We, the undersigned community members, stakeholders, and concerned individuals of Woodland Hills, CA and El Camino Real Charter High School (ECR), express our profound concern and urgently request action regarding the persistent and repeated actions of the current Board Chair, Brad Wright.

ECR's Board of Directors is entrusted with the crucial role of providing oversight and governance in accordance with the principles of transparency, accountability, and ethical governance. As part of their training, board members are explicitly educated on the distinction that they are not an administrative board, but rather an oversight board. This training serves as a foundation upon which board members are expected to carry out their duties.

Mr. Wright consistently and deliberately disregards the limitations of his authority as outlined in the governance principles of The Brown Act and protocols established for ECR's Board of Directors and, in doing so, has compromised the integrity of the board's governance, subjected staff members, parents and students to the adverse effects of corruption and cronyism, and has created what ECR’s teachers describe as an extremely unhealthy and toxic work environment.

In the list of grievances below, the validity of the information has either been witnessed first-hand, or has been confirmed, fact-checked and corroborated by multiple involved parties. The individuals providing this information have asked to remain anonymous until such time that they are not in risk of retaliation from Mr. Wright, resulting in their wrongful termination. Mr. Wright’s unethical actions include, but are not limited to, 

• Overstepping authority and violation of governance principles by inserting himself into administrative functions on a daily basis that fall outside the purview of the Board of Directors. He consistently acts in the role of an ECR employee and has repeatedly sat in on teachers’ classes, attended various departmental meetings, and is known for issuing directives to employees and ECR’s executive administration even though he neither holds a superior position nor is he an employee of ECR.
• Retaliatory, slanderous behavior in the way of malicious, unsubstantiated investigations against ECR staff members and parent groups whom he deems to be a political threat.
• Possible violation of California Penal Code 11166 during one such investigation when Mr. Wright initiated the suspension of an ECR teacher for a suspected inappropriate relationship with a minor. Even though Mr. Wright was the individual who brought about the investigation, he failed to follow proper protocol dictated by California law that requires notifying child protective services immediately if there is reasonable suspection of child abuse.
• Reckless, corrupt actions to advance Mr. Wright’s own political and professional agenda which has resulted in multiple active lawsuits of complaints such as wrongful termination and defamation.
• Corrupt and dishonest practices during ECR Board operations in Sept. 2021 when Mr. Wright allegedly manipulated a situation under false pretenses to have two political opponents removed from the board by incorrectly claiming they violated a communications policy and misused public funds.

In addition to the list above, Mr. Wright continues to serve as Board Chair even though he is not an eligible candidate due to being a parent of a current ECR student. According to ECR’s current charter petition (submitted Sept. 15, 2020), the Board Chair position is classified as a “Community Member” position. Page 161 states that the Board may choose to select a current parent to serve in the “Community Member” capacity in the event that the Board cannot find a suitable non-parent community member to serve in this capacity. It is important to note that ECR Board members are on record during Mr. Wright’s initial appointment in Nov. 2020 as saying they realize he is a parent, but “by the time she gets to high school, his term will be over.”  

Mr. Wright’s daughter became a student in June of 2023, yet the Board has made no effort to find an eligible candidate, and Mr. Wright continues to serve as the Board Chair.

Mr. Wright’s actions have eroded the ethical foundation upon which ECR's governance should stand, undermining the trust and confidence that the community and stakeholders place in the Board of Directors and the school itself.

We believe that such actions are not only detrimental to the organization but also undermine the very principles that govern our charter high school. It is essential that we take decisive action to uphold the distinction between the board's oversight role and administrative functions and to ensure that the board operates within the boundaries set forth in its training.

Request for Immediate Action

In light of Mr. Wright’s history with ECR, the complaints and grievances listed above, and the consistent overstepping of authority that is in violation of governance principles, we urgently request the Board of Directors to take immediate and decisive action to address these concerns. 

Specifically, we request the removal of Brad Wright from his position as Board Chair and a thorough review of ethical governance procedures to prevent future overstepping of authority by any board member.

In the event that the Board of Directors fails to take prompt and decisive action in addressing these concerns, it risks being perceived as complicit in these violations and may also be in breach of its obligation to uphold the rules and standards it has established.

Mr. Wright’s actions have undermined the principles of honesty and accountability that are essential to ethical governance. By addressing these concerns, we can reaffirm our commitment to uphold the transparent, accountable, and ethical governance at ECR, preserving the integrity of our school’s mission and reputation.