Following the holiday weekend, students at San Diego Unified School District are expected to return to classes on Tuesday for the first time following a massive change in leadership at the very top.
Superintendent Lamont Jackson was terminated late Friday afternoon after a months-long investigation found evidence he engaged in inappropriate behavior with staff.
The SDUSD Board of Education voted unanimously to terminate Jackson during a closed-door meeting Friday, releasing a one-page summary of the investigation and its outcome.
The investigation conducted by outside counsel began in April after two women who previously worked for SDUSD reported that Jackson “had allegedly made sexual advances which they rebuffed,” alleging they had been fired in retaliation in 2023.
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The allegations came to light when one of the women had lunch with a board member in April 2024, according to the summary, which said other allegations against Jackson were uncovered over the course of the investigation.
“Several witnesses alleged he promoted women with whom he has sexual relations and that he has engaged in offensive and sexually-charged behavior,” the summary reads.
The investigation found “sufficient evidence” Jackson “engaged in unwelcome, sex-based behavior consistent with a romantic interest in each of the two complainants,” according to the summary, which did not substantiate claims women were fired or promoted based on their responses to him.
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The district announced Jackson’s termination to parents in an email on Friday. Some parents like Brooke and Patrick Russo said that was the first they learned of the investigation.
“I didn’t know there was anything going on, so it was kind of new information to me,” said Patrick Russo, whose two children attend McKinley Elementary School.
“I was a little surprised because I hadn’t heard anything about it, but after thinking about it, you would do that investigation, not in secret but – just do it not in the public eye,” he said. “So it kind of made sense that they had done the investigation, come to a conclusion and then made a decision and then informed us of the decision. That seemed like it appeared to be an appropriate process.”
He and his wife said they had nothing but positive experiences with the district, that their kids love going to school, and their teachers had become like family.
They said they had confidence the district made the right decision, and they trusted SDUSD to find the right replacement, particularly after seeing administrators at their own schools replaced with care.
“I imagine if decisions like that were made quickly, that means it was serious, and we’re just grateful they’re taking it very seriously themselves,” Brooke Russo said.
“All of us strive for our children to understand rules and consequences and make great decisions and in a circumstance like this, making this decision had to be difficult,” she continued. “The details of it, of course, we don’t know, but the circumstances may have been just dire enough for that instant consequence.”
Jackson was hired as superintendent in 2022 after more than 30 years in various roles with the district. His salary was $433,125, and a spokesperson for the district said per his contract, this fell under “termination without cause,” meaning he will receive six months of severance.
SDUSD has not given a timeline or specifics on the search for a new superintendent. The board named Deputy Superintendent Dr. Fabiola Bagula as acting superintendent in the interim.
