Former teacher and residents tell board they are alarmed by staff loss, safety and equity issues

At the Dec. 9 meeting of the Fond du Lac Board of Education, multiple community members urged action on staff retention, workplace conduct and student safety.

Mary Jo Lemanski, a grandparent of a second grader, said she is "alarmed" by the loss of longtime teachers and urged the board to investigate causes. She said she was concerned that recent positive school scores appeared coached and asked the board to "bring a third party investigator in to just review the issues that have been going on with the loss of staff."

Jim Hess, a resident, urged clearer public budgeting and said the district "roughly appears we are having a $10,000,000 per year deficit in the coming years," arguing the board needs a managerial operating budget to help the public understand tradeoffs.

Paula Claprick, who identified herself as a recent former district employee, recounted repeated problems while working in a middle school special‑education role. She said she was talked over in meetings, denied promised follow‑up, and ultimately faced what she described as an ultimatum tied to an improvement plan. In a statement to the board she said: "I was in my room alone with a physically violent student for over an hour continuously calling for help." She said that experience prompted her resignation.

Charlotte Trotter, a long‑time meeting attendee, told trustees she has repeatedly presented concerns on behalf of Black and brown students and criticized long‑standing inaction, quoting educator Paul Gorski: "Everything is advocacy, even inaction."

Board members acknowledged the comments and thanked speakers. The meeting record shows no board action to open an independent personnel investigation during the session; several trustees later discussed district budget and referendum planning in the workshop portion of the evening.