Teacher’s union joins chorus against school superintendent

A Georgia teacher’s union has added its name to the list of those offended by comments made by the Gwinnett County schools chief at a public meeting.

Leaders of the Metro Association of Classroom Educators said Gwinnett Schools Superintendent J. Alvin Wilbanks should be punished. Leaders of the union, who include some Gwinnett County Schools employees, carried signs outside the district’s Suwanee headquarters late Wednesday, calling for Wilbanks’ ouster.

Enlarge this image

KIMBERLY SMITH/ksmith@ajc.com

J. Alvin Wilbanks

Recent headlines:

• Gwinnett police nab more than a ton of pot 
• Budget shortfall may delay deportation of illegal immigrants 
• Paralyzed ex-husband may face murder case 

   • Gwinnett County news

Their signs read “Wilbanks: Arrogant and Insensitive”; “Racism in ‘Great Gwinnett’ “; and “Superintendent Wilbanks Must Go!”

“This guy is not the man for the job - he’s arrogant, he’s inflexible,” said John Trotter, founder and head of the Metro Association of Classroom Educators. “He didn’t even apologize.”

Two weeks ago, during a school board presentation about the disproportionate discipline of minority students in Gwinnett, an administrator said the issue is a problem for school districts nationwide except in Idaho. Wilbanks then asked: “Do they have any blacks in Idaho? They don’t have many.”

On Monday, Gwinnett NAACP leaders say he refused to apologize to parents and community leaders offended by the comments.

Wilbanks, the nation’s longest serving school superintendent, has said his statements were not meant to be “racist” or “insensitive.” He has refused to comment further.

Gwinnett school board members have supported him, saying he has a record of hiring minorities and is a visionary leader who wants to see all students succeed. They say Wilbanks, Gwinnett’s superintendent since 1996, was seeking more information about the demographics of Idaho during the board workshop on student discipline.

Trotter said his group, which traveled about an hour from Fayetteville to Suwanee to protest Wilbanks, may join the NAACP in its effort to have further discussions with Gwinnett schools officials about the superintendent’s remark.

Wilbanks’ comments are being debated on the Internet in Georgia, Idaho, Texas and other states. Some people say the battle over words is a waste of time and that the organization should focus on real problems facing minorities. Others support the NAACP stance.

“I have been getting a lot of calls from teachers — whites, blacks, everyone feels the same,” said Jorge “JP” Portalatin, president of the Gwinnett NAACP. “Any Gwinnett County School employee that comes forward and is retaliated against, the NAACP will come out and defend them 100 percent.”

Portalatin said he will meet with Carole Boyce, chairperson of the Gwinnett Board of Education, next week to discuss what should be done next.

The school board also could face pressure from voters over the issue. Some school board members are up for re-election in November.

“I’m glad this has come out. It showed his true colors,” Portalatin said. “It’s too late for apologies now.’