Liberty Elementary School District parents petition, hold 'sick-out' to remove 2 board members

Parents in Buckeye’s Liberty Elementary School District have started a petition to recall two school board members.

Parents, students and teachers spoke out at this week’s governing board meeting, expressing their concerns about Board President Bryan Parks and Vice President Kris Kenyon.

April Smith volunteers at the district and said the two board members and the superintendent have created an environment where teachers and staff no longer feel valued or supported.

“The result? Over 50 job openings before contracts have even come out, a district running on fumes with less than $1 million in reserves, a staff that’s exhausted, demoralized and unsure if they can continue to serve our children under this leadership," Smith said.

Paul Jensen is a parent and former board member. He said poor leadership has led to the resignation of more than 20 teachers and several people in other departments in the last year.

“There’s an education services department that the entire department has now left," Jensen said. "So many people in finance and payroll have left that they had to bring in a contractor in order to pay the employees, and even then, not all the employees got paid.”

Jensen said Parks and Kenyon have repeatedly dismissed concerns from the community.

“Bryan Parks has said that there’s maybe 10 parents that are upset, and so we’re like, ‘Well, we’ll show you how many parents are upset [and] anybody that wants to, keep your kids home sick on Monday,’” Jensen said.

More than 1,600 students were absent during Monday’s "sick out" – about one-third of the district’s total enrollment.

Petitioners say they want to see leadership that prioritizes transparency, fiscal responsibility and respect for all members of our school community.

KJZZ reached out to the district for comment, but did not receive a response.