By Gabbie Burton
Contributing Writer

Oxford Area School Board member Mike Blessington is receiving backlash over a social media comment he recently wrote that has been deemed offensive by some community members.

Blessington’s comment was left on a post from Facebook user Connie Marie titled: “Niki Bulger: Oxford’s gossip queen spreading vile lies in OASD school board fights!” and was shared in the Oxford Pulse group on Oct. 18. Referring to Bulger, Blessington wrote: “She is a special short Bud rider,” with some community members presuming “bud” was a typo for “bus.” At the time of writing, the post could no longer be found on the Oxford Pulse page.

Bulger is known to Blessington and other members of the board and community for her vocal support for Democratic candidates on Facebook - of which Blessington is not - and for her attendance at school board meetings. Bulger shared that to her, Blessington’s comments are just the latest instance of inappropriate online behavior from a school board member.

“I don’t really care what he says about me. He’s said worse,” Bulger said of Blessington’s comments. “They can say whatever they want about me. It’s not going to bother me, but they shouldn’t be using our students themselves as an insult.”

For those who may feel that Blessington’s comment was trivial or not what the board or community should be focusing on, Bulger countered that with an election so close, these issues are a matter of importance.

“It’s important to hold our elected officials to a higher standard and to be outspoken when they're doing inappropriate things,” Bulger said. “I hope the community gets out and votes and really looks into the candidates that are running and looks at their social media pages and speaks to them and sends them questions, so that they can make educated decisions and not vote on party lines, because school boards should be nonpartisan.”

While Bulger did not attend the most recent school board meeting on Oct. 21 to make her feelings known, other members of the community did, where they addressed their concerns about Blessington’s comment directly to the board.

“It is my opinion that this board member is allegedly trying to bully this stakeholder into submission by insulting not only her, but also the very students that he purports to put first,” said Amy Carbonara during the open comment portion of the school board meeting.

Carbonara also filed a report form for complaints of discrimination to the board, which she accessed under Policy 5510: Nondiscrimination in School and Classroom Policy.

Public reaction also included a comment from Charles Steckel, who shared that he has cared for individuals with special needs for the past 45 years.  

“The field hasn’t changed much in 45 years, and part of that is because of the ongoing stigma of folks mistreating people or treating people as if this is something they’ve chosen, or something that’s wrong with them instead of something they received,” Steckel said. “As a member of this community, I want to be a part of helping those people who think bullying and belittling special needs people is acceptable.”

Steckel elaborated on his decision to speak to the board after the meeting.

“I have seen how people are affected by bullying, especially people who do not have the cognitive abilities we have,” he said. “I can’t understand why people aren’t screaming their heads off about this.”

While Carbonara and Steckel addressed the board with their thoughts, others had more to say outside of the meeting. Brittany Washburn, the parent of a sixth grader who receives special education services, sent an email to the board ahead of the Oct. 21 meeting about her concerns on the comments made by Blessington.

“This [comment] is not just uncalled for from a board member. It is absolutely and incredibly inappropriate,” she wrote. “To use a slur like that to someone, anyone, while also being a sitting member of a school board who represents exactly those students he is making slurs about is vile and revolting.”

Washburn also called on Blessington to issue an apology on the matter. However, Blessington did not address the email or public comments made during the Oct. 21 meeting.

The meeting also included the election of a new board president following Mark Patterson’s resignation from the board in September. Bill Kloss was nominated and elected to serve in the role with Jenifer Warren remaining as vice president and Tenille Dewees as treasurer.

The next regular meeting for the Oxford Area School Board will be held on Nov. 18, after the Nov. 4 election.

To contact Contributing Writer Gabbie Burton, email [email protected].