Less than two weeks into his new appointment, Santa Clara County Office of Education Interim Superintendent Charles Hinman announced he is launching multiple investigations into misuse of public funds by the county office. This major development comes after exclusive reports by NBC Bay Area’s Investigative Unit and the recent firing of SCCOE’s former Superintendent Mary Ann Dewan.
“I've had a lot of people come and make lots of internal accusations, which is normal. But I've actually looked at some documents, some contracts and things that I do question,” Hinman told the Investigative Unit Monday.
Hinman and his team are now taking what they call extraordinary action to do an intense look at the financial oversight of the county office. He and his team say they’ve found potential evidence of misuse of public funds, specifically: unauthorized contract awards, unauthorized spending of public funds for personal legal fees, unauthorized waivers of legal conflicts and investigations of the Board of Education and unauthorized surveillance, internet technology monitoring.
Regarding the surveillance monitoring, Hinman says he is troubled by some activity he has seen with SCCOE’s IT department. He contacted San Jose police about some of the concerns only describing them as possible “illegal activity” that he wants law enforcement experts to dig into.
Hinman said he will also work with any federal investigation looking at spending on Head Start, which is a program SCCOE runs with federal money to help at-risk South Bay children with early development.
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“It was great to hear the news that they are actually taking action and really looking into everything that’s going on,” said Yadira Orozco, chair of SCCOE’s Head Start’s policy council.
In July, the Investigative Unit spoke to Orozco about her complaint to federal Head Start officials about misuse of public funds by SCCOE. NBC Bay Area was there that month when federal Head Start monitors visited the county office in San Jose for a review that Hinman says is still ongoing – and that he believes is taking too long to finalize and release. Earlier this year, SCCOE officials said the complaints were the result of “an accounting error.”
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“I have a feeling it’s bigger than just Head Start,” Orozco said.
In August, an anonymous SCCOE Head Start employee spoke to the Investigative Unit. She said staff was being retaliated against for reporting these complaints. Mercedes Hill is now coming forward publicly.
“We’re all relieved and we’re all very happy that there are people finally looking into this properly,” she said Monday.
Before Hinman’s appointment, SCCOE hired another outside investigator, Steven Hummel, to look into Hill’s retaliation claim and other similar allegations. Hummel determined the claims were not sustained.
“I have a lot of concerns with the results of that investigation. I believe I was one of the first to be interviewed, and I noticed that the interviewer, the investigator, he seemed to already have his idea of what was going on,” Hill said.
In an emailed statement Monday, Hummel told the Investigative Unit he has 40 years of experience and did not know any of SCCOE's administrators or employees. He said the complaints were not sustained because there were inaccuracies in some of the reported concerns.
"My findings are never presupposed before all the work is done. The situation at SCCOE is in turmoil for sure and I hope for a fair resolution for all," Hummel wrote.
In October, in a 4-2 vote with one board member abstaining, SCCOE Board of Trustees fired county Superintendent Mary Ann Dewan without case. They didn’t provide a reason, and the firing sparked both relief and outrage from different community members, office staff and some state legislators. Dewan has not responded to the Investigative Unit’s questions about any of the allegations, but she said in an earlier written statement that it’s been a honor serving Santa Clara County. Hinman was appointed shortly after.
“I'm not here to fire people or move people. I'm here to give confidence to the community that we're here to support our districts, our school, our education courses. And that calls for transparency,” he said. “After 34 years of experience, I have very strong concerns that some things need to be addressed in that world.”
Catch up NBC Bay Area's reporting on this issue:
Part 1: Exclusive: Santa Clara Co. Office of Education under review over misuse of Head Start funds
Part 2: Santa Clara County Office of Ed faces staff retaliation claims amid federal review
Part 3: Santa Clara County education board fires schools superintendent without cause
Part 4: Community calls for transparency over recent firing of Santa Clara County superintendent
Part 5: New Santa Clara Co. Office of Ed official launching misuse of public funds investigations
Investigative Reporter Candice Nguyen is the reporter on this story. If you have a question or comment about this story or if you have an investigative tip, email her at candice.nguyen@nbcuni.com.
