DeKalb schools' chief terminated

By Megan Matteucci

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The DeKalb County school board voted unanimously Friday to terminate Superintendent Crawford Lewis, ending seven weeks of uncertainty over the district chief's legal fate.

The board signed a mutual separation agreement with Lewis, who had held the position for the last 5 1/2 years but has been on leave for the past month and half while under investigation by the DeKalb district attorney.

“We wanted to get back to focusing on education,” board chairman Tom Bowen said. “Dr. Lewis has always said he wanted to do what’s in the best interest of the district. It’s a very, very tough decision, but this is what’s best to move forward.”

Lewis’ contract allowed the board to terminate him out of “convenience,” Bowen said.

Lewis agreed to walk away with four months of severance pay of about $85,000, as outlined in his contract. The agreement also allows Lewis, a DeKalb schools employee for 33 years, to retire, Bowen said.

“We mutually agreed to terminate my employment,” Lewis said. “I'm thankful to the board to give me this opportunity to live my dream and serve as superintendent for the last five years.”

Under the agreement, which was obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Lewis has one week to return his Ford Five Hundred and gas credit card.

Lewis’ total payout also includes an additional $5,000 that the board must place in the superintendent’s retirement account, along with providing him health benefits and protection against civil lawsuits.

However the district will no longer cover legal expenses for the ongoing criminal investigation. His contract capped those expenses at $100,000, which he has already spent, Bowen said.

Lewis has been on paid leave since Feb. 25, the same day investigators from the district attorney’s office searched his home and school offices. The searches were part of an investigation into possible wrongdoing involving the district’s multi-million construction program.

Two weeks ago, the board asked Lewis to come up with a mutual separation agreement, saying he has become a distraction. The criminal investigation is scheduled to be completed by the end of May, district attorney’s spokesman Orzy Theus said.

Lewis, who has remained quiet since the district attorney’s search, declined to talk about the investigation, other than saying he is cooperating and waiting for the outcome.

“I believe the board needs a sitting superintendent that will be on site everyday,” he said. “My attention is devoted to the other action going on with the district attorney’s office and of course, we are cooperating.”

The payout comes as the board is trying to trim $115 million from the 2011 fiscal year budget. Despite DeKalb’s financial problems, parting with Lewis is a bargain for the state’s third largest school system, Bowen said.

“I think it is a good deal for the district,” Bowen told the AJC. “With the balance of his contract, he has 30 months left, which would cost the district about $600,000. Now, we pay four months instead of 30 months.”

In January, the board voted to extend Lewis’ contract until January 2013 and raise his salary from $240,000 to $255,000. As part of those negotiations, the board also capped Lewis’ payout at four months, Bowen said.

This was designed to prevent him from walking away with a hefty payout, similar to the $410,000 his predecessor, Johnny Brown, received in 2004, Bowen said.

The board will conduct a national search for a replacement but for now, interim superintendent Ramona Tyson will remain at the helm. Bowen said the board will have to put together a plan for a search, but must also concentrate on getting a balanced budget.

Lewis, who worked his way up from a physical education teacher, said he plans to travel with his wife, a recent cancer survivor.