Parents, employees ask Evergreen board to place superintendent and COO on leave amid allegations of misleading law enforcement and auditors
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Summary
Multiple public speakers accused district counsel and senior administrators of providing false or misleading information to the Vancouver Police Department and the State Auditor's Office and urged the board to place Superintendent Maloney and COO Janae Gomes on administrative leave pending an independent investigation.
Several parents, current and former employees and union representatives told the Evergreen School District board on March 10 that district leaders and the district attorney have given false or misleading information to law enforcement and the State Auditor’s Office and urged the board to order an independent investigation and place the superintendent and chief operating officer on administrative leave.
Angie Bunda, a parent who spoke during public comment, said she had tracked repeated requests from a Vancouver Police Department detective for documentation about September 2023 supplemental contracts and that responses from the district or its attorney were misleading. "The ESD provided false information to a public servant and then let it go to the PA," Bunda said, and asked the board to "place the COO and superintendent on administrative leave to conduct a proper investigation."
Other speakers repeated or expanded that allegation. Camille Lohman said she had confirmed with the assistant state auditor that the State Auditor’s Office (SAO) had not reviewed the September 4, 2023 supplemental contracts referenced by district counsel at a prior meeting, and said the attorney had told law enforcement otherwise. "How can we trust decisions relating to the budget…if the superintendent’s attorney provided false information to a public servant?" Lohman asked.
Former employee Danny Stevenson told the board he had asked the district for an update and for correction of statements about him allegedly made to law enforcement, and requested "a name-clearing hearing" under Ninth Circuit precedent. Adam Aguilera, speaking as a member of the Evergreen Education Association, said the board's delay in initiating an independent investigation was eroding public confidence and pointed to an earlier episode he said led to large payouts when the district had relied on altered investigator findings.
Board members did not take a personnel action during the meeting. The board chair said personnel matters cannot be discussed in public without consent of all parties and suggested the request to investigate and, where appropriate, correct public records would be discussed later. The meeting record shows repeated requests from members of the public for a third-party review and for administrative leave for the superintendent and COO, but the board did not announce a commitment to a specific third-party investigator or timeline at the March 10 session.
The district was repeatedly identified in public comment by name and by reference to specific individuals: the superintendent (Maloney), COO Janae Gomes, and the district attorney Garrett Williams. Speakers referenced an assistant state auditor, Greg Wynne, and a Vancouver Police Department detective who had sought documentation. Several commenters asked for the board to correct statements sent to law enforcement and to the public.
The board did not respond with a factual denial in public session; instead, members said personnel matters would require follow-up outside open session. The board also said it retains responsibility to consider next steps consistent with state law and district policy. The meeting concluded without the requested administrative leaves or an announced third-party investigator.
