A recall has been started to remove Nikkie Gomez-Whaley, the president of the Washington Elementary School District No. 6 (WESD) Governing Board. Gomez-Whaley (pictured above) presided over the board’s unanimous decision to terminate the district’s contract with Arizona Christian University (ACU) for student teachers due to the university’s religious viewpoints. A second recall effort is being planned to oust board member Tamilia Valenzuela, who led the move to terminate the contract, but state law provides that it cannot begin until she has been in office for six months.
Susan Bidell, who has a son and grandchildren in the district and who volunteers in the schools, told The Arizona Sun Times, “We don’t need social justice warriors on the board. We need people who want to serve the teachers, the parents, the students, and the staff of the district. Instead they point their finger and lecture us about things at the board meetings.”
Valenzuela has described herself as “witchy AF” and “queer AF,” and in her official bio on the WESD website as “neurodivergent.” Harvard Health defines the term, “The word neurodiversity refers to the diversity of all people, but it is often used in the context of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), as well as other neurological or developmental conditions such as ADHD or learning disabilities.”
Ashlee Minton, whose son attends school at WESD and works as a substitute teacher in the district, filed the recall paperwork on April 3. It states, “Nikkie Whaley put the education of the children in the Washington Elementary School District in jeopardy by ascribing to a hateful, anti-Christian narrative. Despite a successful relationship with Arizona Christian University spanning eleven years, and no complaints about the student teachers from this school, Ms. Whaley approved an agenda to end this successful relationship based on what she perceived as a ‘potential’ mindset and her personal beliefs.”
Minton went on, “Student teachers from Arizona Christian University have gone on to become successful teachers in the district. Now, because of the unjustified attacks based solely on religion, the district is faced with additional teacher shortages and a fiscal impact because of a discrimination lawsuit against the Board. Since this ill-advised decision by the Board, more than seven administrators and twenty-five teachers have resigned, some specifically in response to this discriminatory decision. For these reasons, it is imperative that Ms. Whaley be recalled, and a suitable replacement be found to fill her position on the Washington Elementary School Board.”
The ACU contract termination isn’t the only problem some organizers have with Gomez-Whaley. The board made face masks mandatory during COVID-19 for students, teachers, and administrators. After legislation was signed into law in 2021 preventing mask mandates in schools, WESD at first allowed parents to opt their children out of wearing them. One of the teachers revealed to The Sun Times that WESD sent an email to him and other teachers instructing them not to inform parents of that option.
After a judge struck down the law for unrelated technical reasons, the school district eliminated the opt-out policy. The district claimed that it was because so few parents had chosen to opt their children out. Concerned parents submitted affidavits to numerous state, county and local officials, including the board members expressing their objections, and after about 70 affidavits had been submitted, the board finally relented and allowed parents to opt out their children again.
Sources told The Sun Times that Gomez-Whaley recently stopped standing for the Pledge of Allegiance, even though she had the first few years she was on the board. They said during one recent meeting, she sat and ate food while it was being said. Valenzuela does not stand for the pledge either.
Now the board is considering getting rid of school resource officers. Minton and others said there hadn’t been any complaints about them.
The recall effort will need to collect valid signatures totaling 25 percent of the votes cast for the governing board divided by the number of offices being filled for that election. There are five positions on the WESD governing board. According to the Maricopa County Superintendent of Schools, that results in 8,776 valid signatures needed. Due to the likelihood that over 20 percent of the signatures collected will be invalid for various reasons, an extra 20 percent will need to be collected. This must be completed within four months, by August 3.
Minton said they are currently recruiting people to collect signatures. Petition circulators do not need to live within the district.
The Alliance Defending Freedom filed a lawsuit against WESD on behalf of the ACU on March 9, demanding multiple damages, including punitive damages.
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Rachel Alexander is a reporter at The Arizona Sun Times and The Star News Network. Follow Rachel on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
