CEO on resignation: “I was attacked”

ROCK SPRINGS – Carol Jelaco, chair of the Sweetwater County School District No. 1 Board of Trustees, called the allegations made in her resignation letter an attack and criticized local media for not contacting her to get her side of the story.

SweetwaterNOW addressed the school board during the public comment and question portion of the meeting, requesting a response from the school board and district to the allegations made in former board member Kari Cochran’s resignation letter regarding her experiences while on the board. SweetwaterNOW had reached out to the district for comment last week. An interview through Superintendent Kelly McGovern’s administrative assistant was scheduled for the morning of June 5. McGovern was scheduled to contact SweetwaterNOW at a time convenient for her, but no further contact was made by the district.

Jelaco read from a written statement criticizing local media’s publication of content from Cochran’s resignation letter without contacting her. When informed of the interview SweetwaterNOW had arranged with McGovern, she told SweetwaterNOW that the publication still had not contacted her. Two residents in the audience told Jelaco this was her chance to respond to the allegations, with Jelaco initially calling the letter an attack. She later defended the panel’s transparency, saying the panel had more open and public conversations than any other panel she had served on.

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“I just want to say, as I said in my statement, that these allegations are very one-sided and I will speak for myself. I was not asked by anyone for my side of the story and I believe that side of the story should have appeared along with the allegations so that they could be compared in the same article,” Jelaco said. “For me personally, it was an attack.”

After the meeting, Jelaco continued to speak with SweetwaterNOW, saying she feels like she has been defamed by every publication in the district. She said the time to ask questions about Cochran’s resignation was last week. As of now, she wants to focus on positive events in the district, such as the arrival of the new superintendent and work to build a new Rock Springs High School.

Other board members thanked Cochran for her service. Board member Cole Wright addressed issues raised by Cochran, such as her views on the district’s lack of transparency and accusations of rubber-stamping McGovern. While he acknowledged he can’t speak for Cochran’s experience, he said the district’s most recent five-year plan includes aspects he believes will improve both communication and transparency.

“We as a team know what needs to be worked on,” he said.

Board member Danielle Schumacher said it’s hard to understand a situation when only one side of the story is presented. She said change doesn’t happen overnight and believes positive progress is being made in the district.

“It’s sad to see her go,” Schumacher said.