Recall petition targeting four current Vermilion Parish School Board members
LAFAYETTE, La, (KLFY)- There’s a recall petition circulating in Vermilion Parish that targets four current school board members.
Lynn Vincent, Chairman of The Recall Committee, said the petition started this month. He sayid the school board recently decided to place Superintendent Jerome Puyau on paid administrative leave for the second time, and he said that means wasting more taxpayer money.
“Stop going after the superintendent,” said Vincent. “Focus on education. Bring it back to the education of the parish and not trying to get out the man who has led the parish to a number four ranking in the state.”
A petition written by the recall committee reads, “Citizens of Vermilion Parish! It’s recall time! Vermilion Parish School Board members deserving of a recall are Laura LeBeouf, Kibbie Pillette, Dale Stelly and David Dupius. The actions of these four board members show that they are more concerned about political and/or personal agendas than the concerns of their own constituents and the children of Vermilion Parish.”
News 10 spoke with the four school board members who are the target of the recall.
Laura LeBeouf, Vermilion Parish School Board President and with District C, added, “Basically, I think this recall committee is a tactic and aim at board members when you have five board members that are addressing issues to come at us. I see it as a political tactic.”
“I think it’s a waste of time. It was just done as a ploy to try and put pressure on the board members. We’re after the truth and nothing’s going to deter us from doing that,” Vermilion Parish School Board Vice President for District F Kibbie Pillette, explained,.
“Everyone has their views and their rights to do what they see fit. In my base, precinct, and those people there by a large margin, basically elected me, and told me when I went house to house that they wanted to elect me to make a change,” said Dale Stelly, Vermilion Parish School Board Member for District D.
Dr. David Dupius, Vermilion Parish School Board Member for District A, said, “I work with my constituents. I speak with my constituents. I stand by my constituents. That’s all I have to say about it.”
“We have tremendous teachers in Vermillion Parish, but we need to aim them in the right direction,” said Pillette. “Not on testing, on learning. That’s what this thing should be about.”
Once the recall is approved, Vincent said those who may want to recall a school board member in their district, this is their chance to be heard.
“Thousands of people have responded,” explained Vincent. “Unfortunately, many because of threats and intimidation are saying that they’re with us 100%, but they probably will not sign because of fear, and we’re telling them ‘Hey, this is a chance to have your voice heard.'”
Vincent says he hopes to have the recall petition approved next week by the Secretary of State’s Office.
From the time of approval, the next step is getting signatures within 180 days from one-third of all the registered voters in the four districts.