Why Susan Stoops should be recalled

As board chair, Susan Stoops sets the tone for the entire board.  During her tenure as chair, working relationships among the stakeholders in our district have worsened, and lines of communication have been effectively severed.  The board has become dysfunctional, and though it is the designated legal entity that can place checks on the superintendent, through Susan Stoops’ influence it has failed to do so.  This situation cannot be allowed to continue.

She has used her position to restrict communication by:

• Promoting a set of operating agreements that would channel all communication through the chair or the superintendent and prevent the free flow of ideas and opinions
• Limiting public comments at board meetings
• Preventing discussion between board members and the public at board meetings
• Refusing to respond to public comments or concerns either at board meetings or subsequently

She has failed to respond to concerns voiced by the staff or the public:

• She never followed up on the vote of no confidence by staff, instead professing her unwavering support for the superintendent who was the subject of that vote.
• She never followed up on concerns raised by members of the public at a community forum in November of 2009 despite her promises to do so
• She claimed that no complaints regarding the superintendent had been received despite multiple, on-going concerns raised at board meetings
• She failed to respond when formal complaints were filed – which is a violation of the board’s policy.