The Cape Girardeau Board of Education will meet Monday to discuss a petition being circulated calling for the ouster of Superintendent Neyland Clark.

The noon meeting will be at the board office and will be closed to the public.

Board President Ed Thompson said he called the special meeting to give board members a chance to discuss issues and concerns raised by a group of school patrons.

Thompson also responded to a number of concerns raised by members of the group. An estimated 50 people are collecting signatures calling for Clark's resignation.

Spokesmen for the group, Amy Randol and Terry Ashby, met with Clark and board member Kathy Swan Thursday afternoon. Randol also met with Thompson on Thursday.

Thompson said Monday's meeting will be closed because it deals with personnel, specifically Clark.

"I want some input from the entire board on the situation," Thompson said. "We haven't sat down and talked about this."

Several members of the board have met individually with representatives of the citizens' group.

Thompson said rumors and half-truths have dominated the controversy over Clark. "We're going to meet Monday and find out what the situation is," he added.

Clark said Thursday that members of the school board asked him to refrain from responding in the media to specific issues raised by individuals collecting signatures. Instead, board members want to respond to the issues.

Thompson said he wasn't familiar with all the complaints of those circulating petitions, but he did respond to some he knew of:

-- He said Clark and the board didn't ignore recommendations from the Project Partnership committees. The three committees had differing recommendations, with two urging the district to seek a new middle school and an elementary school. Voters twice rejected bond issues to pay for a new middle school.

-- Thompson said Clark has never been arrogant to him. He conceded the superintendent's "terminology might be construed as arrogant."

During the school year, Clark published a weekly column in the Southeast Missourian called Cape Update. Thompson said board members have asked him to use laymen's terms when writing so he doesn't appear arrogant.

-- Thompson said the number of administrators who have left the district during Clark's tenure isn't excessive.

-- Last August, the board adopted a new agenda which doesn't include a time for public comment. Individuals or groups must get prior approval from the board president to be on the agenda. But Thompson said the policy was changed only to expedite the meeting.

"Whenever we have the knowledge of what topic they want to talk about it makes more sense," he said. "Then we can respond. We are not trying to keep anyone from talking."

-- Board retreats are held out of town to eliminate distractions.