Teachers Show Support for Wheat

teachers, students and parents showed up in force to Thursday’s School Board meeting to voice their support for Vice Principal Ron Wheat.  Wheat who has been a Vice Principal at Benicia High School since 2002 is rumored to be demoted upon approval from the Board of Trustees.

Social Science teacher Susan Gibbs was one of those who came to voice her support for Wheat.  “He’s a mainstay at the High School. He loves it. He loves the students. He loves the staff…if you have a problem, be it facilities, students, whatever, you go to Ron.”

Gibbs’ sentiment was repeated multiple times throughout Public Comment portion of the meeting, which went well beyond the 15 minutes of time allotted on the meeting’s agenda.  Community member Michael Harris who graduated from Benicia High in 1981 remembered Wheat as both a baseball and football coach.  “He taught us more than how to field a fly ball or how to kick a field goal.  He taught us about life.  He taught us how to be men,” Harris said.

The only statement available from the District is that they cannot comment on personnel matters.  The Personnel Action List was agendized in the Closed Session portion of the meeting.

Gibbs said she does not know what is behind the possible demotion of Ron Wheat.  “We’re questioning the decision because we think it’s very wrongly conceived, it’s poor timing...why do this now when he is the one person we can consistently rely on.”