Roger Daley (foreground) is resigning as the District 4 representative for the Del Norte Unified School District Board of Trustees. Photo: www.dnusd.org

Those who took in the most recent school board meeting and its three-hour public comment period may have noticed a face missing from the dais — District 4 Trustee Roger Daley.

Daley, who was the pastor at Fort Dick Bible Church, said he officially resigned from the Del Norte Unified School District Board of Trustees last week. He told the Wild Rivers Outpost on Monday that he is moving to Reno, Nevada, to seek another job.

“It’s not because I can’t take controversy or struggle with (teacher) contracts, that’s not my issue,” Daley told the Outpost, referring to the ongoing conflict between the district and the Del Norte Teachers Association over certificated staff’s 2019-2020 contract.

County Clerk Recorder Alissia Northrup confirmed Monday that Daley has resigned from the school board. She said County Superintendent of Schools Jeff Harris notified her that Daley submitted his official resignation just before Thursday’s school board meeting.

Northrup said she asked Harris to send her a copy of Daley’s resignation letter so she can remind him to submit a revised Statement of Economic Interest, or Form 700, to her office.
Daley was elected to represent the Fort Dick area on the school board in 2016. His seat is up for re-election in November.

Now that Daley’s resignation is official, the clock is ticking for his former colleagues to find a replacement. Since it’s more than four months until the November 2020 election, the Board of Trustees has until 60 days to either make a provisional appointment or order a special election to fill the District 4 seat, according to its bylaws.

The Board must solicit candidate applications or nominations by advertising in local media according to the bylaws. A committee will determine each candidate’s eligibility to serve on the Board of Trustees and announce their names.

The full Board of Trustees will then interview the candidates at a public meeting, accept public comment and select the appointee by a majority vote, according to the bylaws.

When asked why he’s resigning, Daley reiterated that he’s moving to Reno to seek another job.

“I loved all four of them other guys and Jeff Harris is doing a great job,” Daley said. “I have nothing but thankfulness and fond memories working with Frank and Jamie and Don and Angela.”

According to the DNUSD Board of Trustees' bylaws, trustees who attend all district board meetings held in a month shall receive a stipend of $264.60. Trustees who attend all county Office of Education meetings in a month shall receive $176.40, according to the DNUSD Board's bylaws.

According to Transparency California, a nonprofit online database of public employees' salaries in California, Daley received $4,101.30 in 2017 and $5,292 in 2018 as a DNUSD representative.

Daley leaves the DNUSD Board of Trustees at a time when teachers and other certificated staff are threatening to strike over contract negotiations that have stalled over salary increases. On Thursday, during a public comment period that lasted three hours, nearly all who spoke urged the Board to pass a 3.26 percent cost of living adjustment to its certificated staff.

DNUSD and DNTA negotiators met with a neutral arbitrator from the Public Employees Relations Board of California last month. The arbitrator’s report will be released to the public on Jan. 14, according to DNUSD’s website. The earliest DNTA can strike is within three business days of the report being released to the public, according to the school district.

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