The following comments were shared by Teri Margason at Monday night’s school board meeting:
To four members of the Perry Township School Board:
You are absolutely wrong to have approved this evening the hiring of two additional attorneys to finally start an investigation in order to determine if your action to place Dr. Williams on paid administrative leave almost 4 months ago has any basis in fact. Outrageous!
You are absolutely wrong to be spending so much money on your own personal agenda to get rid of Dr. Williams. That money belongs to MSDPT for kids, teachers and programs, not to you for your witch-hunt that now overshadows everything else.
You are absolutely wrong to be shutting the other three board members out of decision making giving the explanation that you were elected and your are just doing your job. The rest of the board was elected as well, and you are silencing the constituents’ voices they represent.
You are absolutely wrong because not only are you attempting to dismiss Dr. Williams, but you are also targeting other administrators, as was stated in a public meeting by your President, and as is evident by your Vice President’s attack on our business manager, Bill Brown. As you know, as a result of the continued insults and allegations by the board majority, this fine man has now submitted notice of his retirement.
You are absolutely wrong to think that if you cause this township to lose Dr. Williams, those of us who oppose you will go away. This is not all about Dr. Williams. This is about you and your behavior.
Finally, you are absolutely wrong to have dragged the good name of Perry Township through the mud. You are also subjecting your own husbands and children to enormous stress and pressure, and speaking as a mom and a wife, you are wrong for doing that as well.
As this battle began last November, I said that you picked the wrong battle and you picked the wrong township. The citizens who stand united against you have proven me right, and I am proud to be associated with them. Those of us who support Take Back Perry Schools will not sit idly by while you continue to damage Perry Township. Therefore, you can depend upon this as the absolute truth; we will not go away until you do!
I was not able to attend the last board meeting. Thank you Mr. Bean for posting these comments.
Teri Margason
Tim Nance
Nancy Speedy
Thank you for speaking to the board. Your comments will probably be ignored by the “gang of four”, however, they express my sentiments. I have tried to remain hopeful that these women can be reasoned with and will eventually have an epiphany. The “gang of four” blatant disregard of factual evidence, reasoning, public opinion, and independent newspaper editorials, has led me to believe reasoning with these women is in vain. These women are on a personal vendetta and are seriously damaging MSDPT now and in the immediate future.
I think it is time we switch our efforts from trying to reason with the “gang of four” to finding legal issues to deal with them. Let me suggest a few observations that might offer some legal recourse.
1. Susan Adams is on record in the minutes, lying to her constituents and to the public at the board meetings, to get Mr. Bailey hired.
2. Did Sue Adams or Nancy Walsh have a prior relationship, personal or professional, with Mr. Bailey before hiring him to replace Mr. Borgmann as the board attorney?
3. Their refusal to schedule the Town Hall meeting that was approved at an earlier board meeting.
4. Attempting to re-write an earlier performance review of Dr. Williams, from the last school board, to support their current position.
If there are any attorneys, paralegals, or persons with other observations. I would be interested in hearing your opinion.
What about the statement that Susan Adams made about this new attorney. She stated that Mr. Bailey had already given the information on Dr. Williams to Mr. Reiling. If that is true he was given privileged information that he should only recieve after he is hired, not before. I believe that is against the law.
My understanding is that the new attorney is working from information posted on http://www.perryschools.info.
This is what I know. The lawyer hired has been able to get a superintendent dismissed. Here is the decision:
http://indianalawblog.com/archives/2006/07/ind_decisions_7_131.html
http://www.ca7.uscourts.gov/tmp/1012P0KU.pdf
The difference is that the superintendent at West Lafayette sued the school corporation during her suspension and her contract was worded in such a way that she wasn’t entitled to a ‘wholly neutral’ decision maker, only a hearing, which took place over a 4 day period.
From the decision:
“One common reason for denying reinstatement, and awarding front pay instead, is that the litigation has made a harmonious employment relation impossible. See, e.g., McKnight v. General Motors Corp., 973
F.2d 1366, 1370 (7th Cir. 1992). The board’s decision
here—noting that the elected officials had lost confidence in
Batagiannis in part because she had filed suit rather than
working out differences in private—is in the same spirit.”
So far HDW has done everything right.
Frankly, I’m sickened by Mrs. Adams claiming that the new attorney and his sidekick are being hired to conduct a formal “investigation” for due process. Hogwash! Clearly he is being hired to terminate Dr. Williams. They obviously went for the top dollar, “big guns” attorney who has experience in firing a superintendent. Money is no object!! (At least not as long as it is the taxpayer’s money!)
How hypocritical it is of the board majority to want to strike the existing architect and construction managers because “it isn’t fair to the taxpayers or other companies to not interview other companies”…..yet they just go with the first attorney that Jon Bailey recommends without even discussing it with fellow board members!! They have not met or interviewed with this individual!! How entirely irresponsible and hypocritical!
These women are bound and determined to prove to the public that they are in charge and in control! They have no intentions of representing us! In fact, they are so determined to prove that they have total control, that they seem to find every opportunity to vote in opposition of the board minority and the people of this community. I’ve sat in the front row of the board room for the past two meetings, intently watching every facial expression and comment the board majority makes. My stomach turns every time Mrs. Walsh and Mrs. Adams share a glance, a wink, and a smirk of satisfaction as they win vote after vote…4-3. There is no democracy on this board. Clearly Mrs. Walsh calls the shots, and her puppets follow her every command. It is a dictatorship!!
It was rather comical how Mrs. Adams and Mrs. Walsh made faces and laughed when Teri Margason commented how they have hurt their husbands and children by their actions. How humorous that they would sit in front of the public and act as if it were untrue, when it is exactly what each of them had “cried” to us for sympathy in the past few months. Mrs. Adams claimed that her husband was “fired” from his job because of all of this….(truthfully, he was not fired, but understandably reassigned to represent other Valic clients rather than the MSDPT teachers). Mrs. Walsh cried to us that her son had been called to the office and questioned (because of some posts he made on the internet relating to all of this mess)…….that she would not tolerate her son being abused because of us! (Understandably, a child who lacks wisdom and knowledge would want to defend his mother, not fully understanding the devastating impact her actions are causing this community.)
So…..Mrs. Walsh! Mrs. Adams! You can’t have it both ways! Which is it? Your families ARE suffering because of your actions?? Or they AREN’T?? I think we ALL know the answer, but you will get no sympathy. We simply pity your children.
I just think it is so funny that Nancy Walsh wants to look at the Schematics for the building project. Does she think it is a kitchen renovation? She insults every person on the construction management team.
Don’t let Nancy Walsh fool you. This is tearing her up inside! I remember having an ecounter with her in October at the PTEC building during a PTA meeting. She had been crying and asked, “Are you the one who was sitting in the front row at the board meeting Monday night?” I simply said, “yes.” She proceeded to tell me how terribly hurt her children were over the adults “booing and showing their disgust”. I didn’t fall into her little tactic of trying to get me to feel sorry for her. Instead, I stated that maybe she should have asked her children not to attend. Keep in mind, this is when we were present to support Dr. Williams and the Edison contract, so all the junk had just begun. I can’t imagine what the Walsh family must be feeling now. I know if the shoe was on the other foot, my family is more important to me than a $2000 board position and any man I may want to run off. Just my $.2! I however, have heard that Nancy Walsh isn’t above humiliating anyone, including her children.
Kim - She’s also clearly not above humiliating herself, either…
Notice: This website along with www.takebackperryschools.com has now been banned from the internet using any MSDPT school computer as of Thursday by ????
ROBERTS RULE:
“How can we get rid of officers we don’t like before their term is up?
Answer:
It depends. If the bylaws just state a fixed term for the officer, such as “two years,” or if they say the officer serves for a specified term “and until [the officer’s] successor is elected” (or words to that effect), then the group must use formal disciplinary proceedings, which involve the appointment of an investigating committee, preferral of charges by such a committee, and the conduct of a formal trial. The procedure is complex, and should be undertaken only after a careful review of Chapter XX of RONR.
On the other hand, if the bylaws state a term for the office but add “or until [the officer’s] successor is elected,” or contain other wording explicitly indicating that the officer may be removed before the term expires, then the election can be rescinded (see Chapter 7 of RONR In Brief) and a successor then elected for the remainder of the term.
Of course, if the bylaws themselves establish a procedure for removal from office, that procedure must be followed. [RONR (10th ed.), p. 642-43.]”
We need to see if our state legislators can pass a law, governing state elected boards, that would include the following wording: “Serve a term for the office or until [the officer’s] successor is elected,”
MSDPT! Oh no you can not keep up with the TBPS while at work? While the Township is paying you to work? Life is tough. Maybe some of the inside stuff will stop now. TBPS is a forbidden sight in the township…. what next?
Again the only way to fight the school board is re-elect them. You do not have enough money to take them to court or try anything to get them to resign. Nancy Walsh is tough, by no means would she run away from something she believes in. The armor is not cracking there. The only cracking I see is a township coming to grips with an embarrassing past that is slowly being unveiled. Greed and power has done us in.
QUESTION:
Why are teachers and staff using this web-site while they are at work? The teachers are PAID to TEACH our kids not to read and voice their political views on this web-site at WORK. It’s no different that banning My Space.com from school computers. The only difference is the teachers should not only know better, but be better “by example” for our kids by following the rules.
“a real MSDPT employee
Mar 3rd, 2007 at 1:19 pm
Notice: This website along with www.takebackperryschools.com has now been banned from the internet using any MSDPT school computer as of Thursday by ????”
I’m assuming you’re employed as well, so why are you robbing your own employer of your time that they’re paying for? Have you heard of breaks or a lunch hour?
Watch out for those glass houses.
Typical answer from you Admn…some of us are from home some of us are at work and some of us own companies….and some of us have to watch what we do at work.Your glass house is cracking.
If my house is cracking it’s only because you’re throwing stones at it. My point is that just because teachers are accessing websites at work doesn’t mean they’re forsaking our kids educations. If they’re going to block our sites, I’ve got lists of other sites they should block with probably more more consequence.
Have they also blocked the perryschools.info site?
Yes, they’ve blocked www.wesupportwilliams.com, www.takebackperryschools.com, www.perryschools.info.
At least they are equal opportunity blockers. Everyone should be able to live with that.
I keep getting these emails from TBPS and I’m always bothered by the lack of progress in our School Board. I’m impressed at the results of Terry Rice’s survey. Getting over 600 responses from teachers is extremely impressive. Something we never hear about is what can be done about the Board members. Is there any legal action that can be taken to have them removed from office? Is there anything that can be put onto a ballot where the Perry Township residents can vote to have them removed? Or are we stuck with them until they come up for re-election, unless they resign (which doesn’t seem likely at this point).
I’m certainly in favor of Dr. Williams getting reinstated, but that just doesn’t seem likely at this point. The “Big 4″ on the Board are rather stubborn in their refusal to reinstate Dr. Williams. It seems to me that people are wasting time trying to get him reinstated which seems to be causing the Board to get even less done for our students.
Brian Quinlan
Supporters of the current school board majority will not value the results of the PEA (Perry Education Association) vote due to the following reasons:
1) A number of teachers were intimidated into voting to support Dr. Williams and to vote no confidence for certain school board members; therefore, this vote is not an accurate depiction of how the real teachers feel;
2) A number of teachers were intimidated into not voting in support of certain board members; therefore, skewing the numbers against the majority members;
3) The teachers that voted in support of Dr. Williams and for the no confidence vote are not necessarily residence of Perry Township so there vote is suspect;
4) The teachers have a vested interest in returning to previous management as they were not held accountable then and these teachers fear the reforms that the school board majority want to implement;
5) Any other reasons that will enable the “Gang of Four” to avoid taking responsibility for their illogical decisions.
I am sure we will begin hearing even more excuses from the supporters of the lunatic board majority. Logic does not seem to be one of their strengths. In their minds leadership and respect are not earned, they are demanded.
I am a teacher in Perry, and I can assure the “nay-sayers” that teachers at the building where I teach were in no way “forced” to even vote concerning our trust in the current board members, never-the-less influenced to vote one way or another. It was strictly conducted by secret ballot, and the PEA has my upmost respect for following protocol and being professional. Even with a number of teachers not residing within Perry Township, shouldn’t their thoughts be conveyed since they are an important link in the process of educating the public school children in Perry Township?
Thank you Terry Rice and PEA members for getting this survey together and compiling the results. I find it ironic that people who have no degrees in the education field think they know what is best for schools and want to ignore or belittle the experts who have these degrees! Why do some people think they know what is best just because they have attended a school in their life-time? Thank you to everyone who has been supportive of the teachers and administrators during this whole ordeal. Your support has made it easier for me to keep going everyday.
I believe what Michael is saying (if I’m reading his post correctly) is that he’s speculating about the reasons supporters of the board majority will give for disregarding the vote, not his personal feelings toward the vote.
Michael, if I’m misreading you, please feel free to correct me.
Interested Observer,
You are correct. I was speculating on the reasons that supporters of the board majority might use for disregarding the PEA vote.
I have the utmost respect for MSD Perry Township teachers. I miss working with them on a daily basis. In regard to Terry Rice I can honestly say that he is an educational leader and true advocate for quality public education. He is also the only Democrat for which I have voted in my 30 years of participating in local elections.
Keep up the fight. We are winning.
Mr. Taylor,
If Terry Rice is the only democrat you have voted for in 30 years, I would urge you to start voting for the good guys. ~ I have never voted for a republican in my life so I thought I’d joke around with you instead of one of my usual ultra-serius posts. Good day to all.
Just to clarify: My response was not directed to Michael Taylor (aka:nttaSHS), but to the supporters of the current school board and to those school board members who I am sure are trying to ignore the PEA survey for just the reasons that Mr. Taylor brought up. Again, I want to thank everyone who who does care about the teachers’ input and will allow them to speak for more than a couple of minutes!
Oh, by the way, last week many teachers in our district were sent an email, somtimes more than once, through our township e-mail address…you know the one at work…giving us information about the bonuses that Edison teachers and administrators receive! I find it ironic that the websites for us to seek out and find information on TBPS, We Support Williams, and Perry Schools “info”, are blocked, yet we are getting unsolicited e-mail AT WORK trying to get us upset or trying to pit teachers against Edison teachers. Little do “they” know that this tactic will not work. I was very aware about Edison teachers and administrators making more money when it was announced that we could all apply for these positions. Edison schools are partially coporate sponsored. And, they are working…I am impressed with their scores.
Dear “good natured joshing,”
It is nice to have a lighter moment during these trying times. If you can direct me to intellegent men of principal that happen to be running as Democrats (such as Terry Rice), I will vote for more of them. I do fear that there are too few on either side of the aisle that actually live up to this and earn our votes. I do frequently vote independent or Libratarian, as well as, Republican. Not sure why there is a dearth of Democrats in my voting history.
There is a quote often attributed to Winston Churchill that goes like this, “If a man at 25 is not a liberal, he has no heart. If a man a 50 is not a conservative, he has no brain.” Perhaps I am working this in reverse? Regardless, it is the balance between the two that we must all strive to understand. I appreciate the good natured joshing.
Thank you,
Beth,
I find it humorous that the school board majority KNOW that they have NO teacher support and that they have NO support from the public! They are backed into a corner! They stoop down and play dirty trying to cause quibbles between the teachers. They are desperate!
This community has grown stronger and closer as a result of their actions! They are afraid of the “unity” in this comm-”unity” because WE REFUSE TO SIT BACK QUIETLY AND LET THEM DESTROY THIS TOWNSHIP!!!
Hey, Mr. Taylor.
I think it says a lot that two people who probably are very different with our political views (in terms of party affiliation, liberal vs. conservative etc.) can join together in this local battle. I guess I will now have to admith that there are some good people out there that are not democrats. Darn !
Good day to all …………….. see you in court, fab four !