Author: regiononereporter

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Letter to the Editor–from Ed Epstein 9

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To the Editor of the Litchfield County Times:

Next Tuesday, June 25, I will vote against the Region One budget for the third straight time.

My views on specific budget items have been well publicized. But I am voting against the budget again because it is the only way I can keep advocating for a change in leadership in our Central Office Administration.

I believe the Pingpank Report, released in late 2010, to be over 95% accurate. Jeffrey Pingpank has been a well-known, well-respected Connecticut education attorney for over twenty five years.

I feel the abuses outlined in that report continue to this day in the schools of Region One. Despite pleas to the contrary, that report has never been addressed in detail in public.

I have the highest regard for David Bayersdorfer, Lucille Paige, and Choo Singer. From my perspective, their statements are factual, and they should be recognized for their courage and honesty.

I am appalled that the Housatonic Valley Regional High School Faculty Association has not said a word about teacher reductions. I attribute this to a bond between the Association leaders and the Central Office leadership, forged during the Pingpank era.

The morale in the elementary schools of Region One is poor. It will not improve until our leadership changes. I realize the All Boards Committee and the majority of the Region One Board has worked hard , and truly believe they are doing the correct things. BUT THE PUBLIC DOES NOT BELIEVE THEY REALLY KNOW WHAT IS HAPPENING IN OUR SCHOOLS. Students, former students, parents, teachers, retired teachers, substitute teachers, and residents have a better understanding of the school system than the Boards do.

Region One employees live in fear of retribution. They talk privately but are hesitant to speak out in public. They are also hesitant to come to public meetings.

Perhaps the Boards and the Administration feel that eventually the budget will pass. It is up to the voting public to ensure that doesn’t happen until major leadership changes are made.

Please vote on Tuesday, June 25, from 12-8 pm.

Ed Epstein

Termination of a Superintendent (interesting, very interesting). Reply

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From a Cornwall resident….

Termination of Superintendent

In what is one of, if not the first decision of its type in Connecticut, an independent hearing officer has ruled that the Groton Board of Education had grounds to terminate Paul Kadri its Superintendent of Schools.
As in most districts, Kadri was under contract which provided for grounds for termination similar to those found in the Teacher Tenured Act, including “other due and sufficient cause.” It also provided that the Board would conduct a hearing before termination. Kadri, however, through his counsel raised concerns regarding alleged predetermination on the part of certain board members. Out of an abundance of caution, the Board agreed to place the decision in the hands of an independent arbitrator, Mr. Timothy Bornstein, which decision the Parties agreed, would be final and binding.
In a decision issued March 4, Mr. Bornstein ruled that due to mistreatment of staff, including numerous physical and verbal assaults, the Groton Board of Education had just cause to terminate his employment.

If your employer ( Region One ) asks you a direct question, and you ignore it, could that be considered grounds for termination? Reply

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If your employer ( Region One ) asks you a direct question, and you ignore it, could that be considered grounds for termination?
Interesting question..let us look at the contract between Patricia Chamberlain and the Region One Board Of education, the section on
“termination of agreement”. See document below.

4-4b4b5cd52c

See part 8, section C….part 2 This section seems to give the board some authority after Patricia ignoredpchamstand (1) a simple request from the Board Of Education.

Who is the ultimate supervisor of Patricia Chamberlain? Well we think this document attached answers that! 1

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Take a look at these documents….they are between the Region One Board Of Education (herin after referred to as “Board”), no where is the A.B.C. mentioned….and the document is signed by Phil Hart, on behalf of the Region One Board Of education. Again the A.B.C. is not mentioned anywhere in the legal signatures.

Nowhere in any legal terms is the A.B.C. mentioned. When Patricia is asked a question by the board..she must answer as they are her direct employer.

supers contract5-40e30876ba

Here is one reason alone to defeat the Region One Budget again…. 1

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You can watch the video for conformation…

20130529_175353

This exchange between Marylin Yerks of Sharon (Sharon borad member) and Board Chair Jonathan Moore

“There were four things discussed at the workshops [held last week],” said Sharon representative to the board Marilyn Yerks. “We made no changes to the budget reflective of those topics.”

“We didn’t have to,” responded board chairman Jonathan Moore of Kent.

VOTE NO ON TUESDAY JUNE 25….

Kingston (N.Y.) school board extends Superintendent Paul Padalino’s contract one year with no salary increase. Anyone listening ( A.B.C. Region One Board)? Reply

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Kingston school board extends Superintendent Paul Padalino’s contract one year with no salary increase

School district trustees on Wednesday gave Superintendent Paul Padalino a one-year contract extension without a raise to his $179,500 annual salary.
The agreement was approved during a Board of Education meeting during which officials said the pact is now set to expire on June 30, 2106.
“We’re very satisfied,” board President Matthew McCoy said.
“He has done a lot of work in the last year and a half to close three buildings, to redistrict, to move middle school kids, moved elementary to the middle school,” he said. “It’s exciting stuff that he’s done and the board is totally in support and we want to see his vision of our district with him as the leader moving forward.” Padalino was hired in Nov. 16, 2011 at $179,500 and began working for the district six weeks later, replacing Gerard Gretzinger, whose annual salary was $203,000.

http://www.dailyfreeman.com/articles/2013/06/20/news/doc51c25f0f6bf97021067422.txt

Here is a copy of Jonathan Moore’s email using “scare” tactics to try and get support for a budget proposal ignoring the public input once again. Reply

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In a message dated 6/18/2013 10:54:49 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, jmoore@region1schools.org writes:

FYI, I hope you will all find this budget satisfactory. I also hope you will all support it because it is responsible and

failing to do so may start impacting the students…who this is supposed to be about.

Feel free to email or call me with any questions.moore2

It’s A Question Of Numbers….RE: Lawsuit against the superintendent Reply

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At the last board meeting, after being questioned by Marylin Yerkes, Region One representative of Sharon, about the cost of the lawsuit against the superintendent, business manager Sam Herrick said the district only owed a $5,000.00 deductible…

Our questions are as follows:

When we interviewed Ms. Page’s lawyer, he stated that two of the charges are against the superintendent and two are personal charges against Pat Chamberlain. ( You can listen to the interview here http://podcasts.am1020whdd.com/~am1020wh/shows/play.php?id=22645 ). So (1) is the superintendent paying half of that? (2) Does the superintendent have her own lawyer for the two personal charges? (3) Why has the Region One Board Of Education not demanded, that the region be financially responsible for only the charges against the superintendent against her in the capacity of REgion One employee, and let Patricia hire her own lawyer to defend herself against the two personal charges?

These are questions that need to be pursued quickly by this board. Taxpayers should NOT be on the “hook” for a personal defense of the superintendent, period.IMG_0863law

Editorial in this weeks Lakeville Journal…buy it, distribute it, let people see it! Reply

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Here is this weeks editorial in The Lakeville Journal….everyone in the school district should buy the paper, read the editorial, tell your friends and neighbors to buy it, then save it for November, bring it out, and vote for change!

But before November, be sure and vote NO Tuesday June 25, let’s get the biggest voter turn out yet so the administration, The Regional Board of Education, the A.B.C., and the local boards know we mean business. And let Irene Hurlburt in Cornwall know, the responsibility for the cost of the additional two votes on the budget rests on the shoulders of a board of education that will NOT listen to the public, and keeps trying to “RAM” their vision of a budget down taxpayers throats.

Click on the picture, and then click again to enlarge to make it easier to read….

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