Norfolk official: School Board 'wusses' with superintendent

NORFOLK

Councilman W. Randy Wright called the School Board "wusses" for failing to fire Superintendent Stephen C. Jones after a series of testing problems and for not critically questioning any of his decisions.

"They've known for weeks that the superintendent kept them in the dark and have done nothing about it," Wright said. "I've told several of them that they are wusses for not doing something about it.

"The School Board is afraid to question him."

Wright's comments, made Monday to The Virginian-Pilot's editorial board, came on the eve of today's meeting between school officials and the City Council. The meeting, scheduled after Wright's urging, is being held in part to discuss continuing revelations of testing irregularities in city schools.

"I talked to a few friends in the school system who've told me there is more to come," Wright said of the testing controversy. "I'm going to ask school officials, is there more to come and how much?"

School Board Chairman Stephen Tonelson declined to discuss Wright's comments, saying he had not heard them first-hand. Jones did not return a phone call to his office Monday afternoon.

Wright said he is appalled at how members of the board, which is appointed by the council, reacted to the revelations that cheating was encouraged by administrators at Lafayette-Winona Middle School. He said Jones has known about testing problems since last summer and failed to inform the School Board until recently.

Board members learned belatedly, via the media, of testing irregularities at Dreamkeepers Academy and Lafayette-Winona, two of four schools where rules for giving student assessment tests were violated last school year.

The b oard is waiting for Jones to respond to an investigation by a panel that found cheating and coercion around testing at Lafayette-Winona. The panel, appointed by Jones and the School Board, discussed its findings with the School Board last month.

Since then, few employees have been disciplined and officials still refuse to release information about the violations. The confidential report, which the division refused to give to the media but The Pilot obtained from a source close to the School Board, depicted a division with few controls on principals.

Many of the board members have said little about the irregularities, saying the board is leaving decisions about disciplinary penalties to Jones and relying on the state to conduct a division wide review of testing practices and violations.

But one board member, Jim Driggers, has remained standing at every board meeting since the report was discussed to symbolize his frustration that Jones hasn't reacted more quickly.

Jones, who is retiring in June, has said employees who are faulted deserve time to explain their actions before disciplinary decisions are made. Tonelson said last week that Jones will discuss with board members in a closed session this week what personnel actions will be taken in response to the report.

If the board disagrees, it can ask Jones to reconsider, Tonelson said.

Wright said leaving Jones in charge of the schools has damaged Norfolk's credibility.

"At least two School Board members said he walked out of a School Board meeting and said, 'I don't have to put up with this.'

"If I was on the School Board, I would have fired him then and there on the spot."

Granby High School Assistant Principal Tommy Smigiel, who is challenging Wright in the May 4 council election, said firing Jones would have been a mistake. That would have damaged the school system's image, he said.

However, he agreed with Wright that the School Board is not engaged enough.

"We have a very weak School Board," he said, noting that only two members went to the State of the Schools address.

"There are some people in central administration who make big bucks, who blow a lot of smoke, and the School Board believes everything they say," Smigiel said. "Then when something happens at a school, it's like, 'Oh my gosh, we didn't know this was going on.'

"Why weren't you asking questions? Why weren't you in the schools?"

Smigiel has long been in favor of an elected School Board.

Norfolk is the only South Hampton Roads city with an appointed School Board.

Wright said the board has been so ineffective that he believes the city should allow residents to elect the School Board.

"If they're not willing to step up and fix the problem, then the system is broke," he said.

Harry Minium, (757) 446-2371, harry.minium@pilotonline.com