Boise school trustee Shiva Rajbhandari apologized Monday night for a profane tweet directed at Gov. Brad Little.
The apology came after trustees met in closed executive session to discuss the matter.
Rajbhandari apologized to the board, and trustees accepted his apology, board President Dave Wagers said in a news release Monday. However, trustees determined that Rajbhandari had violated the board’s code of ethics.
During the executive session, Rajbhandari “outlined the steps he will take to rebuild trust with the board and the community,” Wagers said.
The district’s news release included Rajbhandari’s apology. Here it is, in full:
“I’m sure everyone here has seen my profane tweet on my personal account toward the Governor. I want to address that today. To our patrons, I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I communicated in a way that was crude and cruel and violated your trust in me. To our students, I’m sorry. I’m sorry that during a time of crisis, I failed to act as a role model for all of you and that I failed to represent the articulate, unrelenting, and kind people that I know all of you to be. To our staff, I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I failed in my personal life to abide by the same standards that you are asked to abide by. And to our Board, I’m sorry. I’m sorry that my actions reflected poorly on each of your characters and values. To begin the process of rebuilding trust, I will not participate in any graduation ceremonies as a Trustee and will step down from the Governance committee.”
Last week, Rajbhandari retweeted an article on a bill banning gender-affirming care for transgender minors; Little signed the bill into law Tuesday.
“F*** you @GovernorLittle,” Rajbhandari tweeted. “I pray you live a long life so you can bear witness to the pain you’ve unleashed on Idaho’s children and families today. When you do die though, I’m pissing on your grave.”
Wagers last week issued an apology on the district’s behalf, saying Rajbhandari’s comments were “in no way reflective of District leadership other than himself.”
A Boise High School senior, Rajbhandari was elected to the school board in September.
