ROCK SPRINGS — Should Chairman Cole Wright be removed from being the chairman of the Sweetwater County School District No. 1 Board of Trustees? 

That’s what one of two petitions recently filed with the school board seeks. A short special meeting Monday evening addressed both petitions, and resulted in the school board not being able to take action on either. The meeting was not streamed on the district’s YouTube page.  Wright recused himself from the discussion.

When it comes to removing Wright as the chairman, no legal framework exists to remove a board member from a leadership position on the board. A board member can be replaced if they die, move out of the board’s service area, or are convicted of a felony crime. State law also does not allow for a board member to be recalled midway through their term. A board member could decide to voluntarily give up a leadership position, which would likely cause the board to elect a different member to the vacated position, but they can’t be forced from it. 

Another petition the board considered focused on reinstating a liaison position between the district and the families with students learning English as a second language. The issue came up during the board’s regular monthly meeting Aug. 10, when a group approached the board with concerns about the position being eliminated. That petition had more than 200 signatures attached to it.

Superintendent Joseph Libby said the position was funded through federal grant money that had dried up, leaving the district without funding to continue the position. Schools within the district have Spanish language interpreters, which are seen as a way of making up for the position’s loss. Wright said the school board itself couldn’t do much with the situation anyway as it is a human resources issue.

“Our employee is the superintendent and that’s it,” Wright said.