Arizona Deaf Schools: Students Protest, Demand Action

VIDEO: Arizona probes accusation of conflicts at Arizona Schools for the Deaf & Blind, Superintendent, board president focus of protests, complaints.



TUCSON, AZ. - Two state agencies are investigating the superintendent and board president of the Arizona State Schools for the Deaf and the Blind for potential conflicts of interest and excessive travel expenses.



Superintendent Robert Hill and ASDB Board President Bernhardt Jones also have been the focus of multiple protests at school's two main campuses in Tucson and Phoenix over the last two weeks. Students, parents and former employees have called for the two to resign because of a lack of leadership and poor communication with the staff.



Among the concerns:



• Possible conflicts of interest: Hill and Jones have a private business relationship outside their ASDB positions. Jones is the director of TASK12, which administers the Educational Interpreter Performance Assessment for a $310 testing fee. Hill is listed as a TASK12 local test administrator at classroominterpreting.org. Neither Hill nor Jones disclosed their roles with TASK12 to ASDB, its board of directors or the state. ...READ MORE: http://azstarnet.com/news/arizona-probes-accusation-of-conflicts-at-asdb/article_e301835a-402d-53fb-b9fa-66e87c65dfe4.html



Read Letter: PDF: Letter from Robert Hill to ASDB staff

Pigs, goats snatched from classrooms: Deaf students protest, demand action.

Outrage swirling at the Arizona School for the Deaf and Blind. One administrator on leave. Another fired. And now students say even their animals are gone.



Arizona Schools for the Deaf & Blind Board of Directors: Acknowledge the vote of "No Confidence" in Superintendent Robert Hill - Five years ago, parents, staff, and community members gathered to ensure that Arizona School for the Deaf and Blind's campuses were truly accessible to American Sign Language (ASL) for the students and staff as well as fostering positive changes in the curriculum in order to advance deaf education.



Today, we find that our students' education is now at risk because of haphazard administrative decisions and questionable conduct by Superintendent Robert Hill, including several allegations of discriminatory conduct in regards to staff (female/sexual) and disability (Deaf).



Nearly 50 ASDB staff members have already personally signed the following statement: We, the members of the ASDB community including staff, parents, alumni, and friends, sign this petition as a Vote of No Confidence in Robert Hill's continued service as Superintendent of ASDB.



Robert Hill has demonstrated a continued failure to exhibit the professional integrity and leadership that is expected and required of the Superintendent of ASDB. Such failures include a fundamental refusal or inability to: ...More details at petition www.change.org petitions arizona schools for the deaf blind.