A parent in the fiscally distressed Guy-Perkins School District has started a petition to dissolve the board after it recommended that Superintendent Brian Cossey be fired.
George Webber, 49, of Guy said that although he supports Cossey, he is trying to be a catalyst for change more than he is trying to save the superintendent’s job.
“I do support Mr. Cossey, although I realize it’s an unrealistic measure at this time to save his job; there’s probably not much chance they’ll reverse that decision,” Webber said.
Cossey was suspended by a unanimous vote of the five-member board June 2, and on June 9 was suspended with pay and recommended for termination. An interim superintendent was named, and Cossey has 30 days to appeal the board’s decision.
“We want the Arkansas Board of Education to dissolve our school board,” Webber said.
“This is all smoke and mirrors. We don’t even know what Mr. Cossey has been accused of,” Webber said.
Cossey said he doesn’t know why he was recommended for termination because the board didn’t tell him. He has been the superintendent since 2013 and was K-12 principal for four years before that.
The petition is titled “Petition to dissolve the current school board of the Guy-Perkins School District.”
It reads: “Our district is in fiscal distress, and the pattern of rogue decisions exemplified by our board and its leadership is not in the best interest of our community and school. The actions of the school board are causing rift within the community, board members and administration. We believe that several members have ‘personal agendas,’ and they do not have the best interest of our students, the school and our community as a whole.”
Webber said he and other school-district patrons had gathered about 150 signatures as of Wednesday, including 86 at the June 9 board meeting. Webber said the petition will be presented to the commissioner, or deputy commissioner, of the state Department of Education.
“I believe Mr. Cossey has been pretty much railroaded,” Webber said.
Webber said the public was not allowed to speak at the June 9 meeting and that board president Chris Acre was rude to him and other patrons.
“Chris Acre could have consoled us, and they could have reassured us that this process was good, and we would have gone with that,” Webber said. “I’d like to go to a school board meeting and have a collective voice. We have to have something in place.”
Acre read a statement at the June 9 meeting in which he said, in part, “Tonight’s meeting is a meeting held in public, as is required by law. What it is not is a ‘public meeting.’ That means that while you, the public, may watch tonight’s meeting, you have no right to participate in it. On a related topic, one thing you need to know is that personnel matters are never discussed in open public session to avoid violation of an individual’s constitutional rights. If we allow this to occur, this school board could be sued and would take money and resources away from the students.”
If Cossey appeals the board’s actions, he can request that the hearing be held in public.
Acre said Wednesday night that he heard about the petition but that he has not seen it.
“I’ve not seen it. I don’t know what to think,” he said.
Webber said the school is likely to face civil litigation because of negative public statements a board member made about coaches and teachers.
Webber consulted Faulkner County Attorney David Hogue about the matter. Hogue said that, by statute, he represents elected county officials, such as the Quorum Court, the sheriff, etc.
Hogue said he sometimes answers questions for people who are dealing with “something they perceive to be government” and need help. He said as a courtesy of the office, he met with Webber and tried to “point him in the right direction.”
The attorney said it looks like the board action was “valid” when members came out of executive session and voted to recommend Cossey’s termination.
“At the same time, I wasn’t there. I don’t know everything they did,” Hogue said.
He questioned not allowing some of the patrons to speak.
“I can see that they did something that would cause concern for the citizens. All the citizens there have no idea why their superintendent got fired. Obviously, as a parent and a citizen of the school district, you would want to know why this is happening. It raises some suspicions for sure.”
The board’s attitude is, “We’re going to do what we want. Just sit back and shut up,” Webber said.
“We’re going to push back,” he said.
“We still should be heard; there still should be something done. We need to reel this school board in, no matter what,” Webber said.
Webber, who has a son and daughter in Guy-Perkins High School, said he has been involved in the Parent-Teacher Organization in the past and was vice president of the athletic booster club.
“The citizens of the community, or those that are involved in the community, our concern at this point … it can’t be Brian Cossey — we have to focus on better conditions and a better relationship with our school board. We are intent on having a better relationship with our school board, current and future,” he said.
Senior writer Tammy Keith can be reached at (501) 327-0370 or tkeith@arkansasonline.com.