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The entire Oakley Union Elementary School District school board abruptly quit on Friday, two days after members were surprised by an open mic disparaging parents and using foul language at the start of a virtual board meeting.
The loss of the school board in the county town of Contra Costa prompted the county school board to immediately appoint two of its members to temporarily oversee the district. A third named person is on hold. The temporary board will be in place until new school board members are elected or appointed, said school district superintendent Greg Hetrick.
The crisis for the district comes amid the coronavirus school closures and as parents pushed their local councils to reopen schools.
It was this question that led to the open mic comments on Wednesday. Before the official start of the meeting, board members spoke casually about parents who complained about children still in distance learning. They didn’t realize as they spoke that the online meeting was already open to the public and their comments could be heard by others.
Board chair Lisa Brizendine said: “It’s such a shame that they have to come after us because they want their babysitters to come back.” The rest of the board agreed. One of them used profanity when referring to a relative and the group laughed while mocking the parents.
At one point, a listener sent a message to the group saying their comments were being heard.
“Nah-uh,” Brizendine said. Then, after realizing the comments had been heard, she said, sarcastically, “Great.”
Video of the meeting, which was later uploaded to YouTube, immediately sparked an uproar among parents and led to a petition calling for the resignation of the board members involved.
In a letter to families in the district on Friday, Hetrick said Brizendine and other board members Kim Beede, Erica Ippolito and Richie Masadas have tendered their resignations. A fifth place on the board was vacant.
Beede, Ippolito and Masadas issued a joint statement saying they “deeply regret the comments that were made at the Education Council meeting earlier this week.
“As administrators, we realize that it is our responsibility to model the conduct that we expect from our students and staff, and it is our obligation to build trust in district leaders; our comments failed you on both counts, and for that we offer our sincere apologies, ”they wrote.
Hetrick called the comments “unfortunate and truly inappropriate.” He said the school district would continue its efforts to “bring our students back to school.”
After the resignations, County School Board President Annette Lewis was appointed on Friday, along with County Council Member Mike Maxwell to the Oakley School Board.
“I look forward to working with the (Oakley) community to determine the best course of action to fill these seats with people who will represent the best interests of students, families, teachers and school staff,” said Lewis.
The Oakley board needs three members to have a quorum. The third vacant position will be filled either by the members of the Consuelo Lara County Council or by Alaina Villeda.
Brizendine did not respond to emails and a phone call seeking comment on Friday.
She apologized for the remarks she described as “insensitive and unwarranted” in a statement provided to KTVU News. She said she is raising a child with special needs while working two jobs, describing the situation as “tremendous stress”.
Michael Williams is a writer for the San Francisco Chronicle. Email: [email protected] Twitter: @michaeldamianw
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