Iredell Free News is reporting that a Statesville resident has launched a petition drive to put pressure on members of the Iredell-Statesville Schools Board of Education to resign. Patrice Miller, a 2016 graduate of South Iredell High School and recent graduate of Campbell University, launched the online effort on May 24 after learning that six of the seven I-SS board members met secretly via text message on more than 30 dates between December 2022 and April of 2023 (Only Charles Kelly did not participate in the secret texts.) sharing what she felt were inappropriate comments.
During the long string of messages, which Iredell Free News first reported last month, board members Anita Kurn and Brian Sloan — in a discussion about student discipline — joked about having Statesville High School students fight in a Thunderdome at the school’s football field. Vice Chair Mike Kubiniec and other board members also made comments targeting LGBTQ advocates on different occasions.