Rochester school district board member resigns after tumultuous recall effort
A Rochester Community Schools Board of Education member who was targeted as part of a recall effort earlier this year has resigned.
Andrea Walker-Leidy was appointed to her seat in April 2018, and was reelected to a six-year term in November 2018.
In her resignation letter dated July 21, she said she wanted to spend more time with her family.
In email correspondence with The Oakland Press, Walker-Leidy said she initially ran for the school board because she felt passion for the community, public education, and to make a difference in the school district that her son was attending.
“I feel all of those same things now,” she said. “Public education faced one of its hardest challenges in 2020. And for school boards this past year, it often came with personal attacks and accusations. I saw the RCS administration, families and the school board work tirelessly for our students to try to navigate the almost impossible.
“My family wasn’t immune to the challenges that many families faced in 2020. More and more opinions became polarized in the past year, and many have lost a vital empathy for each other that we need in order to be positive examples for our children.”
When asked if she would have resigned had the pandemic not occurred, she said no.
“Navigating the pandemic as a school board member and a parent became a really hard balance,” she said. “The time investment that being on a school board normally would take away from family increased exponentially this past year. School board trustees are volunteer, elected public servants. But the criticism we faced in the past year was like nothing anyone could have expected.”
The school board in a message to the community expressed their “deepest gratitude” to WalkerLeidy for her three years of service. The message was signed by members Barb Anness, Kevin Beers, Michelle Bueltel, Kristin Bull, Scott Muska and Mike Zabat.
Anness, Beers and Bueltel were the other members
targeted in the April recall effort.
Michigan Election Law states that the board fills vacant seats by appointment, which must be made within 30 days. The appointed member will serve until a successor is elected in the next general November election.
Lori Grein, spokesperson for the district, said the board will take applications for this appointment and interview candidates. Details of that process will be announced soon.
Walker-Leidy said there was no vote she would have changed, adding that the hardest decisions are the ones you know will be faced with criticism.
“School boards are responsible for voting on policies and budgets,” she said. “I don’t think many people realize that the role is about those two things. Those two areas set a district up for success, and then you oversee the administration to carry out their roles as experts in education.
“RCS is lucky to have an administration that really cares about students. My hardest decision was making the choice to step down knowing that there is much work still to be done.”