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Estelle Smith

Community members line up to make public comments ahead of the meeting. 30 students, teachers, parents and more were able to participate in person. Ten were allowed to comment over Zoom.

Disapproval from community members filled the Kreps Conference Room on June 3, as board members voted to end the contracts of Tanesha Tate-Austin and Paul Austin. Tate-Austin and Austin ran “The Hub” at Tamalpais (Tam) High School. The Hub works to support the goals of Black students and increase equity among minority students in the Tamalpais Union High School District (TUHSD). Board trustees Cynthia Roenisch, Kevin Saavedra and Jennifer Holden voted against renewing their contracts. Trustees Emily Uhlhorn and Ida Green voted to approve the contracts. Seven out of eight contracts up for renewal at the meeting were held by consultants of color.
All but one public commenter advocated for renewing the contracts. The meeting was tense at times, and one attendee was asked to leave for refusing to remain silent in the crowd. Board president Roenisch also asked anyone who could not remain quiet to leave, as the crowd became frustrated with the board members.
Roenisch, one of the most outspoken members of the opposition to the renewal, was frustrated at the prospect of paying independent contractors $250,000. She complained that Tate-Austin and Austin only worked half days. Tate-Austin’s contract gave her a salary of $150,000, while Austin’s salary was $100,000.
“[Before Tate-Austin worked at Tam], she was a principal at Miller Creek. And her salary as a principal at Miller Creek was exactly what she’s charging us as a consultant for half a day,” Roenisch said. “You may not like it, but as custodians, we can’t ignore that. You get to ignore [finances] in the audience, but we can’t ignore that.”
Trustee Uhlhorn later verified that Tate-Austin works a full three days a week, not half days. Uhlhorn also added that the renewal of the contracts was unlikely to have a significant impact on the budget.
“I can’t imagine a world in which one more year of renewing these contracts, which the two contracts, I believe, are approximately two-tenths of one percent of the budget, is not the best thing for our students,” Uhlhorn said.
Tensions also flared among trustees, as trustee Saavedra called superintendent Tara Taupier out for actions he saw as dishonest. Saavedra mentioned multiple actions that could be viewed as unlawful and untrustworthy.
“[Taupier] knowingly took actions that put the district at risk. After that, [Taupier] admitted that the services [Austin and Tate-Austin] were providing were going to be brought in-house after one year. Four out of five trustees agree that you lied to us repeatedly,” Saavedra said. “Your parting gift to this district is to have created a schism on the board and facilitated the false perception that we do not care about our Black students. Great job.”
Taupier, thwarting allegations of misconduct, claimed she never lied and never tried to cause harm with Austin and Tate-Austin’s contracts.
“I did not lie to anybody, and when we brought these contracts forward in August, that was not a new thing. I never had an attorney tell me not to go forward with the contracts. The attorneys reviewed the contracts, they said that they were legal,” Taupier said. “I changed my recommendations, and I told you I changed my recommendations when I met with [Roenisch] because I didn’t think I had the votes. So that’s the truth. You don’t get to call me a liar. I did not lie to this board.”
As the conversation continued towards the approval of Tate-Austin’s contract, the room became increasingly tense as Roenisch made comments disparaging programs that supported Black students at Tam, such as the service to help students write emails.
“I really can’t believe that we are talking about high school students and saying one of the services provided was to teach students how to write emails,” Roenisch said, before being interrupted by the audience. “A lot of the services that are taught, like writing an email, are in my syllabus. These are not specialized services; these should be covered by existing employees.”
The audience was visibly unhappy with her comments. Roenisch then recommended that the contract not be approved.
“You’re a bully,” one audience member commented.
Trustee Green, the only Black board member, was steadfast in her defense of the contracts.
“I have seen [Black students] have the rug pulled out from under them too many times. I came from a district where that happened. And yes, I was there when we got that lawsuit from the attorney general. And sigh all you want, because I’m gonna speak my piece,” Green said, referring to her colleagues’ demeanor. “It’s not just some part-time job for [Austin and Tate-Austin]. I’ve seen them immediately get the reaction from some little Black voice. And now those kids are saying, ‘You know what? I’m gonna work a little harder, because I have to prove to that white teacher that I can do this.’”
The board then entered a recess as the audience grew restless and shouted at the trustees. The trustees returned and voted three to two against approving Austin and Tate-Austin’s contracts.
At the beginning of the meeting, 39 community members spoke for the renewal of the contract. One spoke against it. Parents pointed to statistics that showed that Black students were succeeding like never before. One statistic that was shared, which could not be independently verified, said that failing grades among Black students had decreased by 81 percent.
“In the last 12 months, it is clear that something meaningful is happening,” Elaine Wilkinson, a parent engaged in district affairs and Bridge the Gap College Prep, said. “To halt this momentum now would be a disservice to our students.”
Many students came forward to comment on how Austin and Tate-Austin had affected their experiences at Tam.
“[Tate and Tate-Austin] represent a movement that should’ve happened years ago, and now that Black students’ grades are finally improving, please don’t take away the only hope Marin City kids have had in years,” one senior from Tam said.
The board debated holding a special meeting during July to debate the future of The Hub program at Tam and potentially approve a plan from the new Superintendent, Dr. Courtney Goode. The trustees were unable to reach an agreement before the meeting was adjourned.