Ousted principal may be rehired

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 25/03/2011 (5589 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

What in the world is going on with Mystery Lake school trustees and Thompson’s R.D. Parker Collegiate?

A series of events, each seemingly more extraordinary than the last, and some without precedent in recent memory, will see trustees vote April 5 on reinstating high school principal Ryan Land.

The Mystery Lake school board publicly rebuked then-first year principal Land last spring, conducting personnel business that school boards never handle in public.

Then last month, the board fired Land, rather than let his contract expire June 30.

Students supporting Land staged a school sit-in. Students and parents who back Land packed a recent school board meeting that flowed out into the hallways, demanding Land be put back in the principal’s office.

Thompson Mayor Tim Johnston publicly denounced the school board, claiming the turmoil in Mystery Lake is harming the quality of education. People are being intimidated and fear speaking out, said Johnston, who called on Education Minister Nancy Allan to investigate the board.

Allan dispatched deputy minister Gerald Farthing to Thompson to uncover what’s going on.

Parents demanded that Allan put the school trustees under provincial supervision.

Mystery Lake has by far Manitoba’s highest school taxes. The division has had three superintendents and eight assistant superintendents in the past three years; R.D. Parker has had three principals and nine vice-principals.

“For once, the stars are aligned: the kids are happy, the teachers are happy, the parents are happy, and the board dismisses (Land),” said parent activist Paul Pritchard.

“This guy is a phenomenal leader. Teachers are fully behind this fellow. The students absolutely love him,” Pritchard said. “It’s a really ugly situation. we thought we were getting stability in the high school — the board office is in complete disarray.”

All the board would say at its most recent meeting is that it’s a suitability issue with Land, said Pritchard: “It means it’s not a very good fit.”

Parents are furious and frustrated that they’re met everywhere by a wall of silence, Pritchard said.

The trustees aren’t talking. They’d like to, but they can’t, trustee Valerie Wilson said during last weekend’s annual convention of the Manitoba School Boards Association in Winnipeg.

Allan won’t be interviewed, and won’t allow Farthing to be interviewed.

However, the province says it does not plan to take over the Mystery Lake board. Johnston won’t return calls.

The Manitoba Teachers’ Society says it won’t discuss personnel issues, and neither will normally outspoken Mystery Lake Teachers Association president Anne Lindsey: “I wish I could, but it’s a personnel issue.”

However, the Thompson Citizen reported MTS staff representative Bobbi Ethier addressed the recent school board meeting and warned that teachers must not be punished for raising public concerns.

“There’s a lot of people who are very scared,” said parent Sylvia Kolada. Parents want to know how much it’s cost to buy out former employees, she said.

Retired principal Hugh Fraser came out of retirement to serve as superintendent, succeeded last year by Beverly Hammond. She came from running a charter school in Calgary, and is pursuing a $5.2-million lawsuit against another former employer, a rural Alberta public school district.

The parent council says it’s a flaw in the Public Schools Act that conflict of interest covers only financial issues — at least two trustees have spouses employed in the division, including at least one at R.D. Parker, parents say.

nick.martin@freepress.mb.ca

 

 

Mayor writes to province

IN an extraordinary Feb. 24 letter to Education Minister Nancy Allan, Thompson Mayor Tim Johnston called on Allan to investigate the Mystery Lake school board. Johnston won’t respond to interview requests, but here’s some of what he told Allan:

“As these concerns have a negative impact on the quality of life enjoyed by residents of the City of Thompson, I formally request that the minister of education conduct an independent review of the SDML (School District of Mystery Lake).”

Johnston said the Thompson school board’s personnel decisions have followed a disturbing trend in recent years.

Residents’ confidence in the local public system is eroding, said Johnston, and the financial impact of those human resources decisions is unknown.

The mayor cited: “The level of fear and sense of intimidation conveyed to my office from parents, staff, and students regarding SDML board of trustees and administration retribution if people speak out.

“I want to state my surprise, dismay, and disappointment with the (fear and intimidation). It is absolutely unacceptable that such fears and feelings exist.”

 

 

Government responds

EDUCATION Minister Nancy Allan won’t talk about Thompson school issues or allow deputy minister Gerald Farthing to be interviewed about his investigative trip to Thompson.

An aide to Allan issued this statement: “The province does not employ teachers or administrators. School divisions as employers have jurisdiction over human resource issues.

“Clearly, this situation is a concern in the community. The department is actively engaged in conversations across the community to better understand the concerns and perspectives of everyone involved.

“Our goal is to ensure that the quality of education Manitoba parents and students deserve and expect continues to be provided. However, the province will not be commenting on specific aspects of the situation, or the content of any conversations.”