Educate all Utah Children without Discrimination, Demand Removal of biased SCSB Members
Educate all Utah Children without Discrimination, Demand Removal of biased SCSB Members
The Issue
ATTENTION!
- Utah Governor Spencer Cox
- Utah Lt Governor Deidre Henderson
- Members of the Utah State Board of Education (USBE)
We petition for the removal or resignation of:
- Utah State Charter School Board (SCSB) Chairman Bryan Bowles
- SCSB Member Cynthia Phillips
- SCSB Executive Director Jennifer Lambert
For openly, repeatedly and publicly discriminating and pushing hateful messages against Utah's cultural minority. They have done so under the guise of a “possibility” of individuals doing something wrong without evidence of actual wrongdoing. They justified this in-part by saying, “the rules don’t apply” to this community.
After 90 years of abuse of this community by Utah's public education, the Utah State Charter School Board's message? "Take your medicine!"
Bowles, Phillips and Lambert are unfit to hold a position of influence over children in the state and must resign to restore the public’s confidence in the Utah State Charter School Board!!!
CLICK HERE to make a tax deductible donation to help fund college for Vanguard Academy graduates and alumni!!
BACKGROUND:
Free and Appropriate Public Education is a human right!
Public education in Utah has failed plural families living in urban communities along the Wasatch front for 90 years!
Read more about the History of Discrimination for plural families
Vanguard Academy is a public charter school in West Valley, UT that has served many students from the most culturally underserved communities in the state. The school has consistently been a high performing school, with a 100% graduation rate in 2022, and a significant percent of graduating seniors receiving their Associates degrees in college before graduating high school.
1st generation college attendance among Vanguard students, many of whom are disadvantaged, currently sits at 83.3%!!
This compares to 44% for the Hispanic population, Black 34%, Asian 29% and White 22%. This illustrates a multi-generational, systematic exclusion of these children from access to the education enjoyed by their fellow citizens.
Vanguard families report hundreds of examples where they were singled out, excluded, discriminated, or abused, because of their family background and culture.
This multi-generational pattern of hatred and discrimination was on display once again on August 22, 2022 when the Utah State Charter School Board voted to remove all 9 board members from Vanguard Academy Charter School in West Valley City, UT because they belonged to or were associated with the Davis County Cooperative Society.
This stance is not only discriminatory, illegal, and hateful…. it is morally wrong!!
SCSB member Lambert stated, “the fact that [Vanguard Academy] may be serving students who are otherwise under-represented or underserved or may not feel comfortable in different schools, that is a positive thing. Through their test scores in language arts, math & science, it shows in fact the students are being well taught. We are not talking about those things,” 87% of graduating seniors had earned 12 or more college credits from public colleges and universities. (SCSB Board Mtg 3-3-22)
“I am not saying that we have any evidence of fraud or any evidence of financial mis-spending,” continued Lambert. (SCSB Board Mtg 3-3-22)
Finance & Compliance Manager Stewart Okobia stated, “Vanguard has been very responsive” in resolving nine of the initial twelve findings from an audit of the school in 2020 and 2021. Okobia states, “I reviewed their financial statements… There were really no significant deficiencies or any material deficiencies … in their financial statements.” (SCSB Board Mtg 3-3-22)
What we are talking about, "and this is the key part [in all of this]" Lambert stressed, is membership in the Davis County Cooperative Society. (SCSB Board Mtg 8-22-22)
Lambert illegally stated that even though statute does not prohibit the types of professional relationships present in the Cooperative “[the rules are] not relevant to Vanguard” (SCSB Board Mtg 8-22-22)
SCSB member Cynthia Phillips falsely suggested that “because we have a lot of holes in our understanding of [the DCCS], it would suggest that those might constitute conflicts of interest that are financial.” The assumption is that since it is private, or unknown we must assume it is bad. (SCSB Board Mtg 8-22-22)
SCSB Chairman Bryan Bowles led the vote to disqualify all 9 board members of Vanguard Academy and to appoint an interim Director and Financial officer because members of the Davis County Cooperative Society are unfit to serve on a charter school board because of they affiliate with the same cultural minority as the children they teach!
Their vote tells professionals, parents and children that if you belong to a culture that doesn't fit with the dominate narrative of Utah, you are second class citizens.
SCSB Chairman Bryan Bowles, SCSB Member Cynthia Phillips and SCSB Executive Director Jennifer Lambert are unfit to make decisions about the education of children!!!
1,049
The Issue
ATTENTION!
- Utah Governor Spencer Cox
- Utah Lt Governor Deidre Henderson
- Members of the Utah State Board of Education (USBE)
We petition for the removal or resignation of:
- Utah State Charter School Board (SCSB) Chairman Bryan Bowles
- SCSB Member Cynthia Phillips
- SCSB Executive Director Jennifer Lambert
For openly, repeatedly and publicly discriminating and pushing hateful messages against Utah's cultural minority. They have done so under the guise of a “possibility” of individuals doing something wrong without evidence of actual wrongdoing. They justified this in-part by saying, “the rules don’t apply” to this community.
After 90 years of abuse of this community by Utah's public education, the Utah State Charter School Board's message? "Take your medicine!"
Bowles, Phillips and Lambert are unfit to hold a position of influence over children in the state and must resign to restore the public’s confidence in the Utah State Charter School Board!!!
CLICK HERE to make a tax deductible donation to help fund college for Vanguard Academy graduates and alumni!!
BACKGROUND:
Free and Appropriate Public Education is a human right!
Public education in Utah has failed plural families living in urban communities along the Wasatch front for 90 years!
Read more about the History of Discrimination for plural families
Vanguard Academy is a public charter school in West Valley, UT that has served many students from the most culturally underserved communities in the state. The school has consistently been a high performing school, with a 100% graduation rate in 2022, and a significant percent of graduating seniors receiving their Associates degrees in college before graduating high school.
1st generation college attendance among Vanguard students, many of whom are disadvantaged, currently sits at 83.3%!!
This compares to 44% for the Hispanic population, Black 34%, Asian 29% and White 22%. This illustrates a multi-generational, systematic exclusion of these children from access to the education enjoyed by their fellow citizens.
Vanguard families report hundreds of examples where they were singled out, excluded, discriminated, or abused, because of their family background and culture.
This multi-generational pattern of hatred and discrimination was on display once again on August 22, 2022 when the Utah State Charter School Board voted to remove all 9 board members from Vanguard Academy Charter School in West Valley City, UT because they belonged to or were associated with the Davis County Cooperative Society.
This stance is not only discriminatory, illegal, and hateful…. it is morally wrong!!
SCSB member Lambert stated, “the fact that [Vanguard Academy] may be serving students who are otherwise under-represented or underserved or may not feel comfortable in different schools, that is a positive thing. Through their test scores in language arts, math & science, it shows in fact the students are being well taught. We are not talking about those things,” 87% of graduating seniors had earned 12 or more college credits from public colleges and universities. (SCSB Board Mtg 3-3-22)
“I am not saying that we have any evidence of fraud or any evidence of financial mis-spending,” continued Lambert. (SCSB Board Mtg 3-3-22)
Finance & Compliance Manager Stewart Okobia stated, “Vanguard has been very responsive” in resolving nine of the initial twelve findings from an audit of the school in 2020 and 2021. Okobia states, “I reviewed their financial statements… There were really no significant deficiencies or any material deficiencies … in their financial statements.” (SCSB Board Mtg 3-3-22)
What we are talking about, "and this is the key part [in all of this]" Lambert stressed, is membership in the Davis County Cooperative Society. (SCSB Board Mtg 8-22-22)
Lambert illegally stated that even though statute does not prohibit the types of professional relationships present in the Cooperative “[the rules are] not relevant to Vanguard” (SCSB Board Mtg 8-22-22)
SCSB member Cynthia Phillips falsely suggested that “because we have a lot of holes in our understanding of [the DCCS], it would suggest that those might constitute conflicts of interest that are financial.” The assumption is that since it is private, or unknown we must assume it is bad. (SCSB Board Mtg 8-22-22)
SCSB Chairman Bryan Bowles led the vote to disqualify all 9 board members of Vanguard Academy and to appoint an interim Director and Financial officer because members of the Davis County Cooperative Society are unfit to serve on a charter school board because of they affiliate with the same cultural minority as the children they teach!
Their vote tells professionals, parents and children that if you belong to a culture that doesn't fit with the dominate narrative of Utah, you are second class citizens.
SCSB Chairman Bryan Bowles, SCSB Member Cynthia Phillips and SCSB Executive Director Jennifer Lambert are unfit to make decisions about the education of children!!!
1,049
The Decision Makers
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Petition created on September 1, 2022