Utah lawmakers on an Education Task Force questioned Tuesday how well the Salt Lake City\u00a0School District is serving children in west-side schools, encouraging school board member Michael Clara to continue investigating.<\/p>\n

Clara filed a complaint with the federal Office of Civil Rights in February, asserting there are\u00a0too many inexperienced and ineffective teachers in west-side schools. He has clashed with
\nboard members over his attempts to discuss that topic, as well as the dropout rate for Latino\u00a0students, graduation rates, the district\u2019s recent tax increase and other issues.<\/p>\n

Sen. Howard Stephenson, R-Draper, said he had asked for data about Salt Lake City\u2019s\u00a0inexperienced and ineffective teachers but could not understand the district\u2019s confusing
\nresponse.<\/p>\n

\u201cI haven\u2019t been able to get to the bottom of it, and I\u2019ve dealt with school finance for 35 years,\u201d\u00a0said Stephenson, who serves on the Senate Education Committee. \u201cThere\u2019s a disproportionate number of ineffective teachers on the\u00a0west side.\u201d<\/p>\n

The district\u2019s \u201cineffective\u201d designation is based on student test scores and is used in school improvement plans.\u00a0Sen. Stuart Reid, R-Ogden, said when he served on the Salt Lake City Council, it was difficult to get attention for the needs of the\u00a0Rose Park neighborhood on the city\u2019s west side.\u00a0\u201cI say bully for you because it will get left out,\u201d said Reid, chair of the Senate Education Committee.<\/p>\n

Sen. Wayne Niederhauser, R-Sandy, and Sen. Steve Urquhart, R-St. George, said districts statewide need to get veteran teachers into\u00a0schools with at-risk students. Urquhart suggested districts could \u201cuse extra incentives.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery student should receive an equal education but they don\u2019t,\u201d Urquhart said in an interview. \u201cMove those gifted teachers into the\u00a0lower performing schools.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clara spoke during a public comment session as the Legislature\u2019s Education Task Force discussed how education should be
\ngoverned. Clara is calling for the ouster of Salt Lake City School District Superintendent McKell Withers, alleging Withers is taking\u00a0over the board\u2019s responsibilities.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe superintendent runs the board instead of the members running it,\u201d Clara said in an interview. \u201cI\u2019m not able to address the
\nissues my constituents bring up.\u201d\u00a0He added: \u201c[The school board has] been on autopilot, so of course they think they\u2019re a good board, but they don\u2019t have 52 percent of\u00a0their students dropping out in their neighborhoods.\u201d<\/p>\n

After he repeated his criticism at the task force meeting, Rep. Carol Spackman Moss, D-Holladay, questioned Clara\u2019s \u201cinflammatory\u00a0statements about the superintendent.\u201d\u00a0Noting she worked with Withers when he was a school principal, Moss said Withers has a reputation for putting students first, even
\nwhen others protest.<\/p>\n

Clara directed her to his website, Michaelclara.com, where he chronicles his disagreements with Withers and the board.
\n\u201cI documented it on my blog because of the skepticism,\u201d Clara replied to Moss.\u00a0Withers, who has been the district chief for 10 years, could not be reached for comment late Tuesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cDr. Withers was not in attendance at the meeting,\u201d district spokesman Jason Olsen wrote in an email. \u201cMr. Clara was speaking only \u00a0for himself. He was not representing the Salt Lake City School District board of education or Salt Lake City School District.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tensions that have been simmering since Clara joined the board eight months ago surfaced at the board\u2019s Aug. 6 truth in taxation
\nhearing.\u00a0Members started arguing when Clara started to pass around a three-page letter explaining why he was against a planned property\u00a0tax increase: He felt he was lacking information and opposed a one-time payment to Withers, which Clara considered a bonus.\u00a0\u201cCall for the question!\u201d member Laurel Heath Young repeatedly said, speaking over Clara, who also continued to speak.\u00a0Board\u00a0president Kristi Swett cut off the discussion and called for the vote, which was 6-1.<\/p>\n

Board member Rosemary Emery protested in an email to other board members after the meeting.\u00a0\u201cMichael was treated unbelievably rudely,\u201d Emery said. \u201cThey\u2019ve been rude to me but not like that. I do think the superintendent has
\nco-opted the board.\u201d<\/p>\n

Within days of the vote, Clara had created a YouTube video that showed that portion of board meeting, with his commentary added.\u00a0Veteran board members, some who have served for more than a decade, have refused to comment about the board meeting, Clara or\u00a0the issues he is raising, including Swett and vice president Heather Bennett, who both represent Salt Lake City\u2019s east side.
\nClara and Emery said more attention needs to be paid to Salt Lake City\u2019s west side, which they said includes more low-income
\nneighborhoods that struggle with gangs.<\/p>\n

Member Tiffany Sandberg, who also represents Salt Lake City\u2019s west side, said district documents show a Latino high school dropout\u00a0rate of 39 percent districtwide, not the 52 percent reported by Clara. Clara explains his reasoning on his website.
\n\u201cThere\u2019s a lot frustration on the board,\u201d Sandberg said. \u201cI truly believe Michael Clara has good intentions and a good heart but the methods that he uses to try and accomplish things can be counterproductive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rparker@sltrib.com<\/p>\n

Twitter\/Facebook @RayUtah<\/p>\n