If you’ve ever tuned into one of the now-infamous Loudoun School Board meetings, you might be wondering who it is you’ve heard calling the names of speakers for their 60 seconds — and not a millisecond more! — of public comment time at the podium. The voice is smug, bureaucratic and completely unmoved by the plight of parents who appear before the board to plead for an open dialogue about what’s best for their children.
Well, that’s the voice of Brenda Sheridan, head of the school board and, seemingly, a staunch opponent of parents, honesty and transparency. Sheridan’s perceived disregard for the rights of parents has led to a grassroots movement by the residents of Sterling, VA, the area of Loudoun that she represents, to have her removed from office.
Ian Prior, head of the parents group Fight for Schools, which filed petitions earlier this week containing approximately 1,859 signatures, explained why residents took this action:
“As Chairwoman, Brenda Sheridan has overseen and personally contributed to a complete breakdown in trust between the community and the Loudoun County School Board. From violating open meetings law to ignoring the school board’s code of conduct to neglecting to keep our children safe, all for her activist causes, Sheridan has been nothing short of a disaster as the so-called leader of Loudoun County Public Schools.”
The case against Sheridan includes her alleged participation in a private Facebook group that looked to start targeted harassment campaigns against teachers and parents who spoke out against the teaching of Critical Race Theory in the county’s classrooms. Since this allegation surfaced in March, Sheridan has led a radical, partisan school board that has made national headlines for shutting down parent comments at meetings, instituting procedures that placed further restrictions on the First Amendment rights of parents, and, worst of all, allegedly covering up the sexual assault of a freshman girl by another student in a school bathroom.
One school board member, Beth Barts, resigned earlier this month to avoid facing a recall effort in court. Prior is hoping that a recall of Sheridan will be a clarion call for other school board members:
“Let this serve as a message to the rest of the board and Superintendent [Scott] Ziegler: if you thought that this was all about an election, then you have once more failed to properly judge the resolve of your constituent. We re still here and we’re not going anywhere.”
Not only are the parents not going anywhere, but the incoming state attorney general, Republican Jason Miyares, has vowed to investigate the alleged wrongdoings in Loudoun County Public Schools. The writing seems to be on the wall for Brenda Sheridan and her fellow board members, who’ve felt emboldened these past two years to shut down schools, isolate children, silence parent voices and embrace radical, anti-American teachings.
Watch this space for the latest developments.
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