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ST. LOUIS — Superintendent Millicent Borishade has received a vote of no confidence from nearly 2,000 teachers and support staff at St. Louis Public Schools who signed a petition based on “numerous and troubling concerns.�

A representative of the American Federation of Teachers Local 420 delivered the signatures Monday with a letter to Karen Collins-Adams, SLPS board president. Two-thirds of the bargaining unit signed the petition.

Union leaders want the school board to “manage� its sole employee but stopped short of calling for Borishade’s resignation, Local 420 spokesman Byron Clemens told reporters outside SLPS’ downtown offices.

The petition cites Borishade’s delayed discussions with union leaders about relocating tornado-damaged schools and her release in July of a consultant’s proposal to close 37 out of 68 school buildings due to declining enrollment.

Borishade did not do enough to find families displaced by the tornado and encourage them to stay in SLPS, union leaders said.

“We’re making our feelings absolutely clear that Borishade does not show the leadership necessary to steer the ship in the right direction,� said Ray Cummings, union president, in a statement. “Supervision of the superintendent is the sole responsibility of the board, and we believe this petition makes an emphatic statement that our schools need a more enlightened leadership that understands the needs of all St. Louis students.�

Only two of seven current members of the SLPS board approved the appointment of Borishade to superintendent: Tracy Hykes and Donna Jones. Vice President Emily Hubbard cast the lone “no� vote. Earlier this year, Ben Conover was named to fill a vacancy on the board, and Collins-Adams, AJ Foster and Brian Marston were elected in April. All three said during the campaign that they disagreed with the previous board’s handling of Borishade’s promotion.

Collins-Adams released a statement earlier this month supporting Borishade in response to the looming vote of no confidence. On Monday, Collins-Adams walked into SLPS offices with Borishade and said she planned to review the no-confidence vote and the signatures before releasing an update.

A vote of no confidence is a symbolic gesture indicating Borishade has lost the support of the majority of teachers. The SLPS union last delivered a vote of no confidence in 2006, when 25% of teachers signed against then-Superintendent Creg Williams.

The Ferguson-Florissant School District board cited a vote of no confidence from that district’s teachers union when it fired Superintendent Joseph Davis earlier this year.

The vote of no confidence from SLPS teachers is at least the second for Borishade. A majority of teachers at her previous school district outside Seattle called for her resignation as chief academic officer two months before her arrival in St. Louis, saying she demeaned and insulted staff, violated student privacy and ignored special education.

“We have seen ourselves as a community who work collaboratively to better serve our students. Under the leadership of Dr. Millicent Borishade, this collaborative spirit has been denied repeatedly,� reads a May 2023 letter from the Tukwila (Washington) Education Association describing the union’s vote of no confidence. “The primary concern of our membership, as always, is the impact on students resulting from the dysfunction of our current leadership.�

Borishade was named superintendent in February, several months after the termination of her close colleague Keisha Scarlett for financial mismanagement. Both women came to SLPS from Seattle in July 2023, when Scarlett recruited several staff members, including Borishade, who bypassed the district’s typical hiring process.

A recent state audit of SLPS found Scarlett awarded salaries and raises to her cabinet members beyond the maximum SLPS pay scale and without board approval. The largest payout went to Borishade, who was making $230,000 as Scarlett’s deputy, $44,039 above the maximum. Borishade now makes $268,000, matching Scarlett’s last salary, plus an $800 monthly car allowance among other benefits.

As of Monday, Borishade’s Mercedes-Benz SUV still displayed Washington license plates.

An independent audit released in December cited Borishade for $10,863 in questionable expenses including a 16-day trip to Japan with an undated authorization form, hotel rooms above the $350 limit and charging for meals that exceeded her per-diem payment.

There also were charges to Borishade’s SLPS credit card of $332 at the Armory entertainment venue, $438 at Top Golf, $788 at Pasta House, $726 at Pappy’s Smokehouse and $565 at Sam’s Club, according to credit card statements obtained by the Post-Dispatch through a public records request.