Clayton school board members share the blame, and pass it

One Clayton County school board member blamed bad lawyers and a weak superintendent. Another pointed fingers at other board members who she called “evil and vindictive,” and a third accused the school system’s accrediting agency.

Board members Lois Baines-Hunter, Sandra Scott and Michelle Strong each admitted they made some mistakes, but it was mostly the fault of someone else, they told a state administrative judge on Tuesday.

Clayton County schools headlines:

• Photos: Timeline of Clayton schools' woes

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• Read the full report to SACS:
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• Read SACS' report (PDF)

Clayton County news

“We’re not functioning because we have so many no-no’s. You have so many rules that you can’t do. We didn’t have an avenue to vent these issues that came at us,” Baines-Hunter told Judge Michael Malihi of the Office of State Administrative Hearings. “I see the things we did wrong and I apologize for it.”

Testimony is expected to conclude today on a complaint to remove Baines-Hunter, Scott, Strong and Yolanda Everett from the school board.

Malihi will determine if the four violated any laws and then make a recommendation to Gov. Sonny Perdue, who can remove the board members.

Five Jonesboro residents have asked Perdue to intervene, alleging the board members violated the state ethics code and the open meetings act when they put the school system’s accreditation at risk.

The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools will decide by Sept. 1 if the school system remains accredited.

“When I came on this school board it was on probation, by the grace of God, when I leave it, it will be on probation,” Baines-Hunter told the judge, as she wiped away tears.

Baines-Hunter told the judge she was a “little rough” and a “hard cookie” to deal with. But she blamed many of the board’s mistakes on what she viewed as poor advice from attorneys and on interim superintendent Gloria Duncan, who she called “not strong.”

“It all relies on the attorney. If you don’t have good legal representation on a school board, you are lost,” Baines-Hunter said.

However, Baines-Hunter testified the board was dysfunctional when it didn’t take action against fellow board member Rod Johnson for hiring an accused child molester.

Scott spent about three and a half hours accusing Johnson and former board chair Ericka Davis of being “evil and vindictive” because she wouldn’t vote as they wanted.

“I could work on probably my tone,” Scott told the judge. “I speak loud. But it seems my tone frightens people. Therefore, I may need to be a little more smoother when I talk.”

Scott denied allegations she had a football coach fired, but said she scheduled a meeting to talk about the employee’s performance.

“I can say I was dissatisfied with all the coaches from the time my son was at Morrow High School,” Scott told the judge.

SACS cited the board for a string of unethical behavior, including micromanaging and negative outside influences by teachers’ unions. An audit by an outside consultant also said board members — some at the urging of the Metro Association of Classroom Educators — influenced school staff on personnel decisions.

Strong and Everett testified they were members of the Metro Association, a for-profit union, but have since cancelled their memberships.

Strong, a history teacher in Fulton County, called her membership a “right” and said she often dined with union leaders and other board members.

Strong testified that she had dinner with John Trotter, the chairman of Metro Association, about five times in the past two years. Board members Johnson and Norreese Haynes, the union’s executive director, sometimes attended the meetings, Strong testified.

The board removed Haynes in March after police found he didn’t live in the county. Johnson resigned last week.

Haynes or Trotter paid for the dinners, Strong told the judge.

“I went to eat because I wasn’t paying,” Strong told the judge. “Usually Mr. Haynes paid. He paid for dinner because he’s a man.”

Strong said she couldn’t remember if any board business was discussed. Although she met with Trotter, Strong testified that she never allowed him to influence how she voted.

“I vote my conscience,” Strong testified. “I vote how I want to vote.”

After answering questions for more than three hours, Strong blamed the board’s woes on SACS, calling the accreditation agency’s allegations “unmitigated.”

The judge is scheduled to hear from eight witnesses starting at 9 a.m. today and rule on a motion from the board to dismiss the case.