IN RETROSPECT ABC-Z:(Anybody But Cortez-Zayas)

By A Retired BISD Employee
(The Silent Majority)
Dear Respected Community Leader:
As a retired Brownsville Independent School District teacher, many of my friends and I are deeply disappointed by the actions of school board member Rick Zayas.
He has not only destroyed the image of the district in less than 20 months, but in doing so it is obvious from public records that during his tenure on the school board he has put other other priorities above that of the education of our children.
His participation during his first BISD board meeting to remove a successful superintendent (Hector Gonzales) and a highly qualified CFO (Antonio Juarez) is inexcusable.
And despite the grandstanding that he and his fellow board members on the majority (Ruben Cortez, Joe Colunga, and Rolando Aguilar) have made over the audit and subsequent lawsuit against HealthSmart, this does not obscure the fact that he, as a member of the Gang of $4, attempted to manipulate the bids and steer it toward their political supporter.
To quote a local insurance expert: "The CTI audit results are not convincing in our opinion. We suspect that reasonable exceptions can be made, and will be made and exposed during the discovery process. This lawsuit could open a Pandora's Box with unintended consequences."
In other words, we haven't gotten the full story behind the lawsuit or the dismal failure of the BISD administration and the board to monitor the health insurance services they signed on with that company. I suspect we will find out that there was negligence on the district's part in negotiating and in supervising the performance of the contract.
Additionally, if one reviews Cameron County courts records you will find that he represented a BISD school principal in a divorce matter while he was on the board, clearly a conflict of interest on his part and perhaps even an ethical violation as an officer of the court (2008-11-6025-c). Incidentally, his client was was elevated from an elementary school principal to a middle school principal during his watch, perhaps even with his vote. Is this appropriate at any level? Certainly, the entire Brownsville community by now is aware of the fact that Mr. Zayas and fellow board member Cortez are not only friendly, but are members of at least two if not more business corporations who have been documented to have failed to pay their state taxes.
It is also a notorious fact that the duo of Zayas and Cortez first obtained the lucrative Cameron County Jail Commissary contract without the benefit of the bidding process. It was no coincidence to find out after the fact that the Chief Deputy for the Sheriff’s Department is Cortez's first cousin.
In closing, for Mr. Zayas and Mr. Cortez to draw on BISD taxpayer funds to sue the Texas Attorney General to protect former A.D. Joe Rodriquez – after it was obvious that two reports existed that raised numerous allegations that he had perhaps committed numerous violations against district policies and maybe even stae and federal law – was the last straw for many folks in Brownsville.
Join the silent majority in restoring our once magnificent district back to prominent stature by talking to your family and friends and let’s get ready for CHANGE in the fall BISD elections.