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Coquille School District 8 board unanimously censures member Heather Echavarria
Summary
At a Feb. 8 special meeting, the Coquille School District #8 board voted unanimously to censure board member Heather Echavarria under policy BBF after an executive session and delegated the board chair to notify the complainants of the outcome.
The Coquille School District #8 board voted unanimously on Feb. 8, 2024, to adopt a formal censure of board member Heather Echavarria and to authorize the board chair to notify complainants of the outcome.
The action followed a closed executive session called at 6:00 p.m. under Oregon law. The board cited ORS 192.660(2)(b) to consider dismissal or discipline and ORS 192.660(2)(f) to consider information exempt from disclosure, including attorney advice. The chair gavelled the meeting back into open session at 7:28 p.m.
In open session, Cliff Wheeler moved that the board delegate authority to the board chair to send a letter to the complainants explaining the outcome; Steve Britton seconded the motion and the board voted unanimously to approve it. Cliff Wheeler then moved a second motion to censure Heather Echavarria under board policy BBF. The motion quoted the policy language: "Board members will treat other Board members, the superintendent, staff and the public with dignity and courtesy and will provide an opportunity for all parties to be heard with due respect for their opinions." The minutes record Heather Echavarria as seconding the censure motion; the motion passed unanimously.
The minutes list the meeting start time as 5:59 p.m., the executive session beginning at 6:00 p.m., return to open session at 7:28 p.m., and adjournment at 7:34 p.m. The minutes identify the board chair as Melinda (spelling inconsistent in the minutes) and list Board members Steve Britton, Cliff Wheeler, Marsha Frost and Heather Echavarria among those present; the minutes also include the names Superintendent Wayne Gallagher, Fiscal Director Rachel Amos, Assistant Business Director Denese Hale and Board Secretary Julie Simpson.
The minutes contain internal inconsistencies: they list Julie Nighswonger as absent but also record her seconding an earlier motion to approve the agenda; they show multiple spellings for the board chair's name. The article uses the spelling "Melinda Millet" for the chair but notes the minutes contain variant spellings. Where the minutes are self-contradictory, this article reports the action recorded in the minutes and flags the inconsistency rather than resolving it from outside sources.
The meeting adjourned at 7:34 p.m.
