By Scott Tibbs, September 21, 2005
To: Sue Wanzer
President, MCCSC School Board
MCCSC Administration Building
315 E North Drive
Bloomington, IN, 47404
Ms. Wanzer:
I have confirmed with people who attended the September 20, 2005 MCCSC School Board meeting that during the meeting you tore up objections to the MCCSC budget presented to you by taxpayers.
I find this behavior to be an unacceptable breach of the trust that voters placed in you in the 2000 and 2004 elections. While I do not expect elected officials to always agree with objections made by their constituents, I do expect that elected officials will treat those constituents with respect and will listen to those objections.
Despite being encouraged to attend MCCSC budget sessions by friends, I have not done so. Part of the reason I have not attended is because I believe that you people on the School Board do not take those who disagree with you seriously. The only reason I see to attend these meetings is to speak directly to the voters via the television cameras in hopes that they will make a better decision in the next election.
Your inexcusable behavior, however, goes far beyond this expectation. You won the election, and I expect that you will implement the policies you believe to be in the best interests of MCCSC. What you did Tuesday night was to show contempt for your constituents and their sincerely held beliefs. Your behavior, while legal, is nonetheless a show of extreme disrespect for the First Amendment right to petition government for redress of grievances.
A breach of public trust of this magnitude necessitates action. I call upon you to resign from the MCCSC School Board. At the minimum, you should step down as president of the board. You have an opportunity to set an example for other elected officials as to how to behave. Whether or not you lead by example is your choice.
Scott Tibbs
Cc: Indianapolis Star
Bloomington Herald-Times
Indiana Daily Student
AM 1370 Bloomington
Ellettsville Journal
