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Residents urge resignation of board member; board holds executive session and issues public statement
Summary
Public commenters raised concerns about board member Anastasia Yap's residency, attendance and pending legal matters; the Newington Board of Education met in executive session on the member's performance and the chair read a public statement calling for resignation while noting the board lacks authority to remove an elected member.
Public speakers at the Newington School District Board of Education meeting on an item about board performance urged the resignation of board member Anastasia Yap, citing frequent absences, alleged nonresidency and pending legal matters.
Resident Wendy Holmes told the board, "the marked absenteeism of board member Anastasia Yap, her questionable residency in Newington, and her current legal woes ... are grossly affecting the board's moral and by extension its effectiveness." Carly McCall and Jennifer Rodriguez echoed Holmes, saying they were concerned about the board's effectiveness if members do not fully dedicate themselves to their duties.
The board voted to move into executive session "to discuss the concern of a performance of a board member." After the executive session, the board returned to open meeting and the chair read a statement into the record that said the board "called on Miss Yap to resign, but she has refused as an elected official" and that the board "does not have the authority to have her removed." The chair added that the board "will let the court decide on the charges" but expressed concern about how the matters affect the member's "overall performance and her ability to do the job as a board member."
The board's public statement said the matter reflected the "consensus of seven board members" with two members abstaining from the vote to amend the agenda to allow the chair's statement. The statement also emphasized that "the well-being and support of our students and faculty members remain our foremost concern."
The public speakers asked the board to investigate residency and to consider removal on grounds of nonperformance and impropriety while the legal process proceeds. Wendy Holmes told the board she believed Ms. Yap's attendance was "about 25%" of recent meetings, an assertion the speaker attributed to the member's meeting records.
There was no board action recorded in public minutes that removed Ms. Yap; the chair's statement made clear that removal is beyond the board's authority for an elected member. The board proceeded to other agenda items after the statement.
The public comments on this matter occurred during the meeting's public participation period, and the executive-session discussion occurred under the agenda item described by the board as "performance of board member." The board's public statement and the callers' remarks are on the record.
No criminal finding or final legal determination about Ms. Yap was announced at the meeting; speakers repeatedly noted the case is pending and said they were asking for resignation or investigation while the court process continues.
