On Friday, the Burlington school district’s three top administrators unexpectedly resigned their positions out of frustration with the school board, which they described as disrespectful and distrusting. At an emergency board meeting Sunday, it quickly became clear they weren’t the only ones fed up.
Superintendent Stephanie Phillips, assistant superintendent Paul Irish and chief administrative officer Nikki Fuller announced in a public letter that they will leave their interim positions effective November 10. Approximately 70 people showed up at Sunday’s meeting, and nearly all of the roughly two dozen people who spoke expressed support for what one resident called a “courageous step.” The crowd included parents, teachers, city councilors and former school board members.
Bob Abbey, president of the teachers’ union, Burlington Education Association, accused the board of fostering a “culture of fear and intimidation” and engaging in a “relentless campaign to silence the experts.” He continued, “This board is plagued by the following: unprofessional behavior during public and private meetings, questionable decisions around personnel decisions, a continued lack of transparency and simply a lack of understanding for the work we do.”
Residents called for everything from a public apology from the offending board members — it remains unclear whether the outgoing administrators were upset with individuals or the entire board — to an investigation and to resignations of specific board members. The 14-member volunteer board includes nine first-term members. The previous board was also on the receiving end of widespread criticism after failing to address repeated deficits or catch the budgeting errors that contributed.
“I have no idea what the underlying dynamics are, but it is clear to me that things are devolving and it’s gotten ugly,” said Rita Markley, who has three children in Burlington schools.
Rich Nadworny suggested, “I think you need outside help in learning how to be a board.”
The board authorized its chair, Patrick Halladay, and its clerk, Liz Curry, to meet with the outgoing administrators to address their grievances. It also assigned three board members — Mark Porter, Stephanie Seguino and Kyle Dodson — the task of developing a plan to find a new interim superintendent. Members also agreed to spend time addressing their shortcomings as a board, signing onto a statement that read, “We can disagree on policy decisions, but it is not acceptable for us to be ‘disagreeable’ or to be disrespectful of one another or of our administrators. We have to establish a culture of respect, while effectively performing our role.”
Soon after Friday’s announcement, both Mayor Miro Weinberger and Vermont Secretary of Education Rebecca Holcombe offered to help the district find temporary and permanent leaders. At Sunday’s meeting, Dawn Moskowitz gave the board a petition with 150 signatures urging them to accept Holcombe’s offer.
During his closing remarks, Halladay told fellow board members, “This makes the permanent superintendent search all the more urgent.”
He also acknowledged that it could make it more challenging. Halladay told his fellow board members, “A quality superintendent is going to be asking questions about how his or her board is working together and if he or she sees a board that’s working at cross purposes, a smart superintendent is probably not going to be looking at Burlington.”
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This was the message that three board members posted to Front Porch Forum:
“Like many of the nine newly elected School Board members, the three of us ran for office of School Commissioner because we recognized both the problems within the District as well as the potential to improve student outcomes. While previous Boards that had allowed deficits in 7 of the previous 10 years was the most visible sign of trouble in our District, in reality that was merely a symptom of a leadership crisis that was undeserving our staff and our students. After being elected, we immediately began to address those shortcomings. As with any organizational change, to some the change is difficult if not impossible. But progress is being made.
The Burlington School District is moving forward. Whether by filling the role of Finance Director or the Director of Property Services, the District and School Board is purposefully rebuilding our District with new leadership that supports transparency and accountability.
The work that began last April in our Finance Department to end the type of practices that led to deficits in 7 of the past 10 years is continuing with the important work of financial consultant Ed Gomeau. These are significant accomplishments regardless of the recent decision made by three of our administrators.
We commend them for their hard work while acknowledging the task was too great for them when they agreed to step into these additional responsibilities that was outside their area of expertise. We are moving forward by filling the positions of both an interim and permanent superintendent. We are committed to bringing our District back to a high level of functionality for our students and community so that the enduring goal of the School Board is to improve outcomes for all students.
School Board Commissioners,
Kevin Garrison
David Kirk
Scot Shumski”
The Three interim Administrators and all the folks who work in the Administration a need to understand you are all replaceable. Each and everyone of us no matter how well the job is done is replaceable.
Silicon Valley fell into a deep depression when Steve Jobs died it lasted for about a day. Everyone said Apple computer will shrivel up into an old apple doll that looks like Steve Jobs and die.
They haven’t and under the new leadership at Apple they have had their best years ever without Steve Jobs.
So Ms Phillips should know if she dropped dead today we will all be very sad but she will be replaced and the school district will continue on.
The school board has done nothing wrong demanding an open honest budget. The Past administration, which these three interim admins were part of, played a game of hide and seek with the budget. Jeanne Collins was highly disrespectful of the folks paying the bills. She mocked the process of budgeting when in her final hours she stated she was reading a book about smart budgeting this was after 7 years of out of control spending.
When the true nature of the spending was brought into the bright light of day, it took extraordinary measures for the public to understand just what they were doing. Each day revealed a new quarter million dollar oh well we missed here, and here and here it was like talking to a second grader who had been stealing candy and hiding it in their room. They didn’t have enough respect for us to be honest and upfront.
The taxpayers have spent the past seven years treated like a cash cow while our children have had a gun to their head with threats if we dont pay the kid gets it in the head.
ENOUGH.
Burlington Taxpayers are very generous maybe too generous but he level of disrespect from the school administration that the community cannot handle an open honest discussion about fiscal issues is abhorrent.
The school administrators who walked out on our kids because they aren’t winning the popularity contest should do the right thing and leave, hit the bricks. You can be replaced tomorrow the world will go on. The public needs the budgeting process to be open and honest we can handle it like adults not like children having a hissy fit running screaming from the room.
The entire school board should be replaced in a special election… or in an emergency vote on election day, which is only 10 days away. In all the articles I’ve read, the board seems inept, and incapable of conducting the district’s business. Seems unlikely they’ll find any new administrators with the current board in place. Remember, those board members have zero qualifications except living in the district and getting enough votes. I know a couple of them, and I wouldn’t hire them to run a Saturday BBQ, let alone an entire school district.
When do we get to hear the full story? I want names and I want to know what was said that was so inappropriate to the 3 admins! Or is it all manufactured? Right now this whole thing comes off as a putsch by the 3 resigned Admins. backed by the education mafia literally standing behind them in the pics to sabotage any potential reform to what seems to be a dirty and corrupt school district budget/ system that refuses to account for itself with anything resembling normal financial controls to the degree where it doesn’t even pay the I.R.S. Even the private auditors said they could not account for the school budget as the trail goes cold from bad book-keeping.
It seems like the school budget/system is a black box. A system has been created and encouraged where you can’t follow the money. A budget that was based on last year’s budget and the year before that? In East Montp/U32 this type accounting resulted in a U32 Dept head finishing his house to the tune of 50,000 plus until he was caught embezzling/stealing from the district.
What is the problem with instituting proper financial controls on a near 100 million dollar budget?? You would be insane not to. Why would good people object to such basic reform?? And things should be civil no matter what but the public has a right to the facts not to innuendo trying to damage people. If people did get out of line then they should apologize.