Category Archives: POSTS, COMMENTS, VIDEO AND AUDIO

A letter to the editor of The Region One Report 4

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I too hoped that former Principal Matt Harnett had potential.  I admired that he respected Gale Toensing and that their relationship was about improving education.  Last year Matt and I traded calls going into one of his Steve Hurley testimonials.  Diane Goncalves and Patricia wanted Steve Hurley out but he had a clean file.  I think he was too popular and Diane and Patricia do not like to compete with that.  Diane Goncalves was responsible to evaluate Steve that year.  She failed to do her job yet needed a negative written evaluation to pad Steve Hurley’s file.  So – I am told that Diane directed Matt to create one and Patricia kept the money (our money) flowing so the attorney could polish this fabricated evaluation.  I called Matt and pleaded with him to be a leader – and to not take directives from Superintendent Chamberlain or Diane Goncalves that include non-truth.  But he would not budge. He also did not deny it.  I know of others who tried as well.  Allegedly – some that worked for him refused to speak with him for months afterward.  A group of Steve Hurley’s co-workers stepped forward and wanted to testify on his behalf.  Patricia and  Diane had Scott Fellows (as a union rep) call each one of these teachers to his office where he gave them a talking to.  Diane stood in the doorway for each one.  Intimidation?  In conclusion – Matt Harnett was a tool.  Our students deserve better.
I shared the Becky Hurlburt letter with you a couple of months ago.  The one where she violates important by-laws and bullies Principal Croft regarding CCS Boys Basketball Coach – Michael Pierce.  (The prominent by-law being that Board Members may not, can not – manage the school or staff – even if they have kids at the school.)  The story did not end there.  Becky wanted Michael Pierce out and went after him.  CCS Principal Mike Croft and Athletic Director Dan Carroll created a horribly insulting evaluation that should be the beacon of low points for our CCSPrincipal’s career and Mike Croft can wear that and show up and take our tax dollars – but buddy – you should start apologizing.  When Mike Pierce went to his friends who are Coaches and teachers at CCS for a letter of recommendation to help him fight back – each one said the same thing to him as if scripted:  “I wish I could but I can’t afford to lose my job”.  Retribution.  Did Michael Pierce deserve the negative eval – absolutely not.  I have it.  They gave him zero points for emergency medical training and CPR etc…  He has all those certifications and more as the State requires.  You have to see this document.  Dr. Fitz wrote him a lovely letter of recommendation – as did many of the boys he coached.
I am voting “No” again.  70% of our property tax dollar is this budget.  We want a High School that reflects the great teachers and students and citizens of Region One.  We vote “No” to end this Correctional Facility under this Superintendent and Warden.  Do not buy them out – insist that they go by voting “No”.
Next we should be discussing thorough and acceptable annual financial audit procedures.
Lawrence Van Valkenburgh

Reply

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So, the Region One BOE Chair, Mr. Moore, says in his press release that the Superintendent knew Mr. Harnetts resignation was coming…hmmmm. Lets look at the direct quote from his press release…

“Because Matt’s departure is not a surprise, the Superintendent has been developing a transition plan.”

So, we at Region One Report were wondering about a couple of things…

How much did it cost Region One to send Matt Harnett and Gina Jasmine to Santa Barbara this summer for the Power School workshop?

Will our superintendent of Schools now  send bills to Bristol and Danbury for the cost of those workshops?

Just more to ponder as the next vote approaches about the administrations and boards management of over $14 million dollars of YOUR money.abbottcostello (1)

The email on Matt Harnett’s resignation Mr. Moore did not send to Region One Report….(and his resignation letter) Let The Blame Placing Begin 2

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scan0001

CLICK ON PICTURE AT RIGHT TO ENLARGE LETTER

Sent: Sunday, August 18, 2013 2:59:00 PM
Subject: Principal Resignation

Hi All,

As I am sure you know, Matt Harnett is resigning his position. While disappointed, we all wish him the best of luck; but, we need to move forward. Because Matt’s departure is not a surprise, the Superintendent has been developing a transition plan. Currently, the plan is for Ian Strever to be the interim principal, which he has agreed to do. The principal position will be posted immediately over September and October. If there is a good pool of applicants, a search committee will be formed in November to interview the candidates. The finalists will then be presented to the new board in December.

On Monday night, we will set a date and time for a special meeting later in the week so that the board can discuss this plan and ratify it.

The attachment to this email is Matt’s official resignation. The delay in this email is due to me being on vacation and Matt being at a state-required workshop. We were able to finally talk Friday evening.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call me at 203-885-5775 or email me at jmoore@region1schools.org.

Best regards,

—
Jonathan Moore

Kent Representative
Region One BOE

It is always sad when the Board Of Education hears about a Principal resigning from the public, before they hear it from the board chair…see the note below from Region One Board Member Gale Toensing… 1

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Marshall, thanks for letting the public — and board members — know about the resignations. The superintendent and board chairman didn’t. ~~ Gale Courey Toensing

Please follow the emails as they are in chronological order…

1) Original Message —– From: Gale Toensing To: pchamberlain22@gmail.com.didtheyreadit.com ; jmoore@region1schools.org.didtheyreadit.com Cc: Scooter Tedder ; Philip Hart ; Marilyn Yerks ; Laura Freund ; gtoensing@comcast.net Sent: Friday, August 16, 2013 1:49 PM Subject: Loss of Principal

Jonathan and Patricia It has been over 24 hours since the news of Matt Harnett’s resignation entered the public realm. Am I the only board member who thinks the loss of our building principal days before students return for the start of the school year is a critical matter? It is incredulous that we are getting our information about this matter from newspapers and social media and not from the superintendent and board chair. Why has a special meeting not been called for the board to discuss the matter and start to develop our strategy to deal with it? ~~Gale

 

Reply to message 1) Original Message —– From: Jonathan Moore To: Gale Courey Toensing Cc: Phil Hart ; Laura Freund ; Scooter Tedder ; Marilyn Yerks Sent: Friday, August 16, 2013 4:20 PM Subject: Re: Loss of Principal

Gale, First I am in Maine. Second we have no official notice as of yet. Third, there is a plan that the superintendent is putting together. If you all stick around after the district meeting, the we can set a date for a special meeting. Jonathan —-

 

Reply to Mr. Moore’s reply 3) —– Original Message —– From: Gale Toensing To: Patricia Chamberlain ; Jonathan Moore Cc: Marilyn Yerks ; Scooter Tedder ; Laura Freund ; Phil Hart Sent: Friday, August 16, 2013 5:20 PM Subject: Re: Loss of Principal

Right. It must be some other Jonathan Moore quoted on this posting from yesterday: HVRHS principal has resigned Thu, 08/15/2013 – 3:16pm Falls Village By Patrick L. Sullivan FALLS VILLAGE — The principal of Housatonic Valley Regional High School (HVRHS) resigned Wednesday, Aug. 14. Mattew J. Harnett gave a verbal notice Aug. 14 to Region One Superintendent Patricia Chamberlain, with a written resignation to follow. Chamberlain said Thursday, Aug. 15, that Harnett is taking a job as principal at a middle school in Bristol, Conn. Harnett was principal at Berlin High School before taking the HVRHS job in 2011. PowerSchool administrator Gina Jasmine also resigned, to take a similar job in Danbury, Chamberlain said. “We’ll miss them both,” she said. Jonathan Moore, chairman of the Region One Board of Education, said by phone on Thursday, Aug. 15, that the board will hold a special meeting next week to decide how to proceed on finding an interim principal and search for a long-term replacement. Harnett was hired in May 2011, with a two-year contract. He was principal of Torrington Middle School from 2006-10,associate principal at New Britain High School from 2004-06, and assistant principal at Seymour High School from 2002-04. Attempts to reach Harnett’s cell phone were not successful as of 3 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 15. http://www.tricornernews.com/node/31398 —–

 

Sad, very sad, this man lies all the time now…. he MUST be replaced by the Kent BOE

 

 

The Region One Board Chair…fact, intuition, or was he hiding something from the board again way back after the last budget defeat? Reply

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Here is a direct newspaper quote from Mr. Moore, Region One Board Chair after the last vote, “The only change: I am afraid our principal may have had enough and may be seeking employment elsewhere.” This statement is not fact, but a strong intuition.

 

Hmmm, Mr. Moore’s intuition was very good when it came to a resignation that came three weeks later..while his intuition fails him miserably when it comes to dealing with Region One taxpayers.

 

You can not believe a thing this man says. His board should ask him to step down, and appoint a new representativeRevolvingDoor from Kent.

A letter from Craig Toensing former Connecticut State Board Of Education chair 2

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Our present superintendent was a good grade school principal. So good that when I was the State Board chair I had her, Cornwall principal Bill Oris and then superintendent Muff Maskovsky come to Hartford and present to the State Board of Education on how to run a successful grade school. Then she was hired as the Region One superintendent. There was a book written by Laurence J. Peter and Raymond Hull and published in 1969 entitled “The Peter Principle”. The principle holds that members of an organization will rise or get promoted to his or her level of incompetence. In Region One we have examples of the principle at work. I was still active in education when  she was chosen as the new superintendent. There were some who thought that the hire might not make sense because she had never been a high school principal and the lack of that experience might hinder her effectiveness. That opinion turns out to have been prescient. Under the leadership of the superintendent, the education leader of the Region, the high school is floundering. Many students are doing poorly in the classroom and on state tests. In the last three years two principals have resigned within days of the start of the new school year.The Region administrators have little concept of the basic management principle that if one is given the responsibility for a task they must also be given the authority to carry it out. It is little wonder that the high school experiences defections given the heavy hands laid on by Region administrators. Administrators to whom the concept “Be a leader not a boss” is alien. Unfortunately some members of the Region One board and the ABC Committee are also good examples of the Peter Principle at work. They don’t seem to know that the superintendent works for them, and not the other way around, and they shirk the associated responsibility. These are the folks who got us into this mess and it would be naive to think they have the ability to get us out. Keep exercising your right to vote. It is an expression that democracy allows to be heard.

Craig Toensing