Substitute teacher says Huron Valley Schools fired her after sharing millage flyer in staff lounge

A substitute teacher in the Huron Valley School District told Michigan Capitol Confidential she was fired in May after placing a flyer with the proposed millage request information in the staff lounge.

Ilona Rugg was a substitute teacher for approximately three years in the district. The substitute teacher was fired after placing a flyer about a proposed 1.5 mill tax increase in Oakland County on the Aug. 4 ballot that aims to levy $125 million in property taxes annually for six years.

Rugg brought a flyer to the elementary school that detailed what the millage would ask of taxpayers if passed.

After Rugg dropped the flyer in the lounge, she ate lunch in her car and returned to class. Not long after she resumed teaching a second-grade class, the principal, along with several other individuals, entered the room and told the students they were getting an extra recess.

Once the students left, according to Rugg, the principal told her to pack up and the teacher was immediately escorted from the building. Rugg told CapCon that she was not informed at the time of her termination. But when she checked her calendar for future scheduled jobs, she was locked out of her account.

The flyer noted:

• The 1.5 millage request is not a renewal and has never existed before.

• The superintendent admitted in a closed-door meeting that the funds cannot be used for teacher salaries because those funds are only guaranteed for six years.

• The money generated by taxpayers has zero strings attached. Schools can spend the funds on anything they choose with no accountability to taxpayers.

• Funds generated locally will not stay local and can be sent to other districts in the county.

At the bottom of the flyer is a link to the website, “Oakland County Facts.”

Rugg was fired over concerns “regarding classroom management challenges, unauthorized involvement in facility operations, and the distribution of political materials on school grounds,” according to a May 13 email sent by Jeanette Wenger, the chief human resources officer at Huron Valley Schools.

CapCon reported on the proposed $125 million millage and asked the superintendent about the closed-door remarks, but he did not respond.

Rugg said she believes that was fired for sharing the millage information. It wasn’t until she sent a letter to the district requesting official documentation of her status that she was informed she was fired. Rugg said a letter was sent to her home the next week. But the teacher says she has never received discipline from the district.

CapCon asked the district about their protocol for disciplining a substitute teacher before determining if a termination is warranted. The district was also asked in an email for a copy of their policy on the definition of political materials.

There was no response.

CapCon recently submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to obtain additional information.

This is not the first time in the last year the district has had a conflict with a substitute teacher.

The district was sued in September 2025 by 11 families after a substitute teacher was convicted of sexual assault, according to Fox 2.