School Board Election Drama Intensifies

The drama in the race for Sumner School Board position 2 is escalating, to the Washington State Public Disclosure Commission filed by School Board President Sherm Voiles over election fliers mailed by former Sumner Superintendent Gil Mendoza.

The fliers urge voters to side with candidates who still have children attending Sumner schools. Along with sparking debate over whether such school board members better serve the district, the fliers are causing speculation over former superintendent Gil Mendoza’s relationship with position 2 candidate , who is running against incumbent . Also at issue is the true “eligibility” of candidates in the position 2 race based on the criteria of having kids in Sumner schools.

Along with urging voters to cast ballots for Bucich over DeMarre, the flier advocates choosing over Ron Weigelt in the position 4 race. That seat is currently occupied by Greg Hanon. It also supports Richard Hendricks, who is running unopposed for position 3.

Voiles said community members have contacted him to question whether Mendoza recruited Bucich to run against DeMarre, with whom Mendoza traded barbed comments in the media following a mutual separation agreement ending Mendoza’s employment with the district last June.

Mendoza and Bucich both say the answer to that question is no.

 “Did Gil ask me directly to run? He did not,” said Bucich.

Bucich said he knows Mendoza through activities associated with the Sumner High School band. He said he was shocked when Mendoza’s separation from the district was announced.

“Within the confines of what he was allowed to say under the separation agreement, I learned a bit about interactions on the board and I decided to run,” Bucich said.

Any people concerned Bucich will try to reinstate Mendoza to the superintendent post can rest easy because that’s not part of his agenda, Bucich added.

“I think it would be disastrous for both the administration and Mr. Mendoza if that were to happen,” Bucich said, though he did say Mendoza would need to be treated like any other candidate if he applied.

While Mendoza denies he was attempting to influence one particular race with the flier, he makes no bones about the fact that he supports Bucich over DeMarre, whom he has publicly criticized before.

Mendoza and DeMarre drew verbal blood in the News Tribune shortly after the Sumner School Board passed a mutual separation agreement that ended Mendoza’s employment with the district in June. The agreement came on the heels of an unflattering performance review for Mendoza and an equally unflattering rebuttal from the former superintendent that criticized the board as a whole -- DeMarre in particular. Mendoza and Voiles also publicly criticized each other after the former superintendent left the district.

“I’ve been on record as saying Mr. DeMarre was essentially absent for three of the four years he was on the board. He chose not to meet with me once despite multiple requests,” Mendoza said this week. “He says he takes the train to Seattle in the morning and takes the train back late at night. I offered to ride on train with him or meet him at the train. He indicated to my secretary that he would call me to get information and go over it. He never once made that call.

“Why would I, as a taxpayer… want a board member who was essentially disengaged from the community and who was absent?”

DeMarre said information in past media reports was portrayed incorrectly. He said Mendoza asked meet with him between 7:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., a time frame that was impossible because of his train schedule, and that Mendoza did not make an effort to meet with him outside of that time frame.

“What Gil portrayed it as (in the News Tribune) is what I believe is a lie,” DeMarre said. “He never said he’d ride the train or meet me or come to see me.”

Rumors and innuendo also are flying over the issue of candidates having kids in Sumner schools. The position 2 candidates offered up pointed comments in separate interviews on Wednesday.

Bucich said he does not see having kids in Sumner schools as an absolute criterion for running on the school board, but that having such a tie helps a board member stay engaged in what’s happening in schools and presents opportunities for board members to hear from parents directly. He added that interacting with the sole employee directly supervised by the school board – the superintendent – also is important because it provides the opportunity to see what that person is doing and to advise that person, an opportunity he charges DeMarre has missed.

“There’s got to be some kind of a connection. Otherwise it’s a matter of why are you serving?” he said. “Keeping the school district running well is a valid reason -- but what else?”

Bucich also noted that people who support his opponent often say that DeMarre has grandkids in the district. Bucich said that one of DeMarre’s grandchildren goes to a private school and the other is in the Dieringer School District.

“If Sumner School District is as good as he claims it is, why isn’t it good enough for his grandkids?” Bucich asked.

DeMarre said two of his grandchildren are too young to attend school and the other two recently moved just outside the Sumner district boundaries, which is why they don’t attend school here anymore. He added that none of his grandchildren go to private school and that all three of his own children graduated from Sumner Schools.

“If I had three kids in the school district right now my decisions would not be guided solely by the kids I have in school. For example, I would not show a preference to a certain school. I would make my decisions based on all students and what is best for all students,” he said, adding he’s in a position to give back to the district from which all three of his children graduated, thanks in part, to his experience here and his engineering background. That background comes into play when the board oversees capital projects and must make complex decisions.

DeMarre also denies being disengaged from the district, saying he attends a variety of events but does not announce his position as a school board member at them. DeMarre said he gains additional feedback via his involvement in other places in the community, such as at his church, where he is able to talk weekly with parents who have children who attend Sumner schools.

DeMarre also pointed out that Bucich will only have kids attending Sumner schools for about 30 months once he takes his post if elected.

Bucich acknowledged his kids, who are in 11th and 12th grade, both will graduate from the district halfway through his four-year term.

“If, at end of four years, someone wants to run who has kids and has a passion for serving the district, I will have to seriously consider not re-running,” Bucich said.