RSU 21 School Board chair resigns over controversial Facebook comment: 'I apologize'

KENNEBUNK, Maine — Erin Nadeau of Arundel has resigned as chair of the RSU 21 School Board, following a controversial statement she made on Facebook after the district’s annual budget meeting earlier this week.

On Wednesday, Nadeau commented about some people who had attended the meeting, describing them as “cowards in the back row, cheering like they were at a ... rally.”

“Except instead of sheets, they wore red,” she posted on the social media website.

In her resignation letter to Superintendent Terri Cooper, the town of Arundel, and her colleagues on the School Board, Nadeau stated her comment on Facebook had been a private one “not meant for public consumption.” She said it was aimed to express her frustration about the outcome of the district’s annual budget meeting the night before.

Nadeau said she was speaking as an individual, not in “any official capacity” and not on behalf of the School Board.

Kennebunk welcomes new Americans: 'Greatest democracy in the world'

Her comments, she stated, referred to a group of educators, all dressed in red, whom she felt were making “demeaning” remarks at the meeting.

"When an individual asked a question about the intent of my comment, I reflected upon that question, and acknowledged that my statement was too strong, and amended it, immediately," she stated. “That is neither here nor there at this point. The original comment was distributed broadly and angered and hurt people. Recognizing that my comment, even out of frustration, can have an impact on others, I apologize.”

Nadeau said it is her responsibility to “know and do better.”

“I missed the mark,” she added.

More: York pays former teacher $237,500 to settle discrimination suit against school district

Nadeau ended her letter by stating she is committed to the RSU 21 mission and respects educators and her fellow board members. She said she was resigning with “the heaviest of hearts.”

“There is much work to be done, and so much good work in progress, and I do not want that good work to go unrecognized, or otherwise be slowed down because of my statement,” she said.

RSU 21 Spokesperson Matthew Shinberg confirmed Nadeau’s resignation and provided her resignation letter.

“We won’t be issuing any further statement at this time,” Shinberg said.

Nadeau is the second School Board member to resign during the past two years after making a controversial remark on social media. In March of 2023, Ryan McQueen, also of Arundel, stepped down after some of his race-related posts on social media prompted complaints from the public and a denouncement from the district and school board.

Voters elected Nadeau to a three-year term on the board in 2022. The town’s Select Board appointed her to the School Board to fill a vacancy created by the resignation of member Todd Shea in the late fall of 2021. Her current term was to be up in June of 2025.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: RSU 21 School Board chair resigns over controversial Facebook post