Zach Richardson recall, Sedona-Oak Creek Joint Unified School District, Arizona (2015)

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Sedona-Oak Creek Joint Unified School District recall
Officeholders
Zach Richardson
Recall status
Did not go to a vote
See also
Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2015 Recalls in Arizona Arizona recall laws School board recalls Recall reports

An effort to recall Zach Richardson from his at-large position on the Sedona-Oak Creek Joint Unified School District Governing Board in Arizona in 2015 failed to gather enough signatures to take the matter to the ballot. Recall supporters accused Richardson of intimidating teachers and residents of the district. Corin Athenour and Eric Mendelsohn were two of the recall organizers.

Richardson voluntarily stepped down as board president on January 13, 2014, but recall organizers indicated that they would continue to seek his removal. On May 8, 2015, petitioners announced their signature deadline had passed, and they were unable to meet the signature requirement to take the matter to the ballot.

Recall supporters

Arguments for recall

Athenour criticized Richardson saying that he "succeeded in intimidating teachers, district members and parents."

Recall petition language

The following petition statement was posted by recall supporters on their website:

“	Zach Richardson has failed to consistently meet the following responsibilities of a school board member as set forth by the Arizona School Boards Association: “Support its organization by ensuring that resources are adequate and aligned to meet established goals.” (The goals of improving test scores, reducing staff turnover and improving student retention at West Sedona School have not been served by adding a second principal.) The budget override passed in 2013 was meant to increase teacher salaries and preserve programs, not add another layer of administrative costs at a middle school with declining enrollment. Has repeatedly claimed that the second principal will cost the district nothing because of a $6,200 anonymous donation. The district is paying for two secretaries (with benefits). “Voice opinions respectfully and maintain good relations with other board members, administrators, school staff and members of the public. (Administration and staff at West Sedona School have been denigrated in emails as well as public meetings.) Blamed an administrator for “losing” the override in 2012 in emails and conversations with the superintendent and community members. Sent email to staff members at SRRHS on Sept. 13 stating Bobbie Surber called to board attention that all teachers at WSS middle school had left, leading to Mr. Lykins’ solution for WSS. Told staff members in an email that it was time to “move forward and make the plan work.” Mentioned a teacher by name, claiming she had “the lowest test scores in the country,” in an email June 22. Allowed Gina Miller to read an anonymous letter attacking Principal Lisa Hirsch at the July 14 school board meeting. Supported the reading of anonymous letters at the September board meeting by stating that if Hallmark made and sold anonymous cards, he didn’t see why people couldn’t read anonymous letters at school board meetings. “Communicate the ways in which their local schools are supporting student educational needs, parent and community aspirations, and state and federal standards.” (Mr. Richardson has made misleading statements about test scores and student progress in the community and the press.) June 22 email: stated that WSS had the “lowest grades in the country.” August 28 comments online regarding the Sedona Biz article, claiming the staff at the high school has been able to take the students at WSS over the past years with such low scores and bring them up to higher standards so that the high school can maintain their A rating – falsely leading the public to believe that WSS students have necessitated the addition of many remedial classes to bring them up to par. Stated in August 27 Sedona Biz article; “Last year, the school came to within one point of receiving a failing grade.” WSS earned a grade of C. “Demonstrate that an atmosphere of collaboration and respect is the most conducive environment for providing the best education for children in the community.” (Mr. Richardson has fostered an atmosphere of mistrust and intimidation through his actions in the community and at public meetings.) Called individual teachers and staff at his children’s schools to make demands for his children. Made inappropriate comments to staff members, one resulting in a written complaint to the principal and superintendent. Emailed and called parents accusing them of jeopardizing school funding for the programs in which their children participate, due to the parent questioning/criticizing the school district. Sent emails to teachers disrupting their school day on August 27 to call attention to an article in the Sedona Biz concerning “what’s really happening at WSS.” Yelled at the public, consisting largely of teachers, at the December 1 board meeting, for speaking out at previous board meetings. Allowed another board member to ask Lisa Hirsh repeatedly to “control the mic “– keep teachers from speaking out about issues at WSS. This violates the board’s oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution, which include First Amendment rights to freedom of speech.	”
—Committee to Recall Zach Richardson (2015)

Path to the ballot

See also: Laws governing recall in Arizona

Recall proponents had to initially file a recall petition containing a general statement explaining the recall and not exceeding 200 words. This petition had to be signed by the sponsors who swore an oath that all signatures collected would be valid signatures. The number of signatures required to qualify a recall attempt for the ballot was 25 percent of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office. In this case, recall supporters would have had to collect a minimum 1,190 valid signatures from registered voters in the school district to require a recall election to be held.

According to a handout distributed at a meeting on January 9, 2015, the group intended to complete their signature gathering by March 15, 2015. The earliest an election could have been held would have been November 2015. On May 8, 2015, however, petitioners announced their deadline had passed without sufficient signatures being gathered.

Recent news

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Zach Richardson recall, Sedona-Oak Creek Joint Unified School District, Arizona (2015) - Google News

See also

• Recall campaigns in Arizona
• Political recall efforts, 2015
• School board recalls

External links

Suggest a link

• Sedona-Oak Creek Joint Unified School District
• Governing board
• Committee to Recall Zach Richardson's website "Concerned Citizens of SOCUSD"

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