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If Dr. Francis is forced out and the real impediments to educational progress, horrible prinicpals like Bonneau, are allowed to stay, the mayors office will hear the screams of many, many teachers.
According to the Standard Times, " Finnerty said he spoke with Mitchell a couple of weeks ago, and the mayor at that time told Finnerty he was looking to make a change at the superintendent level
Finnerty said the mayor has spoken to him about how he would vote if the matter of the superintendent's future with the district came before the School Committee.
That conversation was “personal and private,” said Finnerty, who would not discuss the details of it."
Do these private conversations between the mayor and Finnerty violate the open meeting law?
The Open Meeting Law defines deliberation as "an oral or written communication through any medium, including electronic mail, between or among a quorum of a public body on any public business within its jurisdiction." Distribution of a meeting agenda, scheduling or procedural information, or reports or documents that may be discussed at a meeting is often helpful to public body members when preparing for upcoming meetings and will generally not constitute deliberation, provided that when these materials are distributed no member of the public body expresses an opinion on matters within the body's jurisdiction. E-mail exchanges between or among a quorum of the members of a public body discussing matters within that body's jurisdiction may constitute deliberation, even if the sender of the email does not ask for a response from the recipients.
To be a deliberation, the communication must involve a quorum of the public body. A quorum is usually a simple majority of the members of a public body. Thus, a communication among fewer than a quorum of the members of a public body will not be a deliberation, unless there are multiple communications among the members of the public body that together constitute communication among a quorum of members. Courts have held that the Open Meeting Law applies when members of a public body communicate in a manner that seeks to evade the application of the law. Thus, in some circumstances, communications between two members of a public body, when taken together with other communications, may be a deliberation.
Scott Walker didn't reveal his agenda until after his election and look at the mess he created. Had he been honest with the people of Wisconsin he wouldn't be governor today. The good news is that the folks in Wisconsin will soon be rid of him.
Why does everything always have to be so dramatic? The superintendent should have been given the decency and respect she deserves by allowing her to finish the school year. By changing leadership at this crucial point of the year, NBPS appears to be weak and unstable, thus giving the state even more of a reason to take us over. I sure hope Mayor Mitchell has a plan in place or this could have disastrous consequences to the NBPS system. Or maybe his plan was to have the state take us over after all.
Mitchell is playing games. Speaking with State before public meetings. Vote planning with School committee before open meetings. And despite the 48 hour mandate to Francis, his office would not comment until noon today, with Neil Melo publicly claiming no knowledge of a Francis Mitchell meeting he was in, until his memory came back at noon. At least Finnerty is open. FFP and Melo just want the image and control. They will not give up that control from here on in. Contract chnages, innovation schools and more are in your future. I smirk everytime I think of the teachers who lauded FFP as the second coming.
This seems like the answer....Bonner was at least given the chance to try to prove herself. Dr. Francis took over a huge mess left to her. How does one receive such a positive evaluation and then be asked to resign?? Mayor Mitchell is a wolf in sheeps clothes!
It best to keep MLF in her position, after all this is a district that wants nothing more than to maintain the status quo! If I were the mayor at this point, I would let the state do its thing, it would be the best thing for the district. In all honesty, as concerns the leadership in this district and in many of the schools, this district needs a good enima!
The blame game needs to stop. We all need to come together for the betterment of the children of New Bedford. Politics CANNOT be part of the educational system. The school committee works for the people of New Bedford- that means us. Our kids are the most important people in this. We cannot control what goes on in their homes no matter how many times visits are made. we can only make sure that while they are with us we are doing our jobs to the best of our ability. A principal does not have control on what goes on in the classroom. Should you be told by one that you are doing something against the rules get the UNION involved. Don't be bullied - stand up for yourself(ves).
Poor parenting and lazy, disrespectful students are the problem in this school system, not the Supt. Take away welfare checks if the students are creating problems and not attending school. Maybe parents will become more involved and make sure their child is trying to be successful in life.
On what account can Mary Louise Francis be fired? She had been selected to be the Supt., received a wonderful evaluation,and worked for the school system for over 25 yrs. What kind of loyalty is that.
Did New Bedford Mayor and Chairman of New Bedford's School Committee, and Elected School Committeeman Dr. Lawrence (Larry) Finnerty and any other Elected School Committee Official, Violate the Commonwealth's 'OPEN MEETING LAW"?
Mayor Mitchell seems to be a 90 day school wonder! He's listening and doing everything UIA,Roundtable, & Standard-Times tells him to do! Pollock, Livremento, & Finnerty must be very HAPPY!!
I found it very interesting that a letter from two members of the Education Roundtable had a letter in the Standard Times today the same day the news broke. Obviously they had inside information
All I have to say is, who is watching out for the children of New Bedford???? , because the mayor, school committee and administrators sure aren't. All they care about is looking good. The mayor should walk around these schools as well as the school committee members and see what is going on, they don't have a clue about what we teachers have to put up with.
Vote of No Confidence in the school committee. They don't know how to hire or get along with a leader. They are the source of the problem and the politics. Get rid of them.
MLF's biggest fault was being obedient to the school committee and she's being shown the door for her troubles. But if she had been independent in her thoughts and actions, she never would have been hired......remember Bonner? So who can they hire that they will get along with and lead the change they wish to see????
To the last post, I made that suggestion to the Mayor the other night and to members of the School Committee in the past. I am still waiting for someone to take up the offer. I am not going to hold my breath!
Politics have no place in this argument and the district is so rife with it, I doubt that we will ever be able to help these children. It's the blind and deaf leading.
I agree with the first commenter. I don't really understand getting rid of Dr. Francis. But if the mayor thinks that will solve the problem, he hasn't been to Normandin lately. Kids running around the halls screaming. Kids skipping detentions. Kids disrupting classes. Teachers feeling bullied by the administration. The place is chaotic and unsafe and learning isn't where it should be. If Bonneau and others like her are allowed to stay, this whole exercise will be politically and educationally stupid.
Following is a statement issued today by the Mayor and posted on the Standard Times website. It is one of the most disingenuous statements I've ever read by any politician. So much so, the only appropriate term to describe it is that it's absolute horseshit! In his own cute way (not naming names, but being 100% obvious who he was talking about), Mitchell has made dispariging remarks aimed at Superintendent Francis at every opportunity for the past two months. Apparently, he thinks he can berate her to the point of ruining her reputation and running her out of the school department, and then "make nice" with drivel the likes of what he wrote in this statement. I am not impressed. Rather, I am profoundly disappointed in our new Mayor.
Statement of Mayor Jon Mitchell on Recent Developments in New Bedford Schools March 29, 2012 Earlier this week I invited New Bedford School Superintendent Dr. Mary Lou Francis to begin a conversation about her role in the New Bedford Public School Department. Dr. Francis has since expressed an interest in engaging in that conversation, and I am hopeful that a constructive dialogue will follow. I want to take this opportunity to recognize the Superintendent’s personal commitment and work ethic. Dr. Francis assumed her current position under difficult circumstances, and, without question, has worked tirelessly. I believe she cares very deeply about our schools. New Bedford schools are at a critical point in their history. Given the precariousness of the Department’s position relative to state overseers, citizens of New Bedford should know that I will not proceed down any path which might jeopardize the ability of New Bedford to satisfy state deadlines and other requirements, and avoid a state takeover. That is why I contacted state officials earlier today and asked them to extend all deadlines associated with the approval of the district turnaround plan to accommodate a continued dialogue with the Superintendent. I am awaiting their official response, but am hopeful that the state will accommodate our need in this circumstance. Students, parents, teachers, and Dr. Francis herself, are owed a respectful and positive resolution in this matter.
My God. Forcing Francis out and keeping Bonneau? That would be the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. With all due respect to the other middle schools, Normandin used to be the cream of the crop. Not any more. When Jeanne speaks, no one listens.
translation... Dr. Francis has been in NBPS a long time and knows the little indesicretions of MANY. They force her out, she may take a few with her. Good Show! Big Boys want to play fair now?
Did anyone forget the DESE report pointed out that the School Committee was one of the biggest impediments to NBPS improvement? Seems like a smoke and mirrors game to me...
I would like to comment on the blogger who gave a description of Normandin Middle School's chaotic state...if I didn't know better, I would think they were describing Roosevelt Middle School! Of course, all of the "officials" that visit the building get a dog and pony show that is specially prepared for them, which is why Roosevelt may appear somewhat under control, but the fact remains that when you work there, you know what the real deal is...threats by Darcy Fernandes, students with no respect, clerks that run the show, and more parties/rallies/dances than education going on!
At Roosevelt, staff members are called in to the principal's office and verbally reprimanded for attendance. Yet, the principal herself took TWO days out this week. She came in Friday for the attendance assembly with the Patriots player and her brother was playing music during all the lunches. It's hard to have an atmosphere of teaching/learning with music and dancing in the middle of the day. The principal is the queen of fun with the kids, while she bullies and harasses the staff. There is no accountability for the students. The winds of change need to sweep Darcy out the door.
At Normandin, Bonneau verbally reprimands the staff and the students. All except the students who are causing all the problems, the ones disrupting classes and screaming in the halls. They're the ones she wants to give a second, third, fourth chance etc..
Mayor Mitchell has only been in office 3 months. Dr. Francis, who received glowing support from the school committee a few months back, has been in the system over 25 years. Mitchell has no clue. That's why he backed down at the end of last week. Dr. Francis's biggest problem is that she has no one under her that is as hard working and dedicated as the previous superintendents had with her under them. Dr. Francis is a dedicated servant to the district. As guns were pointed at the district under Dr. Francis's predacessors, she stepped in, and those ignorant of reality, like the mayor, continued to aim at her. If you want to insure that the school district fails, support Mayor Mitchell in his effort to replace Dr. Francis
38 comments:
If Dr. Francis is forced out and the real impediments to educational progress, horrible prinicpals like Bonneau, are allowed to stay, the mayors office will hear the screams of many, many teachers.
According to the Standard Times, " Finnerty said he spoke with Mitchell a couple of weeks ago, and the mayor at that time told Finnerty he was looking to make a change at the superintendent level
Finnerty said the mayor has spoken to him about how he would vote if the matter of the superintendent's future with the district came before the School Committee.
That conversation was “personal and private,” said Finnerty, who would not discuss the details of it."
Do these private conversations between the mayor and Finnerty violate the open meeting law?
The Open Meeting Law defines deliberation as "an oral or written communication through any medium, including electronic mail, between or among a quorum of a public body on any public business within its jurisdiction." Distribution of a meeting agenda, scheduling or procedural information, or reports or documents that may be discussed at a meeting is often helpful to public body members when preparing for upcoming meetings and will generally not constitute deliberation, provided that when these materials are distributed no member of the public body expresses an opinion on matters within the body's jurisdiction. E-mail exchanges between or among a quorum of the members of a public body discussing matters within that body's jurisdiction may constitute deliberation, even if the sender of the email does not ask for a response from the recipients.
To be a deliberation, the communication must involve a quorum of the public body. A quorum is usually a simple majority of the members of a public body. Thus, a communication among fewer than a quorum of the members of a public body will not be a deliberation, unless there are multiple communications among the members of the public body that together constitute communication among a quorum of members. Courts have held that the Open Meeting Law applies when members of a public body communicate in a manner that seeks to evade the application of the law. Thus, in some circumstances, communications between two members of a public body, when taken together with other communications, may be a deliberation.
The mayor learned the art of politics rather quickly.
Would he have been elected if had revealed his true agenda?
Scott Walker didn't reveal his agenda until after his election and look at the mess he created. Had he been honest with the people of Wisconsin he wouldn't be governor today. The good news is that the folks in Wisconsin will soon be rid of him.
The school committe gave the superintendent a glowing evaluation and now they want to give her the boot. Perhaps, she isn't the problem, they are.
Mitchell didn't put his kids in public schools until he ran for mayor. What does that say about him?
Scott Lang for mayor!!!!!!!!!!!
Dr. Francis has become the "sacrificial lamb" in a political game of hidden agendas!
Why does everything always have to be so dramatic? The superintendent should have been given the decency and respect she deserves by allowing her to finish the school year. By changing leadership at this crucial point of the year, NBPS appears to be weak and unstable, thus giving the state even more of a reason to take us over. I sure hope Mayor Mitchell has a plan in place or this could have disastrous consequences to the NBPS system. Or maybe his plan was to have the state take us over after all.
Mitchell is playing games. Speaking with State before public meetings. Vote planning with School committee before open meetings. And despite the 48 hour mandate to Francis, his office would not comment until noon today, with Neil Melo publicly claiming no knowledge of a Francis Mitchell meeting he was in, until his memory came back at noon. At least Finnerty is open. FFP and Melo just want the image and control. They will not give up that control from here on in. Contract chnages, innovation schools and more are in your future. I smirk everytime I think of the teachers who lauded FFP as the second coming.
This seems like the answer....Bonner was at least given the chance to try to prove herself. Dr. Francis took over a huge mess left to her. How does one receive such a positive evaluation and then be asked to resign?? Mayor Mitchell is a wolf in sheeps clothes!
It best to keep MLF in her position, after all this is a district that wants nothing more than to maintain the status quo! If I were the mayor at this point, I would let the state do its thing, it would be the best thing for the district. In all honesty, as concerns the leadership in this district and in many of the schools, this district needs a good enima!
The blame game needs to stop. We all need to come together for the betterment of the children of New Bedford. Politics CANNOT be part of the educational system. The school committee works for the people of New Bedford- that means us. Our kids are the most important people in this. We cannot control what goes on in their homes no matter how many times visits are made. we can only make sure that while they are with us we are doing our jobs to the best of our ability. A principal does not have control on what goes on in the classroom. Should you be told by one that you are doing something against the rules get the UNION involved. Don't be bullied - stand up for yourself(ves).
Poor parenting and lazy, disrespectful students are the problem in this school system, not the Supt. Take away welfare checks if the students are creating problems and not attending school.
Maybe parents will become more involved and make sure their child is trying to be successful in life.
Two female superintendents made to resign.HMMMM! makes me wonder about discrimination.
On what account can Mary Louise Francis be fired? She had been selected to be the Supt., received a wonderful evaluation,and worked for the school system for over 25 yrs. What kind of loyalty is that.
"QUESTION OF THE DAY"?
Did New Bedford Mayor and Chairman of New Bedford's School Committee, and Elected School Committeeman Dr. Lawrence (Larry) Finnerty and any other Elected School Committee Official, Violate the
Commonwealth's 'OPEN MEETING LAW"?
Mayor Mitchell seems to be a 90 day school wonder! He's listening and doing everything UIA,Roundtable, & Standard-Times tells him to do! Pollock, Livremento, & Finnerty must be very HAPPY!!
I found it very interesting that a letter from two members of the Education Roundtable had a letter in the Standard Times today the same day the news broke. Obviously they had inside information
All I have to say is, who is watching out for the children of New Bedford???? , because the mayor, school committee and administrators sure aren't. All they care about is looking good. The mayor should walk around these schools as well as the school committee members and see what is going on, they don't have a clue about what we teachers have to put up with.
Vote of No Confidence in the school committee. They don't know how to hire or get along with a leader. They are the source of the problem and the politics. Get rid of them.
MLF's biggest fault was being obedient to the school committee and she's being shown the door for her troubles. But if she had been independent in her thoughts and actions, she never would have been hired......remember Bonner? So who can they hire that they will get along with and lead the change they wish to see????
To the last post, I made that suggestion to the Mayor the other night and to members of the School Committee in the past. I am still waiting for someone to take up the offer. I am not going to hold my breath!
Politics have no place in this argument and the district is so rife with it, I doubt that we will ever be able to help these children. It's the blind and deaf leading.
I agree with the first commenter. I don't really understand getting rid of Dr. Francis. But if the mayor thinks that will solve the problem, he hasn't been to Normandin lately. Kids running around the halls screaming. Kids skipping detentions. Kids disrupting classes. Teachers feeling bullied by the administration. The place is chaotic and unsafe and learning isn't where it should be. If Bonneau and others like her are allowed to stay, this whole exercise will be politically and educationally stupid.
Following is a statement issued today by the Mayor and posted on the Standard Times website. It is one of the most disingenuous statements I've ever read by any politician. So much so, the only appropriate term to describe it is that it's absolute horseshit! In his own cute way (not naming names, but being 100% obvious who he was talking about), Mitchell has made dispariging remarks aimed at Superintendent Francis at every opportunity for the past two months. Apparently, he thinks he can berate her to the point of ruining her reputation and running her out of the school department, and then "make nice" with drivel the likes of what he wrote in this statement. I am not impressed. Rather, I am profoundly disappointed in our new Mayor.
Statement of Mayor Jon Mitchell on
Recent Developments in New Bedford Schools
March 29, 2012
Earlier this week I invited New Bedford School Superintendent Dr. Mary Lou Francis to begin a conversation about her role in the New Bedford Public School Department.
Dr. Francis has since expressed an interest in engaging in that conversation, and I am hopeful that a constructive dialogue will follow.
I want to take this opportunity to recognize the Superintendent’s personal commitment and work ethic. Dr. Francis assumed her current position under difficult circumstances, and, without question, has worked tirelessly. I believe she cares very deeply about our schools.
New Bedford schools are at a critical point in their history. Given the precariousness of the Department’s position relative to state overseers, citizens of New Bedford should know that I will not proceed down any path which might jeopardize the ability of New Bedford to satisfy state deadlines and other requirements, and avoid a state takeover.
That is why I contacted state officials earlier today and asked them to extend all deadlines associated with the approval of the district turnaround plan to accommodate a continued dialogue with the Superintendent.
I am awaiting their official response, but am hopeful that the state will accommodate our need in this circumstance. Students, parents, teachers, and Dr. Francis herself, are owed a respectful and positive resolution in this matter.
My God. Forcing Francis out and keeping Bonneau? That would be the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. With all due respect to the other middle schools, Normandin used to be the cream of the crop. Not any more. When Jeanne speaks, no one listens.
translation... Dr. Francis has been in NBPS a long time and knows the little indesicretions of MANY. They force her out, she may take a few with her. Good Show! Big Boys want to play fair now?
I hope D. Francis hires Scott Lang as her attorney and sues the pants off Mitchell!
Did anyone forget the DESE report pointed out that the School Committee was one of the biggest impediments to NBPS improvement? Seems like a smoke and mirrors game to me...
I would like to comment on the blogger who gave a description of Normandin Middle School's chaotic state...if I didn't know better, I would think they were describing Roosevelt Middle School! Of course, all of the "officials" that visit the building get a dog and pony show that is specially prepared for them, which is why Roosevelt may appear somewhat under control, but the fact remains that when you work there, you know what the real deal is...threats by Darcy Fernandes, students with no respect, clerks that run the show, and more parties/rallies/dances than education going on!
Problem - Middle School Madness. The touchy feely way of teaching and learning. What happened to preparing kids for high school?
At Roosevelt, staff members are called in to the principal's office and verbally reprimanded for attendance. Yet, the principal herself took TWO days out this week. She came in Friday for the attendance assembly with the Patriots player and her brother was playing music during all the lunches. It's hard to have an atmosphere of teaching/learning with music and dancing in the middle of the day. The principal is the queen of fun with the kids, while she bullies and harasses the staff. There is no accountability for the students. The winds of change need to sweep Darcy out the door.
At Normandin, Bonneau verbally reprimands the staff and the students. All except the students who are causing all the problems, the ones disrupting classes and screaming in the halls. They're the ones she wants to give a second, third, fourth chance etc..
Apparently the mayor thinks he is above the law.
Mayor Mitchell has only been in office 3 months. Dr. Francis, who received glowing support from the school committee a few months back, has been in the system over 25 years. Mitchell has no clue. That's why he backed down at the end of last week. Dr. Francis's biggest problem is that she has no one under her that is as hard working and dedicated as the previous superintendents had with her under them. Dr. Francis is a dedicated servant to the district. As guns were pointed at the district under Dr. Francis's predacessors, she stepped in, and those ignorant of reality, like the mayor, continued to aim at her. If you want to insure that the school district fails, support Mayor Mitchell in his effort to replace Dr. Francis
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