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The Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District Board of Education is set Tuesday to deliberate and potentially take action toward identifying an interim superintendent amid talks of ongoing budget cuts.
The board’s discussion follows on the heels of Torie Gibson’s sudden departure from the district on Friday (Feb. 6), following a year and a half at the helm.
Trustees approved a mutual separation agreement that night between the board and Gibson via a 4-0 tally, with Trustee Deena Kaplanis abstaining, Board President Steven Drouin confirmed to Livermore Vine on Monday afternoon.
Upon hearing of Gibson’s departure, members of the teachers union felt “relieved”, Livermore Education Association officials told Livermore Vine.
Previously, LEA was prepared at Tuesday’s meeting to present their vote of no confidence in the superintendent. “We are hopeful our district is able to refocus on prioritizing students,” union officials said.
The board’s agenda packet does not offer details into the process of employing an interim superintendent, but ahead of the public discussion, the board is set to deliberate on the appointment of an acting superintendent in closed session.
Also during Tuesday’s meeting, the board will continue to wrestle with making approximately $14.8 million in ongoing budget reductions for the 2026-27 school year – a key source of discord between some trustees and their now-former superintendent.
The review of budget reductions is a continuation of the board’s discussion at their special meeting Friday evening.
The meeting is set to begin at 6 p.m. Tuesday (Feb. 10) at LVJUSD headquarters, 685 E. Jack London Blvd. The agenda is available here.
In other business
* The board is poised to discuss the governor’s budget proposal for 2026-27 regarding funding for education.
Approximately 90% of the district’s revenue is acquired through the state, so district officials are “intensely interested in and impacted by the state’s budget”, according to the agenda.
“The proposal continues strong support for TK–12 public schools but also highlights ongoing fiscal uncertainty,” according to a slide show presentation prepared for the board.
The governor’s final budget is set to become available this spring.
* The board will consider approving a memorandum of understanding to provide retirement incentive options to the members of LEA who commit to retiring at the end of this school year.
Incentive options include an annual health benefit contribution of $19,000 for six years or the annual payment of $19,000 for six years from school year 2026-27 through 2031-32, according to the agenda.
The retirement incentive is estimated to save the district over $615,000 for the 2026-27 school year.
At least 25 LEA members must commit by March 1 to retire at the end of the school year in order for the incentives to apply. Without the required commitments, retirement incentives included in the LEA collective bargaining agreement would remain in effect, the agenda states.
The MOU applies exclusively to this school year and is not intended to set a precedent, according to the agenda.
Terms of the agreement were reached through negotiations between the district and LEA teams.
