Santa Clara Federation of Teachers v. Governing Board

— The Santa Clara Unified School District and its Governing Board (hereafter the Board) appeal from a judgment granting a peremptory writ of mandate directing it to reconsider its actions in terminating 60 certificated employees. Respondents are the United Teachers of Santa Clara, the Santa Clara Federation of Teachers, Local 2393, and a number of individual certificated employees. This is the second appeal in this case.

In March 1975 the Board gave notice to 99 certificated employees, including the individual respondents herein, that it had been recommended that their services would not be required for the 1975-1976 school year, because of a decline in average daily attendance (ADA) and because of a decision to reduce or eliminate particular kinds of services.

The employees requested and were granted consolidated hearings before an administrative law officer (ALO). The ALO issued a proposed opinion, recommending that the board was entitled to terminate 32.8 employees because of a reduction or termination in services, and 7 employees because of the decline in ADA, for a total of 39 employees. The Board’s decision modified that proposed decision; in particular, the Board…