And then there were three, two and none. Other DeKalb finalist quits and withdraws from DeKalb search.
Arthur Culver just resigned from his job in Illinois, but also withdrew his name from the DeKalb search.
Well, this is getting interesting:
The other finalist for the DeKalb school chief job, Arthur Culver, has resigned as superintendent in Champaign, Ill. He told the local paper that he has also withdrawn his name from contention in DeKalb.
With everything that has occurred in the last several days, I felt it was in my best interest to withdraw,” Culver told the News-Gazette.
So, not one of the three original finalists is still in contention for the top slot in DeKalb, forcing the county to start anew. I wonder if this bizarre process and all the collateral damage along the way will scare away other prospects.
This very open search process seems to have destabilized Cox in North Carolina and led Culver to resign in Illinois.
Some of the fallout comes from the openness that the law requires and that even strong school chiefs like Andres Alonso in Baltimore decry as too risky.
At a panel here, Alonso made the point with which Cox is probably in full agreement: Once your current system knows that you were considering a job elsewhere, there is a wariness about your commitment and a skepticism about everything you say. I would not be surprised to see Cox take another job soon.
The law requires release of the finalists’ names, but many school systems skirt the law by releasing the name of a single finalist in clear circumvention of the transparency intent. (Fulton just did this, avoiding the messiness of open government that DeKalb is now seeing.)
Taxpayers deserve input on the school chief as they pay the salary, but it didn’t work in this case. The problem with closing the process and shutting out public — as some of you are suggesting — is that people can get enraged to find out there is only one option for school chief, and that they had no ability to participate in the vetting.
–From Maureen Downey, for the AJC Get Schooled blog
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
210 comments Add your comment
A Conservative Voice
April 26th, 2011
9:45 am
Folks, beware…..you know what’s coming.
Cere
April 26th, 2011
9:47 am
I wish one of these former contenders would go public with what went on behind the scenes to send them scurrying.
Maureen Downey
April 26th, 2011
9:51 am
@Cere, This process seems to have destabilized Cox in North Carolina and led Culver to quit in Illinois. Not sure how many top-notch candidates are going to rush in now to apply. Part of it is the openness that the law requires and that even very good school chiefs like Andres Alonso decry as too risky. Alonso made the point that Cox is probably now experiencing: Once your current system knows that you were considering a job elsewhere, there is a wariness about your commitment and a skepticism about everything you say.
Maureen
Dunwoody Mom
April 26th, 2011
9:55 am
Maureen, I think you hit it….job searches used to be in private and announcements not made until contracts signed. Those days seem to be over.
Dunwoody Mom
April 26th, 2011
10:00 am
Will/should DCSS approach the Super search differently (assuming they go back to square one)?
Will/should they have an open search process, an open forum process? I’m kind of torn since the last go around was such a disaster.
Cere
April 26th, 2011
10:01 am
It does appear that way Maureen and DM. We’re the only system looking for a super that held the process open for public consumption and criticism and we’re the only system to end up with a mess. There were other viable candidates. Hopefully they will come back around if the process offers them a bit more protection. That said, our board must simply act more professional. The major difference we experienced that others didn’t was the fact that one or more of our board members blabbed.
Maureen Downey
April 26th, 2011
10:04 am
@Dunwoody, The law requires the release of the finalists’ names, but many places get around that by releasing the name of a single finalist in clear circumvention of the law’s intent on transparency. (Fulton just did this, thus avoiding the messiness of open government.)
I am also torn as I think that taxpayers deserve input, but it didn’t work well in this case. The problem with not involving the public is that people can get enraged to find out there is only one option, and that they had no ability to participate in the hiring process.
Maureen
Dr NO
April 26th, 2011
10:05 am
“But I wonder if this bizarre process and all the collateral damage along the way will scare away other prospects.”
You know it will. The Dog-Catcher may want to think twice before jumping into this debacle.
mitch leff
April 26th, 2011
10:09 am
Maureen Downey for Dekalb Super!
ABC
April 26th, 2011
10:10 am
You know it seems somewhat unfair to the candidates to make the process so public. How would you like it if your current boss HAD to know that you were in the final running for a different job? If you didn’t get the other job, how could you possibly have a good relationship with your current boss now?
I mean, I get that the public deserves to know, but in this situation, it doesn’t seem right to potentially damage the candidates in the current jobs.
In theory, we elect the members of the boards to act in our best interests, right. I know this is somehow idealized, but if we elect them, we should trust them to make the right decisions, no? And I know I am being naive and somewhat idealistic.
However, if I am to hold educators to the same standard as I do the private sector, it seems only fair that we allow those people some privacy in the job search.
rhagans
April 26th, 2011
10:11 am
that’s funny!!! i guess the finalist got a chance to see how f’d deKalb county is and decided to get out of dodge. funny!!!
who in their right mind would let their current employer know that they are seeking a job elsewhere? it just shows how stupid things are here in the good old GA.
i always say that they should put under welcome to GA sign (the place where nothing has to make sense).
Concerned citizen
April 26th, 2011
10:16 am
When are we going to get serious about electing members to the Board that have some knowledge about education. As an educator, it is an insult to the educational system to have some of the members we have on the Board making decisions about education. Some of these members have minimal education themselves, so how can make intelligent decisions about education. It has turned into a power struggle whereby we are failing our students. I might add that it is not just in Dekalb. It is all over. PUBLIC EDUCATION is FAILING because those making decisions about education know NOTHING about education. For example, test scores only show one piece of the puzzle. But you would only know that if you are an educator. So, until the citizens elect members who can make intelligent decisions, we will continue to have this sad state of our educational system. DEKALB CITIZENS WAKE UP.
The Deal
April 26th, 2011
10:19 am
Strangely, I am not always a fan of “the public needs to know everything” because of a situation like this. Then again, if we had a BOE we could trust, we wouldn’t demand to know everything and have to second-guess and research everything they do to see what’s going to go wrong. I am truly stumped by this one. I don’t have a good idea for where we need to go. Maybe if the state took over the system, fired the entire board, put in a true interim to clean the central office per the Ernst & Young audit, and interviewed viable candidates with the appropriate amount of privacy, we would have a glimmer of hope. Our system has enough money, great teachers (who are quickly leaving – need to stem the tide), and a few other positive attributes. We don’t have to be in this mess.
Cere
April 26th, 2011
10:19 am
I think you are exactly right, Concerned citizen.
Cere
April 26th, 2011
10:21 am
I think the announcement of the finalists along with their bios, etc would suffice. The 20 question dog and pony show was over the top and only served to stir up criticisms.
Concerned citizen
April 26th, 2011
10:21 am
The really sad part is that Dekalb County used to be the flag ship for education in this state. Now it has become the sinking ship for education in the state. I am angry……….but I guess you can deduce that……………..
atlmom
April 26th, 2011
10:21 am
concerned citizen: that’s what happens when you elect board members.
The entire system is broken. electing a board to run a school system has proven to be a disaster about everywhere. yet we keep at it…keep thinking that all we need to do is make some small tweaks to the system and all will be okay.
clearly, it’s not working.
not one educator was involved with creating no child left behind.
sliderule
April 26th, 2011
10:22 am
Why do search committees (almost) ALWAYS hire from outside? Why is it always better to find someone with no intimate knowledge of the local situation? There seems to be a plethora of highly paid assistants running around. Are they incompetent or just yes people? Is there no one
that is already familiar with the system capable of managing? Current employees are already familiar with the debacle!
Bryant Koonts
April 26th, 2011
10:23 am
The Dekalb county school board should be fired. Heaven only knows what kind of sham they are running over there. This has probably all been orchestrated in order to dupe the tax payers in Dekalb County into paying even more money for third rate education of our children. They are probably taking advice from the Atlanta school board.
Tonya C.
April 26th, 2011
10:24 am
I say the superintendent should be elected just like the board members. I think term limits for both should be imposed.
Rob
April 26th, 2011
10:25 am
Will the AJC disclose which Dekalb board members leaked to Cox contract details Saturday morning?
Dunwoody Mom
April 26th, 2011
10:25 am
@sliderule, in DeKalb’s case one of the requirements as desired by the stakeholders were that the new Super come from outside of DeKalb.
Dave in Dunwoody
April 26th, 2011
10:26 am
I think the problem is the compensation package not being clear on the front end, and the fallout is a result of the late communication about the package.
Solution: (Just my idea and a proposal for consideration; I’m sure others can improve on it or do something different): Just like other public works projects, identify on the front-end, publicly, the perks, benefits, etc. so candidates don’t have to state their requirements. Then, those interested can toss in their hats, and be vetted privately.
It seems to me that the qualifications aren’t what’s causing the problems; it’s the uncertainty of what the job pays, and the sequencing of communicating that and getting interested folks.
Just my 2 cents. Your mileage may vary.
luangtom
April 26th, 2011
10:27 am
Rats jumping off a sinking ship……sad scenario in DeKalb. If all of these people with their credentials want nothing to do with DeKalb, just what will they eventually get? This is like a baseball team. Y’all can fire or dismiss the manager (superintendant) but y’all have the same team (school board) to work with. It is a no-win situation. The new law dealing with school boards signed by the governor may just be a good thing………..
Yup
April 26th, 2011
10:28 am
Maybe the school board should look in the mirror… anc clearly see the problem.
Bryant Koonts
April 26th, 2011
10:28 am
Dekalb county cant hire within because they don’t have the talent available to run an efficient program. They are all con artist who end up bilking the county and the state for money. State officials should take over Dekalb’s school board before even more damage can be done and while they are at it, fire the current superintendent who has done nothing but extort the system for pay.
Concerned citizen
April 26th, 2011
10:30 am
Education should be about the students, not the adults. It angers me when Board meetings are about board members supposedly taking pot shots at each other rather than thinking about what is in the best interest of students. When positions are held by persons, not because they are the most qualified, but because they are a relative of someone on the board. Come on, let’s stop the madness. What will happen is that Mrs. Tyson will get the job and the same old routine continues. Our board members are not being held accountable. Let’s hold a rally and say to them either listen or we will really get rid of you. BUT NO ONE WANTS TO TAKE THE TIME TO DO THAT. WHO SUFFERS———OUR CHILDREN. I have seen so much by being in this system for so long……if walls could talk………….
Concerned citizen
April 26th, 2011
10:31 am
When will we make board members accountable to the electorate?
Adavis62
April 26th, 2011
10:32 am
Employers now want to know if their employees are committed to the job. We need to understand that it’s an employers job market right now. They (the employers) have the upper hand. Knowing that you have someone openly seeking another position places a bad taste in your mouth. You feel betrayed and then the games begin. “Since you’re looking for another position, I’m looking for someone to replace you”. Unless you have signed contract, or solid job offer, your employer may find someone sooner than you can find or secure that new position. Especially if the person they find will do the same job you, but for less money. It’s a win-win for the employer and a lose-lose for you.
Laurie
April 26th, 2011
10:32 am
I say good riddence to the old candidates. Cox wanted way too much for the position. I can only igamine what the others wanted. Dekalb needs to think a little out of the box for the next group of potentials.
Bryant Koonts
April 26th, 2011
10:32 am
The citizens of Dekalb are the ones that keep electing ill-intentioned people with no real credentials or intelligence to run a program so important. Yes our children suffer the price!
sliderule
April 26th, 2011
10:34 am
Dunwoody Mom:
Not sure what a stakeholder is in this situation (I know what it should be), but he, she, or it is part of the problem. When you initiate extraneous constraints on a problem your solution is flawed. Looks to me like the solution is flawed.
Ann
April 26th, 2011
10:41 am
If you’re concerned that the BOE is doing an “end run” around the taxpayers desire to have a superintendent with no ties to the Lewis administration, contact your BOE members and express your opinion. Click on Cerebration’s “Email the Board of Education” link on the right hand side of the home page of this blog. It takes but a minute to fill the email boxes of the BOE with your opinions.
http://dekalbschoolwatch.blogspot.com/
Ed
April 26th, 2011
10:42 am
I agree that the “20 question dog and pony show” was ridiculous. But if Tyson is now considered to be a candidate she ought to be held to that same standard as others were. It would be useful and enlightening to have Ms. Tyson answer questions directly from the public.
Moving Fast
April 26th, 2011
10:44 am
just like the candidates – away from DeKalb. The problem is the BOE. The problem has been the BOE. We do not trust them after Brown, Crawford Lewis, Pope, the avarice, nepotism and incompetency of their behavior. We worked hard to get rid of Zepora. Now we need to get rid of SCW, Womack, Bowen before we can see some change. Bowen should resign because of his lack of leadership. Womack should resign because he is arrogant and ineffective. SCW? Her record speaks for her. We have two new board members who need to grow a spine and demand some changes. We do need educators running the system. The insiders are incompetent. We need to demand desk audits. We need a serious examination of expenses. Ramona Tyson gets $2,000 for travel expenses? Our children do not have lab equipment for chemistry classes. Come on DeKalb start getting out your petitions and let’s start a recall of all nine. Where is Brad Bryant? Why can’t we appoint him super for 2 years to clean up this mess. There are others but no one will jump in to this mess with the current BOE. Change must start at the top in DeKalb.
Road Scholar
April 26th, 2011
10:45 am
Maureen D: The public did have input by voting in the school board members that now sit on the board. The voters need to know who they can vote for and give them the authority to do their job! The voters could have input on the criteria for selection. All hiring/firing/personnel actions need to be held in confidence.
mastadon50
April 26th, 2011
10:51 am
Dekalb just ducked the bullet on Culver. He has possibly been named in a sexual harassment suit, along with the district. If rumors prove true, he was terminated, without payout of his current contract, for harassment of a former district employee. We will see what the future holds.
Dr NO
April 26th, 2011
10:54 am
If could rid the board of Eugene “Gene” Walker the rest might fall into order.
atlmom
April 26th, 2011
10:55 am
elected? really? cause the voters have done such a great job electing the boards?
Dr NO
April 26th, 2011
10:56 am
mastadon50
April 26th, 2011
10:51 am
I wonder if the “Search Agency” is familiar with the term “Due Diligence”…LOL.
Concerned Citizen
April 26th, 2011
10:56 am
It is appalling that any of the 3 finalist were ever seriously considered in the first place. NOT A SINGLE ONE OF THEM has recent experience administering a large, complex school district that even remotely resembles that of Dekalb County. The time needed for the “learning curve” for each of them is a luxury that Dekalb County simply cannot entertain. Dekalb needs a school superintendent who can hit the ground running. And the salary demands of some of the candidates were ludicrous, particularly given their lack of relevant experience. I am thoroughly disgusted with the entire process that took place, as are many of my neighbors.
atlmom
April 26th, 2011
10:57 am
um, get rid of them? who’s goign to replace them? equally bad members?
bill
April 26th, 2011
11:00 am
Why do underachieving fools think that elections will solve the problem. Cynthia McKinney, Vern Jones, the school board and the idoiot that represents you in congress should be a good indication that elections will not improve anything. The school system’s success or failure is based on the raw material of the students and parents.
Just Saying It Like It Is
April 26th, 2011
11:03 am
I personally approached three top notch retired teachers and asked them to run for the School Board. Every one of them said – no way – anybody who would run for the Board with the bunch of morons already on it would be committing suicide.
JacketFan
April 26th, 2011
11:04 am
According to my SOURCES it was Tyson herself who leaked the information to the AJC. You heard it here FIRST. I feel it is my RESPONSIBILITY as a regular blogger on these boards to provide everyone with that information. “What I know, you will know.”
JacketFan
April 26th, 2011
11:05 am
Well, not so much a blogger as a poster, but that’s just semantics. You now know the TRUTH.
frustrated parent
April 26th, 2011
11:06 am
WOW – many of these comments could apply to Cobb county and our board issues. Wishing they would wake up and see the writing on the wall. One of the 17 applicants { in Cobb’s search } has had his name released as the “top contender”. Hope our search doesn’t head down this path – but when you have board members with PERSONAL agendas instead of what’s best for the students and the county this is what you get!!!
amazed
April 26th, 2011
11:07 am
A lot of people would be really motivated to defeat all the incumbents if they appointed Tyson. She may not have personally benefited, but she was hand-picked by Lewis to be his successor and was part of the corrupt administration.
Dr. John Trotter
April 26th, 2011
11:08 am
One of the biggest myths in public education (a myth that I will be addressing and exposing in my book) is that school superintendents should be appointed. They should be elected by the people. You actually end up with a better superintendent. Ever since Clayton County quit electing superintendents (when the law changed in 1994), its caliber of superintendents went down precipitously.
By the way, they wanted badly to get rid of Culver in Illinois. The so-called “search” firm was going to unload their problem onto DeKalb. I suspect that the same thing may be true of Davis and Cox. I have always asked: Why would anyone be willing to picked and traverse the country for a job? For power, control, money, and because he or she is about ready to lose a job.
Kadijah
April 26th, 2011
11:08 am
Excellence fo dey chirren!
Bring back ole Johnny…he dress nice.
catlady
April 26th, 2011
11:09 am
Well, I disagree with the idea that the finalists are in trouble with their systems for pursuing the job. Part of the nature of school administrators is that they look for a way up, and school boards expect that. Ms. Cox may be messed up because she applied to move up with little time at her current position. But Culver was seeking an opportunity to enhance his status, which all board members should understand.
Perhaps the board should refuse to pay the search company, as they did an abysmal job, or have a contingency clause for unsuccessful searches.
How ’bout the AJC doing an in-depth examination of the pay/benefits of all the metro superintendents, including termination pay, contributions to 401K made in addition to pay, cars, etc. I really think folks need to get a grip on what Dr. Cox was asking for!
And how about voluntarily releasing the name of the informant who blabbed about the negotiations?
RenaP
April 26th, 2011
11:11 am
if he already resigned from his postion as superintendent in Champaign, Ill., why did he withdrawl from dekalb? the secret of seeking other employment was already out of the bag. why not go through the process of trying to get the dekalk job?
Tonya C.
April 26th, 2011
11:12 am
atlmom:
Not a perfect answer, but at least it will prevent the circus that has become superintendent selection. I’m flabbergasted and flustered at this point with how this is done in education as a whole.
Jack
April 26th, 2011
11:13 am
No one with an ounce of sense is going to apply for the job in DeKalb: so it’s no suprise that whoever gets the job lacks good judgement.
Concerned Citizen
April 26th, 2011
11:19 am
P.S. Certain aspects of this whole process are reminiscent of the Terrell Bolton fiasco a few years back…
Mr. Bill
April 26th, 2011
11:22 am
One of the reasons you elect a school board is to operate the district and make major decisions…such as selecting the superintendent. Too much publicity can cause problems in the negotiations, as just occurred. Involoving the citizens in the process is unnecessary if they have elected a competent board.
Michael in Decatur
April 26th, 2011
11:28 am
You folks crack me up! You don’t want to pay someone a high salary to manage one of the largest systems in the country. And you want someone with experience with a system as large as Dekalbs. Guess what? You’re (we’re) going to have to find someone who has done a good job at a smaller system and pay them enough to motivate them to take on the headaches of a larger system. If Dekalb is too big a job for one super, then let’s divide the county up into a more manageable size. Let’s see, should it be North and South Dekalb? Or East and West Dekalb? How do either one of those grab you?
Angela
April 26th, 2011
11:28 am
The DeKalb county schools have gone to hell in a hand basket because of the school board. The schools on our side of the county (Lithonia/Stone Mtn.) area aren’t worth a darn. We have to send our children on the other side of the county in order to get a halfway decent education. The teachers could care less about the students and their education. I really wish that we can sell our house and move to another county. DCSS is the worst!!!
Dr. John Trotter
April 26th, 2011
11:31 am
http://www.youtube.com/user/macelivetv#p/u/26/I8ku9MBo5pw
August, 2009. A DeKalb County Board meeting at Arabian Mountain High School. “All Nine Must Resign.” A MACE picket which draws police officers. Note the police van that pulled up while we were picketing. I suppose that we were supposed to be intimidated. Ha!
Berha
April 26th, 2011
11:33 am
Maybe Mr.Culver qiut because Champaign County schools were going to fire him because of gross misconduct on his part? Maybe the people told Culvert to qiut or go to JAIL? Send an I-team to reveal the truth about Culvert.
Really?
April 26th, 2011
11:33 am
Superintendent Culver resigns from Unit #4 after closed session regarding a personnel matter the News-Gazette reported this morning and not because he was getting heat from putting his name in the running for another job. The Champaign School District will hold a press conference as to the personnel matters that prompted the resignation, though I do not have full confidence the public will ever know what many of us know has been going on in the District, both on the professional side of public education and the private side of public education (i.e. personnel matters). What I hope to clarify is that DeKalb should not confuse Mr. Culver’s dilemma here (i.e. resignation) with the other two candidates reasons for pulling out or the benefits of transparency. Actually, Ray and Associates brought our flawed Mr. Culver to us 9-years ago. Had we had transparency back then, we wouldn’t have hired a Superintendent who had a questionable background and running from his last stronghold in Longview, TX. It was because of transparency we were able to catch Mr. Culver sneaking out of the back door with 3-years left on his contract while facing his current legal woes our District has been saddled with. DeKalb should be grateful, not angered.
http://www.news-gazette.com/news/education/2011-04-26/culver-resigns-withdraws-candidacy-georgia-job.html
Nobody's Mom
April 26th, 2011
11:35 am
I do give a damn about your kids education as a teacher on the southern end of the county. The question is do they and do you?
Hmmmm
April 26th, 2011
11:36 am
I think most people know what happened. Once I read the the vote was 6 to 3, and not unanimous, one of three or all three ran to the media.
It seems the only qualification needed to be on a school board is a pulse.
Cindy
April 26th, 2011
11:39 am
Why doesn’t Dekalb get a white person as School Superintintant, why does it always have to be a black person? Dekalb always discriminates against whites when it becomes picking a leader.
Shanquita
April 26th, 2011
11:40 am
I’m sure the info was leaked about Cox because they don’t want a white woman running their schools. Too bad because the Dekalb school system would have been better off. Typical reverse racism.
Dr. John Trotter
April 26th, 2011
11:42 am
http://www.youtube.com/user/macelivetv#p/u/16/FuUWMjuX9OI
This picket in front of the DeKalb County Central Office in the Spring of 2009 is somewhat funny. The police officer tried to get us off the sidewalk but to no avail. Then Ronald Ramsey and Dr. Tucker came running (well, briskly walking) to the picket line and was taking OUR photos. We laughed. Our video guy, J. B., got caught up in the excitement of the moment and forgot to video this. Ha! But, we gave a summation of the picket afterward. Just think…this is while Crawford Lewis was still in power and the cover-up was still taking place.
Note that I was calling the DeKalb County School System “a gangsta school system” back then — even on the network evening news! And y’all think that we are “crazy.” We might be “crazy,” but we’re hardly ever wrong! Ha!
What's best for kids?
April 26th, 2011
11:45 am
How about a teacher in this position? How about one who has been a teacher for a long time? We seem to be forgetting “where the magic happens” and that is in the classroom.
Heck, I could do that job. After 18 years in the classroom, nothing surprises me any more.
A Conservative Voice
April 26th, 2011
11:46 am
@Concerned citizen
April 26th, 2011
10:21 am
The really sad part is that Dekalb County used to be the flag ship for education in this state. Now it has become the sinking ship for education in the state. I am angry……….but I guess you can deduce that……………..
Yes, you can……..
Trane
April 26th, 2011
11:51 am
They have to show what the terms and salary they pay the School Superintendent because it’s OUR money (taxpayers). They can’t hide it because they would give them $500,000,000.00 dollars a year!
Confused and Amused
April 26th, 2011
11:54 am
What is it these candidates are afraid of? Am I missing something?
Maureen Downey
April 26th, 2011
11:54 am
@What’s best: I think you should apply. You could do the job.
sissyuga
April 26th, 2011
11:58 am
Think they will offer the job to her queen Rhee?
Maureen Downey
April 26th, 2011
11:59 am
@JacketFan, And I feel compelled to provide accurate information:The source of the information was not Superintendent Tyson.
By the way, for those of you urging criminal prosecution for the source of the contract negotiations, our Legislature would be empty and our prisons full if leaked information by politicians or high-ranking government officials was pursued by the criminal courts. I am sure signers of the Declaration of Independence were leaking advance copies to the press back when.
Maureen
Kitty Conrad
April 26th, 2011
12:00 pm
Publicizing the hiring process for citizen vetting is stupid in the first place. There can’t be more than two citizens in the entire county who could say anything intelligent about any of the finalists.
The Ghost of Lester Maddox
April 26th, 2011
12:01 pm
Hell, just sounds like 3 wise people who came to their senses to me……
…..would YOU want that job?
Thomas Jefferson’s dream of “free” education for all was just that….a dream.
The reality is that schools should be turned over to the private sector, and may the best survive.
thomas
April 26th, 2011
12:08 pm
In the NFL, if you want someone else’s coach, you have to get a permission to negotiate with the current team. Maybe a school district should contact other districts asking them permission to consider their superintendents for its superintendent. They say no and the person still wants to be considered, they s/he can quit their current position.
R826
April 26th, 2011
12:09 pm
Someone nailed it – the biggest issue we had was that one or more board member BLABBED. They are like children with power – they have to prove to their pals that they know something. Some of what was leaked probably never would have come to pass in the final agreement, it was way too early in the process, but just knowing it as discussed starts to turn some of the teachers and public against the prospect. Pathetic and unprofessional – just what we have come to expect in Dekalb Public Schools. When do we get to negotiate the board’s contract? (HAHA)
Dunwoody Mom
April 26th, 2011
12:11 pm
Does anyone think that the Governor is now going to call a meeting with the DCSS BOE?
South DeKalb
April 26th, 2011
12:11 pm
This should be a serious wake up call for DeKalb Citizens. There should be a new system of governance put in place. A new system of governance which would provide for an appointed chancellor/president of the school system, appointed by local government, eliminate or greatly reduces the elected school board. And by stature a citizens committee of parents with children in DeKalb Schools would be appointed (no salary, expenses paid). The citizen’s committee (stake holders) approval would be required on all measures.
This change or one similar to it would take the politics out of the DeKalb School Systems, and restore quality education. Change is not inherently bad, but necessary at times. And this change is not an indictment of the current school board or administration, but it represents a necessary change for our times.
Smoke Rise Mom
April 26th, 2011
12:12 pm
The real master plan of DCSS is to drive as many students out of the system as they possibly can and, as a result, their noisy, bothersome parents who are advocating for them will go away. Then they can maintain status quo. Looks like local school administrators, central office, and board are all doing their best to make this a reality.
Dr. John Trotter
April 26th, 2011
12:16 pm
I have been saying for years that the appointment of superintendents is one of public education’s biggest problems. Appointed superintendents are, at best, educational gypsies, and, at worst, are educational sl_ts. Maureen, I just tell the truth. I hope Mr. Filter lets this by. It’s in my book, by the way! Ha!
Ben
April 26th, 2011
12:18 pm
What does it matter with whomever gets the job? It’s just rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic; Dekalb’s board is about 5 steps ahead of Atlanta and 10 steps in front of Clayton County. Fortunately the legislature has given the Governor and by extension the Mayor a reset button to clear out all of the deadwood and elected numbskulls on the respective boards that need it.
The Deal
April 26th, 2011
12:19 pm
@Dunwoody Mom: I certainly hope so.
Education for All
April 26th, 2011
12:25 pm
The mishandling of this search and hire process should be adequate cause for a critical examination and expose’ of all the dysfunctions in DCSS by the AJC. Is that too much to ask? When criminality and cronyism are destroying children’s opportunities for a good education and a good future, isn’t this newsworthy? And not just these blurbs, they are fine, but we need a Sunday story, filling up 3 pages worth with all the crazy that led up to this point, and maybe even some information on what other municipalities have done to fix equally broken systems. But first off, let’s throw the cronies out.
Is there a mechanism for a recall of an elected official here in Dekalb? Let’s recall any that have relatives working in the system, first off. Next, lets go after any that have benefitted financially from their board seat beyond their salary. Then maybe we need to find out all the details about the New Birth/DCSS entanglement and extract any that are responsible for those two corrupt organizations being so intertwined. Whoever is left will be able to welcome good new board members into their midst, and good people who are now refusing to run for school board due to this rat’s nest of cronies and misbehavior, will be willing to then serve on behalf of our county’s children. Sound like a plan?
What's best for kids?
April 26th, 2011
12:25 pm
Thanks, Maureen! Maybe I will! I wouldn’t be as stinking expensive as the other folks, either. Now, how does one apply for that sort of job?
catlady
April 26th, 2011
12:26 pm
“I am sure signers of the Declaration of Independence were leaking advance copies to the press back when.”
Perhaps, Ms. Downey, although perhaps they had a better sense of honor. At any rate, if they were leaking advanced copies of the Declaration back then, by the time it was printed and disseminated by foot and horseback, it would not have been news any longer! LOL
The person who leaked, as well as those who published the information, circumvented the hiring process. The leaker should, at least, be held up to public scrutiny as to their motives. Let them see how it feels. I believe the name of the leaker should be leaked to the public.
goodforkids
April 26th, 2011
12:29 pm
@What’s best…apply. An experienced and wise teacher with integrity who will behave ethically at all costs and on behalf of kids is a great candidate for the job. I don’t know you, but they need help. If you have it to offer, go for it.
Roach
April 26th, 2011
12:31 pm
Now, why isn’t there a “go to” place where you could easily find the up-and-comers, a large collection of people who maybe haven’t held the top job but have held senior positions in school systems of a comparable nature? Of course the top performers are looking to move up, from associate super to super. There must be dozens of candidates right now. It’s ridiculous that these three are all the candidates that the search firm could uncover. They haven’t been doing their homework. How in the world were they selected? Lowest bid?
DiasternDekalb
April 26th, 2011
12:35 pm
Yeah trotter we see what kind of people the public votes into office. Get Real
Dekalb taxpayer
April 26th, 2011
12:36 pm
Elect a superintendent? You want a superintendent elected by the same voters who send and resend SCW, Jay Cunningham, and their ilk back to the board? God forbid.
PatDowns
April 26th, 2011
12:38 pm
@ Maureen – your newspaper and its sister TV station, WSB, share culpability in this fiasco.
Transparency in the negotiations process, no matter the Superintendent candidate, DOES NOT include divulging what goes on in BOE executive session.
This situation could have been avoided if the AJC and Richard Belcher had put the school system above getting a scoop.
Education for All
April 26th, 2011
12:39 pm
Maureen, obviously tipping off journalists is not typically considered criminal behavior. However, tipping off journalists in ways that lead to a witness in protection being exposed, exposes the identity of a covert operative, or leads to a rape victim being identified, could be considered criminal, am I right? And clearly there is a grey area in between. So I wonder, though, if a leak is part of an agenda to abort a process that will expose and root out dysfunction (like hiring a new superintendent from outside), then who does the journalist have an obligation to? The anonymous and malicious tipster or the public for whom they are supposed to be a fourth estate and a check on bad government? It is up to that journalist’s conscience, of course, but in this case, I think the tipster’s identity IS the story, as it was a move designed to derail forward progress in DCSS and protect the corruption that lies therein.
Kellie Brownlow
April 26th, 2011
12:44 pm
Maureen, as a tax payer in DeKalb and someone who works for government, I think in certain situations we need to rethink the meaning of transparaency. I’d be in favor of a slightly less transparent process that would be more likely to ensure a top notch superintendent. In this specific case, DeKalb is at a disadvantage in terms of attracting good candidates anyway. Everyone lost in this situation and once again, this turned into a story for and about adults instead of children…
Best and Brightest ??
April 26th, 2011
12:46 pm
Cobb County is in the same boat. With one of the worst set of school board members anywhere, we can’t attract blue chip candidates either. According to the AJC Samuel King from Rockdale County is our latest greatest candidate who is supposedly a Dekalb candidate cast off? However, looking at his educational background, is he the best and brightest we can attract to one of the better (despite the board) and largest school systems in the country? Or is he someone our inept board thinks they can control easier?
He got a BA from MERCER, a Masters from STATE UNIV of W GA, and a doctorate from ARGOSY in Sarasota, FL, an online school with a somewhat mixed reputation. It gives one pause to wonder how much of his education was actually earned and how much was merely paid for. Given the relatively small system he runs now, is he ready for a system the size of Cobb with it’s uninitiated board and personal agendas run rampant.
The only thing that could make this process more hilarious and sad at the same time would be for Dekalb and Cobb to have Beverly Hall as a candidate.
Arabia "Annex"?
April 26th, 2011
12:49 pm
And how about some investigative journalism after the news today on WSB about Arabia Mountain “Annex” in trailers at Lithonia High: Why were these kids not at Arabia when I hear there are 300 empty seats? Is it because the south Dekalb “haves” did not want the “have nots” who choiced out of Lithonia to Arabia at their shiny new school? Is it that a bunch of the cronies have their kids at Arabia, and maybe they just rigged it where the riff raff would be kept out, school choice or not. I don’t know if this is what is going on, but it is very suspicious. A little investigation would be great! Let’s shine a bright light on all the nonsense Dekalb, and maybe good things will start growing there instead of more corruption. –Education for All
senseandsensibility
April 26th, 2011
12:51 pm
Dr. Trotter… sounds like backroom gossip.. why would a school district extend a contract of a superintendent they want to unload .. not once but twice…! Thats a huge financial obligation.. I never go by what other people have heard.. unless it comes from the horses mouth.. its just gossip… Second of all Im not sure Dekalb has that much pull as to destablilize and force others to quit their jobs. Theres nothing wrong with someone trying to improve their pay or responsibilities or move up the ladder and I doubt that people would hold that against them.. if they did I view that as very petty and childish. It also may force the current employer to say hey.. maybe we should try to hold onto this person.. what can we do better?? I don’t buy the arguement as well and I think they got a closer look at Dekalb and didn’t want to touch it with a 10 foot pole. Its one big backwards mess embroiled in nepotism, over bloatedness, poorly lacking administrators, and a system that represses people and keeps them down.
Tinytam
April 26th, 2011
12:56 pm
I follow Maureen’s blog faithfully and although I am not a Dekalb County resident, I am very interested in the search for a new Superintendent. I don’t have a background in education nor have I ever run for any public office. I don’t post comments but wanted to chime in here.
For everyone throwing out negative statements about the board members, I would love to see you run in their place. Just do it! Run for their seat and when you win (because the current members are so incompetent, corrupt, or whatever else you call them) you can start creating the best system for all students in the county. If board members aren’t qualified then support candidates who are qualified. If you have the experience to run a school system of Dekalb County’s size then please apply for the Super’s position.
Wonder what my point is…if you are just gripping about the system and not trying to actively challenge the status quo then you are part of the problem. Everyone is responsible for being engaged citizens and not just bloggers who throw out insults. We all have to do a better job. Are you involved at your local school? It starts there. Get to know the women and men who work at your local schools so you will be able to endorse their candidacy for such an office. It would seem that qualified candidates could be found from within the system if these candidates felt they’d have the support to make the necessary changes.
I’m not sure of the answer in this situation for Dekalb County because I’m not qualified to select a superintendent and I don’t know enough about the board members to make any comments. The Vent section of the paper is for wisecracks and one liners! Let’s use this blog as a means to exchange positive solutions and ideas on how to improve the process.
That’s all…..
Dr. John Trotter
April 26th, 2011
12:57 pm
Yes, I trust the Law of the Large Numbers more than I trust the vote of the personal-agenda-driven few. I like democracies. Some people — like Mark Elgart — apparently to not. Note in the latest article about the APS Confab in the Governor’s Office (an illegal meeting, by the way) that the report says that the Atlanta Board ran afoul with SACS because of “in-fighting.” Wow…now let’s not spit-spat. Ha! Democracies and republican forms of government are all about spit-spatting. This is good. Fighting over policies, laws, practices. Great! Letting dumb people vote. This is good too. Some of you would still have the Georgia General Assembly appointing the U. S. Senators. I love the mess of democracy. And, yes, I’d rather let those eating each day at the South DeKalb Piccadilly and Houston’s on Lenox Road vote for my superintendent, not Jay Cunningham, et al. (I’m not picking on Jay, but you did mention his name. I hear that he sells some good pizza.)
i4t
April 26th, 2011
12:59 pm
Create your own blog to deal with incompetent politicians. Blogging is like your own newspaper, and it’s becoming effective in putting pressure on those we elect who don’t seem to be listening to us. Best of all blogging is free! blogspot.com
DekalbCountyParent
April 26th, 2011
1:00 pm
I’ve said since the beginning of the redistricting process that Ramona Tyson was going to be the next superintendant. Why? Follow the money trail. Tyson knows the “ins and outs”, “ups and downs” of the financial records within the county because of her past positions and deep rooted connections with Crawford Lewis and his posse. She/they wouldn’t dare want to hand over the precious incriminating, confidential information that would put the entire board, except for the new members that aren’t privy to alot of it, on “front street” and expose the whole long historical sordid past. It’s a shame that the focus is not on the children. Walker, Speaks, & Cunningham are sellouts; Bowen, Womack, McChesney are racist; Edler is new and naive. The only board members who care about the children are Nancy Jester (who only cares about her constituency – upperclass Northend folks, and Sarah C-Wood, who has to “play the game” just to hang on to her position, but is tired and not respected because she is older and represents an impoverished area. The entire board needs to go! We need to start at the top by recruiting someone like or “The” Johnny Brown!!!
PatDowns
April 26th, 2011
1:01 pm
@ Education for All
April 26th, 2011
12:39 pm
“…It is up to that journalist’s conscience, of course, but in this case, I think the tipster’s identity IS the story, as it was a move designed to derail forward progress in DCSS and protect the corruption that lies therein.”
In this case the “journalists” in question became active participants. no longer acted as reporters but active participants. They abrogated their role as reporters of the news by aiding and abetting in making the news.
Annie R
April 26th, 2011
1:04 pm
LOL, they probably wanted to give it to Ramona Tyson the whole time and just ran these other folks off….Thank God my son is graduated and gone from Dekalb County Schools. What is it about school boards in the metro area, they are too dumb to get out of their own way.
North Atl H.S. Teacher
April 26th, 2011
1:08 pm
Who would want the job?
joe white
April 26th, 2011
1:14 pm
Its a shame that our kids are surffering. I am a product of dekalb schools and if the requirements was no in a kids favor i would teach but issues that teachers face are hell, they have to be mom and dad and the parents turn against the good teachers. dam a ceo of the school board we need good teachers and let the ceo do the job for half the salary if they gave a dam. our kids in trouble that is why i am home schooling my kids. i can teach all that a teacher can. Dekalb get a life and people start supporting our teachers.
Let's be real
April 26th, 2011
1:16 pm
The fact that Cox could not handle the public scrutiny of the open negotiations showed she was not ready for the “big time”.
Really, Really?
April 26th, 2011
1:17 pm
It is really disgusting that people print lies, gossip and rumors and they linger in print to hurt others. Lillie Cox, Gloria Davis, and Arthur Culver are all smart to get out of this process. I have two close friends living in Champaign, and they told me that Culver has been a target for some (two who got on the Board to make him miserable) since he came there and made some adults uncomfortable. The former teacher union president is on the board. Both of my friends (who have kids of different ages and are friends with employees) say that that the stuff about harrassment and “jail” are outright lies. If there was any proof, we could find it. There is none. They said that he and the board were getting ready to part ways because they were tired of each other. When Dekalb became public, the board got mad when he said he was leaving anyway to the newspaper. But the board is fair enough to recognize his accomplishments. See their web site at http://www.champaignschools.org. Maureen, I urge you to delete defaming comments about a person that I hear worked really hard for the kids in that town. This blog is likely hearing from disgruntled employees, which any good superintendent has or somebody whose kid didn’t get to play on the team. Maureen, you said you got emails. Check your sources. Mine are good. They say not everyone loves Culver, but that he pulled the schools through the consent decree and has never been accused of doing anything wrong. Good Grief!
Rob
April 26th, 2011
1:23 pm
Why is the AJC not posting the name of their source that leaked Cox’s contract demands Saturday morning? What are they hiding?
@Maureen
April 26th, 2011
1:28 pm
It may not be illegal to leak negative information regarding a candidate your fellow BOE members voted for and you didn’t want, but is it ethical? Ethics is actually a big deal in BOE members. Ethics violations are important considerations for anyone who is an elected official and hold the public trust. I would be interested in posters who think what the BOE member(s?) did by leaking this information is unethical.
An Open Records request should be used to find out the 3 BOE members who voted against Cox. At least then the field could be narrowed down.
Thanks for assuring us it wasn’t Tyson. But you still don’t know if Tyson knew about this or not. Lewis must have known about the ouster of Brown when the BOE went through their chess game to install him as superintendent. The candidate that they used to entice other BOE members to dump Brown seemed a real shoo-in, but he was a red herring. What a shocker it was when Lewis emerged as the superintendent. Some of the BOE members just played a better game than others to get exactly what they wanted.
Please take some time and read the BOE minutes for the first 2 or 3 years Lewis was superintendent. It seems every other meeting he was recommending the hiring or promotion of a BOE or former BOE member’s relative or a relative of one of his Cabinet members.
Look at the minutes from an April 20, 2005 DCSS BOE meeting:
“Present at the meeting were Chair Frances Edwards, Elizabeth Andrews, Sarah Copelin-Wood, Chip Franzoni, Simone Manning-Moon, Zepora Roberts and Superintendent Crawford Lewis. Vice Chair Bebe Joyner, Cassandra Anderson, and Lynn Cherry Grant were absent…
….
Mr. Tim Freeman, Associate Superintendent of Administrative Services, recommended that the Board approve the appointment of Philandrea Guillory, a relative of a board member, as Director of the Public, Press and Partner Relations Department. A motion was made by Ms. Andrews, seconded by Ms. Roberts and carried with a unanimous vote.”
A former superintendent’s son recommended the daughter of the BOE chairwoman be promoted, and according to the BOE meeting notes the BOE chairwoman voted on the promotion of her own daughter (no mention of her abstaining from the vote, and she was present according to the minutes).
Ms. Edwards daughter currently makes $144,150 in salary and benefits (benefits calculated at 25%) and her husband who was also promoted under Lewis makes $144,135 in salary and benefits. Many of the current and former BOE members have relatives employed by DCSS. Can you see the millions that are at stake for them to keep the status quo.
I see this as an ethical issue, and the behavior of the BOE member who leaked this information has not behaved ethically. What kind of example does this set for the children of DeKalb County?
Dunwoody Mom
April 26th, 2011
1:30 pm
Richard Belcher reported last night on WSB that the 3 who voted against Cox were Bowen, Cunningham, Walker.
atlmom
April 26th, 2011
1:31 pm
Kira Willis for School Superintendent!!!!!
Dunwoody Mom
April 26th, 2011
1:31 pm
Sorry….Bowen, Cunningham and Edler…Belcher was not sure if Walker was present.
Ed Johnson
April 26th, 2011
1:33 pm
Contrary to @Ed’s contention that the ‘20 question dog and pony show’ was ridiculous,” the three candidates’ presentations were extraordinarily informative and offered great insight, a testament to the wonderful messiness of transparency and democracy.
As said earlier…
DeKalb County Board of Education’s selection of any one of the candidate superintendents will expose just what the board values or chooses to value for the county’s children. That’s because each candidate mixes different “thinking” value systems in varying degrees – from weakly (-) to strongly (+) – along this suggested continuum:
0: Mechanistic Thinking: Gloria Davis (+)
2: Behavioristic Thinking: Gloria Davis (-), Arthur Culver (+)
4: Humanistic Thinking: Arthur Culver (-), Lillie Cox (+)
6: Systems Thinking: Lillie Cox (+)
A time scale can be put over this continuum to range from 19th century thinking, at point zero, to 21st century thinking, at point six.
Hopefully, the DeKalb School Board will inquire to Lillie Cox’s indirect reference to having as a mentor and a source the now state superintendent who, until a year or so ago, was superintendent of another small district near her current superintendency, in Hickory, NC.
Ed Johnson
Advocate for Quality in Public Education
edwjohnson@aol.com
(404) 505-8176
Dunwoody Mom
April 26th, 2011
1:33 pm
But, I’m not clear if this was the vote on the initial contract offer or the vote on the last “try” at getting Cox to agree.
thomas
April 26th, 2011
1:39 pm
I also wonder why AJC and other media outlets feel it is ok for them to publish a story on a confidential process. Other than getting the reporter a star for a “scoop,” what good does it actually do? Do they enjoy being used as a pawn by these politicians? Is it their “power trip”? Sometimes (most of the time?) those media people are the most arrogant people in our society.
Pete
April 26th, 2011
1:49 pm
Although we all know that running one of the metro Atlanta school systems is a really big job, and in the private sector a top executive would easily make $275K or more in a business on a similar scale, it becomes unseemly when these negotiations become public on the heels of threatened teacher furloughs, program cutbacks and so on. The message is that these execs “just won’t perform” unless they are paid $275K and get 28 days’ vacation, while teachers are having their middle class status threatened. The rank and file is expected to perform at top level for the honor of the job, while at the top, the only motivator is money.
Cere
April 26th, 2011
1:50 pm
I saw that report too – I think it was the three who were against Cox – and judging by Womack’s outrage in this report, he was one of the 5 who tried to plead with her to give us a try.
http://stonemountain.11alive.com/news/education/dekalb-school-board-member-blasts-media-leaks/59459
PatDowns
April 26th, 2011
1:50 pm
@ Rob
April 26th, 2011
1:23 pm
Why is the AJC not posting the name of their source that leaked Cox’s contract demands Saturday morning? What are they hiding?
The AJC is not posting the name of its source because that person asked to remain anonymous for giving the insider info. It’s not like this person was whistle blowing or reporting a crime. It is perfectly legal for the BOE to discuss personnel matters without public scrutiny in executive session. The AJC and WSB will not admit there is a difference. The hypocrisy of keeping anonymous the name of the disgruntled leaker over something not even illegal. Journalism at its arrogant worst.
Cere
April 26th, 2011
1:56 pm
I find it curious that it’s Paul Womack who makes a public statement about the leak – not Tom Bowen. Tom is the Chair – Tom should have expressed the outrage from the very first announcement. In fact, TOM should have made the announcement! What’s up with that? Tom? I guess you must actually just be relieved that Cox dropped out. Just how bad was the pressure on her? Tom? Why are you so non-chalant about a leak of this level of importance? Tom? You speak to the press ALL the time, and in fact, since Cox dropped out you have been dropping the Tyson as permanent superintendent idea ALL over the press – but you express NO issue with the fact that secret discussions were leaked??? What is up with that Tom?
Dunwoody Mom
April 26th, 2011
1:57 pm
Well, since Bowen didn’t want Cox, it is not surprising that he is not upset by her withdrawal. However, he should be addressing the leaks – unless of course, he WAS the leak.
Cere
April 26th, 2011
2:02 pm
In fact, Tom, you don’t even have an issue with your own manipulative behavior when you wrote a letter and electronically affixed the signatures of the entire board expressing the BOARD’s unified opposition to SB 79. No problem for you to go ahead and draft a letter and then direct a system employee to hand deliver it to the very delegate, Howard Mosby, who requested that you send a letter? Wow – you really have some political aspirations Tom! Aren’t you a lawyer? Doesn’t that require a license? And a certain expectation of ethics?
Cere
April 26th, 2011
2:07 pm
Sorry. It just looks to me like our chair is trying very, very hard to make sure that the board stays exactly the same and their favorite interim stays on as their permanent choice. He is going waaaay out of his way to make sure these things happen. At least that’s how it looks.
I’ll go do some yoga now…
Smith
April 26th, 2011
2:08 pm
@Dr. Trotter: Are you one of those people who thinks any type of career advancement is evil? “Why would anyone be willing to picked [sic] and traverse the country for a job?” Well, perhaps they want to advance their careers. We want these type of people here because they want to better themselves and their school systems. Arne Duncan was the CEO of Chicago Public Schools and now he is the Sec. of Ed. for the U.S. The CEO part was the career booster that got him the position (I’m sure knowing the Big O didn’t hurt, either).
As for this position in DeKalb, anyone who takes it on is willing to sacrifice their career should they fail. With great risk comes great reward.
Maureen Downey
April 26th, 2011
2:13 pm
@thomas, There are many stories that changed things for the better that began with sources who were not named. But I can assure you that unnamed sources are not used lightly and have to be approved by top editors at the AJC.
Maureen
Ricardo Cabeza
April 26th, 2011
2:17 pm
Hey, let’s give ol’ Terrel Bolton a buzz! He already knows his way around ‘DEE-kap’ county and he could surely do just as good a job being school bos as he did beign da PO-leece chief!
Cassie
April 26th, 2011
2:19 pm
“How ’bout the AJC doing an in-depth examination of the pay/benefits of all the metro superintendents, including termination pay, contributions to 401K made in addition to pay, cars, etc.”
Amen to that! The education superintendant pay thing is a SCAM. They are not in the private sector – they are public servants.
Let’s face it, these people are administrators – they hold meetings. They didn’t develop a cure for cancer, or invent the iPhone, or create a new industry. Why on earth are they paid such absurd salaries?
—–
For example, the Centers for Disease Control and the DeKalb County School System are both government agencies with about 14,000 employees.
Why is CDC’s Director Tom Frieden – who has an MD, an MPH, and several decades of experience – “only” paid about $175,000 a year, while Cox was insisting on (and apparently was going to be offered) $275,000 a year with all those extra vacation days, a position as an adjuct professor at Emory, and 16 months’ severance pay if she got fired? Wow.
I mean, if there’s a major disease outbreak, I can rest easy knowing that Dr. Frieden’s going to be putting 90-hour weeks until the problem’s been taken care of. His family is probably not happy about it, but he is a public servant and crazy hours is what it takes sometimes to get the job done. He doesn’t expect to be given five weeks’ vacation a year and be handed an adjunct professor job at Emory….he expects to be the Director of CDC.
I mean, seriously – these people aren’t in the private sector, they’re in the public sector. If they want to be paid like some superstar CEO, they should go work at a private company. There are hundreds if not thousands of educated, experienced, qualified people who would take the job of school superintendent at a Senior Executive Service (SES) salary of $175,000 a year.
HaHaITold U
April 26th, 2011
2:19 pm
I am so happy that you all are finally seeing the light of Tom Bowen. He has always been manipulative. Why don’t you all ask him about the hiring of the principal at Brownsmill Elementary. The Superintendent will be an insider. Oh and by the way, Why is Robert Mosley so quiet these days?
Berha
April 26th, 2011
2:23 pm
@ REALLY REALLY. I too have contacts with Champaign County schools. What was stated about Culvert and the law suits, as well as mishandling of public funds( gross misconduct), is true! These are not lies or gossip. Yes, Culvert did have public enemies, but his behavior did lead him to resign. Don’t be angry because you and your”friends” have been left out of the loop.
Jack
April 26th, 2011
2:27 pm
So you can’t drag people through the mud, publicly bully them over salary negotiations and expect them to still take your job? Wow! What a concept!
Frustrated and Resigned
April 26th, 2011
2:27 pm
@ Michael in Decatur re: If Dekalb is too big a job for one super, then let’s divide the county up into a more manageable size. OK, so why not consider this? It would, of course, mean breaking up the county government, as well, but that’s not such a bad thing either. We get rid of the entire school board and let each smaller portion select its own school board. We get rid of the layers of middle management in the school system, many of whom are making tons of money to do very little, and simplify the hierarchy. We might then have two school systems which can function in a healthy way. We need to face reality: going down the same path hasn’t worked in the past, isn’t working now, and won’t work going forward. We’ve got to try something new and different — with new and different people.
Henry Grady
April 26th, 2011
2:30 pm
Thomas hit it right on the head. While the story should be ‘who leaked confidential negotations’, the AJC and WSB have been pushing hard on the ‘candidates drop out’ angle. Why? Because they made the choice for a scoop over reporting the news. If the unnamed source is part of the story, then the only ethical thing is to not use them as a source. The AJC can’t report on a key element…who submarined the process…because of this ethical lapse.
Deep Throat wasn’t one of the Watergate burglars or a political rival…he was an FBI investigator with no dog in the fight. Whoever this source was clearly is not in the same neutral position. Richard Belcher and the AJC should have passed on the source so they could report the whole story. Instead of journalism, you got news.
tim
April 26th, 2011
2:33 pm
Hey Maureen….according to you, the next time I rob a bank I won’t be breaking a law, I’ll be “circumventing” it.
Get real for a change!
Henry Grady
April 26th, 2011
2:39 pm
Are BOE members county provided emails and phone records subject to open records requests? Since we know the AJC isn’t going to submit one, can anyone else submit a request to see if we can find the leak?
southernopinion
April 26th, 2011
2:42 pm
Superintendent must
#1 Be Asian male
#2 Possess integrity and honesty
#3 Proven managerial skills
JM
April 26th, 2011
2:43 pm
Representative government is better than the chaos we see in this search. Elect people you can trust, give them your expectations, and expect them to follow the expectations. If they don’t elect someone else.
Write Your Board Members
April 26th, 2011
2:45 pm
Keep in mind that for some of the board members, their constituents wouldn’t care if they were the leak. As far as I know, nothing criminal has been committed, so what are the consequences? More disdain from the public, most of whom can’t vote for you anyway?
DeKalb is a mess.
Cere
April 26th, 2011
2:52 pm
Ok – so – apologies to Tom – I am not accusing you – I’m just so upset at your lack of outrage! And I was already upset with you over the letter! Just do the right thing. You should – just to live up to your oath of service to the bar. The WHOLE truth is a very specific thing.
Regardless, whoever did it has broken board policy AND has cost DCSS hundreds of thousands of dollars. Whoever did it literally stole that money from DCSS. That person must be fired for cause or forced to resign, must make financial restitution and should be prosecuted to the full extent the law allows.
I am just baffled as to why Tom doesn’t seem to have an issue with a leak of this magnitude. His response has basically been – maybe we’ll just go with Ramona”. That won’t fix what ails this board Tom. Someone leaked a major negotiation that by law must stay behind closed doors. To us regular taxpaying folks, that is a very big deal. We won’t let it drop.
Cere
April 26th, 2011
2:54 pm
@Write Your Board Members – I see your point. It’s like when my big dog steals a hamburger from the grill. He gets admonished for a minute, but in reality – it was very much worth it. He got what he wanted.
chillywilly
April 26th, 2011
3:05 pm
Thank you Thomas Bowen, Jay Cunningham and Eugene Walker for voting against Lillie Cox and saving the taxpayers of Dekalb County tons of money. Her demands were outrageous. I’m confident that you can find a superintendent that is much more competent than this woman and it won’t cost you two arms & two legs to hire her. See ya Lillie!
@chillywilly
April 26th, 2011
3:08 pm
Have you even looked at the lack of student achievement in DCSS recently or do you think DCSS is a jobs program that is not accountable for educating its students?
thomas
April 26th, 2011
3:19 pm
@ Maureen,
The point wasn’t about the use of anonymous source. The point is about the story itself serving any good. Why does the public need to know that a district is negotiating with someone? A lot of personnel decisions are made confidentially for good reasons – maybe people in the media just don’t think they are good reasons and they would rather use them for their own advancement.
thomas
April 26th, 2011
3:19 pm
By the way, I also don’t believe in “the end justifies the means,” either.
Maureen Downey
April 26th, 2011
3:23 pm
@thomas, This was an extraordinary contract, given standard school chief deals in Georgia. I also think that many people in DeKalb would have been alarmed at some of the provisions.
I do understand the problems with negotiating in the public eye, but I have had many politicians tell me that you hve to understand that close attention comes with the territorywhen you take a high-profile government job.
Is it the best way to get the best candidate?
In some cases, I think the scrutiny and the criticisms are too much and people shun the jobs. I still think the Cox would have to expect a lot more scrutiny from all quarters if she took this job, the media, the parents, the community as a whole, the teachers. I assume that she was not accustomed to this degree of attention.
Maureen
atlmom
April 26th, 2011
3:26 pm
okay, so why do they need to pay $275k? because they can’t even find anyone who is willing to take the job even at that salary. or am I wrong?
Seriously – the head of the CDC probably loves his job – and the press isn’t in his office every day trying to see how he’s screwing up the place.
That’s why these people want these salaries. typical superintendents of these types of school systems don’t last five years. and then what do you do? you get blamed for not ‘turning things around’ when everything around you is dysfunctional. how do you get another job after that?
Jo
April 26th, 2011
3:27 pm
Wow! Maureen — what a cop out!
“I can assure you that unnamed sources are not used lightly and have to be approved by top editors at the AJC.” (Tuesday, April 26, 2011)
“But here’s my position: If I know something important, you are going to know it, too. The newspaper is not paying me to collect information and then hide it from readers. If it is relevant, if it is newsworthy, if it involves tax dollars, then my job and the job of this newspaper is to report it.” (Sunday, April 24, 2011)
Here’s my position, Maureen, and I am sure it is similar to that of other AJC readers and subscribers:
The REAL story is that a DeKalb County School System Board of Education member, for personal agenda reasons, knowingly broke BOE policy and revealed confidential contract negotiations with a candidate for superintendent who had been approved by the majority of the BOE.
It now appears very likely that the person who leaked the information may have been BOE Chair Tom Bowen.
In your holier-than-thou post on April 24, 2011 (appropriately Easter Sunday) aimed at people like me who objected to the AJC and WSB running this particular story, you said, “If I know something important, you are going to know it, too. If it is relevant, if it is newsworthy, if it involves tax dollars, then my job and the job of this newspaper is to report it.”
Well, Maureen … knowing the name of the person who leaked confidential negotiations:
(1) is relevant (this person has virtually assured that no worthwhile or viable candidate for superintendent will have any interest in working for a back-stabbing BOE who thinks nothing of breaking BOE policies to satisfy a personal agenda.)
(2) is newsworthy (in a state and a county with abysmal education results, this person has consigned DeKalb’s public school students to an inferior public education for the foreseeable future.
(3) involves tax dollars (this person has cost DCSS hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars; restitution must be made)
The person who leaked this confidential information must be held accountable — morally, fiscally and legally. This person must be fired for cause or told to resign, must reimburse DCSS for all taxpayer dollars spent during the superintendent candidate search, and must be prosecuted to the full extent allowed by law.
As you said, it is your job and the job of the newspaper to report it what you know.
So, Maureen you and/or upper management at Cox/WSB/AJC know the name of the person who leaked the negotiation information.
Report what you know or resign. Your credibility is shot if you don’t follow your own statement:
“If it is relevant, if it is newsworthy, if it involves tax dollars, then my job and the job of this newspaper is to report it.”
Write Your Board Members
April 26th, 2011
3:32 pm
Jo
The AJC and WSB have a right to judge what they think is newsworthy and they have an obligation to protect their sources — for better or worse.
What should upset us all is that the calibre of the candidates was so weak and yet our board of education felt that they should proceed, rather than ask Ray and Associates to start over.
R826
April 26th, 2011
3:33 pm
Jo – RIGHT ON!
mrJimsOnTheLake
April 26th, 2011
3:33 pm
All of the school super’s in all counties are ridiculously overpaid and hideously under-worked. A salary of $75k a year is plenty for these morons. They do little work.
R826
April 26th, 2011
3:35 pm
@Write Your Board Members – how do you know that the calibre (?) of the candidates was so weak? Not sure what I have read anywhere that indicates that was the case. And if it was a weak group, sure seems like another WASTE OF MONEY to go to the same consulting group that brought us the “weak cast of characters” and have them take another dip in the pond, doesn’t it?
R826
April 26th, 2011
3:38 pm
@Maureen – so, you think some in the county would have been alarmed at some of the provisions? You mean the provisions that had not been agreed to, may never have been agreed to, but were put on the table early in the negotiations, per your story or another from the AJC? I’ve spent the last 25 years negotiating large contracts and much of what gets put on the table in the first few days never makes it to the final draft. This was “leaked” for one reason – someone didn’t want to go with Cox and I’m a little shocked at how the AJC is defending their poor judgement.
Georgia Coach
April 26th, 2011
3:42 pm
Elected Superintendents are not always the best. I know of one who was elected in Tennessee and his background was as a high school band director and six months as an Assistant Principal.
There is no way that he was qualified for a position of this magnitude. That is a lot of what you had when they were elected.
I will take an appointed Superintendent any day.
Berha
April 26th, 2011
3:45 pm
@REALLY REALLY AGAIN
No we are not angry people, but those who know the facts. Just because your friends have children in Champaign County schools, does not make them the final authority. Just over the week-end, Culver still wanted the position. Suddenly, a man with only a Master’s does not want to be considered. He called it a “golden opportunity”. Your comments only reveal your ignorance and anger. Dekalb would not have done their students any justice having him. Dr. Davis would have been the better selection. She has worked closely with the University of IL and her district DID NOT want her to leave. She has a proven track record!
Berha
April 26th, 2011
3:47 pm
My friends say that there is NO lawsuit or wrongdoing. I think you are out of the loop. I checked all the Champaign county legal websites. You are slandering someone with nothing to support the allegations. One of my friends lives next to a principal who says that he did nothing illegal. She says that some of the board did want him to leave but it had nothing to do with anything he had done (ready for their own guy). If you “know” this, where is the truth. I think we lost a good candidate because of gossip, leaks from the board, and slander.
CORRUPT
April 26th, 2011
3:50 pm
This is the most corrupt school system in the state. Dr Bouie was corrupt and I saw it first hand. Ramona Tyson is right in there with them. If someone really wants to look at things INVESTIGATE WHERE ALL OF THE CABLING AND IT CONTRACTS HAVE BEEN AWARDED FOR THE LAST TEN YEARS.
Hypocrites
April 26th, 2011
3:53 pm
I noticet no one complains about unnamed sources in the news stories on CRCT cheating in APS. But when the AJC reports that a candidate from Podunk USA wants a king’s ransom and royal perks you’re all in Maureen’s face. It’s all about wanting Cox no matter how under impressive she was and you want to blame the media. I hope the AJC keeps digging; Look at what happened in that California town where no one paid attention to contracts.
30318Teacher
April 26th, 2011
4:02 pm
275K was the salary offered by DeKalb when they announced the position. Move on from that point. Some of the other items may have been unusual (ability to serve as an adjunct professor, due process, 15 months severence), but the salary was something the board had already agreed to pay.
Again, it’s not the media scrutiny, but the backhanded politics of this BOE. I’m not sure what they were thinking with SB79 and SACS hanging over their heads, but many are now watching. I fear this will taint future candidates who may have otherwise considered the job. How can they trust that the board won’t do the same thing to them, maybe at a worse time.
Mr. Tired of our schools not being right.
April 26th, 2011
4:05 pm
I would have no problem trusting this board to hire someone had the voters done as I and got rid of them all and put in fresh faces w/fresh ideals and thoughts. So what other county in the metro area doesn’t provide for their students activities like DeKalb? Just to drive my point home, most of the board and the previous (now under indictment) superintendent was so happy they saved $4million dollars when Arabia Mountain was built they forgot to build it big enough.. So where is the $4mill?
darb
April 26th, 2011
4:10 pm
The 3 finalists probably didnt like the makeup of the population in Dekalb. Sure isnt the same as when I went to Tucker High many years ago. Can you spell T.O.I.L.E.T ?
Martavious Washington III
April 26th, 2011
4:13 pm
“…I think that taxpayers deserve input…”
Absolutely NOT!!! I wouldn’t ask for the “taxpayers” input on which brand of toilet tissue to buy. Taxpayers should have no say in this type of matter for several obvious reasons.
Cere
April 26th, 2011
4:19 pm
Yep, that’s right Jo. And sadly, once again, it doesn’t appear as though SACS minds. And Tom is going to do his best to sweep it under the rug so that SACS can go on not minding.
The thing is – salary negotiations are supposed to be “personnel issues” which the board is absolutely forbidden to discuss publicly. These are legal negotiations and are very delicate. To violate the sacred trust of executive session and the legal responsibility to uphold a person’s privacy is unconscionable.
It is obvious that ’someone’ was very afraid that the board was going to vote to hire Dr. Cox and this ’someone’ didn’t want Dr. Cox so this ’someone’ sabotaged the negotiations.
This is so bad on so many levels. If the board thought they didn’t have the public’s trust before, they have no idea just how untrustworthy they have now painted themselves.
Write Your Board Members
April 26th, 2011
4:23 pm
Cere
The Board needs to regulate itself. That doesn’t happen –rather they continually want to work together for the good of, well their own pet project or desire, certainly not for the good of the whole system. Not only do most of the board members not fear consequences from their own constituents but they don’t fear each other.
By the way, your blog is awesome!
Need new folks
April 26th, 2011
4:29 pm
As mentioned above, two or three of the Board members seem to lack a basic understanding of grammar. The mind boggles at how people who seem so uneducated are on the Board of Education. We need sharp, professional people to instill confidence in the system.
Speaking of professionalism, did you ever walk down one of those run-down malls and pass a store selling those clowny, pimp suits? I was reminded of those places when a guy spoke at the board meeting the other day wearing a suit with weird piping all over it. I think he is the head of instruction.
justin
April 26th, 2011
4:33 pm
@Hypocrite,
Cheating on the CRCT was an illegal activity. Negotiating for a job contract is a legal activity, which is best done confidentially. Do you see the difference?
I agree with thomas on this one – AJC, WSB, etc. were simply used as pawns by those board members, nothing more nothing less.
Dekalbite@maureen
April 26th, 2011
4:41 pm
“This was an extraordinary contract, given standard school chief deals in Georgia. I also think that many people in DeKalb would have been alarmed at some of the provisions.”
DCSS is an extraordinarily corrupt and ineffective school system. Dr. Brown was undermined by the an extraordinarily entrenched and self serving administration and BOE. I think anyone who takes the superintendent job in DCSS and removes the friends and relatives of the former and current BOE members and the upper level administrators will need all the job protection he/she can get. You have now seen the manipulation they are capable of.
Lizzie
April 26th, 2011
4:50 pm
Honestly, what qualified person would apply for this position, knowing that their name will be on blasted on the news and it is sure to get back to their current employer? Dekalb parents – get real! They need to close the process and protect the privacy of the candidates.
justbrowsing
April 26th, 2011
4:59 pm
There are open processes in other places; however, they conduct business in a more tactful and considerate manner. It just speaks to the nature and culture of that district. Someone needs to come in and clean house. The details of that negotiation should have never been leaked.
Write Your Board Members
April 26th, 2011
6:13 pm
Unfortunately for the children of DeKalb, I suspect the next round will be done behind closed doors. None of these three candidates blew me away but at least none had ties to DeKalb and all held degrees from real colleges. I think, if they can just appoint someone, the odds are not as good that it will be a true outsider.
I don’t think this board can be trusted. Too many agendas, most of which have little to do with the well being of the entire system.
Dave
April 26th, 2011
6:13 pm
Maybe Obama will be interested after 2012.
amazed
April 26th, 2011
6:37 pm
@Maureen–”I assume she was not used to this degree of attention.”
That’s just self-justification for the AJC contributing to messing up the process to the detriment of the students. Now AJC didn’t do anything other papers wouldn’t have done, but don’t justify it.
No self-respecting person would take the job after seeing that they were being undermined before they even took the job. I’m sure that’s why Culver withdrew also.
amazed
April 26th, 2011
6:53 pm
As for the significance of the provisions, even Bowen, who supposedly voted against Cox, said it was very early in the negotiations (so he probably was not the leaker). Several of those provisions were probably just points to give away to get what was really desired. The leaker and AJC didn’t explain these things in context. If Bowen, Cunningham and Elder were the no votes and 5 other than Walker really did try to get her to reconsider, my guess is Walker or Elder leaked, directly or indirectly. But it could have been one of her supporters who just talks too much.
Cindy Lutenbacher
April 26th, 2011
7:12 pm
This lengthy discussion has been an interesting one, and many folks have tried to view the whole situation from a variety of perspectives. I appreciate you, Maureen, for making possible this opportunity.
I do have several requests for a few of the responders. Please avoid trying to make fun of the way people talk. It’s disrespectful and does not help foster engaging discussion.
To “Cindy” and others who offer beliefs concerning the race of a superintendent, I ask that you follow Dr. King’s counsel to look to the content of character. You are free to have your beliefs, but they really don’t belong in discussions such as these.
Maureen Downey
April 26th, 2011
7:15 pm
@Cindy, Thanks for both those requests. I hope folks heed them.
Maureen
The Cynical Dekalbian
April 26th, 2011
7:25 pm
Of course, Dekalb gets the leadership it deserves . . . and votes for. At this point, I would be deeply suspicious of ANY candiate who actually wanted this job. Who in their right mind would associate themselves with the circus that is Dekalb government, much less the Dekalb school system? Unfortunately, I’m old enough to remember when Dekalb was such a nice place to be. [sigh]
JAP
April 26th, 2011
8:05 pm
The voters of DeKalb County need to vote in new board members!! None of them are qualified to shop at the grocery store, let alone pick a superintendent. If I am not mistaken, none of them have ever taught in a classroom or had any responsibility at a school. Knowing them, they will pick another Crawford Lewis and DeKalb will be in deep, deep trouble then.
Ernest
April 26th, 2011
9:20 pm
JAP, you are mistaken. Don McChesney, Dr. Pam Speaks, and Dr. Eugene Walker all are former teachers. Jay Cunningham is a business owner. Paul Womack was President of at least 2 companies. Tom Bowen is legal counsel for a major software company. I believe Donna Edler and Nancy Jester have accounting backgrounds. Not sure what profession Sarah Copelin-Woods was in.
David Sims
April 26th, 2011
9:23 pm
The “free market” does seem to have its internal contradictions. This one forces administrators–and workers in general, in both colors of collar–seeking to improve their positions to do so through covert ops, through deception. If they aren’t duplicitous enough, they’ll get caught with their fishing pole line in the water and fired by their current employer. But a man who will cleverly deceive one employer, in pursuit of his legitimate self-interests, might also deceive another employer in ways that aren’t so legitimate. Okay, ye Libertarians. Let’s see you explain that one.
dekalbcitizen
April 26th, 2011
10:52 pm
copelin-wood is probably the least qualified to be on the BOE. according to the Dekalb County site, she is trying to complete her Bachelor’s degree from Morris Brown. Is there really not a degree requirement for the BOE? prior to that, she ran a non-profit called South Dekalb Community Development Corporation and has held a bunch of board positions with civic interests.
dekalbcitizen
April 26th, 2011
11:04 pm
the rest of the board has pretty impressive credentials especially Dr Speaks, Womack and a few others. Although, the dekalb site does not list anything for Elder and it looks like Cunningham did not graduate from college either. If Cunningham was a business owner, he does not provide that info on his own bio. It says he quit Fort Valley State to enter McDonalds Supervisor Training Program and held various mgt positions for the last 25 years.
UpCloseU4Champaign
April 27th, 2011
12:18 am
Culver was really choked up when he announced his leaving to the district. I’m curious as to how so many people know so much? I think that a lot of what’s been said are rumors (lawsuits) and no one in a position to do so has confirmed any of this. It’s a wonder that anyone applies for anything is public comments can derail a person’s career. He’s gone and all of his detractors are happy, so leave him alone. Why kick a man when he’s down? I don’t understand the need to humiliate anyone for being ambitious?
OTOH
April 27th, 2011
1:36 am
I am from Champaign many, many years ago. My how that wonderful place to grow up has changed. A Consent Decree????? really? Needing to import education experts when the Uof I is the largest part of the twin cities? Truly sad. I’ve been reading local C-U stuff on Culver and it is mixed. Discipline is the one weakness everyone seems to agree on. The announced press conference on Culver today has not shown up at the New Gazette or any of the blogs I read. Anyone else see something on it?
@War
April 27th, 2011
8:55 am
@dekalbcitizen
“Cunningham was a business owner, he does not provide that info on his own bio. It says he quit Fort Valley State to enter McDonalds Supervisor Training Program and held various mgt positions for the last 25 years.”
According to the AJC, Cunningham is a convicted felon due to theft from McDonalds.
“In 1982, Cunningham, then 23, was managing the McDonald’s on Flat Shoals Road, according to the files obtained by the AJC. Part of his job was to deliver store receipts to the bank for deposit.
At first, Cunningham told police his rental car had been broken into while he played basketball at Gresham Park and a bank deposit bag containing $3,000 in McDonald’s money was taken, according to the records.
But he was arrested after Cunningham’s manager at the McDonald’s found $11,000 cash in Cunningham’s gym bag, the records show. Further investigation revealed cash had been missing from the fast-food restaurant for two months.
“I took money little by little from [McDonald’s]. There may also be few thousand that is not counted for,” Cunningham wrote in a statement to investigators in August 1982. ”
…..”Cunningham was charged with two counts of theft by taking and one count of making a false report (relating to his claim that his car had been broken into and the money stolen from him). Prosecutors later agreed to dismiss the false report charge and one theft charge in exchange for Cunningham pleading guilty to the other theft count, according to the case records. The plea deal, which could have carried up to 10 years in prison, gave Cunningham six years on probation under the state’s first offender program.
Court records show Cunningham completed that probation and repaid McDonald’s.
Cunningham’s campaign website says he worked for McDonald’s Corp. for 26 years. But police records show that, during the investigation in 1982, McDonald’s asked him to take a polygraph and then fired him when he failed the examination.”
http://www.ajc.com/news/dekalb/dekalb-school-officials-record-690212.html
amazed
April 27th, 2011
9:03 am
Cunningham and Copelin Woods do not have degrees. Roberts, who was defeated in the last election, also did not have a degree. 3 of the 9 board members did not have college degrees. Bowen was right when he said the board was in over its head during the Lewis regime. The 3rd largest school district in the state and they had 1/3 of the board not even qualified to be a teacher.
A Conservative Voice
April 27th, 2011
9:47 am
@Jo
April 26th, 2011
3:27 pm
Wow! Maureen — what a cop out!
Great post, Jo……however, don’t expect a public announcement naming the informer. You know, these reporters? protect the identities of their sources at all costs. The AJC nor WSB would ever do, or write anything to upset their extremely liberal base.
Concerned parent
April 27th, 2011
10:08 am
Dekalb’s best bet at this point is to hire an outside, interim cleaner (this person can be from business and not from education as far as I’m concerned as their sole job should be reorganization) to make the really tough decisions so that more qualified candidates will be interested in this job in 1-2 years. By then, we should have a different looking board as a result of SB 79
Ernest
April 27th, 2011
10:33 am
Concerned parent, I believe we may have the same Board with just 2 fewer members as a result of SB 79. I’ve spoken to many citizens in the community I think would be great representatives and they are not interested because of the expectations citizens have of Board members. If this is true, this is sad for our community.
amazed
April 27th, 2011
11:02 am
Champaign, IL, Culver’s district is looking for a new superintendent. They were quoted as saying they have learned what NOT to do from Dekalb County.
A Conservative Voice
April 27th, 2011
11:26 am
@Ernest
April 27th, 2011
10:33 am
Concerned parent, I believe we may have the same Board with just 2 fewer members as a result of SB 79. I’ve spoken to many citizens in the community I think would be great representatives and they are not interested because of the expectations citizens have of Board members. If this is true, this is sad for our community.
So, Ernest, it’s sad that we as DeKalb Citizens expect well qualified, honest and above board people on the BOE? I expect members of this board to exhibit all the above qualities, as i’m sure most other citizens of DeKalb County do. The problem is, the board now consists of many who aren’t interested in the children of DeKalb County, only in stroking their giant sized egos.
Cere
April 27th, 2011
11:44 am
We had some excellent people run for the board in the past but the voters weren’t able to hand them a win. There are good people who would like to run, but get pummeled. It’s also quite expensive to run – so if you want to support someone, you’d better do so with your wallet and your time.
almh
April 27th, 2011
12:09 pm
Ernest why don’t you run? You would get my vote.
I live in the Cross Keys zone and have young kids. I was ready to stay for the long haul but I now have second thoughts. If I move to Decatur it will be due to the BOE and NOT the schools.
Dekalbite@Ernest
April 27th, 2011
12:30 pm
You would be an excellent candidate. You have given much personal time and effort towards building a consensus in DCSS that concentrates on raising student achievement. I know you ran before, but I would encourage you to consider it again. We need thoughtful, well educated members of the community who have children in the system as BOE members. I’ve not always agreed with everything you say, but your arguments are always logical, compelling, and conveyed in the spirit of mannered discourse. Voices of reason are needed.
Concerned parent
April 27th, 2011
1:40 pm
Has there been any update on how the new board districts will be drawn for 2013? That could make a significant difference in our representation.
justbrowsing
April 27th, 2011
1:55 pm
Others out there who witness the turmoils of Georgia schools, realize the mess it is in. It is no longer a state that people yearn to come and work in, or teach in for that matter. I have never seen so many people I know leaving. As things like this continue to happen, it becomes less likely that Dekalb and Atlanta will be able to attract top quality leadership for their superintendent positions.
Dunwoody Mom
April 27th, 2011
2:25 pm
@Concerned parent – the Justice Department has to sign off on the legislation before he can become law.
darb
April 27th, 2011
5:40 pm
Who in their right mind would want to be in charge of a school distict that is full of thugs that dont want to learn or be there, and a bunch of kids who were brought into this world so they would be considered American and their non english speaking parents could have a bettr chance of staying here on the backs of all the other taxpayers.
amazed
April 27th, 2011
6:00 pm
There have been a couple of times the AJC or Maureen got criticized on one of these topics. Each time there is a FLOOD of new topics. Coincidence?
Ernest
April 27th, 2011
6:04 pm
A Conservative Voice, let me clarify what I said further. Most of the reasons I heard were due to the time committments required and requested of Board members these days. I spoke with one Board member who indicated they like attending events at schools but given the number of schools, it is almost impossible. They mentioned there are some citizens that get ‘angry’ when their school is not visited over another. They do their best but unfortunately that is realized or appreciated.
Many indicate they’d like to see someone with children in the district as Board members. Balancing family, work and the school board can be challenging for many people these days. Can it be done? Sure, but it would require those can strike the right balance between those responsibilities.
There are a LOT of great people as you described that would make great Board members. Perhaps it simply takes more encouragement and support to have them consider. How about you?
not telling
April 27th, 2011
6:56 pm
@ amazed: I have noticed that as well. Maureen, name the source!!!!!
Maureen Downey
April 27th, 2011
6:58 pm
@Amazed, As this e-mail sent to me today demonstrates, there is no making everyone happy.
C-Uhere
April 27th, 2011
7:05 pm
There is nothing being said here in Champaign about wrongdoing on the part of Superintendent Culver. The meetings scheduled to discuss personnel were likely related to finding a new or interim superintendent. Why on earth would people’s imaginations jump to something negative and dramatic like sexual harassment? if you are truly interested, go to the Circuit Clerk website. It’s all public record and yes, Culver has been named in a suit or two that were obviously lodged against the district, not him. Some kid probably got a bloody nose and the staff didn’t call the parents quick enough or maybe someone didn’t feel their child was getting enough speech therapy. This is why school districts pay ridiculous amounts for liability insurance!
Why would Culver withdraw interest from the Dekalb position ? He said after what he saw with Cox, things didn’t feel right. Mind you, the man is already paid somewhere in the 200K range for this, a smaller district, so it also might be he could read the handwriting on the wall regarding salary negotiations.
Superintendent is such a time-consuming, all encompassing, stress intensive job, I cannot believe anyone is questioning that salary in a ‘normal’ district much less one with all the challenges DeKalb presents.
I guess we will now be competing with Dekalb for candidates. I wish us both the best of luck.
Dekalbite@Maureen
April 27th, 2011
7:59 pm
No one wishes that DeKalb was out of the news more than the folks who live here. Our property values are not helped by the publicity.
I was in a large Northeastern city this summer and met and talked with a young, successful single man who lives in those condos across from the Tara Theater. He had moved from renting at Atlantic Station to those condos, but he was looking to buy a house. I suggested he look in DeKalb in the Emory or Lakeside or Decatur areas since he was so near the county line and those areas. He wrinkled up his nose and said all the news reports about the problems in the schools convinced him it was a ghetto area, and he wouldn’t dream of moving there. He said he was looking at Johns Creek. I explained that there are many lovely areas in DeKalb and Decatur, but he was totally unconvinced. He can’t be the only one who feels like that when DeKalb is constantly in the news for one misstep or another.
Ernest
April 27th, 2011
8:10 pm
DeKalbite, I concur! As a DeKalb resident, I’d welcome not seeing us in the news as often either, especially when shown in a negative light. Regretfully perceptions are shaped by the constant stories on our county. Don’t get me wrong, any malfeasance should be covered but I can’t believe some of these things are only happening in DeKalb.
Another way of looking at it is that perhaps we have more residents willing to expose wrongdoings that others. That kind of scrutiny could give some more comfort.
Name One
April 28th, 2011
12:02 am
Ernest, you sure don’t help the cause for change when you speak at BOE meetings giving glowing support for Ramona Tyson, when she has done nothing to address the DCSS Central Office culture of administrative waste and inflated salaries, nepotism, waste, fraternity/sorority connections, the ridiculous Office of School Improvement, Morcease Beaseley’s constant busy work for teachers, a MIS Dept. that does nothing for teachers in the classroom, etc., etc., etc.
Seriously, E: What has she done?
The worst part is that every upper level administrator under Crawford Lewis…is still in place!!!
@Ernest
April 28th, 2011
12:10 am
Just read your 9:20 pm post yesterday. How can you defend Gene Walker when he needed $20k in campaign contrib’s from an out of state company that wanted to purchase school system property to defeat you?
In his defense, during your campaign, you should have mentionrd that Walker has 5-6 relatives working for the school system, and this:
http://www.accessnorthga.com/detail.php?n=165732
http://www.accessnorthga.com/detail.php?n=150517
Fred Garvin
April 28th, 2011
10:13 am
@Ernest, I reread that post you mentioned. Ernest only stated the occupations of all Board members and did not include any opinions. How is that defending someone when he only made a statement of fact?
Atlanta Media Guy
April 28th, 2011
12:51 pm
Folks the fact that NO ONE from the Clew reign has left the system, is telling. Tyson was in charge of several departments that should have seen the shenanigans going on. Turk even made mention of the Audria Berry.Crawford Lewis P-Card scam. Folks until everyone who is working for the Central Office in leadership positions are gone, nothing is going to change. How much you want to bet it was one of Tyson’s people who leaked. Who else was in that room when negotiations were taking place?
It would not surprise me if it was one of the friends and family who leaked. You know with the economy, gas and food prices going higher everyone at the Central Office will have their hands out expecting a cost of living raise.. The only people who deserve a raise right now are the teachers! I mean real teachers, not he “coaches” or Audria Berry’s “Army. Teachers deserve more and they deserve the DCSS match back that the BOE took away to balance the budget. Ms. Tyson you need to fire or ask for the resignations of Moseley, Thompson, Mitchell-Mayfield, Turk, Beasley, Tucker, Ramsey, the Guikroy’s, Jamal Edwards etc.. the fact all these people are still on the payroll after the reign of terror of the former Super and COO indictments, DCSS is on a fast track to no where!
Dave Tomlinson
April 28th, 2011
1:40 pm
I hesitate to post on this board, but feel morally obligated to correct some of the things I have been reading. All too often blogosphere gets a rumor from someone and it magically turns into fact. So hear are the facts.
My name is Dave Tomlinson and I am the President or the Champaign Unit 4 Schools Board of Education. I have been on the Board for 6 years and have served as its President for the last four years. I have two more years left on my 2nd elected term.
The Unit 4 Board did NOT terminate Arthur Culver
There has NEVER been a sexual harassment complaint against Arthur Culver.
Frankly I am disgusted by the stuff that people say when they dont know what is going on.
Good luck in your search.
Dave Tomlinson, President
Board of Education
Champaign Unit 4 Schools
Champaign, Illinois
Maureen Downey
April 28th, 2011
1:42 pm
Mr. Tomlinson, Thanks for that clarification. As you have noted, “facts” fly freely on blogs, and I appreciate those willing to set the record straight and, even more, those willing to put their real names behind their comments.
Maureen
Ernest
April 28th, 2011
2:42 pm
Maureen, thought this blog is about to roll off, I hope you consider putting Mr. Tomlinson’s comment if a prominent place or article. I believe Mr. Culver and others have had their reputations purposely misrepresented by some.
Blogs can be self correcting only when those with the facts are able or willing to present them. DeKalb may have missed an opportunity to hire Culver because of misrepresentations.
Ernest
April 28th, 2011
2:57 pm
Maureen, I hope you consider sharing Mr. Tomlinson’s comments in a prominent spot or in an article. I interpret him saying that Mr. Culver’s reputation has been misrepresented. It is possible this misrepresentation caused him not to be highly considered for the DeKalb superintendent job.
Blogs can be self correcting if there are those with the facts the are either able or willing to provide the right information. Unfortunately it is sometimes hard to get a reputation back if false statements are made and accepted as the truth if there isn’t anyone around to correct them.
Ernest
April 28th, 2011
2:58 pm
Sorry if my posts appeared twice as comment moderation may be happening now
Champaign Resident
April 29th, 2011
10:32 am
Read about the buy out !!!
http://www.news-gazette.com/news/education/2011-04-29/culver-gets-75000-settlement-unit-4.html