OBSERVER Photo by Braden Carmen Mary Deas, a retired Fredonia teacher, spoke out against recent comments made by Board of Education member Aaron Marshall at a recent meeting.

BNearly two months after the Fredonia capital project vote, people are still talking about the results.

One thing almost everyone has in common is they are angry — one way or another.

The latest to share displeasure with part of the process was Mary Deas, a retired Fredonia teacher. Deas assists her sons, Markus and Ryan, along with Col. Robert Moore of the U.S. Marines in maintaining Range Ranch.

Deas took exception to several comments made by the Fredonia Board of Education following the vote, mainly from Aaron Marshall. At a previous meeting, Marshall spoke critically of those who voted against the project and many of the things he heard throughout the process.

Marshall also directed his frustration toward Range Ranch for the comments made by Colonel Moore at a meeting prior to the vote. Deas did not take kindly to Marshall’s criticism, so she spent 10 minutes at the microphone at a recent meeting to make her displeasure known.

Deas said it was “disappointing to say the least” that Marshall was critical of Range Ranch without representatives in attendance to respond in the moment. Deas was bothered by the insinuation that Range Ranch had plenty of money to purchase a sizable property and the impact of the potential tax increase could be easily absorbed.

“They did not have any generational wealth. … They did not have a wagon load of that amount of money, but what they did come with was a dream, and some faith, and a work ethic,” Deas said.

Deas said she didn’t mind the conflict between Marshall and fellow Board member Brian Aldrich, who spoke strongly in opposition to the project. Deas spoke in favor of Aldrich’s stance that the Board should be more friendly to local businesses from a tax perspective, rather than a large ask from the community.

“You have to have a healthy business community because that will create a bigger tax base for you,” Deas said.

Among the comments Deas highlighted were Marshall’s characterization of voters and critics of the project as “ill-informed” and the use of the term “willful ignorance.”

“Those kind of comments, you’re not going to have taxpayers on board with you. That was too judgmental,” Deas said.

Deas also took exception to Board member Sheila Hahn’s comment of wanting voters to show “Fredonia pride” by supporting the project. Deas said, “Anybody certainly has Fredonia pride if they choose to live here. They have already paid a hefty amount in taxes and continue to do so.”

Deas added that as a former teacher, she has heard from District employees who voted against the project. “Don’t assume that all the people that work here — employees that live in Fredonia — voted yes,” Deas said “… There is a significant amount of your own employees that voted no, for whatever reason. Maybe they didn’t think it was needed, maybe they just want to hang onto their income.”

In suggesting ways to avoid burdening the taxpayers with more increases, Deas urged the District to reevaluate each position after a retirement to determine if it can be eliminated. Deas also criticized the District’s spending on professional development, specifically the attendance of Woz Ed conferences in Arizona by several members of the District in recent years. “You don’t need to go to Arizona,” Deas said. “Taxpayers aren’t going to want to vote for that.”

Dr. Margie Wright, Chief Officer of Curriculum and Human Resources, later clarified that the District received grant funding and gifts to cover the cost to attend the conferences. Wright also highlighted that former principal Paula Troutman was honored at the Woz Ed conference.

Wright believes the District’s commitment to further its investment in STEM education has paid dividends in several ways, including the addition of a STEM Teacher and a “Student Help Desk” program that provides high school students with hands-on experience serving the District’s IT needs.

“No taxpayer funds were used for any of those conferences, and they do have a direct result to work we are doing currently in the District,” Wright said.

Deas joked that she would see the Board again in two weeks, at its next regular meeting on Feb. 18. Just prior to that joke, she said, “You need to be wise with other people’s money. You do have people’s attention. People are looking at the May budget. Is the Board going to have some kind of retribution?”