The president of the Fresno Teachers Association is calling on two school board members to step down. Today Greg Gadams threatened legal action if Carol Mills and Janet Ryan don't resign from the Fresno Unified School Board. He says there's a conflict of interest because they also serve on a charter school board, which is overseen by the Fresno Unified board.
Gadams delivered a letter to Fresno Unified’s office on Friday morning. It details alleged conflict of interest involving two school board members, Mills and Ryan. Gadams, president of the F.T.A., says they also serve on the Dailey Academy Board.
“They've already committed the violation, so they should step down from Fresno Unified School Board. And we wish them well in representing the Dailey Charter,” said Gadams.
The request is the first step in a process that could ultimately be decided by the state attorney's office. Gadams says Dailey, a K-5 elementary school which specializes in International Baccalaureate education, has been given preferential treatment.
“You look at the funding for Dailey, [it’s] a drain on Fresno Unified's resources the way it is done. They are not charged the same amount for services as other charters are,” said Gadams.
He also says decisions with the I.B. program for all middle school students have been made without board knowledge.
Mills responded with this statement, quote:
"I have at all times acted in accordance with the legal opinions provided to the Board on this subject by Susan Hatmaker and Mary Beth deGoede and based upon that legal advice, I do not believe any conflict of interest exists."
CBS47 also reached out to Ryan, but she had no comment.
