Special Election to Fill Dublin Unified School District Trustee Seat to be Held June 4, 2019

Newly Appointed Trustee Niranjana Natarajan Appointment Terminated Due to Community Petition

Dublin, CA – February 1, 2019 – During the regularly scheduled Board meeting on December 11, 2018, the Dublin Unified School District Board of Trustees selected Niranjana “Nini” Natarajan as its provisional appointee. Ms. Natarajan replaced former Trustee Joe Giannini, who resigned from the board in October 2018. (We interviewed Mrs. Natarajan earlier this year.)

Following the appointment of Ms. Natarajan, community members had a thirty-day window to challenge the Board’s selection by filing a petition with the County Superintendent of Schools. A petition to nullify the appointment was submitted on January 2, 2019. At that point, the County Superintendent of Schools had thirty days to work with the Alameda County Registrar of Voters and verify the required number of valid signatures were provided.

Niranjana Natarajan (red jacket)

To challenge the appointment, signatures from 1.5% of the registered voters were required. Since the appointment was for Trustee Area 4, which has approximately 5,000 registered voters, at least 75 valid signatures were needed for the petition to be sufficient.

On February 1, the Alameda County Registrar of Voters completed the examination of the petition challenging the appointment of Trustee Natarajan and concluded the petition had 126 valid signatures, which exceeded the requisite number needed to move forward. As a result of this action, the appointment of Ms. Niranjana Natarajan has been terminated, effective immediately.

Per state educational code (Ed. Code, § 5091, subd. (c)(1)), the County Superintendent has called for a special election on June 4, 2019, to fill the vacancy.

Dr. Leslie Boozer, Superintendent, Dublin Unified School District expressed, “We thank Ms. Natarajan for her commitment to the community and desire to serve as a Trustee.”

“While I respect the process and the right of our community to pursue this course of action, we have a successful history of appointing board members in Dublin,” said Board President Amy Miller. “Regardless of the outcome, this challenge, and the associated special election, will cost the District tens of thousands of dollars that would be better spent on our students.”

About the Dublin Unified School District

The Dublin Unified School District serves over 12,300 students, from preschool through adult education, in a diverse suburban environment. The district has 12 school sites, including seven elementary schools, two middle schools, one K-8, and two high schools. The Dublin Unified School District mission is to educate every student to become a lifelong learner by providing a safe and supportive environment that fosters collective responsibility for each student’s success. Dublin schools have been recognized with numerous accolades, including Advanced Placement Honor Roll, National Blue Ribbon School, Gold Ribbon Award, Project Lead The Way Distinguished School, California School of Character, National School of Character, California Distinguished School, and Title 1 Academic Achievement Award School.