When Rialto Unified school board member Edgar Montes apologized recently for his “inadvertent” vote to hire his mother for a district job, in violation of board bylaws, he neglected to mention that he had done it before.
The issue first came to light a day after Montes’ mother, Maria Montes Torres, resigned April 16 from the position she held as a part-time cafeteria worker amid a Southern California News Group inquiry into her hiring.
In a statement the next day, Edgar Montes acknowledged his mother stepped down after it was revealed he had voted to hire her on Aug. 10, 2022, as a part-time nutrition service worker. Montes’ vote violated school board bylaws related to conflict of interest, which state, “Even if there is not a prohibited conflict of interest, a Board member shall abstain from voting on personnel matters that uniquely affect his/her relatives.”
Montes apologized for his vote, saying it was “inadvertent” because he had neglected to thoroughly review the board agenda materials that listed his mother’s name among the new hires. Maria Montes Torres, 63, of Bloomington worked for nearly three years at Preston and Morgan elementary schools before she resigned.
As it turns out, that was the second time Montes had cast a vote to hire his mother.
During the Jan. 26, 2022, school board meeting, he and four other board members approved the hiring of his mother as a substitute nutrition service worker. However, at that time, her name appeared on the agenda under the alias “Christina Montes Torres.”
Rhonda Kramer, the district’s lead personnel agent, confirmed in an email that Maria Montes Torres and Christina Montes Torres were, in fact, the same person.
Montes did not respond to questions about whether he was aware he had also voted to hire his mother in January 2022, and why his mother’s first name appeared differently on the January and August board agendas that year.
Maria Montes Torres could not be reached for comment.
In his April 17 statement, Montes, in part, blamed then-Rialto Unified Superintendent Cuauhtemoc Avila for not providing him proper guidance following his Aug. 10, 2022, vote.
“It is unfortunate that any of this has resulted from my oversight and failure to insist that the superintendent should have taken appropriate remedial action at the time the incident occurred,” Montes said in his statement.
In recent months, Avila and Montes have squared off in the public arena, leveling allegations against one another in claims filed against the district or from behind the dais in school board chambers.
Avila was fired by the board, without cause, on Feb. 19 following a nearly 10-month investigation into a sexual harassment complaint he said was determined to be unfounded. He filed a claim against the district in November accusing Montes of corrupt practices, including an allegation that the board member wanted Avila “to hire family members and/or friends of his, even if they were unqualified and did not meet hiring requirements.”
During a board meeting Feb. 5 , Montes launched into a 14-minute tirade against Avila and other opponents.
Montes has never explained why his mother or someone from the district’s Nutrition Services department did not brief him that his mother was a potential hiring prospect.
“It reminds me of the old saying, ‘what a tangled web we weave when we practice to deceive,’ ” said Steven Figueroa, an education advocate of more than 30 years and an opponent of Montes. “He used to accuse others of corruption, and now he stands accused of corruption. We call upon him to resign.”
Montes, however, does have his supporters. A recent editorial published in the Black Voice News referred to Montes as a “local example of political integrity,” noting, among other things, that he was recognized with a Distinguished Service Award in 2021 from the San Bernardino County School Boards Association.
In her editorial, Black Voice News Executive Editor S.E. Williams called the resignation of Montes’ mother “extreme,” given that Montes acknowledged he did not review the board agenda’s consent calendar thoroughly.
“In the meantime, Montes has provided a glimmer of hope regarding the level of integrity we expect from elected officials. He acknowledged his mistake and, although he did not act immediately, he did seek guidance when the error came to light,” Williams wrote.
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