Union County commissioner blasts school board as bullying ‘jokers’

A Union County commissioner laced into the school board this week, calling them “jokers” and saying he was tired of all their “bullying and bull crap.”

Commissioner Frank Aikmus’ comments came at a meeting Monday night involving yet another funding dispute between the two boards.

On Tuesday, Union County school board chair John Collins denied his board was bullying anyone, saying, “I’m real sorry Frank feels that way. Rather than deal with it in an adult manner, you go in another direction.”

Aikmus and other commissioners were upset that the school board did not send anyone to the meeting to answer questions about a $1.2 million capital projects funding request to cover “emerging needs.”

The school board request included money for fixing a chiller and a boiler at Weddington High and dealing with HVAC needs at Monroe Middle.

Last month, commissioners unanimously rejected the school board’s request for $1.2 million for emerging needs, saying that the school board should prioritize its needs and use existing funds.

In their latest request, the school board wanted commissioners to approve taking funds from a Benton Heights Elementary renovation project and upgrades to the existing security camera system.

Collins said he had told commissioners before the meeting that the school district felt there were no unanswered questions remaining on their request, which was well documented. “Maybe they haven’t gotten the full story from their staff,” he said.

But commissioners had requested ahead of the meeting that the school board send someone to answer their questions. At the meeting, Aikmus said he still had questions about defunding the security camera upgrades.

“So get off your butts and get over here and answer our questions,” Aikmus said, his voice rising. “I’m sick and tired of all the bullying and bull crap from the board of education.

“We have for at least five years asked for joint meetings with these jokers. They refuse to show up, they refuse to answer questions,” Aikmus said. “They need to be here and answer questions and be transparent to the taxpayers of this county.”

Commissioners unanimously tabled the funding request until they can discuss the details with the school board. Collins said the boards might be able to hold a joint meeting next month.

In 2013, feuding between the boards escalated when the school board sued the county because it didn’t like the amount of county funding it received in the annual budget.

The school board won a surprise $91 million judgment that was overturned on appeal. And taxpayers had to cover more than $2 million in legal and related bills between the boards.

This story was originally published August 18, 2015 at 1:44 PM with the headline "Union County commissioner blasts school board as bullying ‘jokers’."