Los Alamitos Unified School District recall, California (2021)
| Los Alamitos Unified School District recall |
|---|
 |
| Officeholders |
Scott Fayette Megan Cutuli |
| Recall status |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2021 Recalls in California California recall laws School board recalls Recall reports |
An effort to recall three of the five members of the Los Alamitos Unified School District Board of Education in California did not go to a vote. Recall supporters did not submit petitions to the Orange County Registrar of Voters by their December deadline.[1]
The recall effort began in September 2021. Trustee Area 2 representative Chris Forehan, Trustee Area 4 representative Scott Fayette, and Trustee Area 5 representative Megan Cutuli were named in the notices of intent to recall.[2][3]
The recall effort started after a middle school teacher in the district sent a survey out to students in the first week of school asking them their preferred pronouns. Recall supporters said they did not think the teacher's survey was appropriate for minors and said the board of education was at fault for creating an atmosphere in which a teacher would create such a survey. The board members said they were committed to providing support for students to succeed academically.[4]
Recall supporters said they did not include the other two members of the board in the recall effort because they were scheduled to be up for re-election in 2022.[4]
Forehan and Fayette were first elected to the board in 2020. Cutuli was elected to her fifth term on the board in the same election.[2]
Recall supporters
The notices of intent to recall were served by Robert Aguilar. He said he represented 2,000 parents in the district. "The parents are here to regain control over what is being enforced on and taught to their children," Aguilar said.[4]
"[The teacher] had been asking students to share their gender identification and gender preference and not be scared to do that, but you could see it as a certain way of communicating with children," Aguilar said. "However, there are parents that believe that is not the place for a science teacher. There was some concern, 'Why would an adult man be asking minor children under the age of 14 about their sexuality?'"[4]
"Parents are not willing to wait until November 2024 to vote out the entire school board," Aguilar said. "So the recall is necessary to allow changes to be made sooner, for the benefit and safety of our children and their families."[5]
Recall opponents
In response to the recall, Forehan said he acted in the best interest of the students, staff, and community. "I look back since November and feel proud of all that we have accomplished, including reopening our schools with adherence to state requirements, increasing our wellness program counselors, and increasing our efforts to maintain our schools where each and every child feels safe and valued," Forehan said. "We are committed to providing our students the support they need at this time to continue to be academically successful. As I have done throughout my career in education, kids come first and will remain my focus."[4]
Cutuli said, "The cost of the election will be paid for by the district and it will affect our students. This group wants to take over the school board and make sweeping changes and replace personnel. One of the things I have been most proud of in Los Alamitos USD is our constant striving to be better at everything we do. This is not the way to better serve our students and community."[5]
Fayette said the board had increased staffing in the district to support the mental health of students and staff, including "additional tutoring programs and staff tutoring hours to support students academically."[5]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in California
Recall supporters served the three board members with notices of intent to recall at a board meeting on September 28, 2021.[4] Before recall petitions could be circulated, the Orange County Registrar of Voters had to certify them.[5]
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
- Los Alamitos Unified School District, California
- Recall campaigns in California
- Political recall efforts, 2021
- School board recalls
- States that allow school board recalls
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- Los Alamitos Unified School District
- Orange County Registrar of Voters
- Los Alamitos School Board Recall website
- Support Los Alamitos School District website
Footnotes
- ↑ Abbey Smith, “Email communication with Orange County Registrar of Voters Neal Kelley," December 23, 2021
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Event-NewsEnterprise, "LAUSD facing recall as residents notify board of intention," September 30, 2021
- ↑ Los Alamitos Unified School District, "Board of Education," accessed October 7, 2021
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Spectrum News 1, "Parents want to recall Los Alamitos school board after teacher asks students their preferred pronouns," September 29, 2021
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Event-NewsEnterprise, "In front of supporters and opponents, 3 LAUSD Board of Ed Trustees get recall notices," October 6, 2021
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