City College And Teachers’ Union Reach Settlement Over Fabricated Document Incident

City College of San Francisco and its teachers’ union announced a strange settlement Monday over a purported false financial document used during tense labor negotiations two years ago.

The resolution stems from the American Federation of Teachers Local 2121's 2023 unfair labor practices complaint with the state regarding former Chancellor David Martin's presentation of a "created" document from 2020 in a financial report justifying the transfer of $21 million of general funds into a retiree trust fund.

The settlement terms are the college and the union agreed the document was “not created in 2023,” no timeline to return $21 million taken from a trust fund was ever approved and neither group is liable in the matter.

“Martin presented his false information publicly to our Board of Trustees, to AFT in the midst of contract negotiations, and, most disturbingly, to the [Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges] as part of the college’s accreditation process, which happens every eight years and is essential to our mission, students, and community,” the union posted on its website Tuesday.

A union representative was not made available for an interview by press time.

The California Public Employment Relations Board issued a complaint against the college over the incident in August 2024, months before Martin left the college and joined Sierra College as assistant superintendent/vice president of admin services.

A representative from Sierra College declined to comment on the incident or make Martin available for an interview.

While the union maintains the incident amounts to management fraud, City College's administration said there was no “financial fraud, nor were any charges filed against the former chancellor for financial misconduct.”

A spokesperson for the Office of District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said he could not comment on whether there was an open investigation into the matter.

“The college has robust financial safeguards in place, a balanced budget for this year, and it recently received clean audits from our external auditing firm,” said Alexandra Céspedes Kent, the college’s spokesperson. “The college's administrators and board are working diligently to ensure fiscal sustainability and responsibility at CCSF.”

Board President Anita Martinez did respond to an emailed request for comment.

While the labor violation case was scheduled for a formal hearing, the teachers’ union decided to settle since the issue no longer had a financial remedy.

“The district has acknowledged the truth and it is time now to move forward: to repair the enrollment damage caused by Martin’s misguided layoffs in key areas such as English and Chemistry and to choose a new chancellor with the integrity, follow through and vision needed to make CCSF thrive,” according to the union.

The college community this week is interviewing five finalists for chancellor.