The Montezuma-Cortez RE-1 school board on June 16 heard from Superintendent Tom Burris about a defamation lawsuit, received updates from the district’s English learning development program and heard from concerned citizens about credit devaluation for college-credit courses and clear bags.
District English language development coordinator Teresa Nelson shared how the program serves students from multilingual homes where English isn’t their first language.
Two students are in the program at Lewis-Arriola, 16 at Kemper Elementary, 23 from Mesa Elementary, 19 from the middle school and 19 at the high school, all in various levels of English fluency.
Languages spoken by students include Spanish, Navajo, Ute, Tagalog, Chinese Mandarin, Vietnamese, Japanese, Northern Uzbek and German. They’ve also worked with students whose first languages are French and a language native to India.
Nelson shared the benefits of people learning more than one language, including decreased risk of Alzheimer’s, disease and noted that there has been “significant” test score improvement in students participating in the program.
In his superintendent report, Burris shared that Paulette Porter would be the new principal for Kemper Elementary School, replacing former principal Kathleen Nelson, who will now work as the deputy to the executive director for Exceptional Student Services.
The district is working on hiring an assistant principal for Kemper. Burris also welcomed new Mesa Elementary Principal David Thorenton and his assistant, Melissa Carver. Former Mesa Principal Robert Laymon will serve as the district’s new athletic director.
After the principal announcements, Burris shared that David Illingworth, on behalf of Burris and the district, would be filing a defamation lawsuit against former school board candidate, JJ Lewis.
Burris alleged that Lewis’ claims started a “witch hunt” against him, and that former HR Director Cynthia Eldredge had called him one night with the intent of recording “confidential matters.”
Because to Lewis’ “false and outrageous lies,” according to Burris, Burris went through nearly a year of legal proceedings.
Residents and parents voiced concerns about the possibility that students may be required to carry clear backpacks to school, and about their thoughts on the devaluation of college credits.
Regarding the possible clear backpack/bag policy, parents emphasized privacy, specifically noting that female students would have feminine care items within view of their peers, as well as other privacy concerns. Concerns were later raised by the board, as it was noted that clear bags could create a false sense of security, which could lead to a lack of care when it comes to properly screening bags entering schools.
Resident MB McAfee added that the district expected students to be fully transparent, to the point to losing a large amount of privacy, when the board itself wasn’t willing to be transparent.
Parents also discussed credit devaluation, sharing concerns that lowering the credit amount could cause a loss of academic rigor and motivation for gifted students trying to do extra work in preparation for their future.
In discussion items, the board briefly discussed the potential clear bag policy and high school credit confusion. Later, they decided to take more time to discuss both concerns, specifically noting their own thoughts on clear bags being a breach of student privacy.
In action items, the board approved the fiscal year 2025-26 budget, SWOS’ charter school renewal and an emergency policy adoption of JBAA Preserving Fairness and Safety in Sports, along with other action items.
The next school board meeting will take place on Tuesday, July 15 at 6 p.m.
The Journal plans follow-up stories about the defamation suit against JJ Lewis and the policy regarding JBAA Preserving Fairness and Safety in Sports.
