Otero says she resigned from Los Lunas Board of Education after being threatened

LOS LUNAS — Los Lunas Schools Board of Education member Monica Otero, representing District 2, submitted her resignation effective immediately from the board on Friday, July 26.

LLS BOE President Michelle Osowski announced Otero’s decision in a press release on Friday.

During the Tuesday, Aug. 6, special BOE meeting, Otero spoke during public comment regarding her resignation.

“I’d like to thank everyone for allowing me to serve this district. I’m very sad to have resigned,” Otero said. “However, I do feel it was forced upon me without due process. I feel bad about the way this turned out.”

Otero said she was informed because she moved outside of District 2, although she said she still lives in the district, she would have to resign effective immediately.

“I was threatened with the attorney general if I did not do so,” she claimed. “I was here to do what was in the best interest of the children of this district and I was not here on my own agenda, so I hope moving forward that the children will be put first in all your decisions and that’s all I have to say for now.”

During a phone interview with the News-Bulletin Wednesday morning, Otero said she is moving only half a mile down the road of where she was living previously and she is still in the process of moving.

“It is on the border of District 2, basically; it’s very close. One side of the road is in District 2, and the side I live on, the opposite side, is not,” she said. “I didn’t think it would be an issue at all. As far as I was concerned, I really thought I’d be able to finish out my term knowing I would not be able to run for a second term under District 2.”

Otero said there are other cases of school board members in the state who have moved during their terms and they were still allowed to finish out their term.

“The (state) Bureau of Elections was contacted and asked about how the district works. It does state if you move out of your district that you must resign,” she said. “However, when they were asked if that’s a district as a whole, or just District 2, they said, ‘That’s a very good point; we’ve never been asked that. We don’t have an answer for you. We’ll look into that and let you know.”

Otero said she would love to return to her position and finish out the term if possible, but if not, “I’m still going to show up to the board meetings and still be a voice and an advocate for the students, community and for the teachers.”

She told the News-Bulletin Osowski didn’t follow due process regarding her resignation, and the board president didn’t have the authority to ask her to resign.

Otero’s brother, Manuel Otero, spoke at the meeting, saying “(Otero) was really strong armed into the decision that someone else thought was based upon them to put on her.

“There was no process that took place. She was blindsided and I believe it was due to a personal vendetta and it’s pretty clear now what’s going on,” he said. “I hope that the board here still serves the community and the children and are not here for their own personal reasons.”

Following public comment, LLS board member Bruce Bennett then made a motion to nominate Sonya C’Moya for the vacated District 2 position. In 2021, Moya was named as the public education secretary’s first designee to assume temporary governance of the Los Lunas Schools district when the former board was suspended. She unsuccessfully campaigned for the District 2 position in the November 2023 election.

“The reason I nominated Sonya C’Moya is because she served on the board in the past and she is very knowledgeable and I think she would be an asset to this board,” Bennett said.

Board member David Vickers said the board should offer the public the opportunity to submit letters of interest and then make a choice from the names that are submitted so as to not exclude the public.

Board member Justin Talley said there is an inquiry into the state election commission as to whether Otero needed to resign, as “the definition of district is ambiguous in the constitution.”

He suggested they not make an appointment tonight to allow some time to hear back from the commission and to give the public some time to submit letters of interest for the vacant position.

Talley said he is not sure when the commission will have an answer by, so he proposed that if the board has not heard from the commission by Tuesday, Aug. 13, they either appoint someone or pick from the people who submitted letters of interest.

Osowski agreed that C’Moya is qualified, but she echoed Vickers’ sentiment in accepting public interest. The motion by Bennett to appoint C’Moya failed to pass as all the other board members except Bennett voted in opposition.

Osowski made a motion to allow members of the public to submit letters of interest by 11:59 p.m., Monday, Aug. 12, stating their interest in the position and assurance that they reside in District 2, which will be verified by the county clerk’s office.

If the board does not receive letters of interest, they could then nominate someone, if appropriate, by Tuesday, Aug. 13, and swear them in at the regularly-scheduled board meeting on Aug. 20.

The motion passed with all board members voting in favor. Osowski said electronic letters of interest are preferred, and can be submitted to her via email at mosowski@llschools.net. Physical letters can be delivered to the superintendent’s office at 119 Luna St SE, Los Lunas.