Parent raises detailed special‑education complaint at Mesa board; members revise public‑comment policy amid debate over ASBA membership

Three members of the public addressed the governing board during the regular meeting’s call to the public.

Karen Koskini, an English‑learner teacher who has been an itinerant specialist, thanked the district for family literacy supports and asked the board to increase staffing for itinerant EL services so teachers are not forced to be split across multiple campuses.

Marcy Baronberg, who identified herself as the mother of a child who is deaf, presented a detailed account of IEP meetings and district communications she said were incomplete or inaccurate. She told the board she had participated in five formal meetings and described a May 18 IEP that, she said, produced a finalized IEP and PWN that did not reflect the meeting discussion. "It is now recommended that we do another IEP meeting rather than just fixing the errors that were produced in the final draft," she said, adding that repeated follow‑up and corrections are time‑consuming for families. Baronberg also reported she had received a blocked call threatening harm to her son after she spoke publicly; she said she notified district leadership and had limited responses. "I am tired. I am tired of being patient. I'm tired of endless meetings. I'm tired of fixing the mistakes," Baronberg told the board, and she asked for clearer timelines, accuracy and responsiveness from special‑education staff.

Board members and staff acknowledged her concerns, requested follow‑up and thanked her for raising safety and process issues; the transcript shows an exchange in which the board president and special‑education staff agreed to continue the conversation and to follow up with the parent.

Later in the meeting the board considered and approved several governance items, including a revision to the board's open‑meeting/public‑comment policy. The rewritten policy (1‑302) was informed in part by counsel and outside feedback and is intended to preserve the public's right to speak while clarifying rules for conduct during public comment and differentiating comment on agenda items and general call to the public. The board and counsel discussed procedural details — for example, whether speakers who want to speak on multiple agenda items can sign up multiple times — and clarified that the board president retains discretion over time limits and the orderly conduct of meetings.

The board also debated the value of statewide board‑association membership (Arizona School Boards Association). Some members said ASBA provides valuable legal and advocacy resources and plays a role in ongoing school‑capital funding litigation and training; other members said the association's dues have risen sharply and overlap with services offered through the district's trust and the county superintendent's office. The board voted to continue ASBA membership by a 3–2 margin after that discussion.

No immediate policy changes to IEP law or special‑education procedures were made on the floor; the parent asked for and the board pledged additional follow‑up with district staff.