14 Aug 14th- Aug 20th, 2025 phoenixnewtimes.com PHOENIX NEW TIMES | NEWS | FEATURE | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & CULTURE | MUSIC | CONCERTS | CANNABIS | interviews with Boggs and her team. Three candidates for the position told New Times they were also asked “inappropriate” ques- tions in their interviews. Francisco Pedraza, whose child attends Emerson Elementary School in the district, said he was asked over two interviews about about banning DEI in education, upholding Trump’s executive orders around DEI and making sure the school district “doesn’t turn into some kind of agenda-pushing body about woke politics or woke ideology.” “It was super politicized,” Pedraza said. “I’m here because I have a kid in the school district and I want the board to be trans- parent. I was really frustrated as a constit- uent that the board was making decisions about closing schools.” (Pedraza and other parents have criti- cized the board for a lack of transparency, including about the decision to shutter two district schools and end its contract with ASU Prep. The board also failed to notify the community when it paid $200,000 to settle a former student’s sexual harassment lawsuit.) Schiller applied for the board seat in hopes of addressing a “trainwreck” of a governing board that struggled to complete such basic tasks as updating its agenda. His pitch to Boggs was that as a school board veteran, he was plug-and-play. “I don’t need to learn anything,” he said. “I know the rules. I know the policies. I’ve been through all this.” As weeks went by and three follow-up emails went unanswered, he realized Boggs was looking for a true believer. Schiller, a registered Independent, didn’t fit the bill. “I’m not right enough for her,” he said. “It’s actually sad because you’re missing decent people that can make a difference.” Multiple district parents wrote letters to Boggs recommending Gullick. In her May 20 interview for the position, Gullick fielded questions about her voter registra- tion, which she had switched to Independent in November after losing faith in the Democratic Party. When Boggs asked her about how she’d vote on the board, Gullick replied, “Well, I’m just going to vote for whatever is in the best interest of the children.” Gullick hadn’t heard anything from the county superintendent since her interview nine weeks ago — until Aug. 4, when Boggs sent her a rejection email. Asking about political affiliation may be unusual — Pinal County School Superintendent Jill Broussard told New Times she doesn’t ask about party affilia- tion or other political questions because “it is a nonpartisan position” — but it’s not off limits. Jim Barton, an employment and government relations lawyer at Phoenix- based practice Barton Mendez Soto, said that while Boggs’ questions were “disap- pointing” and “sorta gross,” they are “prob- ably above board.” “One would be hard pressed to say it’s out of bounds to ask those questions,” Barton said, though he added that “it just shows disregard for the position” that is supposed to be, “by its nature, nonpartisan.” Oliver, Boggs’ spokesperson, confirmed that candidates were asked “about their political activity and/or involvement” during interviews, though she denied in an email Aug. 7 that candidates were asked about their voter registration. She said the political activity questions concerned whether candidates intend to run to keep the seat when the appointed term ends. “It is important to Superintendent Boggs that we remain consistent and keep governing boards healthy,” Oliver wrote. Regarding questions about Trump’s executive orders, Oliver noted to New Times that PESD is a district that receives “substantial federal funding and Superintendent Boggs is concerned about risking funding by appointing someone who refuses to uphold federal laws.” As it happens, Boggs will soon have another PESD school board seat to fill. On July 29, one week before Edmiston’s appointment, PESD governing board member Alicia Vink announced that she’d be resigning at the following meeting. Her husband’s work is taking her out of the state. For Schiller, that spells more trouble. “I’m really worried with that one lady quitting,” he said, “we’re going to get two far-right MAGAs.” MAGA Takeover from p 12 Maricopa County School Superintendent Shelli Boggs appointed a MAGA ally to an empty seat on an urban Phoenix elementary school board. (Gage Skidmore/Flickr/CC BY-SA 2.0)
