Pioneer Valley Principal Shanda Herrera placed on paid administrative leave
SANTA MARIA, Calif. – Pioneer Valley Principal Shanda Herrera was placed on paid administrative leave Friday and her future status is pending the results of an independent investigator.
According to Kenny Klein, Santa Maria Joint Union High School District's Public Information Officer, allegations against Herrera, "will be promptly investigated by a third-party investigator... Given that this involves a confidential employee matter, I cannot provide further details."
Dr. Paul Robinson, the district's Director of Career Technical Education, is now the acting principal of Pioneer Valley High shared the Santa Maria Joint Union High School District on Tuesday.
"The decision to place an employee on administrative leave does not reflect any determination about the merits of the allegations," added Klein.
Herrera ignited a furor among local parents and students at a school board meeting when she was issued a 45-day notice in June.
In response to multiple media outlets seeking the contents of the notice, Herrara sued the Santa Maria Joint Union High School District as well as Your News Channel to prevent the disclosure of that disciplinary letter.
Her lawsuit against state public disclosure laws, the school district, and local media outlets was ultimately dismissed.
The 45-day notice cited multiple messages from Herrara to district staff disparaging administrators and students who posed a potential risk to her graduation rate of 96.5 percent, the highest in the district.
