A group of Poway Unified School District parents are calling for accountability over the actions of the district's superintendent.
In what’s come to be known as Clappergate, members of the Del Norte High School softball team say their Superintendent Marian Kim Phelps threatened their graduation privileges because they didn’t clap loud enough for her daughter during their softball awards banquet.
“I think that sometimes maybe lines got blurred as to her role as a superintendent and her role as a parent,” parent Michael Roberts said.
Roberts' daughter was on the team and attended that awards ceremony in May.
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“Kids just want to enjoy their graduation and go on to the next step in their lives. And to have that happen, I think is inexcusable," explained Roberts.
Softball players and parents at Del Norte, which is part of Poway Unified School District, said the superintendent bullied one of the players, claiming she was the ringleader who told others not to cheer for her daughter at the banquet.
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They say the superintendent called one student close to midnight after the banquet, without parental knowledge, threatening to revoke graduation privileges for players, if they didn't admit to a coordinated effort.
“Threatening kids not to be able to graduate and walk at their graduation ceremony. I think those responses are just inappropriate. The whole thing is inappropriate," said Roberts.
During last Thursday’s school board meeting, varsity coach Tom Peronto said he notified the board about the superintendent's “abuse of power.” She not only threatened to get a junior player kicked off the team and excluded from extracurricular activities, but she also threatened his livelihood as well.
“Because I had exposed these abuses and emails to the board members, she then falsely accused me of verbally attacking a member of the board in the district parking lot, using this as justification to have me fired from coaching at softball at Del Norte," said Peronto.
A group of players and former players, represented by Miranda Mosqueda, who is a senior this year, also were on hand at the meeting to air their take on what happened.
"I, along with my teammates, were at the softball banquet on May 30," Mosqueda told the school board. "To be honest, it was the best banquet I've attended. Everyone was happy and cheering, and supporting one another, but little did we know, one of the parents thought that her daughter didn't get enough claps. She started an investigation, and five months later, we're all still dealing with this. She made life hell for 10 seniors, threatening to bar them from their own graduation if they didn't admit that they did something that they didn't do. These seniors are our friends and didn't do anything wrong. Neither did the other student who this parent also threatened and even had investigated. This parent has a lot of power in our school district. She used her power and influence to bully our students and essentially break up our softball program at Del Norte. This is my senior year at Del Norte. I was very excited to represent my school during my senior season and to play with all of my friends for the last time before we had to go to college, but now, many of us are afraid to play this year for fear of being harassed and intimidated. Will all that said, I think it's finally time we ask ourselves: Who is the real bully in this situation?"
Parents at the meeting also pointed to social media posts as passive-aggressive threats. The allegations are now coming to light after a district investigation into Clappergate was completed.
Ted Buchan says his daughter was questioned. He’s among the parents who aren't satisfied with the investigation. One that Coach Peronto says didn't include all the coaches and parents say didn't include all the players.
“I think the biggest problem with it is it was driven by the superintendent and she had someone involved in it, her daughter. And you would think a third party would have been in charge and it would be completely unbiased, and she would have recused herself," said Buchan
Though parents are united in the board's need to take action, opinions differ on what that action should be.
"I think that the school board should make sure that a superintendent or other school administrators are having appropriate conversations and contact with the students, that they don't abuse their power and make threats to young students,” explained Roberts.
When asked what the proper action to take should be, Buchan said the superintendent should be replaced.
We reached out to the Poway Unified School District for the investigation results. We were told they’re confidential.
And instead of responding to our request for comment, they've now called a special board meeting for 10 a.m. Wednesday, when the board and Superintendent Phelps are scheduled to issue a joint statement.
