Families question school district’s hiring tactics

The investigative story looked into the state’s system for credentialing teachers, finding it often moved slowly and without considerable transparency to the public, allowing teachers under investigation like Agan to secure employment elsewhere without detection. 

After the story was published, parents were up in arms knowing Agan was employed at the Redwood City elementary school, teaching seventh and eighth grade math. Some showed out to the school district’s Board of Trustees meeting May 13 to question how he was hired. 

When a neighbor showed Clifford parent Brie Hanni the news article, she “truly became unglued,” she said during public comment at the board meeting. She asked the board for full transparency as the district navigates the matter. 

“I am livid, not just for my child, but for every single child entrusted to Clifford,” Hanni said. The fact Agan was deemed qualified and safe to be in a classroom was “horrifically and incredibly concerning to me,” she said. 

Agan previously taught at a high school in Fairfield for 17 years when, in 2018, 11 students and a parent filed complaints about his behavior to the school district, according to KQED and ProPublica’s investigation. Students accused him of inappropriately touching them, massaging their necks and creating an uncomfortable learning environment within his advanced math class. 

In January 2019, the district took steps to fire him by suspending him without pay — an effort many districts rarely undertake against tenured teachers. The Fairfield district’s superintendent said the case against Agan was strong enough to move forward, KQED and ProPublica reported. 

A year later, a state independent panel deemed Agan “unfit to teach” leaving him without a job. The panel’s findings weren’t shared publicly, though, the investigation found. 

Whether Agan should face further discipline and if he could keep teaching was up to California’s Commission on Teacher Credentialing, which took over a year to finalize their decision. In the meantime, Agan secured another job teaching at a Sacramento middle school, KQED and ProPublica reported. 

The commission opted to suspend Agan’s teaching credential for seven days in May 2021. This went into effect near the end of Agan’s first year at the Sacramento school, KQED and ProPublic reported. Agan remained employed at the school afterward. 

A month after students went back to in-person learning in September 2021, a student at the Sacramento school confided in her doctor that Agan inappropriately touched her.

In 2022, Agan was to be quietly reassigned at the Sacramento school to support new teachers rather than lead his own classroom. Instead, he resigned and said he received a different job offer. 

In August 2022, Agan began teaching at Clifford, and he received tenure in 2024. 

Josh Levinson, a parent of third children at Clifford Elementary, was similarly deeply concerned after reading the article, and had to have a “very tough conversation” with his son. 

After speaking with his son, a seventh grader, Levinson submitted a Title IX complaint against the district and took his kids out of school, stating they would not return until Agan was off the campus. 

Before the Board of Trustees meeting Wednesday evening, district Superintendent John Baker contacted Clifford families addressing the numerous questions received, and informed parents a substitute would be taking over for Agan’s class moving forward. 

At the meeting, the board President David Weekly said Agan was no longer teaching at the school site. 

The status of Agan’s employment and current job responsibilities was not answered by a representative from the school district when asked. 

Weekly said as a parent of a student within the district, he understands the frustration others feel, and the assurance that children are safe. 

“We also want to make sure that those responsible for safety protocols are doing the right thing generally, that we have the right policies and procedures in place to ensure that when we hire as a district we are hiring great talent who will be safe to be with our students,” Weekly said. 

In Superintendent Baker’s email to the Clifford community, details about the allegations against Agan were not disclosed but he shared information regarding Redwood City School District’s hiring practices. 

Employees go through a background check, fingerprinting, professional reference checks, credential verification and a review of information available on the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing. These procedures were successfully completed for employees hired by the district, Baker said. 

However, state laws and the credentialing system have evolved in recent years, particularly during the peak of allegations against Agan. 

The Commission on Teacher Credentialing only automatically revokes teachers’ credentials if they are convicted of sexual criminal offenses, not necessarily when a district determines a teacher committed sexual misconduct. 

For noncriminal cases of misconduct, a committee within the state agency assesses the case. The fact that a teacher was disciplined is made public on a database, marked by a red flag icon, but it doesn’t explain the reasoning, KQED and ProPublica reported. 

While parents questioned exactly how much the district was aware of when they hired Agan, district officials did not share any detailed information. It wasn’t until 2022 when school districts were able to see the reasons behind credential actions or suspensions, Baker noted. 

Agan is a tenured union employee in the Redwood City School District, meaning there are formal legal processes that govern employment actions including leave, discipline and termination, Baker said. 

A district representative did not answer when asked what the district’s next steps will be, if any. 

“I know this situation has impacted the Clifford community in many ways,” Baker said. “Thank you for your continued trust in RCSD and our schools.” 

While as a parent Levinson said he was pleased to hear Agan was not currently within the classroom, trust within the district to keep his children safe is broken. Other parents shared similar sentiments.

“Trust is earned,” Levinson said. “When someone is not deemed fit to teach, that should be a massive red flag even if the database said they’re technically employable.” 

ana@smdailyjournal.com

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