Grosse Pointe Board of Education Trustee Sean Cotton is “a 99.9% no for running” for reelection in November, according to an email he sent to The Tower on Friday. The former BOE president placed the blame on his fellow board members, most of whom he claims “are incapable of governance.”
After being elected to the board in 2022 – and chosen as board president shortly after – Cotton’s majority support between the trustees was short-lived. The failure of Cotton’s endorsed candidates in the 2024 BOE election resulted in Cotton losing his position as president to now-former President Colleen Worden.
Since his demotion to trustee, Cotton has repeatedly complained about the decisions of the current board majority, specifically regarding budget measures and the appointment of Roy Bishop as superintendent of GPPSS. In his email, Cotton described these grievances as the primary reason why he is almost certain he will leave his name off the 2026 ballot.
“Trying to reason with the current trustees that are in a leadership position has been an effort in futility, and I value my time too much to waste [it] with them,” Cotton wrote in his email. “If I did run, I would probably consider 2028.”
While Cotton sees his chances of running in November as slim, he added in his email that he “won’t rule out that .1% just yet.”
There are three open board seats to be filled in November; the two others are currently held by Trustees Valarie St. John and Virginia Jeup. All three trustees were contacted by The Tower about whether they will seek reelection. Jeup said she plans to run again. St. John has not yet responded.
