Unease at Millville Elementary ahead of superintendent negotiations

MILLVILLE, Calif. — Another Northstate school district is seeing some drama in its board room, as the Millville Elementary School District navigates the potential renewal of long-time Superintendent and Principal Mindy DeSantis.

Monday saw a special board meeting regarding the position, which many in the community believe could see turnover. Concerns come from three newly elected board members who ran together, including Beth Watt, who brought a lawsuit against Superintendent DeSantis and other parties in 2020 regarding pandemic policies in schools. School staff gathered at the meeting to voice their support for DeSantis ahead of the closed session.

“I love this woman. I only came back to this school because she was here, she was here, she was here, andshe’s my friend! When I have a problem, she’s there, and she’s there to reprimand me when I do do something wrong, she gives me a hard time, but that’s learning for me," said one employee of the school. Others backed her stance, emphasizing the hard work that DeSantis has put into the school community over the years.

After public comment, the meeting turned to closed session. No report was made afterwards, but Beth Watt responded to an interview request later in the morning, saying “Our Superintendent/Principal Mindy DeSantis is amazing. The contract is set to end in June and we are excited to discuss renewal for Mrs. DeSantis.”

A regular board meeting will be held on Wednesday, May 10th at 5:30, with the superintendent discussions on the agenda yet again.