Student trustee gets apology for meeting remark

LITTLEROCK — Antelope Valley Union High School District Board President Robert “Bob” Davis apologized to student trustee Noah Sveiven last week after Davis accused Sveiven of lying at the May 9 Board meeting.

Sveiven sent Davis an email on April 29 with an agenda request to include a motion of no confidence in Davis as the Board’s presiding officer.

“Whether he should be presiding officer is the business of the Board itself,” Sveiven explained after he submitted his request. “And I think he has demonstrated, routinely, throughout his time as presiding officer thus far, that he is unfair, that he doesn’t understand the rules, and if he does understand them he doesn’t follow them.”

Sveiven’ requested item did not appear on the May 9 agenda.

“He has no authority to ignore my request,” Sveiven said at that meeting. “He therefore has no legitimacy as presiding officer of this Board.”

Sveiven added that he has no confidence in Davis’ capacity as Board president. He asked Davis why his agenda request was not honored. He noted the only response he received from Davis came April 30, in which Davis wrote that

Sveiven’s request had been “Received and Under Review.”

“That’s a blatant lie, Mr. Sveiven,” Davis said.

“I have not received a second email. I would be glad if you could provide me with a copy of it,” Sveiven said.

Davis cautioned Sveiven to be “very careful.”

Sveiven asked for a printed copy of the email, and Davis agreed.

When someone in the audience shouted out, “What did you write?” Sveiven asked Davis to summarize his email.

“Mr. Sveiven, are you finished?” Davis said.

“I’m not finished; I posed a question,” Sveiven said.

“And I told you I answered your email (and) I will give you a copy,” Davis said.

On May 10 Sveiven confirmed to the Antelope Valley Press that he did not receive the email.

The Valley Press emailed Davis to request a copy of the email. Davis responded on May 11 to acknowledge that Sveiven was telling the truth.

“I reviewed the email to Mr. Sveiven that I spoke to sending. The email response was written, however it looks as though it was not sent. With that said, I have spoken with Mr. Sveiven and apologized for my statement to him during the board meeting. In addition, I have sent him a copy of the response that was originally written to be sent,” Davis wrote.

Sveiven confirmed that Davis called him at 10:40 a.m. May 11 to apologize, and that he seemed sincere.

“He said that he thought he sent me the email, per Thursday’s meeting, but that his second email ultimately wasn’t sent — which he claims he found out this morning when he checked his email,” Sveiven wrote.

According to a screen shot of the unsent email, which does not include a day and time stamp, Davis wrote:

“Good morning, In my previous response, I indicated your request for agenda item to be received and under review. After further review this item will not be placed on the May 9, 2019 agenda. Mr Sveiven, divisiveness is not what is needed at this time.”

Sveiven thanked Davis via email for acknowledging the error. He reminded Davis that his “concerns about divisiveness, while meaningful and laudable, do not trump the Bylaws of the Board of Trustees. You did not and do not have the authority to deny my request.”