Petitions are circulating asking for a recall election that could unseat Mancos School Board member Beverly Scott.
Scott, formerly Beverly Humiston, was arrested during the July school board meeting for refusing to leave when asked to do so by the school board president, the town marshal said. Scott was charged with public buildings trespass and interference.
During the meeting, Scott responded to a public rebuke, known as a censure, that accused her of bullying, intimidating and harassing administrative and support staff. She was asked to stay on topic several times when she accused the board of violating state sunshine laws by deciding to censure her without having a public discussion about it. She was then asked to leave multiple times, and when she refused, a Mancos marshal, arrested her.
School board president Monty Guiles said that members of the community later approached the school board about the steps to hold a recall election. He said he researched it and passed the information along to them.
Although Guiles said the recall election was not his idea, he supports it and plans to sign the petitions that gained approval from the county clerk's office Friday.
"I think everyone pretty well knows something needs to be done," he said.
He said the board and superintendent would make sure the effort is done properly.
Pam Coppinger, Margie Russell and Rodney Cox formed the committee to head up the recall effort, and they said they felt it was their only option. They said in a written statement that they were tired of the board meetings being about a board member, and that Scott had set a bad example for students.
"We are concerned that if Mrs. Humiston Scott finishes her remaining term on the board, it will result in staff and or board member resignations because they are fed up with the distractions. We thank her for her time but believe her effectiveness as a board member is zero," they said in the statement.
Durango attorney Bobby Duthie spoke on behalf of Scott and said they both found the recall petition offensive.
"She intends to do nothing more than to help the school district," he said.
Duthie said that he was working with the school board's lawyer to investigate the censures. Scott has been censured twice before in February 2013 for using discriminatory language at a board meeting and speaking about school personnel matters to people who weren't on the board. Scott denies both claims.
In order for a recall election to be held, 213 signatures will have to be collected from registered voters in the Mancos Re-6 School District, County Clerk Carol Tullis said. The signatures are due in early October, 60 days after the petitions were approved.
It's too late for the question to be included on the November general election ballot, so a special election would be held if enough signatures are collected. The committee has requested a mail-in ballot.
Brian Rose, a parent who regularly attends school board meetings, was critical of the recall effort because the cost of holding a special election. He also defended Scott's actions during board meetings.
"I find it extremely funny three people I have never seen at school board meeting are heading a recall election against her," he said.
As part of the censure read against her at the last meeting, Scott was reprimanded for saying during the June 30 meeting that the budget seemed top-heavy. The censure said she had plenty of opportunity to raise that issue before the budget came before the board for final approval.
Rose said he felt Scott regularly fulfills her duty to the electorate by questioning spending and that often causes tension during the meetings.
"I don't feel that what she has done or the way she conducts herself in the meetings is as wrong as they make it out to be," he said.
mshinn@cortezjournal.com
