{"id":463876,"date":"2026-09-15T00:04:27","date_gmt":"2026-09-15T00:04:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/463876\/"},"modified":"2026-09-15T00:04:27","modified_gmt":"2026-09-15T00:04:27","slug":"d-a-ursula-jones-dickson-terminix-to-pay-3-15-million-over-illegal-disposal-of-pesticides-customer-records","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/463876\/","title":{"rendered":"D.A. Ursula Jones Dickson: Terminix to Pay $3.15 Million Over Illegal Disposal of Pesticides, Customer Records"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Ken Epstein<\/p>\n

Local Democratic clubs and community organizations interviewed candidates running for Oakland school board in the November elections, including incumbents Jennifer Brouhard in District 2, Mike Hutchinson in District 4 and Valarie Bachelor in District 6.\n<\/p>\n

For the first time, the interviews were jointly sponsored by the John George Democratic Club, Wellstone Democratic Renewal Club, Oakland East Bay Democratic Club, Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA), Niagara Democratic Club, Block by Block Organizing Network and Oakland African American Chamber of Commerce.\n<\/p>\n

The Democratic clubs interviewed only registered Democrats.\n<\/p>\n

John George and Wellstone endorsed Brouhard and Bachelor. Neither endorsed Hutchinson.\n<\/p>\n

In District 4, Wellstone ranked Sylvia Pfeiffer Williams first and Kathryn Camp second. John George ranked Camp first and Williams second.\n<\/p>\n

Hutchinson, an Oakland native and Oakland public schools graduate, highlighted his record.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cI was in board leadership and chaired the Budget and Finance Committee,\u201d he said. \u201cWe passed balanced budgets and paid off the state loan early, which allowed us to finally leave state receivership after 22 years.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Former<\/a>TrendingFormer Prisoners Offer Training to Youth on How to End Hostilities on the Streets<\/a><\/p>\n

Hutchinson said the district faces a financial crisis requiring changes in board leadership and district policies.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need a different majority so we can get back on track, end school closures, and manage our resources better,\u201d he said.\n<\/p>\n

Williams taught adult education in Oakland for 18 years.\n<\/p>\n

Williams said her philosophy \u201ccomes from the disability justice world, to center the needs of the most vulnerable. When we center the needs of the most vulnerable, we create environments, systems, and learning experiences in which everyone can thrive.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Williams framed potential school closures as an equity issue.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cAre we thinking about closing schools up in the hills?\u201d she asked. \u201cOr are we thinking about closing schools where communities are in crisis right now?\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Camp, a Bay Area native and Oakland resident of 25 years, has a son in second grade.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cOur kids are only getting one shot at a great education, and I\u2019m running to bring pragmatic, student-centered leadership that restores trust, builds responsibility, and delivers results for every child,\u201d she said.\n<\/p>\n

On her website, Camp pledged accountability and transparency. \u201cAs a proud OUSD parent, I know our schools need more than promises \u2013 they need fiscal responsibility, equity, and meaningful action guided by long-term strategy,\u201d she said.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cThat means protecting classrooms, supporting teachers, using resources wisely, and making decisions that reflect clear priorities and real accountability,\u201d said Camp. \u201cIt also means bringing people together and providing the kind of steady leadership that can navigate complex systems, ask hard questions, and stay grounded in what matters most: student outcomes, thriving schools, and a district that works for the communities it serves.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Wellstone\u2019s Education Committee said it opposed Hutchinson because he frequently challenged the board majority and superintendent.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cHe also claims that the teachers\u2019 contract is illegal that a grand jury should be called. He is not endorsed by the teachers\u2019 union; he has been disruptive and non-collaborative at meetings,\u201d and he has been absent 26% of the time, the committee said.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cHe claims that the teachers\u2019 contract is illegal and that a grand jury should be called,\u201d the committee said. \u201cHe takes individual credit for accomplishments, including paying the state loan, when in fact these changes came from the work of the entire board, or were the result of following through on policy.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Next week: District 6 school board candidates.\n<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Ken Epstein Local Democratic clubs and community organizations interviewed candidates running for Oakland school board in the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":463877,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[179,723,182695,7359,15080,93,405,40254,182696,721,974,143,145,144,40253,41318,2650,13,182697,182698,43205,16583,2315],"class_list":["post-463876","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-oakland","tag-community","tag-crime","tag-customer-records","tag-district-attorney","tag-environmental-law","tag-featured","tag-government","tag-hazardous-waste","tag-illegal-disposal","tag-law","tag-national","tag-oakland","tag-oakland-headlines","tag-oakland-news","tag-pest-control","tag-pesticides","tag-pleasanton","tag-politics","tag-rentokil-north-america","tag-terminix","tag-union-city","tag-ursula-jones-dickson","tag-waste-management"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/463876","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=463876"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/463876\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/463877"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=463876"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=463876"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=463876"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}