stop backing bad educators! Stop approving bad teachers to be transferred around the district and not dealing with your members. Stop inserting yourself in matters that are low on the totem pole and advocate making your members better teachers. Some of the teachers in the district are horrible, mean to kids, verbally abusive, have 9999 write up’s, have been transferred for bad behavior, are still being transferred, have been caught doing things against the ITA contract…and are still defended by ITA and the president, Ngissah. Enough is enough and the duck is quacking. Maybe it’s time for actual leadership. I believe an election is overdue. Let someone else run the ship, the one being led by a semi-tyrant. She may have a kind heart but time is up. A new ITA board should be considered. The Same stale folks are walking around making decisions for the district and the district is allowing it.
Sadly ITA made up the majority of the volunteers for the campaign paid for by contractors, and encouraged by the State and County administrators, who knowingly and intentionally deceived voters to commit the property owners to an additional School Improvement Bond..
ITA has a history of misrepresentation to the community for maximum inpact of self benefit even staging protests over “doubling insurance cost” However the reality was the doubling was raising the co pay from $5.00 per visit to $10.00 per visit. That co pay difference represented a $3 million.difference to taxpayers and a diversion of that money from student services.
Unfortunately ITA has historically lobbied that teachers are not to be accountable for student comprehension casting blame for low proficiency on parents.
LAUSD got 20% and Inglewood can’t offer competative salaries? Something is wong here. Why would teachers stay in Inglewood? This smells fishy. Why wouldn’t someone else be president? If she is getting all that money, I would be upset as a teacher, why does she need extra if she’s already making more than everyone else. Looks like a hookup!
Aba Ngissah is a hypocrite! What’s done in the dark will come to the light!