Heather Queyrel speaks in support of former Branham athletic director Landon Jacobs and assistant athletic director Heather Cooper during the Campbell Union High School District board meeting in San Jose, Calif., on Thursday, May 2, 2024. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
SAN JOSE — Campbell Union High School District superintendent Robert Bravo is expected to respond to a formal complaint filed in support of dismissed Branham athletic director Landon Jacobs by early next week, sources told the Bay Area News Group.
The complaint, submitted to the district office last month, called for Branham Principal Lindsay Schubert to be removed from her position and Jacobs and assistant AD Heather Cooper to be reinstated to their jobs.
Details in the complaint cannot be added to a school board agenda until Bravo formally responds in a written document to the group of Jacobs’ supporters who filed the report.
Bravo didn’t immediately reply on Friday to an email seeking comment.
On Thursday night, supporters voiced their displeasure about the ongoing saga, marking the third consecutive school board meeting in which the Jacobs situation consumed time set aside for public comments.
Among those who spoke on Thursday were Jacobs’ wife and Branham girls water polo coach Brittney Ames, Jacobs’ ex-wife Lisa Jacobs, former Branham girls basketball coach Heather Queyrel and members of the Branham sports community.
“Dr. Bravo has a formal complaint sitting on his desk asking for the reinstatement of coach Cooper and Jacobs,” Branham community member Heather Miksch said in her address to the board. “If Dr. Bravo denies the request, we will appeal to the Board of Trustees. Trustees, I don’t know any of you personally … but if Dr. Bravo fails to act, I’m trusting you to do the right thing before we spend any more taxpayer money on this and it escalates further.”
On Wednesday, Cooper had her first hearing with the school board regarding allegations that she mishandled funds in September while she worked in the athletic department.
According to Miksch, who attended Wednesday’s hearing, Cooper’s removal from her position as assistant AD stems from a check reimbursement form that she submitted.
Cooper did not respond to the Bay Area News Group’s request for an interview.
Branham appears to be moving swiftly to hire a new athletic director. Interviews for the position were held earlier this week, sources said.
Jacobs’ supporters urged the board on Thursday to not hire a new AD until the formal complaint is addressed.
“We ask the board to demand that Branham High School and the district office not conduct interviews on Friday and not hire a new athletic director while there are proceedings happening in relation to employment,” Lisa Jacobs said.
Jacobs reapplied for his old position last month but was told last week that he was not eligible to be a candidate because of rules in the collective bargaining agreement between the teachers and the district.
In addition to the formal complaint, Jacobs’ supporters filed a public records request to access all written communication and emails between Bravo, Schubert and members of the board about Jacobs’ situation, including any investigation into allegations that the former athletic director mishandled funds.
The request was filed on April 10.
According to the California Public Records Act, the board had 10 calendar days to release the correspondence or provide an explanation why it could meet the request.
The board formally asked for an extension because the request was too broad, sources said.
Thursday, the AD’s supporters continued to criticize Bravo and Schubert.
“In the April 18 meeting, Dr. Bravo said ‘the Branham community is a big community with lots of great people and maybe some people that we don’t like as much,’” Queyrel said. “Is Landon this person? Is this how the district runs? If we don’t like you, we get rid of you?”
“We filed a written grievance on April 4. No response. A public records request was filed on April 10. No response other than to say it’s too broad or to push the date. Everything seems to be moving at a glacial pace except the posting to hire a new athletic director.”
