DeKalb’s Eugene Walker on loss in court today: Constitutional and civil rights at stake

“virtually all my adult life has been dedicated to service to my family members, creating jobs for them has taken precedence over our students”

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“No one on the DeKalb County Board of Education, myself included, has committed a crime or misappropriated, misused or misspent funds entrusted to us. Quite the opposite: We have served with honesty and integrity. In fact, this board under the severe stress by the downturn of the economy has worked tirelessly to provide a quality education to our children with a minimum amount of adverse impact on the homeowners of this county.”

Is he trying to kid us? Minimum impact on homeowners – they are 1/4 of a point below the maximum school property tax! Then they furlough teachers and increase class sizes drastically and STILL run an illegal $14 million budget deficit. They vote for a budget they were TOLD contained erroneous assumptions. I guess he is safe because nepotism TECHNICALLY against the law.

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nepotism is not technically against the law

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Dr. Walker

For the student’s sake, you need to stop. You insisted that Atkinson be hired and then you worked against her once she went after your most favored employees. Your consistent denials about the poor state of DeKalb’s economy kept the system from moving forward. You are a big part of the reason we are in the mess we are in today, because you build coalitions around half baked ideas and poorly qualified superintendents.

You are busy enriching lawyers. Move on.

Just go.

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This guy ran a school system? He should hire a middle-of-the-road grades-wise kid to edit what he writes.

How in the world is dumping someone who is incompetent a racial matter?

“This is not about Eugene Walker.” Oh yeah it is, from his point of view and people in this county who want a functional school system. They want someone who can obtain that. He wants the income and status he’s enjoyed. If the statute is unconstitutional (and think it may have some problems) he’ll get his money and the rest of us will get our comeuppance. In the meantime, maybe some people that are competent and will do what they are paid to do will be appointed.

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I agree the governor shouldn’t do this, but his race card and party card is offensive. Maybe Nancy Jester should complain that all the Republicans are being kicked off the board. His voting rights and gerrymandering comment is offensive. Normally its people like him working with white Democrats to gerrymander out Republicans or working with Republicans to gerrymander out white Democrats. Simply depends on which party is in the majority.

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This is not about Eugene Walker.

I’ll start my diet on Monday!
It’s not the money, it’s the principle of the thing!
The check is in the mail!
No, officer, I have no idea how fast I was going!
Your seafood lime jello salad was delicious!

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Why does the Fulton Boatd get such a free pass as they want to take control of pension via legislative change. HB380

Date: March 4, 2013, 3:28:15 PM EST
Subject: Friday’s Public Hearing on HB 380 at the Fulton Delegation

We have had several emails asking about how things went at the Public Hearing on Friday, so this will be a SHORT, if possible, recap.

Once arriving Lynne Riley, Chair of the House Delegation who originally announced the public hearing, said that as soon as THREE legislators were in the room, the public hearing would begin. While this was announced as a JOINT public hearing of the House and Senate delegation to begin “on the adjournment” of their morning meetings, Representative Riley started the meeting while the Senate was still in session; consequently most Senators could not attend. The 12:00 Public Hearing did start at 12:28 (due to legislative meetings running over) with Representative Riley conducting the hearing. We were told the meeting would last one hour until 1:28pm. There actually did end up being nine legislators in attendance. This did, however, still cause some dismay by those in the “audience”, since we thought that all 30 of the Fulton County Representatives and Senators had been invited. We were expecting, or at least hopeful, that MANY more would be there.

Once the hearing started, to our surprise, Representative Riley TURNED THE MEETING OVER TO THE SCHOOL BOARD AND SUPERINTENDENT. Even though they didn’t have to sign up like everyone else, Dr. Avossa, Linda Schultz and their school board attorney were allowed to speak (from 5 to 15 minutes each) with no time limit taking up the FIRST 30 MINUTES of the meeting. Most of what they had to say was just more of the same as what we have heard at the previous three meetings where they presented. After that, the REMAINING 30 MINUTES WAS GIVEN TO THE 14 PUBLIC SPEAKERS WHO HAD SIGNED UP TO SPEAK. All speakers thought they were going to have 3-5 minutes to speak, but were only given a maximum of 2 minutes. They were continually having to adjust their comments while speaking, as Representative Dudgeon (I think) was timing them and holding up fingers to signify their remaining time. Pretty disconcerting!

Our 13 speakers representing Fulton County retirees and current were……., Pension Board attorney Kristina Jones (reading a letter from former Chief Justice Sears) and Bill Sloan, Executive Director of GREA. Retiree ……. was the only speaker asking for the legislation to pass. All of our speakers (in their allowed TWO minutes) did a FANTASTIC job and repeatedly stressed the points that (1) this legislation was totally surprising, (2) there was NO transparency nor public input in the school board’s process to develop the legislation, (3) it is NOT in the best interest of retirees/current employees for the school board to take over our Pension Fund and (4) we need a year to work with the school board to address the differences and come up with some resolutions. Another important point that June Fortson has been repeating and Melinda Freeman brought out was disenfranchisement; the number of retirees who do not live in Fulton County will TOTALLY lose their voice and all representation on the Pension Board should this legislation pass.

After the PUBLIC comments, Representatives Waites and Mabra stated that they too felt that the legislation was moving too fast and that they needed more time and information before an informed decision could be made. Representative Beasley-Teague said that should this legislation pass, retirees only other option is to SUE! Representative Kaiser presented more telling comments when she said that she had not received a copy of the legislation, had not been adequately informed about HB 380 and also HAD NOT BEEN INFORMED ABOUT THE PUBIC HEARING (which made us wonder how many others had not been informed.)

Representative Martin had the most to say. He noticed that the language in the bill DID NOT match the language that the school board was stating and needed some rewrite. He was very strong in stating that “They (the school board) thought they had a winner (in this legislation) that is now a controversial bill.” ” They didn’t talk to their neighbors (retirees, current employees and Pension Board).” “It is now a school board problem.” (Thank you Susie for taking good notes!) Representative Martin also agreed to meet with a contingency of retirees at a later time, even if other legislators could not be present. He went on to mention that if proper changes could not be made to HB 380 after discussions among all of the impacted parties, he would consider removing his name as one of the sponsors of the bill. (If he removes his name, there will not be enough House signatures to move the bill along. There was some discussion among other legislators in attendance if that could be done at this point, but it certainly is worth looking into.) It should also be noted, that Representative Martin stayed after the hearing was over to talk at length with retirees and others in attendance to hear their concerns without the 2 minute time limit.

Personally, we did feel a glimmer of hope after hearing all of the legislators’ comments, but we know we are not home yet. (School board members Schultz and McCain made a beeline to Representative Martin immediately after the meeting.) We will keep up the fight!

Once those of us in attendance last Friday have a chance to further discuss our thoughts on the meeting, we will be in touch about our next actions. Please stay tuned and keep your phones close by and your computers warmed up.

In closing I want to say that we had AN EXTREMELY IMPRESSIVE CONTINGENCY OF SUPPORTERS IN THE AUDIENCE, retirees as well as several current employees, especially representatives from the Maintenance Department! We were a “sea of red,” as someone stated, that the legislators and school board could not ignore! Thank you to everyone who attended. I know it is NEVER easy or convenient to go downtown, especially to the Capitol, AND on a Friday, but MANY people made that trek and showed their support of Fulton County retirees and current employees. THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

The Combined NFREA/SFREA Legislative Ad Hoc

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Mr.Walker, I care nothing about you or your position on the board. I care about my children in the DeKalb County School System. Respectfully, please step aside so that we can get some competent individuals on the board. And may I offer that had you cared so much about your position, you should have taken your duties to the students a little more seriously.

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I hope John Evans & the DeKalb NAACP will spent every cent they have to defend this man.

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Well, the judge has decided that the six Dekalb board members may be removed and replaced while the lawsuit navigates through the judicial system. This situation will be most revealing in several aspects. The lawsuit will result in the determination of the constitutionality of replacing elected officials with appointed individuals. The replacement BOE members will reveal how the Governor feels about appointing individuals that reflect their constituents. Will Governor Deal appointment replacements of the same racial make-up? If he does, what does that reveal? If he does not, how will the majority Black constituents of DeKalb respond to a obviously blatant lack of consideration for their preferences for constituents. While many may not believe race should be a factor, if everyone is honest, even in America today, one could not imagine the governor of any state replacing a majority White Board with a majority of Black individuals within a majority White district. One has to wonder will the Dekalb majority population concede to the Governor if he is so inclined to move in this direction. Whatever the case, it will be interesting to see how the majority of DeKalb will respond and how the minority of Dekalb will respond. The response of both groups will be very revealing on many levels.

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what’s this part about “No one on the DeKalb County Board of Education, myself included, has committed a crime or misappropriated, misused or misspent funds entrusted to us.”

Nov 6 AJC (this same collumnist!!!!)
Adding to its woes: DeKalb Schools has to repay $910,000 in misused Title I funds.
http://blogs.ajc.com/get-schooled-blog/2012/11/06/adding-to-its-woes-dekalb-schools-has-to-repay-910000-in-misused-title-i-funds-and-rumor-about-school-chief-leaving-was-untrue/

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It’s all racism!!!!

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Dr. Walker, What ave you done your your children in the DeKalb County School System? What is the graduation rate, number of students passing the graduation test, average SAT scores, etc. compared to twelve-fifteen years ago. Show the numbers, scores, percentages, etc. to document what your diligent, dedicated, hard work has accomplished.

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It is incumbent on the other board members to distance themselves from this man and his appeal, IMMEDIATELY. Clearly, he is thinking about himself and not the children, and $ should not come from DCSS to pay for his appeal! It is sickening.

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Dear Ms. Jester,

Many consider you to be an unheard leader on this Board. Show some character. Be the first to do the right thing and step aside. Do the right thing by the children of this county.

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So glad this loser is gone! Good riddance and get the heck out of Dekalb County government!

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Walker has a right to demand his rights, but he also has to demand his responsibilities. Apparently, a number of learned folks think he mishandled his responsibilities.

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Just an observation, Mr. Walker seems to have usurped / appropriated the concept of “school board” as a civil-rights wedge. This is his stated focus. (?) It’s like a time warp. I agree he has a point about politics circa 1962, but meanwhile today (4th of March) I’m researching how to set the APN and MMS on an Android phone to connect to web browser. I’m a whole lot more concerned about internet distribution in Georgia than with any school board. Maybe internet is the new civil rights (idea!). In many countries outside of the U. S., this is very correct, even being coded into law as “a basic human right” in the most scientifically progressive countries. Me? I’d just like a market environment so that having an internet wire to my home costs less every month than eight bags of groceries. Fun question: How much is the ten-year take-home salary for five people at the top of the Georgia internet monopoly company? Answer: 1 billion dollars. ($20 million+ each per year = $100 million per year x 10 years = 1 billion dollars.) Salary for five humans operating with “no market” for internet wire to the home. PS That’s 20x what DeKalb schools has spent on legal fees – for the salary of five people over ten years. And that money comes from working families. hey but this is the USA where stuff like that happens, and there’s law in Georgia to protect it (no access / no market).

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“If this unconstitutional act is to stand, then what is next? It will only be a matter of time before another constitutional right will be taken away by another wayward and self-perpetuating politico under the guise of the greater good. Minorities should not feel secure if contrived allegations from anonymous sources with hidden agendas can go to private agencies and to have their civil rights stolen away. This cannot and shall not be allowed to stand.” Change the phrase “private agencies” to “government agencies”, and you articulate perfectly the delima of our nation today. I submit to you Mr. Second Hand, Moocher Walker….that you have been a party to denying people their rights, and living off of the fruits of their hard labor (not yours) for a long long time. This gravy train just pulled into the station, but never fear, your ilk always find more poor and ignorant people to blindly support your narcisistic habits and expenses.

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Dr. Walker,
This is NOT about you! If you care about the children in this county you need to step down. Your principled fight is not going to help the children in this county. It will keep this issue in the media. It will continue to cost money. People (who haven’t already) will flee DeKalb County and its schools. It is NOT about you. Give up the fight. Step down now!

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Dr. Walker,
I truly hope you are reading these responses. I think you are a very confused man. What has happened to you has nothing to do with race. I appreciate that you have been fighting that fight all of your life. But times have changed. This is not a race issue. You need to look in the mirror and see that thousands of people who depended on you, believe you have failed. These people are going through extraordinary measures so that you are not able to have a say in 1000,000 student’s education. Those students are black, white, Asian, Hispanic, and more. No body cares what color their skin is and we don’t care what color your skin is. This is a desperate attempt to remove you from a job you are not qualified for.

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I am African American and WE want you to go too. All of you. This is not about race but incompetence and this board is incompetent. Go away Mr. Walker. Retire, Enjoy your grandchildren, but please leave ours alone. The Black community is not behind you, we are not willing to throw our kids futures away to support your ego. GOOOOO Away Please. Far Far away.

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I believe that a nepotism law was passed a couple of years ago so that new board members could have no relatives in the school districts in any administrative jobs. I believe at least AP and up.

The Dekalb school board should pass as a show of good faith an anti-nepotism policy. Most companies have these. People know that when they go to work for the company and if they fall in love and get married one of them will have to quit. The anti-nepotism policy should be retroactive.

A mandatory survey should go out to all employees where under penalty of immediate firing, they are to list all family members, on the BOE with in the past 10 years. This includes children, in laws, ex laws, siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, God children, play children. Then there is the automatic tithe to New Birth that needs to stop. The only automatic deduction that needs to be done should be done should be like the Federal Campaign that has absolutely every charity in the world. Then that is confidential. Another reason payroll should be outsourced so deductions are confidential. There should be no individually assigned cars, only pool cars available for check-in and check out and check out. At CDC no one has a car, even the Diector. David Satcher ( the only black Director thought he was entitled to one, in fact he called and asked where his limo and driver was. The sassy property chief Pat politely explained to him that the job did not come with a limo and driver, he was not a cabinet member post. he was only entitled to sign out a pool car once he drove himself to work, he could not take it home. Pat told me no other Director ever had the audacity to feel entitled to ask for a limo and a driver. After all Ted Turner and Jane Fonda came to our 50th annverery party driving a Ford Tauraus. Ted asked where the restroom was he has spilled gas on his hands pumping gas. Jane brought her own apple to eat.

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Idealism aside, the future of students, families and the county are at risk. It is not one problem; it’s years of poor, short sighted decisions. DCSS culture needs to change (as a teacher, I have said so for years) and change must start at the top. There are many battles yet to be fought regarding justice and equality, but your personal issues are not the apex. You are not entitled to further impede our children’s education, simply to make a point. It is astounding that you offer that you can hold yourself out as a ‘contemporary lesson on civics.’ Demagoguery may make you feel better, but will not revitalize DCSS. Please stop embarrassing yourself.

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@ maureen

you want to know why race keeps being brought up? there you go.

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what’s that line from the Jerk….
I was born a poor black child….

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You say “This is not about Eugene Walker,” but then you pursue this no-holds-barred legal assault upon SACS and the state, when these two entities seems to be following the only script they know in this sort of scenario. Bob Wilson says the “one thing that’s missing here is due process.” In reality, the only thing here that’s missing is any concern for the students and taxpayers of Dekalb County. Don’t try to pull the wool over our eyes and make Deal out to be the bad guy here. Quit pulling the race card because this was never about race. This is about poor governance, mismanagement of funds, systematic failure to perform duties and dysfunction of historic proportion. Step down. Show some class and walk away.

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if I follow Gene the machine’s comments correctly, in his world it is a violation of civil rights to hold a black person accountable for their misdeeds.

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Here is an article that appeared in 2004 about Eugene Walker and the state paying $190,000 to defend a sexual harassment suit brought against him. He is not going away.

http://www.accessnorthga.com/detail.php?n=165732

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Fulton School Board not much better. Look at proposed HB 380 and their effort to take over local pension. Done in stealth mode to keep retirees in the dark.

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Just leave, Eugene!

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@ Atlanta Media Guy

Every post you write deals with a right-sized “Palace,” so I think that it is now time for you to come clean. Which position were you working in at the DCSD central office and which Superintendent fired you? That has to be the only reason for your broken record postings. I think that perhaps the tech guy you also enjoy posting about non-stop must have taken your position.

Its getting OLD – move on to a new position. Perhaps you would like to take a position that the first rear-end out the door of the Palace should be your lovable Saint Nancy the Jester?

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WE BELIEVE THAT IT IS WRONG AND UNCONSTITUTIONAL TO VOID THE WILL AND VOTES OF THE CITIZENS OF DEKALB COUNTY !!!

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Don’t knowbody wants to go through all of that. Just Go !! And let the District get back on was is most important the childrens..

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You say you have not done anything illegal but you actually have. Remember when you said you would stop paying into the teacher’s retirement funds for a year? It has been at least 4 years now and that is illegal. The school employees that I know told me when it happened and I found out for myself that is illegal.

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Eugene – Fight on using your cash you now want the TP’s of Dekalb to fund your warchest, for the sake the children go away you had a great run in public life.You were a part of a team that failed!

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@mandella Never worked for DCSS a day in my life. However, I am a Volunteer at my kids schools here in DeKalb. Seen first hand the lies and deceit of a few former Palace guards, when we tried to save a school from closing. But with volunteering, I see great stuff going on in the schools. The teachers and other school house employees are making the difference, despite the budget being balanced on the teachers backs year in and year out.

My wife and I focus our energy at the schools, the teachers need our help. My wife and I have lived in DeKalb for 25 years and like our friend Viola Davis, we want to make sure our government school leaders are held accountable, when spending a billion dollars a year of OUR money.

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Walker appears to be the racist. It seems implied in his response that any individual component enough to be appointed by Deal and his committee must be of some other race than his (Walker’s). That is sad.

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You know I gotta tell you, this is one person that I wish I could see a news report on about being run over or having a tree fall on him. He’s so stupid that he can’t see how much of an arse he is. It is truly amazing that he can sit there with a straight face and say he didn’t do anything wrong. He’s a true politician.

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A pun regarding paid legal fees and outside counsel: Mr. Walker is guaranteed an adequate defense.

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Mr. Walker- your response has confirmed to all of us that you were NEVER about the kids. Only about you wanting power. You are representing no one but yourself.
So sad. Go with grace-isn’t that what God would recommend?

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This guy will NEVER leave because he is truly delusional…Dr Walker – for the sake of DeKalb Schools, show some character & abide by the judge’s ruling. In other words, just GO ALREADY!!!!!

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Holding a special election would have been the proper course of action. The dismissed board members could run against other candidates, and there could be no claim of discrimination at the outcome.

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“I swore at that time that I would stand up for my rights no matter the cost.”

As long as that cost is being borne by the children of Dekalb county, or taxpayers of Dekalb County. Let’s see how much cost he is willing to bear if it has to come from his own pocket.

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Dr. Walker you are playing the race card I just have one question. What is the race of the majority of the 99K children you are hurting??

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dear mr. walker, where you were born and the indignities of racism you suffered as a child are not jermaine to the situation. so cry me a river, you were replaced because and the other refused to put the interests of the children ahead of your personal interests and those who benefitted from you being on the board (the “hook-ups” that were given). i personally am sick and tired everytime a decision is made its because of racism….it is not…this decision was not based on race, if it was then you would not have been appointed at all or you would have immediately been removed “because you are black” you were given an opportunity by those who voted for you to improve the school system and provide a quality EDUCATION to the children living in the county….YOU FAILED!!!!!!! so now you are removed and you attempt to pull the race card. sir, your self-serving efforts diminish the past injustices against black who were persecuted only because of their skin color for merely wanting nothing more than aan opportunity to achieve the same quality of life, the rights to life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness the same as any other citizen. please do yourself and everyone else a favor and be a man and just go away, take time to reflect upon your selfishness due to thinking only about yourself and attempt to find out where your mindset went wrong and your character and moral compass was corrupted….the last thing you should be doing is spending hard earned taxpayer dollars filing lawsuits claiming discrimination, racism, and unfairness when you had every opportunity to run the school district for the benefit of the children and not you and you self interests, and interests of your friends and “homey’s”

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Apparently he’s used to having the state pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in settlement and legal fees for him…

http://www.accessnorthga.com/detail.php?n=165732

“But she added, “The fact that the previous lawsuit was settled for $190,000 suggests that the state was concerned enough to offer six figures, which is more than nuisance value.”

The latest case was filed in 2002 in Fulton County State Court by Patricia Alexander, who claims that soon after she went to work for Walker at the parole board he “began making sexual innuendo and suggestive comments.”

The lawsuit claims the comments included “using sexually oriented and obscene language, commenting on the sexual activities and sexual preferences of other men and women, discussing his own sexual preferences, making inappropriate displays of affection and making offensive remarks concerning plaintiff’s anatomy and the anatomy of other women.”

….The secretary’s attorneys almost certainly “would argue that keeping someone with this kind of pattern of behavior indicates more fault on the part of the state, which should be relevant in the damage determination,” she said.”

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@Bernie: It doesn’t really appear that you are “torn” on this issue.

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“I swore at that time that I would stand up for my rights no matter the cost.”
….no matter the cost to the children of Dekalb.

To anyone inclined to be empathetic to Dr Walker’s playing of the race card, remind yourself this one cold hard fact: the students most in need in Dekalb, the ones who most rely on the school system to be an ally in lifting them out of tough circumstances and on a path to a life with more economic freedom and security, are the ones most screwed by “Dr” Walker’s mismanagement and self serving nature.

This is indeed about race, by only by Eugene (along with Sarah Copelin-Wood) playing that card.

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Through this removal process it is becoming glaringly apparent which member of the school board was the root cause of the problem. I feel sorry for other members of the board such as Nancy Jester and Dr. Speaks that were trying to do the right thing and got involved with a loser like Walker. People like him and Crawford Lewis have hurt a lot of people. All out of selfishness. Go away Walker!!

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Dr..?…Wallker let me make this statement clear.

We have heard enough of your nonsense.

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This man is the definition of low information, kool aid drinking, save my own skin, government hack. Works his whole life in the one system where he can’t be fired b/c he knows he doesn’t have a prayer of cutting it in the private sector. Government jobs – THE haven for the otherwise unemployable.

I bet I know who got his vote.

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The right of the voter of Mr Walkers discict have not been denied. They voted and they still have the right to vote.

What happens if the person they voted for is not really able to fulfull the office, either because they have lied or defrauded the voters or because they really cannot comprehend or execute the difficult aspect of the position? The what if that person takes on another role that they were not elected to by the voters of their district? Like Board Chairman? When does the person who has the responsibility to perform,TAKE that responsibility. Is Responsbility the Ability to Respond to the needs of the position or is it to act from a personal and political agenda that does not serve the whole community?

We all have personal histories that can and have shaped our lives. No one is more against change than someone who has an investment in the past. That includes all races and religions. A black person is just as able to be a bigot as a white person. There are people from mainland
India who come here to do business that think ALL Americans are stupid.
There are people who come here from Africa who think American blacks are lazy and stupid, and those Africans did not grow up here.
Holding an elected office is a priveledge and a high service, many of us forget that. A person who Chairs the Dekalb School Board has to SERVE all the county. The Superintendant has to SERVE all the county. That School board has to work WITHIN a budget and meet real goals and be accountable to the community in which they SERVE.
The 1960’s are gone. Please let us not go back to it. Why keep doing that when so much has been accomplished. Look forward. Reach high.

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Impeachment by the State Board of Education is enough for me. Removal by the Governor is good enough for me. Goodbye BOE – find something else that doesn’t use the public funds to screw up nor the children to ignore while you all politic.

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I predict the ramifications of this action will come to haunt the voters in this state. Pandora’s box has been opened and what springs forth will not be pretty.

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It isn;t about the race card it is about the people voting and choosing a school board that was vote upon. It is not the Govnernor’s place to supercede votes and if the parents on the northside of Dekalb don’t want their children to be apart of that process, then my suggestion is to either seperate yourselves or put your children in private school. If the Governor is allowed to change laws and do whatever he chooes then what next to take away the Voting Act Right or Segreation Again and call that unconstitutional. Please again if you don’t want your kids in this school system put themin PRIVATE SCHOOL!

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In my view one of the reasons schools are changing is that many of them are more instruments of social change – including civil rights – than education. This Walker episode is a case in point. He is going to “…stand up for his rights no matter what the cost.” Of course, others are bearing all the costs, especially the children.

What a selfish jerk.

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If the Governor was so concerned about the children along with SACS then why wasn’t the Hall County School Board placed on probation or reprimanded for trying to prevent Cody Stephens last year from being the valadictorian when he had the highest GPA in his class. The other student parents had to step down so Cody could be the sole valadictorian. It’s valadictorian not valadictorians. Perhaps the Hall County School Board doesn’t know the difference. One is singular and the other plural. Did SACS rush in to see why Hall County didn’t want Cody to be the sole valadictorian. No. You know why because he was black and they didn’t want a black to be the valadictorian. Did the so called caring Governor send Cody’s parents a letter of apology or even look into the matter. No because he could care less. How come the Governor wasn’t removed after Fox 5 discovered him along with members of his family created some fake company and when the I-team went to investigate the matter under the address it was another company. Or the good ol governor appointing a guy in the reserves who clearly wasn’t qualified. Sometimes you don’t have to play the race card. Sometimes others play it for you.

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KGray

Are you aware of just how much DeKalb schools are failing students? Do a little research into the decline of student achievement over the last decade among African-American students and then decide if the status quo is ok.

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Mr. Walker: It is clear from all of these comments that the public does NOT want you to continue on the Board. The Governor does not want you and a federal judge, who has listened to all of the pro s and con of your service, agrees. ” IT IS NOT ABOUT YOU. Sometimes it is hard to step away from something we have gotten accustomed to for many years but all good things must come to an end, even for you. Clearly, to make matters worst, you must NOT consider using public funds to finance your fight against the public…

Five unbiased people, black, white, asian, hispanic some other part of the country with no local ties whatsoever to listen to your side and all sides and make a determination as to your appropriateness in all of this might help. Yes, go enjoy your grandchildren at this point in time.

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At this point, while I am pleased with the prospect of replacing these 6, even though not thrilled with the mechanism, i will add this, when considering who ends up on the new board member list:

Given the current demographics of DCSS, if the appointments do not include some HISPANIC representation, then no one can say the board will be truly representative of the county. Just check the numbers. This isn’t just black & white, & while I think most of us agree race shouldn’t be a factor, it still is. But more than that – if you want a true “buy in” of a population truly disenfranchised – they really need to know they have seat at the table.

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“Please again if you don’t want your kids in this school system put themin PRIVATE SCHOOL!”

@KGray – I will if the county give me my property taxes to go along with that. But as long as they are being used to fund Dekalb, I expect a school system fit for my child to attend.

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….and here, in this essay, outsiders get a glimpse of why employees who CAN leave Dekalb are doing so in droves.

That being said, the Georgia “law” that allows removal of elected officials seems to be unconstitutional. Dr. Walker and others should humbly resign. THAT’S the right thing to do.

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After today, the AJC should stop putting his name in lights and giving him a forum. That’s what he is counting on…the publicity. Just make him go away.

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OMG – Ted let Jane eat an apple? THAT’s the real news story.

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“Where did Mr. Walker get the degree that gives him the right to be called Dr. ?”
Duke University in Durham, NC

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Mr. Walker, you fail to give the judiciary its proper respect. Judge Story is a well respected Judge and he understands the legal issues. It is not a racial matter; it is a legal matter.

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Kevin, Nothing is proven, and there is nothing saying that these people being removed did something wrong.

Maybe you did not read the SACS report. Threatening teachers and principals is “wrong” in my world.

By the way, I have seen plenty of black -> white racism in K12 government school administration in Georgia. I have seen a white accused of “white privilege” in education, simply for being white. More than once I have seen a black student work up adults by saying the white teacher is racist. No reason given of any kind. Then the teacher is required to address the complaint that they are “racist.” I have seen urban hood type black students respond to teacher “you are racist” when given homework. I have seen a black female administrator come into a school building and pick out three non-black teachers and harass them. It is like a little call and response game. My report is not opinion. It is what I have seen or experienced.

I also had a black male teacher friend who told me that he was being harassed by the all female colleagues he was working with. He said, “It’s bad.” He left his position and went to another school district. That is another story for another day, female-heavy management environments where males are treated in a harassing manner. It’s real, reference my friend above. I also know of a male senior education worker who was harassed by his female assistant and was friends with the female head boss. This assistant was neurotic and in the middle of the work day would say to my friend, “Why are you looking at me?” and was very unfriendly about it, but had the suppport of their female boss. My friend, the male, has since resigned, is no longer in the work force.

This type imbalanced work situations are common and difficult to deal with for the person being harassed and just trying to do their job.

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How can it be racism (as Walker says) when every black, white, and any other educator I know (and I know plenty of them) want the board out now!

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Can you imagine the ego on Walker should he win this fight?

Oy! His head will be larger than the Goodyear blimp and everyone he knows will get a job for life!

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@Maureen
Reading through all the comments spiked my curiosity. I’m hoping you can provide some answers or at least point in the right direction. In a closed meeting around the end of February, the then DOE Board voted to hire legal representation for defense against suspension.
1. From what account were these funds authorized?
2. Now that a Federal judge has upheld the Governor’s authority to suspend 6 of the nine board members, is that defense cost authorization still valid?
3. Is Mr. Walker the only suspended board member who intends to pursue resolution through the court system, as far as you know through your sources? Other members have not been so very vocal.
4. If Mr. Walker continues without the others, does that invalidate the vote of the nine member board taken in February relative to funds allocation?

On a more personal note – when I read Mr. Walker’s response, I was immediately struck by the number of times he used the words “I”, “Me” and “My” in a 7 paragraph statement. Actually, it’s kind of sad that he has to try so hard to maintain his relevance.

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If there was a state level “teacher bill of rights” to address harassment in the work place, there would probably be thousands of claims / reports.

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And another problem which makes my blood boil – Sara Copelin-
Wood is on the board of the NAACP in DeKalb County. What kind of mess is that? It makes the NAACP less credible and self-serving. And this organization is not meant for this type of nonsense.

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I used to teach in DeKalb County and there used to be a set policy of the DeKalb County School Board that indicated if charges are brought against you as an employee of the school board then the school board will pay for legal representation. However, I have taught in the school system for at least 10 years so this may have changed since then.

The legislature is trying to make a bill that indicates that the school board members cannot use school system funds to represent them in court if removed from office by the governor. I do hope it passes.

I do believe Dr. Walker has every right to go to court if he feels his rights have been violated but I do feel he needs to use his own money.

I do not think race has anything to do with the situation. I hate that the race card was used by Dr. Walker. However, according to him he has made it clear that he sees color when making decisions as a member of the board.

I totally respect Dr. Walker and his fight for civil rights. However, I respectfully do not see this as a race issue. On the other hand I do see race as a factor that did cause many issues regarding decisions made by some school board members.

I sincerely hope that the new board members all can look beyond race and north and south and make decisions that are best for every child that attends the DeKalb County Schools.

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Ella, why do you feel the need to continue the race discussion? It’s impossible to get past it when people like you continue to bring it up over and over and over again. Like picking at a scab …

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There’s a humungous lawsuit going on, and I think that everyone who has any possible connection to it–other board members, SACS officials, and anyone else involved–is keeping absolutely quiet about everything and anything pertinent to the case. They don’t want to get pulled into the vortex and asked to testify. I would do that myself in this situation.

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” They don’t want to get pulled into the vortex and asked to testify. I would do that myself in this situation.”

I understand that. But how can you be pulled into a lawsuit if all you say is I did not vote for the expenditure for this lawsuit or I did vote for the expenditure for this lawsuit?

IMO – I don’t think any of the three new members want to be identified as having voted for this expenditure rather than any fear of a lawsuit entanglement. Can you keep your vote for or against a large expenditure a secret from your constituents who after all are paying for the expenditure? How can taxpayers/voters draw conclusions on the fiscal responsibility of their representative when votes for or against a large expenditure are kept secret?

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Eugene, when I gathered the evidence of Transportation and HR, and presented to the entire board. What did you do?

Now you see, and feel, and hurt like I did when i was illegally discriminated against along with the other 4 who had been on FMLA. 5 of us were terminated because we were considered first in the layoff because Guillory said our medical leave was seperation of duty.
Jamie Wilson of HR reinstated one employee, because he listed board members as his references.

Eugene try and process this again and tell me what the Hell did you expect. Now you all want to cry unjust and blood of ancestors, etc., etc. But you know what? What’s done in darkness shall be bought to light. Didnt I tell you that my Father would give me the desires of my heart if I walk upright before him. Thats the diff between me and you. I did nothing wrong. I WAS THE MOST PRODUCTIVE DISPATCHER that Dekalb County ever, ever had. I showed you the proof. Eugene you are through. accept it, Guillory, his demon Alex Riley, and every one of you that I named in the Federal Lawsuit in Ga. Northern court. : case 1:11-cv-2006 need to go somewhere and shut the hell up!

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either home tutoring parent has had a stroke, or someone is playing a not so nice game with the name and account

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@ maureen

it appears somebody has bogarted home-tutoring’s name. that or she had a stroke.

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Mr Walker:

You are quite unbelievable. The issues at hand have nothing to do with civil rights. They have to do with your incapability to fulfill your duties. I was the foreman of the March-April 2012 DeKalb County Grady Jury that questioned you and your fellow board members. I was appalled at the lack of control and the level of blame that you all attempted to place on others. In your fictitious ‘rebuttal’ to the Grand Jury presentment you proceeded to call the entire document untrue. What you were basically attempting to say is that a room full of 26 of your peers ALL got it wrong when that presentment was created. Every word of the Grand Jury presentment was true and the sad part is that you know it, but want to place blame yet again on others for exposing your ineptitude.

Do you really believe that people are out to get you, that EVERYONE is wrong and you are right? There’s a saying that goes something like this: you run into a jerk in the morning and he’s the jerk. You run into jerks all day and you are the jerk.

I know others have asked you to do the right thing and walk away. I clearly understand that this is an impossibility because you are incapable of discerning right and wrong.

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@ Private Citizen, 7:55 am. I agree with you.

Also, several of Dr. Walker’s grammatical constructions that “home-tutoring parent” criticizes as incorrect are actually correct.

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Sherry, I do believe an honest discussion about ethics of school board members, race, representing part of the county verses the whole county, north verses south does need to be discussed. We do need to move beyond this. However, discussing the problem and trying to having leaders from all parts of the county work on the problem will hopefully allow us to move away from these problems that have hurt our children and all our citizens in Dekalb to focusing on issues that will help improve the education of our children in DeKalb.

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AH, so Eugene plays the RACE CARD within two sentences of his response.
I would be appalled if I wasn’t so UNsurprised.
Gene, civil rights have zero to do with your predicament.
YOu are WORSE than the KKK idiots because you lived through the civil rights eraq and learned…SQUAT from it.
“Civil rights” to Eugene Walker means one thing — GET BACK at white people.

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[...] he is seeking donations to defray his legal battle. In a post on this blog about the importance of challenging the state law, Walker explained, “If this unconstitutional act is to stand, then what is next? It will only [...]

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