Congratulations to Alpena Public Schools Superintendent David Rabbideau on the across-the-board “Effective” rating for his annual review.

And congratulations to Associate Superintendent Mary Lyon and the business office staff for their work that resulted in the unmodified or “clean” audit report from Straley Lamp & Kraenzlein.

APS is lucky to have dedicated and professional administrators, teachers, and support staff.

It’s unfortunate we don’t see the same dedication and professionalism from some members of our school board.

Specifically, Sarah Costain was absent at the December 15th meeting where Rabbideau was evaluated and the clean audit was presented. Costain has missed ONE THIRD of the meetings and several key votes since taking office in January.

Costain reportedly had an accident in December, but she has a pattern of gross neglect of duty. She’s not performing her fundamental responsibility.

Monica Dziesinski asked during the audit presentation, “Do we ever have anybody come in and subjectively look at any of the financial stuff to see if we can make any improvements — like assist Mary?” She posed it as a question and then tried to backtrack, but the insinuation was clear.

Forget that the auditors are “another set of eyes,” Dziesinki implied Lyon needs someone looking over her shoulder.

Within a few minutes, AJ MacArthur then called the district’s retirement fund “kind of a PONZI SCHEME almost,” suggesting APS retirees are conning taxpayers.

These not-so-subtle hints about incompetence or ill-intent undermine public confidence and damage APS staff morale. These actions also contradict the board’s goals.

Amid the breakdown, President Eric Lawson’s silence is deafening. When will he move to censure Costain for her absenteeism? When will he stand up for the district’s staff and students? When will he lead the board to achieve our strategic goals?

Yvonne Johnson

Alpena