Quick Facts About the High Desert Service Center

It's a good thing that CTA/NEA members pay big bucks (about $700/year per teacher) to keep this shoddy operation running, under the "leadership" of Bill Ribblett, the CTA/NEA High Desert Service Center (Victorville California) Representative. Here are just a few things that Bill Ribblett knew about and ignored:

• The "election" Ribblett conducted regarding a change in health insurance "benefits" for the Victor Elementary Teachers Association. That was the one where no one was provided any information on (no notice, of any kind was given prior to this surprise "vote"), and you allowed everyone present at a "back to school meeting," regardless of whether they were members of the association or not, to "vote" on the matter.
• Victor Elementary Teachers Association membership money not being deposited from CTA - only "$14,000.00" was recovered from CTA (and there could have been more but CTA only researched three years of records)
• The Victor Elementary Teachers Association's Constitution and Bylaws were grossly out of compliance with CTA requirements. (CTA Really didn't care either.)
• The Victor Elementary School District had a habit of "appointing" mentor teachers, (which often included first and second year teachers) without Association consent - in direct violation of the weak contracts the CTA High Desert Service Center had a habit of supporting.
• Election Blunders (Only 12 out of the 38 CTA Chapters "represented" by the High Desert Service Center voted.)
• Schools that discriminated against children - the High Desert Service Center Received a copy of the original complaint (it was hand delivered - with witnesses present - just to make sure Riblett couldn't claim "it wasn't delivered") that was filed with the US Department of Education.
• Classrooms are raided while children are trying to learn - Guess what? No help provided by the High Desert Service Center other than one sarcastic letter sent in response. The letter was not even sent to the people who were responsible for the "commando raid!"
• Teachers are Harassed - CTA? NEA?
• The sale of expensive High Desert Service Center office equipment to the Victor Elementary Teachers Association. This equipment then ended up in the VETA President's home instead of being used by VETA and remained there - even after that Association president quit the Association!
• The Hesperia Unified Education Association went on strike and the High Desert Service Center representative, Bill Rbblett, didn't bother to show up even though Wayne Johnson, President of the California Teachers Association did (Visit this page - it includes comments made about Bill Ribblett's "performance" or, shall we say, "lack of performance."
• The High Desert Employee/Employer "Health Trust" that went "belly-up" just a few years after Ribblett started it. Remember the guy you brought in who had "the deal of the century" that later quit his insurance brokerage firm, joined another one, and then came back with another "have I got a DEAL for you!?" Remember that no one from the Victor Elementary Teachers Association was ever elected to serve on that "trust's" board? VESD Teachers were "represented" by VESD's Assistant Superintendent of Finances! By the way, did Ribblett ever make any money off of that one?
• Other High Desert Service Center horror stories - anyone want to write a book?