Members of the Denver Public Faculties’ Board of Schooling scolded colleague John Youngquist on Thursday for a letter he despatched final month that accused them of violating the state’s open assembly legislation and for his therapy of staffers.
However in doing so, administrators nonetheless didn’t reveal how Youngquist behaved improperly towards workers members past his persistent effort to obtain full compensation for his public duties.
“I’m deeply dissatisfied within the problematic comportment that I’ve seen from you this previous yr,” mentioned board member Xóchitl “Sochi” Gaytán through the assembly. “I’m dissatisfied and harm that it continued and continues. I really feel that it’s unfair and unjust to the staff in the way you behave towards them.”
Gaytán, together with Michelle Quattlebaum and Scott Esserman, accused Youngquist of “habits unbecoming of a board member towards DPS workers” final month. Carrie Olson added the dialogue to Thursday’s board agenda at their request however expressed her personal frustrations at Youngquist’s allegations in opposition to his colleagues, saying that they have an effect on the “fame” of the board.
In the course of the assembly, faculty board members centered their rebukes on a Dec. 17 letter Youngquist despatched accusing them of violating state statute after he was excluded from an govt session in December.
Youngquist despatched the e-mail to Olson, accusing the board of violating state statute by not correctly stating the topic of a Dec. 12 govt session that dealt along with his board compensation and the way it pertains to guidelines set by the Colorado Public Workers’ Retirement Affiliation, or PERA.
He has mentioned he was informed to go away the assembly and couldn’t take part.
The chief session got here as Youngquist sought to obtain the complete $33,000 compensation he’s allowed to obtain from the district for performing his official duties. Board members aren’t paid robotically however are capable of request compensation primarily based on the hours they’ve labored.
However Youngquist, who has been paid greater than $20,000 since being elected to the board, was unable to obtain his full compensation as a result of he’s a retired educator and receives a pension from PERA, which limits the hours that retirees can work to as much as 110 days or 720 hours per yr.
PERA penalizes anybody who surpasses that threshold by reducing their pension by 5% in a future month for every day they work over the restrict.
Youngquist requested the board enable DPS to reimburse him for the PERA penalties and prices he would incur if he acquired his full compensation for his board service. However the board determined to forgo a vote utterly through the Dec. 12 assembly.
Youngquist mentioned in an interview earlier than Thursday’s assembly that he determined to not request his full compensation due to the potential PERA penalties.
Youngquist, who was stoic as he listened to his colleagues, acknowledged that he was annoyed when he despatched the Dec. 17 letter, saying that he had needed the board to mirror on its use of govt classes, that are closed to the general public.
“I recognize … the dialog across the letter that I had written,” he mentioned. “I’ve realized some issues over the past couple of weeks.”
Youngquist informed JHB this week that he was conscious that he offended two senior DPS workers members final yr, together with Chief of Workers Deborah Staten, though he was unclear how he did so.
He additionally had a tense trade with Aaron Thompson, the district’s normal counsel, through which Thompson accused the varsity board member of repeatedly questioning his authorized recommendation and suggesting the director did so due to racial biases, based on emails obtained by The Submit.
Youngquist, a former East Excessive College principal who was elected to the board in 2023, mentioned in an interview that he didn’t know Thompson properly sufficient on the time of the trade and mentioned that he felt like he wasn’t receiving all the data he sought throughout an earlier govt session.
Youngquist mentioned through the assembly that he has listened to Thompson’s considerations and that “they helped me to alter my understanding.”
However Youngquist’s response to his colleagues appeared to fall brief for Quattlebaum, who questioned whether or not he was taking accountability for his actions.
Earlier within the assembly, Quattlebaum revealed that she had met privately with Youngquist about his habits final yr. She didn’t say why she had raised such considerations with Youngquist beforehand, however she famous that greater than 120 district workers hours — the equal of $13,000 — was spent attempting to return to a decision concerning his compensation.
“This motion is just not solely a violation of the belief positioned in us by the group, however it’s additionally disrupted the main target of a number of departments and people who labored tirelessly for our college students, workers and households,” Quattlebaum informed Youngquist.
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