Scottsdale Unified Board President Ousted In Dossier Controversy

SCOTTSDALE, AZ — Jann-Michael Greenburg was stripped of his title of president of the Scottsdale Unified School Board Monday, following controversy over a dossier of information he is accused of keeping on parents who were openly critical of the district.

The board voted 4-1 Monday evening to elect board member Patty Beckman to replace Greenburg as the president for the remainder of his term in the leadership role. Greenburg was the only board member to vote against his replacement. Board members Zach Lindsay and Libby Hart-Wells called for Greenburg's resignation, but Greenburg did not resign. Greenburg is still a member of the board, although stripped of the title of president.

The dossier, saved on Google Drive, includes things like screenshots of Facebook conversations where parents discussed their opposition to critical race theory and masking to prevent the spread of COVID-19, according to an Arizona Republic report. It also reportedly included photos of some district children and documents detailing parents' divorce proceedings.

The district announced Friday that it would hire a forensic investigator to find out if any district resources were used in the creation of the Google Drive documents that Greenburg accidentally shared with parents, Fox 10 reported.

Greenburg's father, Mark Greenburg, reportedly created the dossier but Jann-Michael Greenburg shared it, the Arizona Republic reported.

Greenburg said during the special Monday night meeting where he was stripped of the title of president that he welcomed an investigation underway by the Scottsdale Police. He added that the board should wait until it has all the information before taking any further action, and said people tend to react hastily to things they see on social media, especially in the current political climate.

“I believe in this community and want us all to work together, even when we disagree,” Greenburg said. “...There appear to be bad actors involved and I am confident that our law enforcement professionals will quickly resolve these issues."

The Scottsdale Unified School District has faced several parent protests already this school year, over things like critical race theory and mask mandates in the schools, both of which some parents vehemently oppose.

The dossier has been reported on nationally, including by the Daily Caller, a right-wing media organization based in Washington D.C. and founded by Tucker Carlson before he became a Fox News personality.

Donald Trump Jr. tweeted about it last week.

Hart-Wells called for the special school board meeting Monday night, specifically to nominate a new board president and to ask for Greenburg's resignation.

She said that the recent controversy over the dossier had distracted from the district's focus on its students.

"It is Imperative that the board and district are able to function healthily and constructively to carry out its mission of educating our students,” she said.

Board member Lindsay agreed that it was time to move past the controversy and shift the board's focus back to the district's 22,000 students.

“I find some of the allegations very troubling and they’ve been a huge distraction to our district,” Lindsay said.

Board Vice President Julie Cieniawski agreed with Greenburg that the board should wait to make any further decisions until the investigations by the district and the police are completed and all the facts are in front them.