Parents React to School Board Resigning After Mocking Scandal

Parents reacted over the California school board resigning after the incident of a public video conference that mocks parents over school reopening.

On Friday, Ashley Stalf, a California mother whose six-year-old daughter attends the Oakley Union elementary school district, retorted to a profanity-laced hot mic moment by members of the Oakley school board bashing parents over demands to return teachers to in-person instruction.

Stalf said that parents are now asking what teachers and board members say in private about them. She was "disheartened" that nobody, particularly the school's superintendent, spoke out against the comments in the meeting.

The documented Wednesday night meeting was posted on social media and showed the board members who seemed to think that the forum was private. Brizendine seemed to be insulting parents who "want their babysitters back."

After allegations that they made mocking remarks about parents during a public video meeting about reopening schools, the president, Brizendine of the Oakley Union Elementary School District, resigned Friday. Later, the three other members, Kim Beede, Erica Ippolito, and Richie Masadas, followed.

On Thursday, Hetrick released an apology for what he described as "truly inappropriate comments" made by board members during a virtual meeting on Wednesday. An organization released a meeting video that showed members of the board talking about parents needing teachers to return to classrooms.

Parents' reaction to the School Board resigning

Oakley resident Thomas Will, together with Claudine Zambrana, another concerned parent in the city, said in an interview, "One of my biggest concerns is, we see this being dragged out longer and longer to [the point] where I have the concern of -- by the time my kids are ready to go in next year -- is school going to be back to normal?"

He continued, "I think we all need to take this step back and realize how shocking it is that there's been no real progress forward to get back to in-person learning because we see it around."

Will said the prolonging of school closures because of the coronavirus is a "fear many parents have." He also accused the school board of not "listening" to the parents.

"Why isn't a public school going back? I think the video shows why. Not because we can't, but because we have a school board that doesn't have the children's interest in their heart and they don't want parents' feedback,"

Meanwhile, The Chairman of the Board of Education of Contra Costa County will likely nominate temporary board members before new ones are elected or appointed.

In addition to the months the students missed at the end of the 2019-2020 academic year, parents across the U.S. are campaigning for their children to return to learning from teachers in classrooms, while some students face the chance to complete an entire school year without accessing a classroom.

The White House is facing criticism for changing its position around President Biden's 100-day drive for students to return to classrooms amid the pandemic.