One Wichita board member to another: ‘You truly are wicked’

A feud involving Wichita school board members ramped up over the weekend, after board member Betty Arnold called Joy Eakins “wicked” in a text message and Eakins shared the message on social media.

Eakins, who spoke out last week against what she says is a culture of bullying and a lack of transparency on the board, posted a screenshot of the text message on her Facebook page Friday evening:

“I feel sorry for you. I have not met such a hate filled public servant that is so hell bent on destruction to the point of lying,” Arnold said in the text. “You truly are wicked!”

Arnold said Monday that she does not regret sending the text, and she stood by what she said.

“I really don’t care. Joy lied, and I’m angry about how she was so selfish to throw the board under the bus,” Arnold said.

“I told Joy how I felt, and if she wants to continue to play games by sharing it, that’s her option.”

Eakins, who was elected in 2013 and is not seeking re-election, often has been a lone dissenting vote on the board.

In an opinion piece published by The Eagle last week, she said some school board members “attack others that aren’t in lockstep with their views,” and that they have used private meetings to “control the message before it goes to the public.”

Longtime board member Lynn Rogers responded publicly to Eakins, saying in his own op-ed piece that he was “personally disappointed in how Eakins brought her concerns to the public” rather than addressing them to board members directly.

On her “Joy Eakins for Wichita Schools” Facebook page, Eakins shared a link to Rogers’ response and a screenshot of Arnold’s text message.

“Senator Rogers, please stop projecting your anger on me. I am not angry about the few votes I lost here and there or the hundreds we agreed on,” Eakins wrote as part of her post.

“Mrs. Arnold – this is about the culture of bullying people who don’t agree with a few board members.”

The post garnered several comments and was shared more than 30 times.

Arnold said Monday that she thinks Eakins is “trying to destroy the image of public education” and the school board.

Arnold said she has not bullied other board members or the public, and she vehemently denied accusations that the board has used private, small-group meetings to skirt transparency laws.

“If she truly felt bullied, she had options. … If you feel like we’re doing something that isn’t appropriate, you go through the channels,” Arnold said.

“But you see, when you make vague allegations and hints and innuendos, then yes, I hate that that’s going on right now,” she said. “I absolutely abhor what she was willing to do for her few minutes of fame.”

The school board was scheduled to meet at 6 p.m. Monday. On the agenda are proposed changes to several district policies, including one that would require people wanting to address the board to sign up by noon on the day of the meeting. Current policy allows people to sign up 10 minutes prior to meeting time.

This story was originally published October 23, 2017 at 5:12 PM with the headline "One Wichita board member to another: ‘You truly are wicked’."