Two More Recall Notices Filed : Inglewood School Board Members Answer Charges

Sidestepping specific charges, two Inglewood school board members have responded to recall notices by citing their civic activities and other qualifications for office.

The recall notices filed against Ernest Shaw and Caroline Coleman brought to three the number of board members facing recall movements. A petition is already being circulated against board President William Dorn.

Parents and community leaders launched the effort after the three abruptly fired Supt. Rex Fortune in May without initially offering any reason. Although Fortune was reinstated last month, recall leaders say they will continue their efforts to remove the board majority.

In the notices, Coleman and Shaw were accused of “constraining district business” by walking out of two successive board meetings, and of violating state open-government laws by meeting privately with Dorn.

Disregarded Advice

Coleman and Shaw also are accused of “exposing the district to financial loss” by disregarding the advice of board attorneys on the firing of the superintendent.

Coleman is further accused of “failing to represent” the school district at education conferences. She is scheduled to stand trial Sept. 19 in Los Angeles Superior Court on a felony charge that she embezzled $1,200 in district funds paid to her to attend an educational conference in New Orleans.

In an interview Wednesday, Coleman said she has denied that charge in the past and therefore did not address it in her response to the recall notice filed with the Los Angeles County registrar-recorder’s office. Instead, she cited numerous community groups to which she belongs, such as the Wilkie Avenue Block Club, the Fox Hills-Ladera Club, the Morningside High School Moms’ Club and the Inglewood Task Force Against Crime.

In her response, which will appear on the printed petition when it is circulated, Coleman described herself as often being “the lone fighter for upgrading reading scores, supporting teachers and establishing city/school relationships.”

Misrepresentation

Shaw, the board’s vice president, has been accused of misrepresenting his professional status and attainments in campaign literature, in ballot statements and in the resume he submitted to the district after he was elected.

In his written response, Shaw also ignores the allegations, focusing instead on his 27 years of experience in education and the three college degrees he holds. He also describes himself as a “devoted family man, Christian, and longtime member of the Inglewood community.”

Shaw, interviewed Wednesday, denied all allegations.

Recall supporters must collect 14,000 signatures--30% of the district’s registered voters--by mid-December in order to qualify the recall for the April ballot. The group must collect a similar number of signatures by mid-November for Dorn’s recall.