Plainfield Public Schools have been represented by a motley group of unintelligent and uneducated people who masquerade as representatives of the Board of Education. It is the incomprehensible and thoughtless judgements of M. Cox, L. Cathcart and B. Rivers exhibited during the hiring process of Steve Gallon and his bevy of non-certificated staff members that epitomizes the actions of a dunderhead. It was foolhardy judgment to hire such an inexperienced person for the position of superintendent of Plainfield Public Schools without first exposing the proposed candidate to a comprehensive vetting process. The fact this did not occur depicts the actions of a school board that considers themselves above the law and is completely out of touch with the electorate. There are veteran superintendents in the state of New Jersey who have served in their respective positions as CSA's and are paid between $130,000.00 and $200,000.00. Yet, the Plainfield board of education members agreed to pay a salary of $198,000.00 plus incentives to an unproven administrator whose highest level of employment in the Miami-Dade County Public School system was as a district administrator. It was unconscionable to pay anyone such an obscene amount of money when you consider that under his principalship, his high school received between a D and an F average rating by the state department of education during his tenure. Unconfirmed allegations of additional improprieties have lingered but the fact remains that there is enough "data" indicating he is not the man for the job of the CSA of the Plainfield Public School system.
The public protestations of innocence by M. Cox, L. Cathcart and B. Rivers sickens me the most as these people were selected by the citizens of Plainfield to represent the students and their interests without exception. They do not serve at the whim of the superintendent actually, the CSA reports to the board. When we scrutinize the actions of the board during the last two years it becomes apparent that members of the board have been less than forthright in the manner which they conduct school business. Obviously, some school board members may offer a countervailing perspective on school governance and the relationship between school board members and the superintendent. It certainly seems, in Plainfield, as if our CSA all too often attempts to exert control and thinks his decisions must not be questioned or challenged by anyone. Troubling as this may be and with unlimited negative press coverage our present board members have bartered their responsibilities in exchange for personal adulation.
Ex-Board president B. Rivers incoherently rambled at a recent meeting that all of the board members should accept some of the blame and it was not fair to blame Steve Gallon. I am disturbed with her inaccurate analysis because the superintendent is making in excess of $200,000.00 not to make mistakes. While he has been given the latitude to hire and fire at whim Gallon is exempt from making mistakes but he prompted to tyrannically imposes impossible demands upon others. The analogy provided is mind boggling but welcome to the world of a PPS educator; where we are held to higher measure than the CSA. Ms. Rivers continued her irrational whine with unsubstantiated banal commentary, " this can be a learning experience," Rivers said, noting that while the board generally steers clear of interfering with the day-to-day operations of the district, it does perform evaluations on staff who control those operations. "From this point on, I think any person that's hired in a high position here, board members are going to be in that (human resources) office looking at records," Rivers said. "This will never happen again." Rivers declined to talk at length about some specifics of the report, but she urged residents to read it."People are looking at it like it was negative, but if you read the whole report, you will see that everything that is in it is correct," Rivers said. "It's not that bad. This report is not that bad." Imagine, our ex-board president, there is little wonder why our district is spinning out of control. The report is not bad? Obviously, I must have missed something, certainly there is no problem with salaries at $100,000.00 being paid to people without state required certification. The interesting point is that when the board of education members experienced a similar certification malfunction a few years ago the same trio, Mr. Cox, Mr. Cathcart and Ms. Rivers begged forgiveness and promised never to put our district in jeopardy again. Well........what happened?
By the way, M. Pellum has completely lost all credibility as a concerned citizen who advocates for a thorough and efficient public education for all students. Her most recent diatribe reflects personal attacks against the former H.R. Director and infatuated support for, the ex-president, Ms. Rivers. M. Pellum has become a political hack and personal scribe for Steve Gallon and has no relevance in addressing the issues that affect our community.
The fact that B. Rivers continues to redirect blame for this mess on to the board is a direct reflection of her longstanding and not-so-personal relationship with this supt. Up until recently,on any given night, his car could be seen parked in front of her house--to say she has a personal stake in his well-being is an understatement. She is unfit to speak--literally and figuatively.
ReplyDeleteHer irresponsible behavior exemplifies what this struggle is about. She is a contributor to the problems we are experiencing because she supported Gallon without question. She needs to be recalled from public office. She is a disgrace!
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