Parents allege student‑safety failures; community members call for adherence to open‑meetings law and reconsideration of rail‑hub resolution

Several members of the public used the district’s public‑comment period Dec. 15 to raise complaints and ask the board to act.

Danielle Mills described a medical emergency involving her son at Valley Vista High School and accused specific staff members of ignoring the incident and mocking her son. Mills said she provided the board with a timeline of events and claimed repeated concerns including alleged fundraising fraud and staff misconduct. "I am more fearful of my child at Valley Vista High School than ever before," she said, asking the board to investigate and protect students.

Lisa Everett addressed open‑meetings practices and urged strict compliance with Arizona law, warning against coordination through intermediaries such as spouses. She said a prior presentation from the district attorney on open‑meeting laws had not been attended by all members and urged transparency: "For this district to continue succeeding, it requires all board members to follow the law...Transparency is not optional."

Eric Miller asked the board to reconsider a prior resolution opposing the Whitman BNSF rail hub and criticized some board members’ prior 'no' votes. Miller, identifying himself as a former federal agent with emergency response experience, warned that hazardous‑materials spills at a transfer hub could affect air and groundwater in the district, citing East Palestine, Ohio as precedent.

Board members acknowledged the comments; one asked if they could respond to criticism during the meeting. The board did not take immediate formal action on these public‑comment items in the transcript beyond recording the statements and pledging to follow legal procedures for directing staff if needed.