EDUCATION

Scottsdale school board race may be crowded as 10 show early interest

Yihyun Jeong
The Republic | azcentral.com
Scottsdale Unified School District board President Barbara Perleberg (right) speaks during a governing-board meeting Jan. 30, 2018. The board accepted the resignation of former CFO Laura Smith, who resigned after payments to a company she had ties with were reported.

The Scottsdale school board race is shaping up to be competitive as ten residents have already expressed interest in two seats that will be up for grabs Nov. 6.  

It's a stark difference from 2016 when candidates ran unopposed for three open seats.

It's been a tumultuous year for the Scottsdale Unified School District, which faces two investigations and organized community criticism. A rally last week drew a large crowd of residents demanding new leadership. 

The current conditions of the district, which serves about 24,000 students, have become a platform for several residents to announce their school board bids. 

Board Vice President Kim Hartmann and board member Pam Kirby both have pulled paperwork to run again as their four-year terms end this year, according to the Maricopa County Education Service Agency.

They could face challenges from residents David Alger, Patty Beckman, Nancy Cantor, Erik Francis, Jann-Michael Greenburg, Emily Hinchman, Michael Peabody and Stuart Rhoden, county records show. 

The candidate filing period begins July 9 and runs through Aug. 8.

MORE:Former Scottsdale employee sues district, says caring for sick dad got her fired

Race shaped by controversy?

Hartmann was first elected to the board in 2014 after serving on education boards and committees, including the Scottsdale Parent Council. 

Kirby was first elected in 2010 and previously served as board president. A resident of Paradise Valley, within the Scottsdale school district's boundaries, Kirby also has served on the Paradise Valley Town Council. 

Among the early possible candidates, Peabody and Greenburg have been especially vocal in their concerns about the district's leaders. Peabody, president of Scottsdale Parent Council, is active in the United School parent-community group that presented conflict of interest allegations against former Chief Financial Officer Laura Smith and questioned the credentials of Chief Operations Officer Louis Hartwell at a school board meeting in early December. 

Greenburg, an Arcadia High School graduate, has also questioned Smith and Hartwell's qualifications, outlined in hefty reports he has provided to the school board. 

The backdrop  

The embattled district is in the midst of two probes, an internal review and an Arizona Attorney General's investigation into the district's use of outside contractors.

Smith resigned last month as the district review, being handled by an outside attorney, identified conflicts of interest.

MORE:Scottsdale teachers have 'no confidence' in superintendent, school board

Residents have also challenged the district's timeline about when Superintendent Denise Birdwell and board members learned about potential conflicts of interest involving Smith.

Hartwell announced last week that he will resign at the end of the budget year on June 30, citing "personal threats and attacks" he received while working in the district's "harsh culture and climate." 

Birdwell, who joined the district as interim leader in January 2016 and was given the permanent job later that year, hired Smith and Hartwell.

Reach the reporter at 602-444-8631 or yjeong@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on Twitter: @yihyun_jeong.

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