It’s Just my Opinion: It’s Time for the Burbank Board of Education to Take Responsibility and Restore Dignity

It’s just my opinion…

Over the past few weeks, myBurbank has been inundated with Letters to the Editor criticizing the school board’s actions. For years, I had been critical of the Board and the way they handled matters and personnel.

Let’s review.

Back in 2022, I brought up how the Board was going to rip up the contract of Superintendent Matt Hill, which had over a year and a half left and give him a new contract with a $10,000 raise, giving him a base salary of $260,642.00 (more than our Governor) plus other benefits in a contract that was to expire in June of 2025. The old contract expired in June of 2024.

So instead of letting the old contract run its course and making a determination, they gave him a sweet new deal and then fired him in June 2024. So instead of letting his contract run out and not rehiring him, they paid him an additional year’s salary per the new contract, costing Burbank taxpayers $300,000 plus.

During the Matt Hill reign of mediocrity, numerous principals jumped ship, and others were brought in. All with the Board’s knowledge and approval. In the past couple of years, it has been musical chairs when it comes to administrators who come and go.

One controversial hire by Hill, Andrew Cantwell, has been involved in many financial controversies in the past few years.

To start with, I have met Cantwell once, when he did a podcast in favor of the recent bond measure. We got along fine, and I thought he was a pleasant guy. But being a pleasant guy does not mean he has earned my trust. In fact, I have wondered about his abilities, given his past history with employment.

He was the Superintendent of Schools for the Ojai School District for a couple of years before suddenly leaving and taking a job as a Principal at a religious high school in Texas. That lasted just a year when he suddenly turned up in Burbank to assist Matt Hill. People in Ojai have remained mute on the subject, but we have seen in many jobs that if they convince people to leave, they just wash their hands, and now it’s someone else’s problem.

That’s when a series of mistakes began to happen.

Let’s start with the ‘missing millions’ and the scapegoat. In what was thought to be a great move, the District lured Debbie Kukta away from her position as the Treasurer for the City of Burbank in July 2019 and gave her the job of Assistant Superintendent, Administrative Services. That just lasted three years, with insiders telling me that she was increasingly upset with the duties she was asked to perform that had nothing to do with finance. She resigned in 2022 and now has a job she is happy in.

But after she left before the ‘missing millions’ came to light, the first thing Cantwell did was throw Kukta under the bus for something she had nothing to do with. Because he had no ties to the Burbank community and was unaware that she was a trusted and beloved figure here who had accomplished great things in her years as Treasurer, the outcry was tremendous, and Cantwell had to address the Board and apologize for implicating her.

That should have been a red flag right there.

That led to the firing of Hill, but Cantwell somehow held on.

Let’s move on to 2024 and the Charlene Tabet situation. Here is what the District said at the time:

“On September 5, 2024, the District approved a contract with a vendor named Specialized Support Services with a maximum amount of $90,000. The contract was purportedly signed by [Trustee BreeAnn M. Weist], the adult daughter of Trustee Charlene Tabet.  At that meeting, Trustee Tabet did not disclose her daughter’s purported interest in the contract and did not recuse herself from the vote.  Moreover, the other members of the Board were not informed of Ms. Weist’s involvement in the contract.  Ultimately, the District paid $93,000 under the contract, from December 2024 to May 2025. 

The contract was on the Board’s June 5, 2025, agenda for renewal. On Friday, May 30, District staff was made aware of serious concerns regarding the circumstances surrounding the contract. In particular, staff learned that Trustee Tabet had created a limited liability company named Specialized Support Services in early December 2024.   

Upon receipt of these concerns and information, District staff immediately began an investigation. On June 4, 2025, District staff referred the matter to law enforcement and provided relevant documentation. The matter is now an active law enforcement investigation and the District is fully cooperating with law enforcement.”

Question – if Cantwell was in charge of finances and contracts for the district, why did HE not catch this? In fact, the contract was up for renewal on June 5, 2025, when the allegations were made public. 

So now, another financial controversy, another Superintendent steps down, Tabet had yet to be seen at another Board meeting, with no resignation in sight.  

And once again, Cantwell takes no responsibility.

What is a little disturbing to some is how he continues to get promoted, now the Chief Administrator for the District, along with working as their lawyer. What could go wrong there? There are foxes watching the henhouse that are jealous.

There have been long-standing rumors regarding Mr. Cantwell’s presence at work, including speculation about whether he has been permitted to work from home. Upon reviewing his most recent CAO contract, I found no stipulation that authorizes remote work. Additionally, Mr. Cantwell has been absent from all Board of Education meetings since June 5, 2025. The reason for this extended absence remains unclear. How arrogant is it to make hundreds of thousands of dollars from taxpayers every year and not want to show up to his office and be accountable to those people? Why has the Board let this happen for the past several years? And if they did not know about it, what else does that tell you about the oversight of the school board?

The Board voted to change the elections from at-large to districts, even though they were not forced to, and even though, on the record, they say they want to change it back.

Yes, that is the crickets you are hearing.

Now, with the Board unable to break a tie as long as Tabet does not resign, are they taking their eyes off the ball, which is the bond money?

And who is going to oversee the Bond money and the process? I really can’t make this stuff up.  

As CAO, Mr. Cantwell is responsible for overseeing several critical areas, including risk management, legal services, workers’ compensation, and the administration of the ABC Bond Measure. More specifically, the CAO is tasked with supervising and servicing all projects funded by the ABC Bond Measure.

Speaking of the ABC Bond Measure, it is important to note that Burbank Unified School District (BUSD) is currently not in compliance with California Education Code Section 15278. This section mandates that a Citizens’ Oversight Committee be established and appointed within 60 days of the governing board acknowledging the results at a board meeting, which they did in January of 2025.  Side note here, and an important one, is that the agenda item that was submitted to inform the board and community was completed by Mr. Andrew Cantwell.   

While BUSD has initiated an application process, which was shared late in April 2025, for committee membership, the required oversight committee has not been timely formed following the validation of the election results, raising concerns about transparency and accountability in the management of bond funds.  Please reference the Board of Education – January 16, 2025.  Specifically look at the agenda items submitted by Mr. Cantwell.  

I have tried to waive the red flags in the past, and it seems no one really cares about what happens at the school district. Now you see what happens when strong public oversight does not exist, and you get the current Board and the current problems. I was encouraged when they named Macias the Interim Superintendent. I have known him for a while and he is one of the most professional, honest people you will meet with an actual passion for the schools, their students, teachers and principals.

I just hope it is not too late before the next financial misstep takes place.  To the Burbank Board of Education, it is time for action.  Will you take action?  Are you identifying leadership personnel who are not the right fit to improve our beloved district? What real connection does Cantwell have to the City of Burbank to make these long-term decisions, or is he just here for the paycheck? Given his employment history, will he even be around to see the changes implemented?

To the Burbank Community, get involved and make your voices heard. Let’s restore the Burbank Unified School system to its former status as one of the shining beacons of Los Angeles County.