PHOENIX -- The President of the Governing Board of Maricopa Community Colleges was picked up by Scottsdale police back in July for a DUI.
Maricopa Community Colleges oversees 10 community colleges and two skill centers.
Police say an officer stopped Colleen Clark’s car after the 26-year-old nearly hit a curb near Old Town Scottsdale.
Now Debra Pearson, who is also on the board, thinks Clark should leave the board.
Pearson is also calling for reform, arguing that the board needs to add more members.
In a statement to ABC15 Jim Simpson, Faculty Association President, wrote:
"The incident regarding Governing Board President Colleen Clark is unfortunate. The Faculty Association will stay focused on teaching and learning, the issues that affect our students and faculty, and not on the personal challenges of Ms. Clark. The five members of the Governing Board are publicly elected, non-paid, officials and are only accountable to the voters in their district. The Governing Board has consisted of only five members since its inception when Maricopa County had a fraction of the current population. Whether or not one of the largest community college districts in the nation can continue to be adequately served by so few representatives, though, is an open question."
Tom Gariepy, spokesman for Maricopa Community Colleges, explained how voters in Maricopa County elect the governing board members to their volunteer positions, but it is the board itself that selected Clark to be president.
That vote was 4-0 with one board member, Jerry Walker, abstaining.
On Sunday Walker told ABC15 that he still supports Clark and hopes people can find it in their hearts to forgive her.
Walker said that he helped her run for the position and thinks she has a bright future.
He said everyone makes mistakes, what matters is if you learn from them.
Clark was elected to the position of board member when she was 23 years old, she then was elected secretary, and by 26 she was president.She is serving a six-year term which means Clark's term doesn't expire until December 31st 2012.
The position of president is only a one-year term and Gariepy said one person cannot serve back-to-back terms as president.
Pearson called Clark’s leadership skills “horrid” and described her as narcissistic, egotistical and incompetent.
For Pearson, the DUI is just the latest example of a person not ready to lead.
ABC15 e-mailed Clark at Maricopa Community Colleges and at the East Valley Bible Church where their website said she works as a team coordinator for Women’s Ministry.
ABC15 also sent her a message through Facebook and left a voicemail on what is believed to be her cell phone, but Clark did not respond to these attempts to reach her.Pearson wrote some of her objections to Clark’s leadership style in this internal e-mail:
Dear All,
There is so much that needs to be said about the matter of the Board
President of Maricopa County Community Colleges, Colleen Clark's
announcement, at last nights Board meeting, that she has been arrested
for drunk driving and that her pending court hearings and possible jail
time will not interfere with her doing her job as Board President.
Let me first say that I was incredibly impressed with the out pouring
from all of the staff/faculty and others in attendance that gave Ms.
Clark much needed support in the way of encouragement and hugs after the
meeting. This is a group of extremely professional people who take great
pride in their jobs and have been a part of making Maricopa Community
Colleges number one in the world in education and programs, policy,
efficiency and effectiveness. This is a group that has been looked to by
others all over the world for answers to frustrating questions in how to
successfully run a Community College. To have been put through, in the
last 9 months, a condescending, belligerent hell by this Board
President, and yet, they were there to offer the most generous and
sincere of support for Ms. Clark, who has talked down, been over
bearing, demanding, impetuous, rude, unprofessional and demoralizing,
spoke volumes to the integrity and character of the leaders of the
Maricopa Community Colleges District.
I too take this opportunity to wish Ms. Clark well in her efforts to
address the personal matter before her. Having said that, having been a
former Legislator and an advocate of "you do not have to worry about
what is too much if you do not drink and drive, no matter how much or
how little." I am incredibly outraged by Ms. Clark's attempt to disperse
her behavior on all of us by saying, "it could happen to anyone." Excuse
me! (Ms. Clark, please do not give me one of your pretentious apologize
that tries to place the burden of your misspoken sentiments as to
somehow being my responsibility for how I took it.)
I also want to address the issue of Ms. Clark's desire to accept the
responsibility for what she has done and her entertaining the idea that
she has the unbridled right to lead this District when she has spent her
time, thus far, looking for any manner of fault, a way to trip up some
within the District so that she can show reason to get rid of them. The
witch hunt is an indicator of, not only the lack of leadership
capability but one of deeper personal issues. History has found this to
be true over and over again. I know from private conversations with Ms
Clark, that if any of YOU were to have had the occasion to have been
arrested for drunk driving, YOU would be on her chopping block and be
considered unfit to serve this District, especially if it were above the
fold of a news paper that she carries around with her to justify her
witch hunt practices.
The final and most egregious of this further confirmation of
irresponsible, immature tendency for self indulgence that Ms Clark
conveniently is trying to not recognize is that her elected position to
represent the people of her District, as well as the District as a whole
and her responsibility to be an example to the STUDENTS OF THIS DISTRICT
has been more than compromised. I know the people of her District
historically and personally well. There have been requests of the Board
members to resign before, due to conduct and behavior that was not
agreed with by some, but that was a conduct that was supported by the
base of the people that elected and sent that particular Board Member to
this body to represent them. I can say without a moment hesitation, this
recent conduct of Ms. Clark does not fall into that category of
allowance by the people of her District. What an embarrassment for them.
The students, "I am sorry" just does not cut it. We must require and
have a right to expect a conduct that is exemplary to our students.
For the sake of this District, the people of this County and State, and
most important, the STUDENTS, a true example of remorse and willingness
to show the cost of such errors would be for Ms. Clark to resign from
the Board. This is a growing opportunity for Ms. Clark, but more
important, for everyone to know that bad choices and poor judgment will
cost, not just what is forced by law, but even so much more.
WHERE AS: Ms. Clark has displayed a tendency to impetuousness and a lack
of self discipline, and
WHERE AS: There are several complaints filed with the Attorney General's
office for open meeting violations concerning Ms. Clark's abuse of open
meeting laws
WHERE AS: Ms. Clark has failed to conduct herself in a manner that shows
honor and respect for the people of this County that entrusted her with
this position, and
WHERE AS: Ms. Clark has failed to conduct herself in a manner that is
becoming and representative of that to be considered an example to the
student of Maricopa County Community Colleges
I move that the Board convene with an agenda item to nominate and elect
a new President of the Board of Maricopa County Community Colleges.
Ms. Clark, I would further ask that if you have any semblance or ability
to have a shred of respect for this institution or possibly the students
that you support this motion and voluntarily resign your position on
this Board so that you might properly focus on these issues in your life
and leave Maricopa County Community Colleges untouched by your inner
struggles so that you can more appropriately address your attention on
matters that are more important to your future.
Always,
Debra
|
