Santa Clara County Office of Education leaders say a series of probes they ordered into their former superintendent found contract favoritism and improper use of funds – though the full report has not been made public.
The Board of Education will vote on policy changes stemming from those findings, which focuses on former superintendent Mary Ann Dewan, at their regular board meeting tonight. The board’s majority voted to fire Dewan without cause in October 2024. When the decision sparked backlash from residents, the county and state lawmakers, the board accused Dewan of impropriety and misspending – hiring independent investigators to examine Dewan’s leadership. Last December, Office of Education officials said they handed over information to local law enforcement.
County prosecutors don’t see a case.
“We carefully reviewed the evidence and concluded that there was insufficient evidence to charge a crime,” Sean Webby, a spokesperson for District Attorney Jeff Rosen’s office, told San José Spotlight.
It’s unclear when the Office of Education plans to release the independent investigators’ full report.
For now, the findings are summarized in a numbered list that was attached to tonight’s board meeting agenda. They accuse Dewan of using public funds for non-office purposes and awarding contracts in a way that suggested favoritism. They also say her office sought to censure certain board members and redirected grant money beyond the grant’s original purpose. An earlier federal investigation found more than $135,370 earmarked for the preschool education program Head Start was misallocated to pay for non-Head Start staff and credit card purchases.
“The Board’s ‘findings’ are meritless, malicious and baseless attacks, unsupported by any evidence,” Dewan told San José Spotlight. “I have no knowledge of any wrongdoing and fulfilled all of my duties with integrity and within the statutory framework of my role.”
Dewan said the county superintendent, whether appointed or elected, is a constitutional officer with broad and independent authority to enter into agreements and contracts.
“This pattern of public attacks, mischaracterizations, and personal targeting is harmful to the institution and discourages talented educators from serving our students,” Dewan said. “I remain committed to the values that have guided me throughout my career and my belief that every child deserves access to opportunity, excellence, and support.”
Kathleen King, a former Board of Education trustee who opposed Dewan’s firing, said she’s puzzled by the format of the investigation findings.
“I can’t figure out what the findings are trying to say. I have been in county positions for many years and I have never seen findings like this that don’t include a report that explains the findings. It makes me wonder about the credibility of these claims from the organization that did the evaluation,” King told San José Spotlight.
Joseph Di Salvo, a Board of Education trustee from 2008 to 2024 and one of the four who voted to fire Dewan last year, is calling on the Office of Education to release the full report.
“I think it’s essential they give all the information the public deserves to see, as soon as they possibly can,” he told San José Spotlight.
Yet he said the summarized findings align with his own experience with the former superintendent.
“She did not respond to board members requests for information about budget and staffing,” Di Salvo told San José Spotlight. “Her lack of transparency and being forthcoming about inquiries that individual board members made about things related to the budget were very concerning to me and very different from all the superintendents I worked with as a principal, teacher and school board member.”
The current board is now trying to turn the page. A committee of three board members — one of whom voted to fire Dewan while the other two either opposed or did not vote in favor of it — is behind the recommended reform measures up for approval tonight.
The proposed policy changes include setting new governance standards for the superintendent role, now filled by Superintendent David Toston, as well as the disclosure of confidential information. Another measure would clarify that board members can obtain outside legal representation – a point of contention during the legal battles that followed Dewan’s ouster.
“These recommendations respond directly to the issues identified in the independent investigations,” Board of Education President Maimona Afzal Berta, who supported Dewan’s firing, told San José Spotlight.
Berta, who was on the policy reform committee, said the proposed measures draw from best practices from other public agencies.
“I look forward to the Board’s consideration and adoption of these reforms so we can move forward with clear, student-centered, and publicly responsible oversight of administrative practices,” Berta said.
This story will be updated.
Contact Brandon Pho at [email protected] or @brandonphooo on X, formerly known as Twitter.