Open Letter to the Membership of PSIA-AASI Western Region
April 3, 2026
This letter is addressed to
- The Board of Directors, PSIA-AASI Western Region
- Neil Bussiere, Sue Spain, and the rest of the non-disqualified candidates from the 2026 election
- CEO Marisa Cooper, PSIA-AASI Western Region, and CEO Jeff Lifgren, PSIA-AASI National
- Petition signatories and all members of PSIA-AASI Western Region
- School directors, ed staff, and community leaders across our region
Still no response.
The petition was formally delivered on March 31, 2026. We requested acknowledgment within 24 hours and notice of a Special Meeting within 48 hours. It is now April 3. Both deadlines have passed. We have received no acknowledgment, no contact, and no indication that a meeting will be convened.
We are not surprised that this is difficult for leadership. We are worried that silence is the chosen response. A simple acknowledgment would go a long way toward dissipating the growing concern in our community.
To the membership: this letter is our answer to you.
Since the petition launched, we have received many emails — offering support, and more importantly, voicing concerns. This letter is our public response to everyone who has written to us, and to those who have expressed similar concerns in various forums. We hope you accept this as our response, and our thank you.
This is our honest translation of what we have heard from our community:
1. On the fear of speaking up
Many of you — education staff, instructors with exams scheduled, school employees — have told us privately that you support this petition but cannot sign it. You are afraid of what might happen to your standing, your certification, your job.
We ask the leadership of PSIA-AASI Western Region to issue a clear, public statement to the following effect: "Signing a member petition and expressing opinions about organizational governance are rights protected by law and by the values of any healthy organization. No member will face consequences — in examinations, employment, assignments, or standing — for exercising those rights."
2. To Neil Bussiere and Sue Spain — directly, and the rest of the non-disqualified candidates from the last election
Neil and Sue, you were declared winners because three candidates who received more votes were disqualified. Your seats depend entirely on that outcome remaining uncontested.
We ask all of you — Neil, Sue, Paul, and Alisha — to sign this petition and call on the Board to stay the seating until the disciplinary process, including any appeals, is fully closed. The investigation should take days, not weeks. The cost of waiting is small. The cost of not waiting — to this institution and to your own standing within it — could be long-lasting.
What harm is there in waiting, and to whom?
3. To board members, school directors, ed staff, and community leaders
Many of you know the suspended members at the center of this personally. They are, in many cases, your friends. You know their record and their character. And you are finding it hard to reconcile what you know about them with what is now attached to their names.
We ask you to stand for due process for your colleagues — not to prejudge the investigation or take sides, but to demand transparency and fairness, through an independent body if necessary. How this organization handles a moment like this will define it.
Your names carry weight in this community. Please sign the petition.
The paths forward, as we see it
Leadership now faces a decision with real consequences. As we see it, there are four options:
1. Act quickly — involve the membership and restore trust.
Convene the Special Meeting. Present the facts. Let the process work in public. This is the fastest path to resolution for everyone, including leadership.
2. Delay and maneuver.
Wait until April 16 — the last possible day — to convene the special meeting, then schedule it in person only, to prevent quorum. Members will see it for what it is. The damage will outlast the election.
3. Refuse to act.
Ignore the petition entirely. This exposes the CEO and participating board members to personal fiduciary liability under California nonprofit law — and confirms to every member that this organization's governance structures do not function.
4. Move forward.
Reinstate the suspended members and disqualified candidates, let the certified results stand, and let the incoming board begin to restore the membership's trust. The institution is bigger than any single dispute.
— The Petition Committee
Disclaimer: This letter reflects the views of the petition committee, not the signatories as a whole. As concerned members, we are trying to offer a path out of the unnecessary tension that has followed this election. We believe the resources — including the money that will otherwise be spent on legal battles — could be put to far better use helping this organization thrive. Please take these words for what they are: an honest attempt to help our organization.
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