Two DeKalb board members: We cannot support school chief choice because of her record
Two DeKalb school board members have sent open letters expressing their opposition to the selection of Cheryl Atkinson of Ohio to lead the system.
Here are the letters from Don McChesney and Nancy Jester expressing their concerns over Atkinson’s record in her small Ohio system.
“Dear DeKalb Citizens:
I think it is important for me to comment on the choice of Dr. Cheryl Atkinson as the prospective school superintendent for DeKalb County. The opinions I express are mine and I do not profess to speak for anyone else.
My first priority in finding a superintendent was to find the best candidate to raise student achievement in the school system and give the taxpayer equity for money spent. The theme for me was the students. Beyond that all else was secondary.
It is not possible for me to support this choice based on the record. This is the most important decision that has been made since I came on the board. We need to get it right based on an informed study of the facts available. It is too serious to go with only your “gut feeling”.
We had several candidates with better records of student achievement but, unfortunately, as you know, their candidacy was plagued with leaks of confidential information to the press. I hope that you will note that there were no press leaks regarding this candidate.
We have read recently published reports in the media that the Lorain City Schools may move up one step on the Ohio ratings scale. These scores have not yet been released by the Ohio Department of Education so we have no confirmation. The most current data available show only 1 of 24 academic indicators being met. Let me remind you that there were candidates not chosen that bested this record. Some showed a substantially better record.
Ohio has Lorain schools on “Academic Watch”. This is step 4 out of 5 on their sanctions scale. The next step is “Academic Emergency”. That is the most serious sanction. Compare this with the rejected candidates.
Let me be clear. No urban school system superintendent in America will have an unblemished record. It is the nature of the business. I do not expect perfection because that record is unobtainable, but there were other candidates with better records.
Do not take my word for it. Do your own research. You will be led to the same set of facts as me. The only difference will be the spin folks attempt to apply to these facts. Also check the contract. See if you see any danger points there.
Dr. Atkinson is a fine person and delightful to converse with. However, a business decision for academic betterment of our students and not a personal referendum on personality was my goal.
Don McChesney
Now, here is the letter from school board member Nancy Jester:
I’m in agreement with Mr. McChesney’s statement. He and I spent hours researching the student achievement records of the candidates that were brought before us. I believe we saw several candidates with significantly better records of student achievement. We also considered professionals who were credible change agents that could help our district attract top-flight talent to key positions and reorganize our district.
If you are interested in examining Dr. Atkinson’s record of student achievement, click here to go to her district’s “report card” given by the Ohio Department of Education. Over the last three years there have been increases in 9 out of 24 state academic indicators. Those increases range from a high of 9.1% to .8%. The remaining 15 indicators have losses that range from -2.9% to -16.3%. All of the academic indicators for the high school grades showed a decrease in scores over the last three years. For the most recent report card available, Dr. Atkinson’s district met only one state academic measurement. Additionally, when compared to other similar districts in Ohio (based on demographic, socioeconomic and geographic factors), they score below the average for similar districts in all categories except one.
The district did not make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) and is on “Academic Watch”. (Ohio rates districts on a 5 level basis and Academic Watch is the next to lowest status. The lowest status is Academic Emergency.) When looking at the AYP determination, I noted that the African American population did not meet AYP for either of the proficiency standards (reading and math). This was also the case for students with limited English proficiency (LEP) and students with disabilities (SWD). The largest demographic for our district is African-American so this record, in a small district, concerns me.
I thought that Dr. Atkinson was very professional and charming. I enjoyed meeting her and believe her to be devoted to educating children. I cannot support Dr. Atkinson’s candidacy for the Superintendency of DeKalb based on her record of student achievement in a small district. We have serious student achievement issues in DeKalb. We are last or next to last in 23 of 25 data points for the CRCT when compared to 8 metro districts (DeKalb, Fulton, Cobb, Gwinnett, Clayton, City of Atlanta, City of Decatur and City of Marietta.) If our school system does not drastically improve, the implications for our county are dire. I do not see anything in Dr. Atkinson’s record with her current district that convinces me she will be able to move our district in the right direction.
By state law, districts must announce a candidate 14 days in advance of voting to approve their employment. Additionally, we must make every document we have regarding the candidate available to the public at this time. In closing, I will say that if it is the will of the Board to bring Dr. Atkinson to DeKalb, no one will offer her more service than me. As a mom with three young children, I am invested in the success of our schools with my most precious resources. Thank you for allowing me the honor of serving you.
–Nancy
–From Maureen Downey, for the AJC Get Schooled blog
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318 comments Add your comment
Anna Bell
August 16th, 2011
10:00 pm
People Please,
I agree. The way these folks are behaving, they want to run all candidates away from DeKalb. this is insanity.
Citizen
August 16th, 2011
10:16 pm
@ Downey Dr Atkinson cleaned out the central office to make it more efficiently. Dekalb needs this.
1. She established District energy program saving millions of dollars and using that money to put back in the classroom for students.
2. Demanded all operating contracts renegotiated to save the district millions.
3. Provided the states first free breakfast program for urban students in the state of Ohio. Was in USA today google it.
4. Established a sports program at all middle school and elementary levels. This did not exist before she arrived.
5. Implemented Success for all Reading comprehension and reform model grades k-8
6. Implemented After School Programs everyday of the week for all parents at no cost. She is a genius in going after and securing grant funds.
7. Made High schools ACT testing sites. Lorain use to have 2 before she consolidated them.
8. Restored fine arts to all elementary schools. This was eliminated when she arrived due to the mass layoffs in the district. She was left with a mess.
9. Established Alternative schools for credit recovery.
10. Increased foreign language courses for all highschool students. (Mandrin)
11. Provided funds for all 9th graders to take the ACT in 9th grade at no cost to them.
12. To save millions of dollars in text book replacement money she eliminated paper text books for digital text books. This program continues to gain national recognition.
13. Successfully negotiated 7 union contracts. This is very important and shows her working relationship with teachers and staff.
14. Brought RTT to the district.
15. Eliminated Central office structure and got rid of jobs that were not needed,
These are just a few things she had to do to help this district. Yes, some may say well we have this in our district. Well we didn’t. She really addressed our needs. Once she was able to get Lorain schools to buy-in to her program we saw instant results. This year test scores leaped. Over the first few years she had to put all this back in place in order to get us where we are today. These are the things that cant be measured by looking at test schools.
That is what we mean when we say she is really no nonsense and will fix Dekalb.
Parents support her because she puts students and parents first. August 24th the scores will come out. We already have them and the community knows about this and thats why you see the paper (Morning Journal endorsing her)
I decided to do this because Im sick of all the lies about her. Lorain is a very political town even though its small. As you have seen they be really crazy. Even with them being crazy the board extended her another contract ( she couldn’t of been that bad) they don’t want her to leave. Please give her a chance to speak to you than make judgment on her.
i would love to engage in intelligent conversation about this i will not respond to craziness and hateful responses.
Anna Bell
August 16th, 2011
10:32 pm
LeakerSeeker,
It must not have been a private meeting if you knew who was there and where it was held. The person whose post I responded to did not name Tom Bowen; but two South DeKalb board members. Tom is not a representative from South DeKalb. He is the Board Chair and I respect his integrity very much.
I know who Jeff Dickerson is and his comments did not support the comments of those who were participating on Georgia Gang. Again, you need to look closer to your own door to find the leaker.
Anna Bell
August 16th, 2011
10:37 pm
Deal,
You have become a raw deal. You have become sarcastic since you ran out of words. I am fully aware that there have been votes taken within the Board room to get this far in the process. I am also aware that there is a formality vote that will be taken publically that will seal the deal, Deal.
Mandella1099
August 16th, 2011
11:09 pm
@ Atlanta Media Guy – Is this your DSW blog?
“clew’s P-card abuses and then went directly to Clew himself and told him he could not take a companion (allegedly [employee name was placed here by AMG] to the Bahamas or Reynolds Plantation Ritz on his P-Card.”
What about this?
“We found out later his “alleged mistress” was none other than the very person who still works for DCSS and who directs hundreds of millions of dollars to the Title 1 schools”
How do you know that this is true since you like to post things like this as if they are. Either you (or whoever “we” is) know something that the general public doesn’t (perhaps you were at the Ritz as well?) or this is untrue, making it a lie. Which is it Atlanta Media Guy?
Please Read
August 17th, 2011
10:15 am
Raised graduation rate from 75.9% in the 2006-07 school year to 84.7% in the 2009-10 school year in spite of poverty level rate increasing from 75.9% to 83% in the same years, respectively.
State accountability for value added model (year’s worth of growth) was recovered in the district from only one school making a year’s growth after one-third of the district had been reduced in the 2006-07 school year to the following year of having all schools meet a year’s worth of growth and all but three schools were above a year’s worth of growth. The district has consecutively for the last two years met a year’s worth of growth.
Implemented full immersion Mandarin Chinese (only one in the state of Ohio in public school setting) and full immersion Spanish pre-school program.
Increased the number of foreign language course offerings at the high school. In 2008 only one foreign language course was offered (Spanish). Since that time, reinstated French and added Mandarin Chinese, Latin and German via grant funding.
Through a partnership with the Office of Chinese Language Council International (Han Ban, Lorain staff and students have taken educational tours of China, visiting primary, secondary and higher institutions of learning.
Implemented Success for All, comprehensive reading reform model for grades K-8: after two years of implementation, data illustrate an increase of student reading levels. Baseline data for the 2008-2009 school year indicated that 43.63% of K-8 students were reading at or above grade level. June 2010 data show 59.45% are currently reading at or above grade level, an increase of 15.93%!
Implemented one-on-one laptop initiative (all students grade 6-12 receive a laptop with textbooks loaded for their use during the school year).
Garnered a partnership through effective use of grant dollars, with NASA to implement a NASA Aerospace Lab for $189,000; and implemented the SEMMA program, a K-8 STEM curriculum partnership with NASA.
Successfully consolidated two high schools into one comprehensive high school.
Implemented Magnet Schools Program within the district to include the following themes at the elementary level: Science, Art, Literature, Math through Music, Gifted & Accelerated Academy; for middle schools: Accelerated Academy; Interactive Simulation (Animation), and Art; at the high school level: high school academies in STEM, the Arts, and Business and Entrepreneurships.
Continued to expand the preschool program which increased enrollment and collaboration with Head Start by 26%; instituted a pre-school center in partnership with Head Start; promoted preschool participation which resulted in a 28% increase in the number of students demonstrating readiness for kindergarten.
Secured funding to provide ACT for all juniors at the high school level to take during the school day (one of only two districts in the state of Ohio); imbedded ACT Prep Courses as a part of extra curricular offerings; and created a process to imbed ACT academic skills as a part of our required curriculum.
Established and implemented inclusion as the district intervention model.
Established a district-wide student uniform policy.
Established two alternative schools addressing student behavioral and academic needs.
Secured more than $18.6 through grants from state, federal and foundation programs to enhance the academic program.
Garnered full tuition scholarships for high school graduates totaling more than $7 million.
Instituted energy savings program which resulted in a savings of $2.9 million.
John Daly
August 17th, 2011
2:06 pm
@Dekalb Parent Seriously, you’re worried about Nancy’s credentials? Look at Jay Cunningham’s. He attended college (never graduated) and worked at McDonalds.
Dekalbite@Mandella 1099
August 17th, 2011
5:23 pm
“If you know so much about this audit (Ernst and Young), why don’t you tell everyone how they came to those conclusions. What was the factors that determined salaries were too high?”
From the AJC:
“When a new structure is adopted, the district’s 1,680 job titles will be cut in half, said Reanee Ivey, DeKalb’s assistant director for affirmative development.
Ernst & Young has been comparing job descriptions and actual duties based on questionnaires completed by thousands of employees.
“There have been elevations of people into jobs that really the overall market [indicates] what you should be paying is considerably less” than they are currently earning.”
These are direct quotes from DCSS spokespersons.
Mandella1099
August 17th, 2011
10:38 pm
@Dekalbite – First, thank you for a nice response. You have the same quote that I had seen.
My question becomes this (and Dekalbite, this is not directed at you, but more toward the usual, DSW suspects): So many on DSW are critical of the school system employees. They will say that they can’t get anything right and critique every little item in order to prove somehow that something was done wrong. YET, when it comes time to believe what a salary audit has shown, suddenly, these same individuals got this part correct when they were asked to complete the questionnaires? DCSS employees are considered ignorant when it suits the DSW mafia, but the employees got this right when they were asked to complete this. Childish….
This is another reason why DSW is done….
Dekalbite@Mandella 1099
August 18th, 2011
12:14 am
Dekalb School Watch is a blog and as such consists of opinions. Blogs do not purport to be straight news. They present opinions, and their contributors (posters) try to sway other readers to their point of view.
At their worst, blogs allow extreme and sometimes offensive views to be aired in the public domain. I have seen some of the most racist and hateful comments here on Maureen’s Get Schooled blog.
At their best, blogs express valid concerns, and some posters even cite reputable sources. Most newspapers consistently cull through blogs to look for posts that may have a kernel of truth that can lead to a straight news story.
I don’t think DeKalb School Watch is done – it seems to have a good amount of hits and Maureen has complimented it more than once. Some advice that you may or may not want to follow is that presenting your posts in a reasoned and factual manner will alienate less posters and perhaps sway them to your point of view. This is just IMHO.
No Harm Intended
August 18th, 2011
2:37 pm
DeKalbit@mandella, and Mandella1099,
You both post valid points.
Most importantly, WHAT ABOUT THE CHILDREN OF DEKALB COUNTY SCHOOLS??? As we read through all the posts, there is very little discussion about the students and their community as it is a power struggle between adults and their opposing beliefs. Where there is mention of children in the discussion, it is selfishly referring to someone’s own child and how well they are doing. The solution in my belief will not be found with any of the individuals, websites, and blogs that have presented themselves thusfar on either side of this fiasco.
I believe the DeKalb School Watch began with good intentions, but we are witnessing what happens when anger and resentment allow good intentions to go awry. The posts and tone at DSW seem to be driven by hatred and vindictiveness, I don’t know if towards the individuals who have been called out in the news, or at everyone who may have a job in the county. Should those not affiliated with these people, who may be in a social organization, or who work in the central office, or who hold a certain position, or may have a relative in the school system by their own merit, just quit their jobs? I’m glad neither me nor my spouse fall in those categories for our sake. Although we should not tolerate thievery, incompetence, and deception in our educational leadership, we certainly cannot support anyone who feels so validated in their hatred that they would ruin people’s careers based on speculations and generalizations. We needed the energy and the voice of DSW blog earlier, but it is taking on another face and is losing momentum for one group while gaining for another. This is where the division will take place and the great effort at problem solving sideswiped. The generalizations made on that blog are preposterous and growing exponentially e daily, from those of sororities and fraternities to ones personal finances, in a day and age when many are struggling while trying to earn an honest living. When Mandella 1099 speaks of the downfall of that blog, I think he/she is referring to the publics’ ability to see through the implied purpose of the blog through to the subtle racial overtones of many of the frequent posters pushing their agenda. Never, as a professional and human courtesy, would I post a pesonal bankruptcy online just to prove or create a point to make. This is really a low call. If a requirement to post excluded foreclosures, a lot of posters would be eliminated. I personally hope Dr. Atkinson is a strong person and is forgiving of those who have gotten really comfortable hurting others while hiding behind a purpose of helping, and a computer screen, whether she gets the job or not. My wife and I want the best person for the job whether it is this person or not, but we don’t condone taking anyone through the wringer simply because we could and are capable. Yes, the DSW may get a lot of hits, but a lot of people are reading that blog now for entertainment and gossip. It is known that if you don’t like someone in the county, post on DSW to embarrass the person. I would like to see it restored and inviting to everyone instead of it being a sounding board for an angry good ole boy network. No one wants this group to resurface again either. But as Mr. Deal stated, they can put anything they would like on their blog. Where is the place for humanity and compassion in these difficult times? Although there is offensive material on the AJC blog sometimes, it certainly does seem to have a welcoming for everyone, without a hidden agenda. With no harm meant, I hope the DSW is as open for criticism as they are at providing it. This is just an opinion.
Dekalbite@No Harm Intended
August 18th, 2011
5:20 pm
I read DeKalb School Watch ever so often and take it for what it is – many opinions, quite a number of vents, and occasionally some interesting and verifiable data. I also read Get Schooled sometimes, and really don’t find it all that different. While there appears to be more of an agenda pushed on DeKalb School Watch, there seems to be more name calling and racist comments on Get Schooled IMO. Maureen has explained why she leaves many of those comments intact, and her explanation makes sense. When the offensive comments become overwhelming, I simply click off the blog. I did read the post that talked about Atkinson’s long time ago bankruptcy, felt it was not relevant, and commented as such. I felt the same way about Kathy Cox’s bankruptcy. Maureen penned a post regarding Kathy Cox’s Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings and the AJC published a straight news article about it:
http://blogs.ajc.com/get-schooled-blog/2010/09/29/settlement-finally-in-sight-for-kathy-coxs-game-show-million-schools-and-creditors-will-split-the-prize/
Champion News published a straight news article with police mug shots for Lewis, Moody, Reid and Pope. IMO that was terribly biased for a straight news story. These individuals are indicted, not convicted and there is a world of difference.
http://championnewspaper.com/news/articles/435former-schools-chief-three-others-indicted-in-school-construction-racketeering-scheme–435.html
The point is that decorum is most often out the window with the news media and social media (blogs being the latter). Equally repugnant are posters who are intent on hijacking a blog or attempting to intimidate the person who runs the blog. I’ve seen these occurrences on Get Schooled and DeKalb Watch. That does not mean that everyone who posts on blogs needs to react that way.
When I read something on an open blog that is in opposition to
Dekalbite@No Harm Intended
August 18th, 2011
5:25 pm
Opps! Clicked Submit Comment too soon!
When I read something on an open blog that is in opposition to the facts I as I perceive them, I post what I see as the facts, cite my sources, and then ask other posters to do the same.
harold@Distractions in DSW Disguised
August 18th, 2011
6:44 pm
” I’m sure if anything was illegal with salaries, by now we would see changes in the state salary structure. Let it go. People just dont walk in and say today i want to make x amount of dollars without it being approved on a state level. Get over salaries and who dates who and let’s not be jealous of other folks money because we dont have any, stay focused.”
Why would you make such a statement? That’s just not true. The only salaries mandated by the state of Georgia are teacher salaries. All other metro systems publish their salaries. DeKalb is the ONLY exception:
DeKalb County Schools:
http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us/administration/humanresources/salaryschedules.html
Now look at the other metro area school systems. Note the many salary schedules available to taxpayers online so they can compare their school system’s administrative and support salaries with other metro school systems. In ALL of the other metro systems in Atlanta, detailed salary schedule information for admin and support personnel is published online for taxpayers. Click on some of the links below to compare the salary information that the other counties and cities in metro Atlanta provide taxpayers versus DeKalb Schools.
Fulton County Schools:
https://portal.fultonschools.org/departments/Human_Resources/Pages/Salary_Schedules_10_11.aspx
Forsyth County Schools:
http://www.forsyth.k12.ga.us/129410616211729590/blank/browse.asp?a=383&BMDRN=2000&BCOB=0&c=116857
Atlanta Public Schools:
http://www.atlantapublicschools.us/204220122111936667/blank/browse.asp?a=383&BMDRN=2000&BCOB=0&c=55734&2042Nav=|&NodeID=484
Cobb County Schools:
http://www.cobbk12.org/centraloffice/hr/compensation/schedules.aspx
Gwinnett County Schools:
http://www.gwinnett.k12.ga.us/careers/careershr.nsf/010d64ffdfc63566852571dc0061d644/5d1dfad1cd332b0b852571e0006cb5c7?OpenDocument&0~Careers&6~QuickLinks
Decatur City Schools:
http://www.csdecatur.net/hr/salary-benefits
Clayton County Schools:
http://www.clayton.k12.ga.us/administration/humanrsc/TeachSalSchd.asp
Rockdale County Schools:
http://portal.rockdale.k12.ga.us/about/fs/hr/employbenefits/Pages/default.aspx
Marietta City Schools:
https://hr.marietta-city.org/getfile.asp?type=5&id=0
harold@Distractions in DSW Disguised
August 18th, 2011
8:12 pm
“Get over salaries and who dates who”
The term dating is not accurate and what Lewis and his female companion did was an offense that needs to be brought to the Georgia Professional Standards Commission.
The DeKalb District Attorney has brought charges against the former superintendent for using the county Purchase Card to take a female employee to the Ritz Carlton during the middle of the work week for “personal use”.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/32029252/Crawford-Lewis-DeKalb-RICO-Indictment
See page 60:
“Crawford Lewis used his position at DCSS to initiate and facilitate personal relationships with female employees. Specifically, he paid for a room at The Ritz Carlton in Greensboro, Georgia March 12, 2008, which he used exclusively for personal use with a female subordinate accompanying him. No official county business was conducted despite the county P-Card being used for payment….
See page 100 :
Illegal use of county-issued gasoline to travel to The Ritz Carlton in Reynolds Plantation for personal activity with a female employee which was not authorized. ”
March 12, 2008 was a WORK DAY for teachers and students in DeKalb Schools. If they spent the night of March 12, 2008 at the Ritz Carlton, then Lewis and this female employee were being paid for school system work while they were NOT performing school system work.
Teachers were teaching students Wednesday, March 12, 2008, and ALL other staff were in DeKalb doing their jobs on Wednesday, March 12, 2008 and Thursday, March 13, 2008. 12 month employees were/are not allowed to leave their jobs to go on personal trips and still collect their pay without taking vacation days.
If this female employee physically left the county on March 12, 2008 (a school work day) and collected her pay, forms were required to be filled out detailing where she was going and what official business she was conducting. Did this female employee do this? Did this female employee take vacation time or did she just not show up for work at DCSS on Thursday, March 13, 2008 while taxpayers were paying her to work? Where is her paperwork for leaving the county while she was supposed to be working? There were no exceptions to this rule. She had to sign a form that said she was out of the county conducting personal business, and her supervisor had to sign off on this. If she did not fill out this form, this is grounds for dismissal, and if she signed that she was on official business and then conducted personal business instead, she falsified official records.
In addition, Fall, 2007 Lewis instituted a sign-in and sign-out policy for ALL personnel outside the schoolhouse. Did this female employee sign in like she was working and then travel for personal business with Lewis? Or did she fail to sign in and then travel on personal business with Lewis?
If she did not show up for work and/or falsified records, why is she not being brought up before the Georgia Professional Standards Commission?
If you are working for a school system and are collecting pay for working but are really in a situation where “No official county business was conducted” then that is called “Stealing time”. In other words, you are being paid by the taxpayers for doing your job while you are really conducting personal business.
These are clear violations of THE CODE OF ETHICS FOR EDUCATORS:
http://www.gapsc.com/Rules/Current/Ethics/505-6-.01.pdf
“Standard 4: Honesty – An educator shall exemplify honesty and integrity in the course of
professional practice. Unethical conduct includes but is not limited to, falsifying, misrepresenting or
omitting: 505-6-.02 Page 3….
….4. reasons for absences or leaves”
and
“(h) Standard 8: Abandonment of Contract – An educator shall fulfill all of the terms and
obligations detailed in the contract with the local board of education or education agency for the
duration of the contract. Unethical conduct includes but is not limited to:….
…2. willfully refusing to perform the services required by a contract.”
and
“Standard 9: Required Reports – An educator shall file reports of a breach of one or more of
the standards in the Code of Ethics for Educators….. Unethical conduct includes but is not limited to:
1. failure to report all requested information on documents required by the Commission when
applying for or renewing any certificate with the Commission;
2. failure to make a required report of a violation of one or more standards of the Code of
Ethics for educators of which they have personal knowledge as soon as possible but no later than
ninety (90) days from the date the educator became aware of an alleged breach unless the law or
local procedures require reporting sooner…”
Lewis’s female companion knew he was not conducting official business so she had a duty to report this to the Professional Standards Commission. She also had a duty to report that she was conducing personal business with Lewis while she was being paid for conducting official business.
Dating – no. “Stealing time” and “Falsification of Records” – yes. Any taxpayer can bring her up before the Professional Standards Commission. This needs to happen.
harold@Distractions in DSW Disguised
August 18th, 2011
10:29 pm
To bring a complaint against a school system employee for ethics violations go to :
http://www.gapsc.com/Ethics/GuidelinesforFilingaComplaint.asp
According to Georgia law, any citizen of the state of Georgia may file a complaint against a certified/licensed educator. To help staff process your complaint as quickly as possible, follow these guidelines:
“Choose the General Compliant Form (.pdf) or the Testing Violation Complaint Form (.pdf). If you do not know which to use, choose the General Complaint Form. (These forms are made available to you in Adobe PDF format. If you need the Adobe Reader, you may obtain it by clicking here.)
Mail or fax a completed form to the Educator Ethics Division at the address (or fax number) given on the bottom of the form. Please fill in all requested information, include the educator’s full name, address, phone number, and school district.
Briefly state the standard that was violated and how it was violated.
You may attach supporting documentation, if applicable, including the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of any potential witnesses, if known.”
Anna Bell
August 19th, 2011
10:08 pm
harold@Distractions In DSW Disguished,
Unfortunately, Crawford Lewis was not the only Superintendent of DeKalb Schools who was a womanizer while in the position. He got caught and was not very smart in using the P-card for the small amount of money involved. Everyone has always known who slept their way to the top; that is old news. The practice cut across all racial lines and span decades. However, there is no excuse for any of their behaviors; it is immoral and unethical.
So if you are concluding that since Crawford was corrupt; then all black candidates are corrupt; you need to check the history of the “big thefts” and you will find that there were more “white collar” theft by white males than any other group in America. When they steal it hurts because it usually involves billions of dollars. Think about all of the retired and almost retired investors who lost their life savings because of the Enron type crooks; what color were those faces?
Dekalbite@ Anna Bell
August 20th, 2011
11:59 am
“So if you are concluding that since Crawford was corrupt; then all black candidates are corrupt;”
That’s a strange conclusion which is no doubt due to my posting a confusing comment. Actually, the post was not about Lewis at all. It was about his female companion.
I will restate my main idea:
If the woman that Lewis took to the Ritz Carlton on Wednesday, March 12 and 13, 2008 did not take vacation time, then she was in violation of The Code of Ethics for Educators, and the Professional Standards Commission should be determining if she retains her teaching license.
At that time in DCSS, ALL employees who physically left the county on official business even if it was for part of the school day had to fill out a Statement of Leave stating their official business. A Statement of Leave requires to the signature of the immediate supervisor.
If this female employee signed a sworn statement (Statement of Leave) that she was leaving the county on official business and then conducted personal business instead, she was falsifying records. If she did not fill out this form, then she was in violation of school policy which is another ethics violation.
The next day was Thursday, March 13, 2008 – a work day for all of DeKalb School System employees. Beginning in November, 2007, ALL employees OUTSIDE the schoolhouse were required to sign in and out (due to the lawsuit over the bookkeepers being pressured to work overtime without compensation). This female employee was required to sign in and out. Did she sign in and out if she was at the Ritz Carlton? Those sign out sheets are still archived. If she didn’t sign in and out, then she was violating school policy, another ethics violation.
You have indicated that you are/were a principal. Do you allow your employees to not show up for work without taking sick days, personal days, staff development days, etc? Don’t you require them to fill out a Statement of Leave form if they don’t come to work? Do you take a vacation but not fill out Statement of Leave? What if one of your employees signed that they were taking Staff Development Leave and you signed off on this. Later you found they never went to Staff Development. Instead, they spent the time with their boyfriend at Lake Lanier. Would you understand that documents were falsified? Do you understand that this is called “stealing time”?
This is a very big deal. Falsifying records, leaving the county to conduct personal business while taxpayers are paying you to work – these are an ethics violations. The Professional Standards Commission is very clear on this.
Furthermore, the PSC says if anyone who holds a certificate has knowledge of any ethics violations and does not report the ethics violation, then they are in violation of the Educators’s Code of Ethics. The DCSS CFO has a license governed by the PSC. Did he have any knowledge that this female employee was conducting personal business when she was being paid to work? He had an obligation to report this or he is in violation of the Code of Ethics. Did he report this to the Office of Internal Investigations? The Director of this Office also has a license regulated by the Professional Standards Commission. His obligation was to refer this to the Professional Standards Commission if she falsified records – Statement of Leave or time sheets.
You cannot keep the public trust if you have have an ethics standard for all personnel, but apply it only when it suits you politically.
You see employees are not allowed to collect their pay, but not show up for work. This cannot be tolerated for any employee as it undermines the rules for the entire 15,0000+ employees. This is part of your fiduciary responsibility to taxpayers.
Why has the Professional Standards Commission not investigated this?