A stalemate over whether to keep a gifted and talented leadership position prevented the Blytheville School Board from hiring seven teachers, accepting the resignations six employees and approving the retirement of two others, Monday night, during a highly contentious meeting.
The school board took two votes on personnel recommendations, with both ending in 3-3 decisions and not winning enough support to pass. Among the recommendations were the retirements of athletic director David Hixson and gifted and talented (GT) administrator Diane Hay, as well as the proposed hiring of Ludivine Miles as GT teacher/coordinator at Blytheville Primary School.
After executive session Monday night, Blytheville School Board member Erin Carrington motioned to approve the list of personnel recommendations “on the condition that the GT program will remain as it was in 2018, with a certified gifted and talented administrator, as well as a gifted and talented teacher/coordinator,” and board member Desmond Hammett seconded the motion. The vote was 3-3, with Hammett, Carrington and Michelle Sims voting for, and Barbara Wells, Billy Fair and Tracy Ritchey dissenting. Then, Ritchey motioned to accept the personnel recommendations as presented, and Fair seconded. That vote was also 3-3, with Wells, Fair and Ritchey voting for, and Hammett, Carrington and Sims opposing.
Blytheville superintendent Bobby Ashley said because they were 3-3 votes, the measure is tabled, with neither getting enough votes to pass as new teacher orientation looms on Friday, Aug. 2, and Hixson is set to retire at the end of the month.
Hay told the NEA Town Courier that she has been offered a position at Southland School District in Cardwell, Mo. and planned to sign the contract on Tuesday.
Hay said Blytheville leadership wanted her to teach gifted and talented for kindergarten through fourth grade and in the other grades Pre-Advanced Placement and Advanced Placement courses would count as GT. Superintendent Bobby Ashley said nothing would have changed with the GT program, other than absorbing one position and adding the responsibilities to Hay.
“As an administrator I should have been included in the decision but was not,” Hay said.
Ashley indicated that absorbing the position was necessary as the district fights to avoid going into fiscal distress and being taken over by the state.
“All I’m doing is looking at the situation, looking at our staffing and looking to see what can be done,” Ashley told the board. “Can one job, when it used to be two people doing it, can one person do it now? That’s what I have to look at. Moving forward, I’ll make many more decisions just like that. Not that I want to. I’ve spoken a number of times, financially, where we are and where we’ve got to head, we don’t have any other choice. ”
Fair said the dramatic loss of students is leading to some difficult, unpopular decisions.
“The public has got to realize this started way back when we had school choice,” Fair said. “We had a lot of kids to leave, a lot of people leaving, and we’ve got to make some tough decisions with personnel. The state recommends for us to do teacher to student ratio everyday, and us as a board, we make some tough decisions that a lot of people are not going to like to make sure our kids get what I need.”
Carrington pointed out that when she asked the student to teacher ratio earlier in the meeting, no one had the answer immediately.
“We’re not keeping that tight of an eye on student-teacher ratio,” Carrington said. “We’re not paying attention to the number of teachers we have in the district versus the students we have. If we are, it doesn’t sound like we’ve got our thumb on the pulse, so maybe it’s something you’re considering, but it doesn’t really sound like we know our facts and figures. I think this has been a talented, successful program that has been an asset to our school system, and I don’t think it’s worth changing something that is working for us and is bringing great things to Blytheville that ultimately we can be proud of.”
Ashley said the program “has never been talked about being hurt.”
Hammett asked if the GT positions were already approved for the upcoming school year, and the superintendent responded that they had been.
Fair countered if there is a way to make a cut, they should do so given the district’s financial position.
Hammett asked if leaders have looked at every position and need within the district “with the microscope that we’re looking at with this GT position?”
Ashley responded, “Anything that has come open,” though noting they haven’t done a deep dive yet.
“As they do develop, we will address them one by one when they develop,” the superintendent said. “Are there some that we do know that are probably overstaffed? Yes.”
When asked by Hammett if they can start there, Ashley said, “as soon as they become available where we can. Desmond, you know how this works. You can’t just go in and fire anybody.”
In June, financial consultant Norman Hill told the board it’s too late to make personnel changes for the 2019-20 school year unless an employee resigns because state law requires those moves by May 1.
The deadlock on the GT issue ended a heated meeting that never formally adjourned and included several intense exchanges between Wells and her fellow board members Hammett and Sims, including one where she threatened to force Hammett to leave the meeting. While walking back to the executive session room, Wells and Sims had some fiery verbal jabs at one another.
“As I said before, this board room is audio recorded, so when I adjourn and hit this gavel, you can be dismissed and there will be no discussion in this board room,” said vice president Wells, who was acting president Monday night because president Tobey Johnson was absent.
Hammett said, “I’m sorry, Ms. President, this is a public board room, so we can’t say there can’t be any discussion when the meeting is adjourned.”
Wells doubled down, “I’ll say again to clarify again, after this meeting is adjourned, you can discuss whatever you want to after this monthly meeting that was reported to you for July 2019 for the Blytheville School District OUT of this board room because we have audio recording in here. If there is any clarification that you need to clarify, the press, you can see superintendent Ashley. There will be no more discussion like it has been in the future in this board room.”
Wells then banged the gavel twice, though no motion was made to adjourn.
When Hammett noted such, Wells said, “I just adjourned. This meeting is adjourned at 8:18.”
Wells had threatened to toss Hammett earlier in the meeting while Hixson was speaking about a potential agreement with Pepsi, which has offered to pay the district $50,000 for a 10-year contract — half of the money would be used for the $25,000 center scoreboard at the new 2,500-seat basketball arena.
Hixson explained that Pepsi will have some ad space on the center scoreboard, though there are 16 other sponsorship spots available.
While Blytheville cannot put Coke products in a walk-in cooler in the concession stand, Hixson said he negotiated that a Pepsi vending machine can be loaded with Coke and Diet Coke.
“For us to get $50,000 tomorrow, I think it’s a no-brainer,” Hixson said.
Hammett peppered Hixson with questions, asking what Pepsi’s expectation is when its representatives and Hixson planned to meet the next day.
“My understanding is y’all have to approve what scoreboard we buy,” Hixson said. “This is really not a board thing. Now, I want you to have this information.”
Hammett asked if other vendors like Coke and partners were approached, and Hixson said Coke only offered $15,000.
Hammett then asked if Hixson looked at the board’s new professional services procedures.
“I would advise you to look at that policy that the board has recently put in place,” he said.
Hixson’s wife and former Blytheville School Board member Lori blurted from the audience, “I would advise you to listen to him (Coach Hixson) for once! He knows what he’s doing.”
She then left the meeting and on the way out yelled, “that’s why y’all are losing him!”
Wells cautioned board members to be recognized by her before speaking.
“Board members or the community, these people here have took out of their time to come to this monthly meeting for a board agenda to be presented to the public,” Wells said. “They have took out of their personal time and that’s what we are going to do. All of these other questions and suggestions and accusations, we can leave it. I am speaking as the board member. He was just presenting this agreement to us.”
Hammett interrupted, “Madam chair, I understand that we do have different comprehension levels on the board. So, for me to understand this contract…I’ll break it down to you (Wells) in remediation and get it to a level that you understand, but tonight if we are entering into a professional service contract with anybody based on the policy we just revised, we need to follow those guidelines.”
Hammett and Wells asked each other if they know the guidelines.
“Can you please inform me, because I will inform you,” Hammett said.
Wells banged the gavel, then said, “I’m doing once,” hit the gavel again and continued, “twice, the third time I will ask board member Hammett to be escorted from this seat out of this meeting.”
Hammett responded, “You better go take your medicine.”
Fair said he appreciates Hixson’s effort in raising money for the scoreboard, as Hammett and Wells continued verbal jabs.
Wells said to Hammett, “You don’t do that; you know that’s embarrassing.“
Hammett responded, “You are an embarrassment.”
“Ms. Wells, calm down,” he continued. “I know this is new to you, but calm down. Calm down. Calm down.”
Wells said, “you need to stop doing the things that you do. Every Monday we have a meeting we hear it over and over again.”
Hammett said, “Please do not talk to me because I’m going to say something real bad about you,” to which Wells retorted ,“I don’t care because that’s your character.”
Hammett said he’s not against partnering with Pepsi, just asking questions to make sure that the move is the best the district can do because marketing is a big business.
Hammett later asked if unfinished business would be part of the meeting since the board has adopted Robert’s Rules of Order, noting he wanted to discuss the second lien bond brought up in June.
Wells said Robert’s Rules of Order is for businesses, not school boards.
She said school boards need to use “parliamentary rules” in meetings.
“This meeting has been conducted as something like just out of professional ways of presenting a meeting,” Wells said. “It’s been chaired by the president for years and we’ve been allowing it. We just can’t continue to do that.”
Appearing frustrated, Hammett left the table and went into another room briefly.
“Since he gone, let’s go on and adjourn this thing,” Fair said.
Not long after Hammett returned, the board went into executive session, though Wells said no old business should be discussed in closed session, only the personnel recommendations.
“This board room, for the press, is audio recorded, so everything that is said and did in here is recorded,” Wells said. “And definitely this will be forwarded to the ASBA (Arkansas School Boards Association) for the interruption and the way that it went in the beginning and their action has to be for our action here. Something going to have to be given too because these people don’t have all night long to sit up here and go through all these changes and unnecessary questions and suggestions and all of that. People ask questions that aren’t even qualified to ask.”
Wells also took issue with an audience member, telling the gentleman to sit down rather than stand against the back wall about an hour into the meeting.