All but one Dora board member resigns

DORA — All but one member of the Dora Consolidated Schools Board of Education have resigned, according to the school’s interim superintendent.

Brandon Hays said Wednesday afternoon he will be posting a public notice from the New Mexico Public Education Department accepting applications for four positions on the board.

The vacant positions are those of John Mohon, Kenneth Cox, Bill Prater, and Gary Simpson, Hays said.

Community members have called for the resignations of all board members, following release of a state auditor’s report earlier this year.

That report identified more than $100,000 in potentially mismanaged funds between 2013 and 2016.

The funds included $41,000 worth of janitorial supplies from a company owned by a DCS employee, as well $37,000 in recyclables redeemed by an employee.

Prater said he resigned from the board Sept. 22, along with Mohon and Cox.

He cited his age as the reason for his resignation.

“It's harder for me to go to a board meeting at my age, so I just thought it was time,” he said.

Board President Jana Roberts is still a member of the board, said Hays.

Member Gary Simpson resigned at an Aug. 3 meeting in which then-Superintendent Steve Barron was placed on administrative leave by the board.

Community members have also publicly called for Barron’s resignation.

Hays said the board approved a motion for “approval of expenditure for buyout of employment contract of superintendent” on Sept. 20.

Hays would not comment on the buyout’s amount, but the district was ordered to pay Barron $184,000 on Sept. 1 in Roosevelt County 9th Judicial District Court, court documents show.

Mohon, Cox, Roberts, and Barron did not immediately respond to requests for comment, or they could not be reached.