Tolleson Union faces new questions over spending on four-star resorts

PHOENIX (AZFamily) — A conservative think tank claims the Tolleson Union High School District improperly spent public money on board member retreats at four-star resorts, potentially violating state open meetings law in the process.

It’s the latest controversy for a district that is already investigating a sexual harassment complaint involving two of its top leaders.

Many school districts organize board retreats in the summer to discuss goals and strategies. Still, the vast majority hold them at the district office, where they are free and easy for the public to attend, said Christopher Thomas, director of legal strategy for education policy for the nonprofit Goldwater Institute.

District records show in June, leaders in Tolleson Union held a two-day retreat at the four-star Hilton Sedona Resort at Bell Rock. Last summer, the board held a three-day retreat at the four-star JW Marriott Starr Pass in Tucson.

The Goldwater Institute said it has filed records requests to determine the total cost of the trips.

“All these monies could go into teacher salaries. Each one of these dollars that are spent on professional development or an out-of-district four-star retreat, these are dollars that really need to be scrutinzed,” Thomas said.

Tolleson Union is requesting a bond override on the November election.

“If a school district is asking for more money from taxpayers, it begs the question if they’re spending current money appropriately,” he added.

Tolleson has already been facing scrutiny after Superintendent Jeremy Calles filed a sexual harassment complaint against the governing board president. The district has hired an outside party to investigate the complaint.

Thomas said that a quorum of school board members attended Tolleson’s summer retreats, meaning Arizona’s open meetings law applies.

“What they were doing was discussing district business, which is the public’s business, and the public has the right to attend that,” he said. “They didn’t stream the meeting. They didn’t record the meeting. They also didn’t have an agenda that outlined what they were going to talk about. Those are all requirements of the open meeting law.”

In response to Goldwater’s claims, Superintendent Calles sent Arizona’s Family a statement maintaining that the Tucson conference “actually saved money, time, and effort” because it was timed to coincide with another event.

He also opposed holding the retreat at the district office, saying that with summer school and other programs underway, “it is too easy to get distracted from the purpose of the retreat.”

Superintendent Calles also criticized the Goldwater Institute’s travel expenses, which are included in the nonprofit’s financial disclosures posted online. He noted that the nonprofit “spent $133,347 in travel expenses” last year or about $4,000 per employee.

The Goldwater Institute is a nonprofit that operates on donations, not taxpayer money.

“It’s clearly a misdirection,” Thomas said. “They’re trying to shift the focus away from themselves because they know they were caught spending public dollars inappropriately.”

Tolleson Union High School District Superintendent Jeremy Calles sent the following statement:

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