Officials decline comment on meeting between board members, concerned citizen group

Officials have declined to talk about a Thursday afternoon meeting held between two school board members and a group calling for the removal of Superintendent Rhonda Seidenwurm.

The meeting was held at the school’s administration building.

Board President Mark Lansford, who attended the meeting with fellow board member Lola Bryant, declined to comment Thursday evening.

Since there was not a quorum of board members present, Lansford said the contents of the meeting are not public.

Concerned Citizens of Curry County President David Briseno also declined comment Thursday, saying only, “The meeting went well but we still have some things to work out.”

The meeting lasted about an hour, he said.

CCCC and school officials each denied a request by the CNJ to attend the meeting.

Tuesday, CCCC called for Seidenwurm’s removal based on allegations she has pushed minority leaders out of the district.

The group is a coalition made up of the local League of United Latin American Citizens and National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Seidenwurm did not attend Thursday’s meeting.

“I was dis-invited from the meeting by the group we were meeting with,” she said. “They told the three of us (board members and herself) that they did not want me in the meeting.

“I can only assume that they wanted to say things to my board that they didn’t want me to hear,” she said.

Seidenwurm said she has no idea what was discussed.

“Anything I know about I can address with facts and data; anything I don’t know about I can’t,” she said.

The CCCC has alleged the district is cutting back on programs that assist poor and minority families more than other programs in a period of tightening budgets and that hiring practices and reorganization of programs is pushing out minorities.

Seidenwurm has disputed the allegations.