Chapel Hill-Carrboro teachers, parents air grievances over contract, retaliation fear
.jpg "Several parents told the Chapel Hill-Carrboro School Board on Thursday, March 6, 2020, that their children are being harmed by the loss of Exceptional Children program teaching assistants.")
Parents, teachers and students expressed frustration Thursday night as the Chapel Hill-Carrboro school board sought to rebuild public trust.
The board didn’t make any decisions but will meet again March 12 and March 19 to discuss an improperly approved $767,070 contract, recent cuts to teaching assistants, and a culture that some said has made teachers afraid to speak out.
Seawell Elementary School kindergarten teacher Adelaide Zahren, one of over 30 people who spoke, got a standing ovation when she finished.
The achievement gap is growing, and the district has money for technology and consultants, Zahren said, but not for classrooms, teachers, assistants or supplies.
“We’ve seen high-priced consultants and initiatives come and go, and meanwhile, we’re still here trying to make a difference with one hand tied behind our backs,” Zahren said. “It’s like every few years, we start over without remembering the mistakes of the past. But teachers don’t forget.”
Sally Merryman, president of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Association of Educators, said the now-ended Education Elements contract used “public dollars to reward private interests.”
“For too long, spending has been left unchecked, while at the same time, staff have gone without an improvement in benefits, stagnant pay and loss of autonomy,” Merryman said. “Our students have endured growing class sizes, less support from (teaching assistants) and deteriorating buildings.”
Contracts and a review
The board directed its policy committee — board members Joal Broun, Rani Dasi and Ashton Powell — to draft a revised contract policy. The committee could meet March 12 and discuss:
▪ Requiring the superintendent to update the board every month on contracts over $50,000, and also on any contracts signed since July 2019
▪ Clarifying that the contract policy applies to materials, equipment and services, and that board approval is required for any contracts expected to cost over $90,000 within a 12-month period
▪ Allowing principals to spend up to $10,000 without authorization. The policy now gives the superintendent discretion in authorizing principals to sign contracts.
The board also talked about launching an external review into the decision to hire Education Elements and whether other contracts were improperly signed.
Powell also suggested looking at whether the board and the public are getting all the information they need and have requested from the district. Some speakers said their public information requests have not been answered.
Whistleblower policy, retaliation
The contract issue came to a head in November, when the public learned administratorshad signed the two-year deal without getting board approval or a state-required pre-audit. The board ended the contract in January, after paying over $342,000.
In February, Jennifer Bennett, the district’s assistant superintendent of business and finance, announced that she would resign, effective April 30.
The situation also highlighted the need to strengthen the district’s whistleblower policy.
The district’s policy, along with state and federal law, offers some protections to state employees and those who come forward about fraud involving federal programs, but may not stop more subtle retaliation, such as harassment or professional blacklisting.
At a Feb. 25 meeting with the city and county school boards, Orange County Commissioners Chair Penny Rich said a few people had contacted her to say they are afraid to speak publicly about the district’s issues.
Merryman echoed those comments Thursday, saying, “There are people in this district who wanted to attend tonight but are watching from home because they fear retaliation.”
Communication, accountability
The board directed its committee to also draft protections for protecting someone with a complaint about the superintendent. Powell noted the general lack of communication in the district and how that reflects a culture.
“If our teachers are not feeling like they’re being heard on issues … and feel that giving their opinion might require whistleblower protection, we’ve done something wrong,” Powell said.
Other speakers said they want Superintendent Pam Baldwin and other administrators to be held accountable.
Victoria Creamer, a parent of two high school students, accused Baldwin of malpractice and said it was disappointing board members had “ignored multiple warning signs,” including resignations and reassignments, a growing achievement gap and the recent contract.
“One could argue that any one of these warning signs in isolation may not have raised any red flags, but that is not the case here,” she said.
“Many employees, parents and community members have reached out to you on multiple occasions to report various issues and asked for help,” Creamer continued. “They told you that due to Dr. Baldwin’s direct supervision of (human resources), they feared retaliation.”
Mark Moseley, a Spanish teacher at East Chapel Hill High School, said he’s also not happy about the Education Elements contract but said Baldwin is one of the best things that has happened in his 14 years with the district.
“Under her leadership, I feel empowered and I feel respected,” Moseley said. “I see her in the halls of my school and at sporting events, and Dr. Baldwin is doing a great job in our biggest, most important challenge — we’re still working on closing our achievement gap.”
Before adjourning the meeting, board member Jillian La Serna led her colleagues in thanking the crowd for coming out to demand honesty and transparency. La Serna and Dasi said they understand the frustration and disappointment.
“As an individual board member, I apologize, for me, for why this happened, and I, too, share your frustration,” Dasi said. “I’m very interested in taking specific actions to improve our overall system management.”
“I just want to encourage our board to be really clear about what our desired output parameters are and what the cost of that might be, because ... we also have to continue to be responsible as we rebuild community trust,” she said.
This story was originally published March 6, 2020 at 9:54 AM with the headline "Chapel Hill-Carrboro teachers, parents air grievances over contract, retaliation fear."
