Letter to the Editor: Irving Education Coalition seeking Special Monitor from Texas Education Commission

A copy of this letter was provided to the North Dallas Gazette: 

Dear Mr. Mike Williams, Special Monitor from Texas Education Commission:

Out of concern for our children, I am writing you to request assistance with problems existing in the Irving Independent School District (Irving ISD). Recent elections have seen the takeover of our School Board by persons with a different agenda than we have been accustomed to. Our current School Board President, Steven Jones, leads this faction.

Mr. Jones is very aggressive in his approach to governing. As a candidate he was very disruptive and disrespectful of the staff and has been so privately to anyone who does not share his views. But, he was still able to convince enough voters he has noble intentions. However, his conduct in the past election (May 2013) wherein he openly endorsed and campaigned for, not only school board candidates, but also Irving City Council candidates, led to serious complaints by his colleagues. (This included his strong support for a candidate who lost her first race, won this year, but was forced to resign in July after being accused of theft at a local Wal-Mart).

These complaints surfaced before the election was decided and continued afterward. They involved his behavior as a school board trustee, including contacts made to current and former employees. As a result the pre-May Board censured him and hired an investigator to look into the complaints against him. That investigator’s report has been completed, and was published this past week by the Dallas Morning News. It paints a picture of a man who does not intend to abide by his proper legal role, to obey Texas regulations concerning employees and other matters, or to respect the system and its processes.

Mr. Williams, we want you to send a Special Monitor to look into these issues that are affecting our children here in Irving ISD. We are asking you to please take whatever action is allowed to look into this man’s behavior and put a stop to it. Please let us know what are the next steps.

Sincerely,

Anthony Bond,

Chairman of the Irving Education Coalition

Editor’s Note: Readers are invited to view the TEC School Board Violations Report and the TEC’s Final (redacted) report on Violations. The Irving Education Coalition plans to start a two week drive to collect signatures from parents this Sunday requesting a Special Monitor be sent to the district.