WTVA is reporting that Dr. Walter Gonsulin, assistant superintendent for the Starkville School District is one of the finalists for the “top spot” in Bessemr, Al.

AL.com is reporting the same thing:

BESSEMER, Alabama – The Bessemer school board today selected the superintendent for Sumter County schools and assistant superintendent for the Starkville school district in Mississippi as finalists for the job of superintendent of its school system.

The board members selected the top two candidates from a field of five candidates recently interviewed.

The finalists are Fred Primm Jr. of Sumter County and Walter Gonsulin Jr. of Starkville, Miss.

The board has scheduled interviews of the two candidates for Thursday at 5:30 p.m. The board set Monday at 5:30 p.m. as an alternate time for the interviews if both candidates aren’t available Thursday.

The board has planned to select on June 6 the next superintendent to replace Michael Foster, who is retiring.

 

Her statement:

In recent weeks, I have been the focus of criticism from the public and by the media regarding certain actions taken by the full membership of the Starkville School District Board of Trustees regarding leadership changes for our school system.

This criticism is somewhat misplaced. Mine is only one of five votes on the board. While individual members may propose actions, all five members must vote to adopt or reject each one. In fact, as the current board president, I cannot make motions since policies and procedures set forth under state law prohibit me from doing so. All other board members can make motions at will on the issues at hand.

However, in the interest of promoting harmony among my fellow school board members and within the community, I am stepping aside as president of the SSD Board of Trustees effective immediately. I will continue to be an active member of the board until the completion of my term.

My focus always has been and will continue to be on the thousands of students who are enrolled in the Starkville School District. They deserve the absolute best we can give them. That is possible only when we work together toward common goals. It is time for us to pull together and move forward.

We must do so according to the policies and procedures of the Starkville School District while following the requirements of state law. That’s what our school board members are charged with doing, and that’s what I will continue to do until I complete my term of service.

Pickett Wilson

The Starkville School District has called a special board meeting for next Tuesday at 6PM.  The first item on the agenda?

“Consideration of reorganization and/or election of board officers.”

Rumors are swirling that board leadership will be substantially changed after the meeting Tuesday night.  Will there be a time limit for members to make their case to keep/remove positions?

Notice of Special Called Board Meeting

May 24, 2011 ~ 6:00 PM ~ Greensboro Center

The Board of Trustees Starkville School District

A Special Called Board Meeting of the Board of Trustees of Starkville School District will be held May 24, 2011, beginning at 6:00 PM at Greensboro Center.

The full agenda packet is on our website at www.starkville.k12.ms.us. The subjects to be discussed or considered or upon which any formal action may be taken are as listed below. Items do not have to be taken in the order shown on this meeting notice.

Unless removed from the consent agenda and placed under discussion / action, items identified within consent agenda will be acted on at one time with no discussion.

I. Consideration of reorganization and/or election of board officers

II. Determination of the Need for an Executive Session

If, during the course of the meeting, discussion of any item on the agenda should be held in an executive session, the Board will conduct an executive session in accordance with the Mississippi Open Meetings Act, (MS Code Section 25-41- 1 et seq.). Before any executive session is convened, the presiding officer will announce publicly that the board is going into executive session and give the reasons therefore.

The city of Oxford along with Lafayette county will split $60 million dollars and get a new $250 million facility according to a NEMS360.com story this morning.

Aldermen voted 4-1 to approve a memorandum of understanding that establishes a host of conditions for the sale of the hospital to Memphis-based Baptist Memorial Health Care Corporation. Under its terms, the city and county would split a $60 million purchase price, and Baptist would build a new $250 million regional referral center.

Meanwhile, Starkville and Oktibbeha residents are left with an independent facility and larger tax bill.

If county owned health care is such a great value proposition, why are other communities of any size in the state abandoning the business model?

Agenda of Special Called Board Meeting

May 18, 2011 ~ 3:00 PM ~ Greensboro Center

The Board of Trustees Starkville School District

A Special Called Board Meeting of the Board of Trustees of Starkville School District will be held May 18, 2011, beginning at 3:00 PM at Greensboro Center.

The subjects to be discussed or considered or upon which any formal action may be taken are as listed below. Items do not have to be taken in the order shown on this meeting notice.

Unless removed from the consent agenda and placed under discussion / action, items identified within the consent agenda will be acted on at one time with no discussion.

I. Consideration of approval of tentative agenda

II. Discussion of the process for hiring a new superintendent

This from the Starkville School District:

Dear Key Communicator Network,

The recent decision of the Starkville School District Board of Trustees to direct Superintendent Judy Couey to take administrative leave and her subsequent resignation due to health reasons has created quite the debate about the board’s release of information following an executive ssession about her departure.

According to the Attorney General, a school board’s legal obligation with respect to what happens in an executive session is as follows:

A board, such as a school board, may take official action in executive session. Further, a board has no legal obligation under the law to report actions taken in executive session other than through its minutes which must be recorded within a period of time not to exceed thirty (30) days after the meeting was recessed or adjourned. Thus a school board may, but has no legal obligation to, publicly report its action immediately upon exiting executive session. In any case, such action must be reflected in its minutes which must be timely recorded. Op. Atty. Gen. No. 2004-0315, Rhodes, August 27, 2004.

Yes, the board did vote to direct Superintendent Couey to take administrative leave immediately during a special called board meeting on April 20.

Yes, the board did vote to accept Couey’s resignation and authorized me, as the board president, to sign any necessary agreements/documents to carry it out.

The reason for Couey’s resignation, according to her letter, was her desire and need to concentrate on her health.

This information was released to the media and public and approved in the board’s minutes in accordance with the law.

The school board did agree to an $80,000 financial settlement with Couey, which was agreed upon in a contract available through a public records request. The personnel matter is confidential to the extent which the law allows it to be. Members of the media and the public are entitled to a copy of the document, but the school board cannot answer questions about the document. Couey had three years remaining on her contract, the value of which is $390,000. The board agreed to a settlement because parties with competing claims often negotiate a resolution rather than pursuing action which would result in a costly and protracted legal battle.

WCBI was the first media outlet to request the document, and the SSD complied with their request within the hour.

The editor of the Starkville Daily News has also requested the right to inspect and to have presented to her a copy or emailed in PDF form, the notes and minutes from all board meetings in which Superintendent Judy Couey was discussed in executive session.

The minutes of all the board’s meetings are already approved and posted on the SSD’s website, with the exception of the minutes from May 3. As Board president and spokesperson, I informed the reporter from the Starkville Daily News that a student matter and a matter of pending litigation from a previously filed federal court case were the only items discussed in that executive session. I also told the only reporter present that Couey was never even mentioned.

The members of the board have replied concerning the editor’s request for notes, but only one member reported taking notes. A copy of those notes was sent in the District’s response to the open meetings request from the editor. The only other notes officially or unofficially were the motions that have already been posted and approved.

While the school board certainly understands the interest and attention surrounding Couey’s resignation, the school board is extremely sensitive to details regarding personnel as the law is clearly written to protect the privacy of employees, not the school board.

Like the boards of other governmental entities, the school board is represented by legal counsel and has been advised every step of the way by two attorneys who specialize in school law and advise multiple school boards and school districts. According to the school district’s own policy, when there is discussion of personnel, pending litigation or other such sensitive matters, it is best that the board follows the advice of the school board attorney, as the board has done in this case and others. It would seem that other governmental boards are likely doing the same, and it would also seem highly unlikely that the members of these boards would exit an executive session or closed meeting and come out and give details on personnel matters to the media.

The Mississippi Ethics Commission has even found that the school board is in compliance with the open meetings law after a complaint was filed alleging the board violated it. The school board conducts its meetings following the same laws and practices of other Mississippi school districts. The members of the board also receive hours of training yearly from the Mississippi School Boards Association about how to be effective school board members while also in compliance with all of the laws of this state.

Unlike governmental entities such as municipalities, in addition to the more obvious governing functions of the school board, the board also operates as a judicial body when hearing appeals from students and their parents and district employees. In this way, the board is obviously different from a board of aldermen, as a school board is bound by FERPA rules which have a much larger impact on a school district than city or county government.

All of the board’s decisions and actions are within the law.

Sincerely,

Pickett Wilson
President, SSD Board of Trustees

Here is a scanned copy of the minutes form the April 20, 2011 special meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Starkville School District:

The next item is a copy of Superintendant Couey’s resignation letter:

Includes students and faculty.

The Board of Trustees of the Starkville School District accepted the resignation of Superintendent Judy Couey in a special called meeting at 1:30 today.

According to her letter of resignation, dated April 27, 2011, Couey left “due to my need and desire to focus on my health.” Her resignation will take effect June 30, 2011.

Board president Pickett Wilson announced that Assistant Superintendent Dr. Beth Sewell will serve as Acting Superintendent immediately with a 15% increase in her salary. Dr. Walter Gonsulin will stay as the only Assistant Superintendent for the district with a 10% raise in salary.

According to the minutes of the April 20, 2011 special board meeting, the board “directed the superintendent to immediately take administrative leave.” The board also authorized the board’s special consul to “consult with the superintendent, through her attorney, concerning her continued employment with the school district.”

Couey will take medical leave and vacation immediately till June 30, 2011.

When addressing reporters afterward, Wilson denied the rumors of embezzlement by school officials. She also denied the WCBI TV report that Couey was prohibited from visiting the district’s campuses.

Couey was not present at the two hour plus meeting, which had been delayed three times.

When asked if a financial settlement had been reached between Couey and the district, Wilson directed reporters to look at the time table between the meeting last week and the one that had concluded.