OCONOMOWOC, Wis. (WTMJ) – Three Wisconsin school board members have resigned, citing toxic behavior from other board members and a hyperpartisan environment.
In a joint letter, Rick Grothaus, Dan Raasch and Kim Herro announced their resignations from the Oconomowoc Area School Board on Monday.
They said the board has been “dragged into partisan culture wars by some members of the board,” adding that “because of the dysfunctional and disrespectful behavior of the remaining board members and the interim superintendent, board work has become toxic and impossible to do.”
“We felt this was the only option we had left, to send a message to the community that the community needs to take a closer look at what’s going on in their local school board,” Grothaus said.
He said such issues among school boards are happening across the country.
“We’re at a point, I think, on a larger societal level when issues, or when things like public health, public safety, education of our children become political footballs,” he said. “It’s kind of a scary time for us all.”
The letter cited concerns about the response to the pandemic, but the former board members said that’s just one of the issues.
“Any opportunity to think creatively, to offer solutions, to approach education differently is totally shut down,” Raasch said.
The district’s interim superintendent said in a statement: “Public service is a difficult endeavor that has been exacerbated by the current division in society as a whole.”
The statement goes on to say: “While the timing and orchestration of these resignations have taken away from our work to get our schools open, safely operating, and focused on our strategic plan, I am confident in the remaining school board members and their commitment to our students and families.”
The school board president said the board will talk about the policy for filling the vacancies at their meeting Wednesday.
Copyright 2021 WTMJ via CNN Newsource. All rights reserved.
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