On the day after an assistant superintendent was fired and after announcing the resignation of three other employees, the head official and board members of the Perris Union High School District spent much of Wednesday’s board meeting singing the praises of PUHSD.
Those on the dais spent more than two hours of the meeting discussing positive aspects of the district, which has had a complete turnover in cabinet members in the last 14 months. At the same time, some criticized the performance of the previous administration and cautioned residents not to believe what they consider negative reports on social media.
A separate board meeting regarding California Military Institute, which usually takes no more than 15 or 20 minutes, lasted 51 minutes, even though there were only presentations and no motions requiring discussion or a vote. Superintendent Jose Araux and board members used a “board member comments” agenda item to give positive reviews to many aspects of the district – many of them not focused on CMI.
“I don’t want to criticize the previous administration, but there are a lot of things we’re fixing,” Araux said while mentioning the reclassification of some courses and college prep agreements with MSJC and Cal State San Bernardino. “We’re expanding opportunities and reinforcing opportunities we already have.”
“Be careful of what you hear on social media,” said board member Steve Campos, who is running for re-election. “Much of it is not vetted. When something positive is done, it never gets out quickly. When it’s something negative, it’s out there the next day.”
And this from board President Edward Garcia:
“Everyone in this room is thriving. We used to be not moving. We’ve done a 180 since then. With the new cabinet, we’re going full throttle. Everybody’s engaged; employees are coming to work happier.”
That apparently does not include Assistant Superintendent of Business Services Marguerite Williams, who was one of the new cabinet members last year. Multiple sources reported watching Williams being walked out of the building after being fired on Tuesday. Her name was removed from the district website and a message on her email account said it was “not being monitored”, referring inquiries to HR Director Alfredo Andrade.
When Menifee 24/7 contacted Andrade for comment, we mentioned that Williams’ name was removed from the district website. After giving the standard “no comment” about the personnel matter, Andrade said that the absence of her name on the website was a “glitch” and would be fixed.
Her name reappeared soon after. But at Wednesday night’s meeting, Williams’ desk and name plate had been removed from the room. Her name was not mentioned, but Araux announced that in closed session, the board approved the termination of an unnamed employee. Araux also announced that the district had reached a settlement agreement with three other employees who had resigned.
The mention of departing employees has been a sensitive subject for district officials and board members since August 2025, when Menifee 24/7 reported that 14 top administrators had left the district since the end of the last school year. Since then, a number of controversial incidents have been reported, with parents, former employees and anonymous current employees criticizing changes by the new regime.
Without naming Menifee 24/7, Araux alluded to that reporting during his comments Wednesday night.
“It’s been reported that 14 administrators left,” Araux said. “Maybe some of them were promoted [elsewhere]. They knew my expectations, that I was not going to settle for anything less. I was happy to help replacements who were up to the challenge.”
During the public comments section of the meeting, two residents expressed concern about a previous vote by the board to limit candidates to replace the retiring Araux to internal employees. Campos later announced that in a subsequent special board meeting, members reversed their decision and voted to include all candidates.
Due to staffing issues, Menifee 24/7 was unable to attend that meeting. Campos notified a reporter of the results of that vote by text, but that information was not relayed to our readers. We apologize for the omission.
In other matters, Perris Secondary Educators Association President Jason Miller thanked board members for the decision to increase the pay scale for faculty members who supervise the ROTC programs at local schools.
That increase was part of a tentative contract agreement effective July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027. According to the staff report, “Major provisions of the agreement include a 4 percent ongoing salary increase applied to all PSEA salary schedules, an increase to the AVID Coordinator stipend from 4 percent to 6 percent, the addition of JROTC Salary Schedule #009 and the establishment of a standardized 200-day work year for JROTC teachers, an increase to the hourly rate for period subbing and other authorized work performed beyond the regular workday, and an increase to the health benefits cash-out option from $2,000 to $2,500.”
President Cynthia Navarro then addressed the board representing the California School Employees Association (non-teaching staff) to express concern about negotiations over a new contract with that group.
“Our concerns are being minimized,” she said. “It’s like we’re being told, ‘You’re already getting 4 percent; be happy with that and shut up.’ I’m asking for fair treatment and respect.”
Navarro made reference to comments by Araux about an increase in average daily attendance.
“The CSEA is advocating for additional support in the attendance office,” she said. “They handle an immense workload. Meanwhile, we continue to see an increase in management positions. If attendance is a ‘laser focus’ of the district (one of Araux’s favorite sayings), you should prioritize those who manage that every single day.”
The board approved the creation of the position of Educational Data Systems Analyst “to ensure completeness, accuracy, and compliance prior to state, federal, and district reporting.”
Elsewhere, the board voted to remove from the agenda two personnel matters: A proposed new position of Assistant Director of Fiscal Services, and a revised job description for the Director of Risk Management.
