Fargo Public Schools recall, North Dakota (2021)
| Fargo Public Schools recall |
|---|
 |
| Officeholders |
Tracie Newman Seth Holden Nikkie Gullickson |
| Recall status |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2021 Recalls in North Dakota North Dakota recall laws School board recalls Recall reports |
An effort to recall four of the nine members of the Fargo Public Schools Board of Education did not go to a vote in 2021. Not enough petition signatures were verified to put the recall on the ballot.[1] Recall supporters asked the North Dakota Secretary of State and Attorney General of North Dakota to review the petitions, but both offices declined, saying they had no further authority over the recall process.[2]
The recall effort began in May 2021. Members Jim Johnson, Tracie Newman, Seth Holden, and Nikkie Gullickson were named in the recall petitions.[3][4] To get the recalls on the ballot, supporters had to collect 4,144 signatures per board member by August 25, 2021.[5][6][7] Recall supporters collected more than 4,400 signatures per board member. The school district verified between 2,879 and 3,081 for each member.[1]
Recall supporters cited school boundary line changes, mask mandates, treatment of teachers, hybrid schooling, use of federal funds, lack of communication, and the belief that some school board members want to incorporate critical race theory into the curriculum as reasons for the recall effort. In response to the recall, Johnson said he had seen no movement toward incorporating critical race theory into public school curricula at the state or school district level.[3][5][7]
The other five members of the board could not be recalled because their seats were scheduled to be up for regular election in June 2022.[5]
To read about other recall efforts related to the coronavirus and government responses to the pandemic, click here.
Recall supporters
The recall effort was started by "a group of parents and concerned residents who have banded together to recall all eligible members," according to the group's website.[8] Recall supporters cited "school boundaries, mask mandates, teacher treatment, hybrid schooling and use of federal funds," as reasons for the recall effort, according to Inforum.[5] They also cited the belief that some school board members want to incorporate critical race theory into the district's curriculum.[7]
“There have been many things as a parent I have been left with more questions than answers on and ultimately feeling like I have no voice in the conversation at all,” Allie Ollenburger, a district parent and member of the recall group, said. “I am trying to ensure all the parents' voices have been heard. This is not my voice only, this is a collective voice of parents’ concerns."[5]
Recall supporters also said lack of communication was a reason for the recall effort. “I’ve emailed the superintendent; I’ve emailed school board members and I never get a response back. I have yet to get a single response back,” Trisha Captain, another member of the recall group, said.[3]
Recall opponents
In response to the recall, Johnson said he had seen no movement toward incorporating critical race theory into public school curricula at the state or school district level. "And in the long run I would be surprised if they think this is a winning political issue," Johnson said. "It’s unfortunate when people want to politicize school boards. We have a very nonpartisan role and that’s to educate all the kids no matter what political affiliation their parents belong to."[7]
Fargo Public Schools spokeswoman AnnMarie Campbell said critical race theory had not been and would never be incorporated into the district's curriculum. "Critical race theory is not part of the ND K-12 Education Content Standards nor is it built into the Fargo Public Schools curriculum. Critical race theory is being confused with diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts in communities and specifically within school settings,” Campbell said.[7]
A counter-effort to the recall, called Decline to Sign, was organized by the nonprofit Prairie Action ND. Amy Jacobson, the executive director of Prairie Action ND, said, "The cost of this recall, there are so many issues with it, but it is ultimately very costly. The projected timeline for a recall election would be just six months ahead of our standard election cycle. Their timing is hapless, irresponsible, and unnecessary. This recall effort is misled and disruptive, and does nothing to help our schools, our students, or our teachers."
In response to the recall effort, School Board President Rebecca Knutson published the following statement:[3]
| “ | I understand there is a group exploring a recall effort of four members of the Fargo Board of Education. That is the right of the voters, as spelled out in North Dakota Century Code. The process of a recall is separate from the official work of the Board. It is not appropriate for me to make comments on behalf of the Board on individual members, other than to say I value every Board member that is currently serving.
|
” |
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in North Dakota
Before a petition can be circulated in North Dakota, the Secretary of State must approve the format of the petition. To get a school board recall on the ballot in the state, supporters must collect signatures equal "in number to 25 percent of the voters of the political subdivision who voted in the most recent election in which the official sought to be recalled was on the ballot, not including other recall elections." Supporters have 90 days to collect the signatures.[6]
To get the Fargo school board recalls on the ballot, supporters had to to collect 4,144 signatures per board member. The petitions had to be submitted to the school business manager by August 25, 2021.[5][6][7]
Ballotpedia covered 35 coronavirus-related recall efforts against 94 officials in 2022, accounting for 13% of recalls that year. This is a decrease from both 2020 and 2021. COVID-related recalls accounted for 37% of all recall efforts in both 2020 and 2021. In 2020, there were 87 COVID-related recalls against 89 officials, and in 2021, there were 131 against 214 officials.
The chart below compares coronavirus-related recalls to recalls for all other reasons in 2020, 2021, and 2022.
2021 recall efforts
- See also: School board recalls
Ballotpedia tracked 92 school board recall efforts against 237 board members in 2021. Recall elections against 17 board members were held in 2021. The school board recall success rate was 0.42%.
The chart below details the status of 2021 recall efforts by individual school board member.
See also
- Fargo Public Schools, North Dakota
- Recall campaigns in North Dakota
- Political recall efforts, 2021
- School board recalls
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- Fargo Public Schools
- North Dakota Secretary of State
- Recall Fargo School Board website
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Valley News Live, "No recall election to be held for Fargo School Board," September 22, 2021
- ↑ Valley News Live, "ND Secretary of State, Attorney General won’t be reviewing FPS recall signatures," September 23, 2021
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Valley News Live, "FPS parents launch campaign to recall four school board members," June 1, 2021
- ↑ Recall Fargo School Board 2021, "Home," accessed June 4, 2021
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 Inforum, "'Fed up' parents aim to recall 4 Fargo School Board members," June 2, 2021
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 North Dakota Secretary of State, "2019-2021 RECALLING AN ELECTED OFFICIAL OF THE STATE OR A POLITICAL SUBDIVISION," accessed June 4, 2021
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 Inforum, "Push to recall Fargo School Board members nears halfway point," July 19, 2021
- ↑ Recall Fargo School Board 2021, "Why Is This Important?" accessed June 4, 2021
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
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