‘Time has come.’ Richland parent starts petition to replace longtime school board president

An online petition is calling for one of the Richland School Board’s newest members to be made president just days after he was victorious in the general election.

While the vote tally has not yet been certified, Misipati “Semi” Bird is the presumed winner for Position 3 — his first elected position.

The business consultant will be sworn in, along with fellow newcomer Audra Byrd and re-elected Rick Jansons, the current school board president and a member of the board for 20 years.

Once that is done, the full board will select its president and vice-president.

The Change.org petition — which so far has 87 signatures collected over one week — said Richland residents “NEED” Bird as the school board president.

Bird told the Tri-City Herald he is “terribly honored and flattered” to be the subject of the petition, and that he would “accept it humbly and with appreciation.”

“Going onto a school board without having served in a school board, it’s not rocket science,” said Bird. “You know, I’ve done my due diligence. I’ve served as a (Army) Special Forces intelligence professional, and we data mine and we research, and I’ve researched.”

“I really would say this: Leadership is leadership. Teaching is teaching,” he added.

He described himself as a servant leader, and said he would be the mouthpiece for the board with an equal voice and collaboration from the four other members.

Bird called himself a critical and deep thinker who wants to see leadership accountability and transparency, and would assert his position and give recommendations while doing his best to be part of positive solutions and change.

“The board domain, as per the Washington State School Directors’ Association, is just that. It’s an organization of governance and that has a huge leadership element. ... The security is in collaborative leadership,” he said.

Petition organizer

The petition was started by Saber Kingham, a Richland parent and senior vice president of operations for Sterling’s restaurants in the Tri-Cities.

“The election has come and gone and the parents have spoken. The last two school years have proven what a disaster the current board is, and specifically their leadership,” says the petition. “Parents are tired of their children’s interest being squandered to benefit the teachers union and the (Washington State School Directors’ Association).”

Kingham notes that current board president, Jansons, is also president of the WSSDA. That organization is connected to the National School Boards Association, which “sent out a letter referring to parents as ‘domestic terrorists,’” she wrote.

The NSBA’s letter said acts of malice, violence and threats against public school officials during the COVID pandemic could be equally classified as a form of domestic terrorism and hate crimes.

The letter from the national association, addressed to President Joe Biden in September, referenced the “growing number of threats of violence and acts of intimidation” happening across the country, and requested immediate assistance in order to protect students, school board members and educators.

Kingham, in her petition, said groups like the WSSDA and NSBA should not have influence in a school board’s decisions.

She wrote that Jansons represents both Olympia and the school district.

“While we thank Mr. Jansons for his service, the time has come and our district needs new leadership,” says the petition. “Our district needs a professional with no ulterior motives other than the well being of children in the district.”

The state association includes 1,477 local school board directors, and provides them with research, development resources, policy and legal guidance. It is similar to other statewide associations for elected officials.

Jansons is winning re-election for Position 2, defeating challenger Ben Griggs with 52% of the vote.

Asked by the Herald about the online petition, Jansons said: “The work of the board is to form a collaborative team to serve the best interests of the students. We haven’t yet sworn in the new board, and I’m looking forward to working with all of them to provide the leadership the district needs.”

Contentious election

During the campaign Bird said he was opposed to teaching social justice curriculum in schools and criticized how schools handled COVID-19.

Earlier this year, Bird posted about his views on Facebook after he’d filed for a school board position and it drew what he called unkind comments from a Richland High teacher.

Bird said the comments were harassing enough that he blocked the teacher from posting on his campaign page. He removed his daughter from the school district after what he thought was a poor reaction to his concerns by the principal.

He was criticized by some for allegations he was considering a class-action lawsuit against the Richland School District over how he or other parents believe they were treated and “disrespected” by school employees.

But he told the Herald in October he has no plans to sue the district.

He will be serving out the final two years of a 4-year term that originally was held by Rick Donahoe.

After Donahoe stepped down in 2020 to move to Michigan, Ken Gosney was appointed but he decided not to run this year to keep the seat.

Bird is winning by 1,258 votes over challenger Elizabeth Vann-Clark.

Election results are unofficial until they are certified by the county Canvassing Board on Nov. 23. The Washington Secretary of State then certifies final results by Dec. 2.

Bird — whose business is consulting with boards and developing business models — told the Herald that he wants to instill trust and confidence back in parents and “mend those broken ties” so they feel good about their district again.

He added that he has no issue with Jansons, saying the board president “did the best he could.”

Reporter Cameron Probert contributed to this report.

This story was originally published November 12, 2021 at 3:45 PM.