The race for Contra Costa County's superintendent pits two experienced educators against each other as the county's school districts face severe financial crises, including massive deficits in West Contra Costa and Antioch Unified, raising concerns about fiscal mismanagement and the limited powers of the county office.
Dana Eaton is one of two candidates running in the June 2 primary to lead Contra Costa County 's $3 billion Office of Education as superintendent.
Contra Costa County's next superintendent will inherit some of the most financially strapped schools in the state. West Contra Costa Unified, the second largest of its 18 districts, is teetering. Facing a $127 million deficit, the 30,000-student district approved a plan earlier this year to cut more than 200 positions and merge schools to avoid a state takeover. On the county's eastern edge, Antioch Unified faces a $32 million deficit.
In February, the 16,000-student district's board authorized a preliminary plan to cut approximately 300 teaching positions. And this month, the board agreed to cut spending by about $18 million, still leaving them with a shortfall exceeding $10 million. Declining enrollment and rising labor costs plague school districts across the Bay Area and California, but Contra Costa County schools' financial problems long predate its current crises.
Richmond Unified, rebranded as West Contra Costa Unified, made history in 1991 for falling under state receivership - where it spent the next 21 years. The past should weigh heavily on voters' minds as they decide between two serious candidates to oversee a $3 billion annual budget and 170,000 students, of whom more than 40% are socioeconomically disadvantaged. Eaton, 55, has spent three decades in public education.
He has led Brentwood Unified's 10,000 students as superintendent for the last 13 years, and he spent the prior four years leading Jefferson Union Unified. He began his career as an elementary school teacher in Alameda County in 1996 and entered school administration as an assistant principal a quarter century ago.
However, Eaton's substantial experience as a teacher, principal and superintendent is not what convinced us he is the right candidate to replace Lynn Mackey, who announced this February she would not seek a third term. Rather it is the Brentwood resident's expertise in school finance.
Among other positions in state education leadership, he currently serves on the governing board for the Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team, or FCMAT - the agency directly responsible for helping school districts statewide facing fiscal crises. In fact, FCMAT was created because of Contra Costa County schools' financial mismanagement. In discussions with our editorial board, Eaton spoke with specificity about what gets California schools into trouble.
Districts are using one-time funds to pay for long-term commitments, setting unrealistic budget goals and avoiding transparency. More importantly, Eaton leveled with us about the troubles facing the schools he would directly oversee. West Contra Costa Unified's finances are "worse than we think," Eaton said. To pay down their current debt, the district is pulling more than $20 million from its reserves, meant to pay for future health and pension obligations, setting themselves up for a future fiscal cliff.
And as that district's problems become known, its problems could multiply as parents pull their children out of the district, further reducing enrollment and funding. Solving that district's problems won't be easy for any county superintendent. That's because this position's power is limited. Contra Costa County's superintendent only directly oversees 16 of the district's 286 schools.
And superintendents by state law cannot take over districts within their counties if they disagree with their choices. They can't close schools or impose their own agendas over curricula or even negotiate their labor contracts.
However, county superintendents can wield significant influence over district budgets. For example, as districts head toward insolvency, they can veto new spending. If elected, Eaton told us he would immediately put a fiscal agent in place at West Contra Costa Unified who could prevent the district from passing new spending motions without equivalent cuts. Eaton's willingness to dive into the details of county school district finances separated him from his only competitor, Jaguanana "Jag" Lathan.
To be sure, Lathan, 51, is a serious candidate with more than 25 years spent in education. The Antioch-resident, like Eaton, has a master's and doctorate in educational leadership, and she has run an education consultancy since 2022. For the last four years, she has served on the governing board of Antioch Unified, a 15,000-student district, where she is now board president. She also has experience working within San Diego and Alameda counties' offices of education.
Lathan, who grew up in Oakland, began her career teaching in Los Angeles. After seven years in classrooms, she became an administrator. Among other positions, she was principal of an elementary school in Emeryville Unified between 2008 and 2014. Her focus on elevating literacy and commitment to phonics-based education is sorely needed in county schools
Contra Costa County Superintendent School Finance Budget Deficit West Contra Costa Unified Antioch Unified FCMAT Dana Eaton Jag Lathan State Receivership
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