EPISD Watchdog Says He Raised Red Flags To No Avail About Garcia’s Crooked Contract

Dan Wever doesn’t think his reputation among school board members in the El Paso Independent School District is very good.

“They probably think I’m a nut,” said Wever. “I send them a lot of information.”

Wever, a former school board president, said he often sends trustees pages and pages of e-mails with concerns. Some are backed up by evidence he has researched, others are issues he has heard from sources.

One such e-mail, sent to all trustees in April 2010, proved to be accurate. Wever raised concerns about a contract awarded in 2006 between the district and a company called Infinity Resources & Associates.

“It just looked bogus,” said Wever.

Wever spelled out specific concerns about the contract in the e-mail, including questions over the contract’s sole-source designation, its cost, and the legitimacy of the company.

Wever said none of the trustees replied to his red flags.

Less than two weeks ago, Wever’s suspicions were proven right. EPISD’s former superintendent, Dr. Lorenzo Garcia, admitted in federal court to lying to the 2006 school board in order to secure the Infinity contract for a mistress, which cheated the district out of thousands of dollars.

Wever said he wishes trustees had looked into the matter as soon as he sent them the e-mail. “I don’t think the FBI was looking into the contract at that time,” said Wever.

Isela Castanon-Williams, the board’s current president, said she does not remember receiving Wever’s e-mail. “Serious issues like the ones Mr. Wever sent are really more FBI issues,” she said.

Castanon-Williams said she respects Wever and appreciates the effort he puts into bringing concerns to the community’s attention. However, she added the school board has limited resources to pursue an investigation like the one that ultimately brought Garcia to justice.

“Mr. Wever knows the serious limitations board members have with no staff, no pay, no office. He could have said, ‘I’ve been on the board. They’re not going to be able to do anything given what their resources are, which are zip. I should take this to the FBI myself,” she said.

Wever would not confirm whether he took his findings to the FBI.

He said he sympathizes with the board, but added he wishes trustees had taken his concerns to the district’s internal auditor.

“He would have been able to look at this and check it out himself and find out the same thing that I did,” said Wever.

Castanon-Williams said trustees encourage consituents to come to them with concerns and will check them out when possible. She added the board is now taking more proactive steps to ensure district-related investigations are carried out in a better way, such as requring its internal auditor to submit weekly, detailed reports instead of monthly ones. She said the board is also insisting important updates be shared with all board officers.