Judy Manouchehri was sworn in as the new president of the Beverly Hills Unified School District (BHUSD) Board and Sigalie Sabag was sworn in as the new vice president at the board’s Dec. 16 organizational meeting.
Prior to Sabag’s election, Board Member Amanda Stern was nominated for the vice presidency by outgoing Board President Rachelle Marcus. Stern’s nomination appeared to be in keeping with the board’s bylaws, which state that the vice president is determined by rotation based on how long each member has served on the board during their current term.
The bylaws state that if, as is the case with the current board, multiple board members have “the same term of service, then they shall serve as vice president in descending order of the number of votes received in their most recent election.”
In November 2024, Stern, Sabag and Board Member Russell Stuart were all up for election with Stern up for reelection. Stern received the most votes with 26.85%, followed by Sabag with 25.26% and Stuart with 24.74%.
Manouchehri, Sabag and Stuart voted against Stern’s nomination for vice president. Stuart later nominated Sabag, who was approved in a 3-2 vote. Marcus and Stern voted against Sabag’s appointment.
Reading from a statement during the comment period discussing Stern’s appointment as vice president, Manouchehri directed a lengthy speech at Stern, listing a number of what she called “key governance capabilities.”
“For example, adhering to the Brown Act, adhering to the Board Governance handbook … not responding to the media, not calling the media and asking them to run certain articles in order to bash other board members, not relitigating board votes in the papers, not making false statements to the public about closed session matters, and not misleading the public when you voted unanimously with the rest of the board in closed session and more,” Manouchehri said.
It is not clear what articles or media Manouchehri was referencing. The Courier has not received requests or phone calls from Stern.
Directing her comments to Stern, Manouchehri claimed that she “pleaded with you on more occasions than I would like to count to please be mindful of these behaviors … with respect to you being an officer of the board, I have been very torn … but as a trustee whose sworn duty is to this district, I believe I have no choice but to vote no.”
Speaking at the end of the meeting, Stern referenced an incident in 2023 in which Manouchehri used profanity in board communication, calling Manouchehri’s actions “unacceptable, abusive and toxic.”
“I continue to want to work on this board very much, but I’m not at all surprised,” Stern added. “It’s shocking too, because the bylaws say that if you got the most votes, and that would be me, you have the longest term, then that is the person who becomes the vice president. So, it’s shocking that you guys would just go against the bylaws, ostensibly because Mr. Stuart got the lowest number of votes and you want him to be president … please don’t assume that I go around and gossip or divulge information, because it simply isn’t true.”
In a statement to the Courier on Dec. 17, Stern said that “word reached” her that the vote against her had been planned, so she had been expecting it. However, she said, “What was shocking was Mrs. Manouchehri’s prepared statement full of false allegations, which was very hurtful.”
Stern added, “Our school mission statement asks for ‘respect and integrity’ and a ‘culture of honesty.’ This is critical for board members, as we serve as role models … my colleagues know well that I aim for peace and kindness even through differences. I look forward to productive and positive work on behalf of our students.”
BHUSD told the Courier in a statement that the board “appropriately followed the law,” noting that the board bylaws and state education code both stipulate that the board is required to “elect a president, vice president, and a clerk from its members.”
“The BHUSD Board of Education fulfilled its obligation to elect a president, a vice president, and a clerk … The contradictory language in [the bylaws] which appoints a board member to the office of Vice President absent a legal vote by the school board is invalid and does not supersede education code” or other language in the bylaws, said the district.
Speaking to the Courier about why he voted against Stern’s appointment and in favor of Sabag’s, Stuart said he made the decision he thought was best for the community.
“I just simply said, I am going to vote for the person that I feel is best suited for the job for the next 12 months,” he said. “It’s nothing personal.”
