Branham athletic director saga takes another turn at latest school board meeting

Landon Jacobs named Branham’s teacher of the year by his peers hours after supporters reveal they have intensified their fight for dismissed AD

SAN JOSE — Supporters of former Branham athletic director Landon Jacobs have taken another step in their fight to find out specifically why the popular administrator – who on Friday morning was named the school’s teacher of the year in a vote by his peers – was removed last month from his position.

The group revealed at a school board meeting on Thursday night that it has filed a public records request to access all written communication and emails between superintendent Robert Bravo, Branham principal Lindsay Schubert and members of the board regarding Jacobs’ situation, plus details from any investigation into allegations that the athletic director mishandled funds.

The request was filed on April 10.

MORE BRANHAM

• Column: Can that many supporters be wrong about Landon Jacobs?
• Formal complaint provides more details about why Landon Jacobs was dismissed
• Former AD declines teaching reassignment, uncertain about future
• Branham community strongly defends dismissed AD at school board meeting
• Longtime Branham AD loses his job. The school’s community wonders why.

According to the California Public Records Act, the board has 10 calendar days to release the correspondence or provide an explanation why it cannot meet the request.

Campbell Union High School District Board of Trustees president Jason Baker confirmed during Thursday’s meeting that the district received the request and is in the process of reviewing it.

The board meeting Thursday was much more emotional than the one two weeks ago, when there was mostly a civil tone among the hundreds who came to support Jacobs. 

Karen Hojans, a Branham sports booster, criticized Bravo and the board Thursday for posting the job opening for Jacobs’ old position on April 5, just a day after the community voiced its concerns about the saga to the board.

“You ignored us,” Hojas said. “No response, no nothing. Completely silent on that subject.”

Bravo took exception, cutting off Hojas in the middle of her comments. “That’s not true,” he said “I didn’t say anything to you when you asked for him to stay.”

A group of Jacobs supporters, led by sports boosters, filed a formal complaint against Schubert on April 4 in hopes of putting the issue on a board meeting agenda.

However, the board told the group it won’t do that until Bravo writes a formal response to the complaint. According to sources close to the situation, the superintendent has 30 days to respond. He sent back 14 clarifying questions to the filer who submitted the complaint on behalf of the group, sources said. 

The 12-page document alleges Schubert unjustly removed Jacobs this spring and assistant athletic director Heather Cooper last fall while creating a culture that does not support high school sports. 

Jacobs, who presided over the Branham athletic department for 14 years, was offered a reassignment to Del Mar High School last month to teach history.

He declined the offer last week.

After news broke of his dismissal, supporters organized a change.org petition that has nearly 1,500 signatures as of Friday morning.

At Thursday’s session, Jacobs’ supporters also criticized Bravo’s response to their comments at the last board meeting.

After many of the supporters of the dismissed athletic director left the room, Bravo defended Schubert and criticized what was being written on social media.

“I am deeply concerned that on social media and in other forums, adults are not modeling civil discourse for our students,” Bravo said after the public comments two weeks ago. 

Heather Miksch, a Jacobs supporter, said Thursday that she was disappointed in the response Bravo gave at the meeting on April 4.

“Dr. Bravo had an excellent opportunity in his superintendent remarks to show leadership and deescalate the controversy by taking responsibility for the actions happening at his school,” Miksch said. 

“He did not. Instead, he embarked on a monologue so bizarre and devoid from reality … I find it disheartening that he resorted to gaslighting and maligning your own community for only speaking out because we love one of your schools so much.”

On Thursday, Bravo apologized for his comments from the previous meeting, saying he did not mean to disparage the community. 

“That was not my intent and not what I was trying to do,” Bravo said. “I thought I was recognizing and appreciating those folks that spoke last time … For those who felt I was trying to minimize the issue, I apologize to you if that’s how you feel.”