April 2025 TVUSD School Board Report Card
1TVPAC Team
Dr. Melinda Anderson: performed her duties well, showed commitment to the job and the public by attending almost the entire meeting via zoom, including public comments, when she could have been excused entirely or only attended for voting business. She refocused away from culture wars and stayed on the business of trustee fairly well, however at times she veered into micromanagement and topics not within the purview of trustee. She also demonstrated patience and professionalism with other board members, not taking the bait and wasting time on culture wars and pet projects.
Emil Barham: highlights include running the April meeting efficiently and professionally, keeping focus on students and job of trustee. He also demonstrated continued information gathering and informed decision-making throughout the month in his activities with the district and general public. Low lights include occasionally misspeaking regarding closed session items, overinvolvement in district staff duties, and getting caught up in culture war issues vs. refocusing on the business of the board.
Dr. Joseph Komrosky: disappointingly after more than two years as a board member, Komrosky displayed many, many missteps this month, failing to understand the basics of his role and duties, violating rules governing his conduct (for example, bringing up closed-session issues in open session), veering way off topic in meetings, spreading misinformation, and focusing on personal vendettas and culture war issues vs. student achievement. The only highlight was failing to waste large sums of money.
Jennifer Wiersma: similar to Komrosky, Mrs. Wiersma continues to show lack of awareness of the job of trustee and even lack of understanding of the IB program and curriculum that her own child participated in. She appeared ill-prepared for the meeting and agenda items, spending more time on culture wars, pet projects, spreading misinformation and riling up the community. Her one redeeming action this month was voting in favor of standard negotiations with TVEA and CSEA—unlike Komrosky, who voted against them.
Both Wiersma and Komorsky wasted public funds attending an advocacy trip to DC where they used their time to meet with local politician Issa, which they can do here for far less money.
Steve Schwartz: maintaining a steady presence on the board with a focus on students and school achievement in both meeting conduct and school visits and interactions with the public throughout the month (one highlight was showing his support for entrepreneurship in the Children’s Business Fair).
Mr. Schwartz demonstrates a desire to work with other board members, listening and compromising to achieve tasks.
Grading Criteria:
Every month, we will publish the 1TVPAC Good Governance report card to evaluate TVUSD School Board trustees.
The grades are based on their behavior in the boardroom and outside (public events, training, social media, communication with constituents, etc.). The criteria include fiscal responsibility, given the upcoming budget shortfall, and the California School Board Association (CSBA) standards for effective trustees:
Keeps learning and achievement for all students as the primary focus
Values, supports and advocates for public education
Recognizes and respects differences of perspective and style on the board and among staff, students, parents and the community
Acts with dignity, and understands the implications of demeanor and behavior
Keeps confidential matters confidential
Participates in professional development and commits the time and energy necessary to be an informed and effective leader
Understands the distinctions between board and staff roles, and refrains from performing management functions that are the responsibility of the superintendent and staff
