After nearly an hour of tense — and at times downright chaotic — comments about a plagiarized graduation speech and its subsequent handling, Northern Humboldt Union High School District trustees voted 3-1 this evening to ask Dan Johnson to resign.
Johnson sat calmly as his fellow trustees voted, and said nothing afterward about whether he would take their advice.
While unable to force Johnson, an elected official, from his seat, the board’s vote was a harsh condemnation of his actions — or, as some board members put it, inactions.
The decision came during a tense, sometimes raucous evening. Roughly 100 people jammed into the McKinleyville High School multi-purpose room, sometimes shouting at each other and over each other.
Several people expressed their support for Johnson, saying they had accepted his apology and that it was time to move on. Others called Johnson’s apology inadequate, tardy and insulting. They demanded the board take immediate action.
The school trustees initially expressed optimism about moving forward, pointing to a plan they released back in July to avert future plagiarism. It wasn’t until Johnson — who has been absent from the board’s past two meetings citing “pretty intense personal issues” — spoke that things started going downhill.
Johnson started off by thanking his supporters. He apologized to the board for missing the August and July meetings. And then, he launched into a public statement.
“I am sorry for the people with the not-so-kind words that feel the way they feel,” he said. “I think if you really got to know me you would have a different interpretation. Unfortunately people who have those unkind words don’t really know who the hell I am as a person.”
Johnson said it’s time the district moved on. Then things got a little ugly. When one woman sitting near the front reacted to his speech with audible scorn, something between a snort and a laugh, Johnson yelled at her as if she were a disobedient schoolgirl. “You need to respect me,” he said. Just as a teacher would make a disrespectful student stand in a hallway, Johnson told her to “head out of the room and go and sit in the hallway.”
She declined.
It was an uncomfortable, clearly frustrated board that took up discussion once Johnson’s speech was over.
Trustee Dana Silvernale, one of the three trustees up for re-election in November, spoke first. “It seems to me that something more has to be done,” she said. “I don’t want this to go on any longer. We need a resolution this evening.”
A pained Mike Pigg agreed, saying that he felt the board was at a crossroads. “I don’t think we can heal from this,” said Pigg, the board president.
Board member Colleen Toste was more blunt. “What I hear,” she said, “is that we either need a sincere apology or we need Dan to resign.”
The only dissenting trustee, Dan Collen, took the middle ground, saying that while he didn’t necessarily like Johnson’s apology, he had accepted it. If the voters want Johnson off the board, they have the option of a recall, he said.
Ultimately, Toste, Silvernale and Pigg voted to ask for Johnson’s resignation. Pigg, who has known Johnson since their high school days, said the vote was one of the toughest decisions of his life. Unlike Collen, the three who voted to ask Johnson to step down are all facing re-election in November. Johnson abstained.
After the public session, Johnson called out “no comment” to approaching reporters and strode away.
This article appears in Building a Better Corridor.
Jesus, you Progs are dangerous people. Talk about a witch hunt and removal from office by forced political terrorism, you Proggies are the ones to go to now, aren’t you! Johnson’s perfectly right to question the energy and effort made to remove him from office had been spent trying to help students. Arm pit politics, Green’s need to be shunned for corrupt leadership [edited]
Holy shiite! You can’t delete, can’t edit a post on this crappy NCJ comment program.
Getting to know Dan Johnson as a person is not the point. Knowing him as a school district trustee is, and his actions as a trustee have proven him a narcissistic bully who keeps digging himself deeper every time he opens his mouth.
I have no doubt Trustee Johnson, like many others , have made numerous contributions to this area, but like the title of his plagiarized graduation speech says “You are not special”. Mr. Johnson keeps trying to argue he is not accountable to his constituents for his actions since he is above them because they point out his (in)actions were wrong. He demands respect and yet gives very little of it.
Thank you for the coverage on this. I think all the local papers are giving this the attention it’s due.
The bottom line of last nights school board meeting was that Dan Johnson dug his own grave. He had been asked by Pigg and Silvernale if he could give a true and heartfelt apology and he went on and on about all the terrible people who said bad things about him. He couldn’t stop himself, he got more worked up as he went on. He simply is incapable of seeing and admitting that what he did was wrong, that he had been dishonest when he had claimed that he had written the letter he read at the graduation. Never mind that his so-called apology was an insult. The man is incapable of admitting wrong doing and will pitifully go on attacking anyone who says the emperor has no clothes. It was a sad sight. He had packed the house with backers some of whom got just plain ugly at those of us who were not of their ilk. Glenn Goldan yelled out loud at me for my terrible disrespect when I whispered something to the person next to me. Pigg, Silvernale an Toste were outstanding. They clarified a great deal about why it has taken so long to deal with this and all three took clear stands that were clearly painful and had taken much hard work and deep thought . They deserve kudos and respect for the stand they took last night. Johnsons childish behavior left them no choice but to do what they did.
Damn!! who let the self hating trolls out?
So… uh. The Jews? I’m glad you can’t edit your post then so we can all see you for the xenophobic douchebag you are.
So where do I get the papers to start the recall?
But NCJ can and did censor my post. You notice it’s not there. Judy is such a hypocrite and intellectual fascist that everything she does turns to sleazy Progressive political slime in place of real community protection.
I attended the meeting last night. Whether or not you have accepted Mr. Johnson’s apology or or not it is time to move on. I would say along with I am sure the majority of the people there that Mr. Johnson was very respectful to all the speakers. He did not shrug his shoulders, roll his eyes, laugh, or smirk he sat there looked at the speakers and listened. He listened to speakers that clearly were upset and ones that have clearly moved on. As an adult and member of the district I was shocked at some of the things that were said to him. They were mean and very unnecessary. But he sat and he listened through it all very respectfully. Then it was Mr. Johnson’s turn to speak as he was talking a lady (who is and Arcata High School teacher) and sitting in the FRONT row started to talk to a retired teacher and administrator next to her. She was laughing and making gestures with her shoulders and hands. It was loud enough so most in the audience could hear her. I was sitting 4 rows behind her and could hear and see her making the head movements of someone who was not interested in what Mr. Johnson was saying. In other words she was being very disrespectful to Mr. Johnson. If she was a student in a classroom the teacher would have made her leave the room. I know that because my child has been removed for the same thing.
Right wingers always handle things so professionally.