Letter to the Editor: Put school issue behind, move forward

To the editor,


I feel it necessary to write this letter of explanation.


A regular board meeting was held in December 2018 where they adjourned into an Executive Session to discuss an offer from Brian and Angie Velasquez regarding school-owned property, among other things.  I do not, by law, take notes of discussions from Executive Sessions.  At that meeting it was decided that members of the board would do some research into this issue.


At the regular board meeting in January 2019, we adjourned again into Executive Session, and discussed other lengthy matters as well as the land sale.  In that meeting the board thought it would be awesome to sell that piece of property to the Velasquez’s.  They adjourned back into regular session.


At that time, I left!  My “home” is in Cascade, CO, and I was in a hurry to get on the road.  I gathered my stuff and left – so I did not stay to hear the vote taken in the regular session of the meeting, just before they adjourned.


That is why nothing was in the minutes!  Not because a vote didn’t happen, not because we were trying to hide something, not because a “shady” deal had taken place, but because I did not stick around to put that vote into the minutes.


I apologize for this error on my part, and want the communities of Del Norte and South Fork to know that the current Superintendent and School Board are incredibly generous, caring, intelligent, insightful people who truly feel bad about this mistake – MY mistake of not staying until the meeting had adjourned.


Chris Burr is a man of integrity, whom I have worked with for 9 years now.  I drive six hours almost every weekend, and rent a 2nd home in town, away from my family, to be a part of this incredible administration.
Please, let’s put this issue behind us and move forward with our amazing new school building, incredible children, and a community that is respectful towards each other.


Kindly,


Terri Dudley
Secretary to the Superintendent and School Board
Upper Rio Grande School District