TAOS — Superintendent Loretta DeLong's future with the Taos school district is up in the air after some school board members called for her resignation. Meanwhile, state Secretary of Education Veronica García threatened to suspend the board's authority if it doesn't conduct itself differently.

Two board members are accused of micromanaging the district and trying to force DeLong to resign.

"I don't want to leave," DeLong said, "and I haven't made a decision to leave."

But the superintendent said a three-member majority of the school board could still force her out.

In letters dated Wednesday, García states individual board members don't have the authority to order DeLong to take action on administrative matters. The superintendent is the district's chief executive officer, García said, and should oversee day-to-day activities.

DeLong's contract was to be the subject of an "emergency meeting" of the board last Friday, until it was determined legal notification requirements weren't met. The session turned into a community meeting where more than 300 people voiced varied concerns about the district, with most seeming to support retaining DeLong.

A special meeting is set for 10 a.m. Monday. DeLong's contract is on the agenda, and new board members Thomas "Chuby" Tafoya and Stella Gallegos will be sworn in.

Board members Arsenio Córdova and Lorraine Coca-Ruiz previously have called for DeLong's resignation.

"They had their pep rally, and we'll see what happens," Córdova told The Taos News after the meeting.

Córdova and Coca-Ruiz are also the subject of formal complaints filed with state and federal agencies by eight district administrators, including DeLong and two school principals.

Administrators who sent DeLong a letter of concern Feb. 9 that ended up with the state Education Department include:

u Director of instruction Rose Martínez;

u Federal programs coordinator Catherine Collins;

u Personnel director Esther Winter;

u Nutrition coordinator Mary Ann McCann;

u Exceptional programs coordinator Jeanelle Livingston;

u Health services coordinator Maria Chávez-Medina;

u Finance director Elizabeth Trujillo;

n Facilities supervisor Quinton Wood;

u Enos García Elementary School Principal Nadine Vigil; and

u Arroyos del Norte Elementary School Principal Lucille Gallegos-Jaramillo.

The complaint alleges Córdova and Coca-Ruiz have created a "hostile work environment" for district employees and documents 37 alleged violations, either of district policy or state or federal law committed by the pair.

Coca-Ruiz is accused of "publicly stating her intentions to remove administrators from their jobs." Complaints about Córdova center on his allegedly overstepping his authority by working independently of the board, meeting individually with state agencies and giving administrators orders on which the board has not voted.

Livingston said district employees have tried in the past to deal with the actions of Córdova and Coca-Ruiz internally, and she knows the complaints will be a distraction.

"We've been trying really hard here for the past two years," she said. "We just couldn't deal with it anymore."

District policy states the board should concern itself with "broad questions of policy" rather than "administrative detail." It also states board members have "no power or authority individually."

Livingston said administrators and other employees do need to be held accountable, but she does not think it is the role of the board to oversee their day-to-day work.

"That's why we have a superintendent," she said.

DeLong's letter to the state accuses Córdova and Coca-Ruiz of hostility and racism. It says she believes Coca-Ruiz is also the author of multiple letters signed by a "Rose Martinez" from Taos Pueblo that tell DeLong, a Native American, she should go back to Minnesota and not "bite the hand that feed(s) you."

She said Coca-Ruiz was visibly angry after DeLong distributed a copy of one of the letters to the rest of the board, and Coca-Ruiz started referring to "your people" and "your kind" (presumably American Indians) when talking to DeLong about the letter.

A response to DeLong from Secretary of Education García, dated Wednesday, states the Education Department cannot act on allegations of racial discrimination or hostile work environments, but the administrators' complaints have also been sent to the federal Office for Civil Rights, the U.S. Department of Labor, the American Civil Liberties Union and the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

In a separate letter to the board, García says Córdova and Coca-Ruiz have no authority to act individually or "interfere with the day-to-day administration of the school district."

In the letter, García threatens to suspend the authority of the board if individual members "do not conduct themselves in a manner expected of all board members functioning in the state."

"Dr. García has really pointed out that the board has a specific function," Livingston said.

Coca-Ruiz did not return calls requesting comment, but Córdova denied acting inappropriately.

"I don't go in there and give directives to anybody," he said. "What I have said, I have said in public."

Córdova said he only brings his constituents' concerns to the attention of district employees and does not act independently of the board.

"I have not been to anybody's office," he said. "I don't have any conversations with administrators."

Livingston declined to list specific incidents, but she said Córdova has intimidated and bullied her in the past.

"I've had that experience, and it's very uncomfortable," she said.

When DeLong was told of Córdova's denial, she laughed and declined comment.

Incoming board member Tafoya said he is mostly interested in maintaining harmony between the board and district administrators and, though he has nothing against DeLong personally, if her removal could help the district move forward, he might support it.

"Their relationship is hurting our schools' ability to be productive," he said of Córdova, Coca-Ruiz and DeLong.

If the board does move to get rid of DeLong on Monday, the district would still have to pay her through June 30 — a cost of more than $30,000.

For a video and photo gallery of the community meeting, see taosnews.com.