Monday, November 8, 2010

It's time for that salary audit

One of the issues SACS had with DCSS was the employment practice of hiring friends and family into highly- or over-paid positions, some of which they do not possess the qualifications for. This not only usurps money and focus from the classroom, it creates a terrible morale problem among those in the trenches -  especially teachers - working to provide what DeKalb schools mission ought to be - educating children.

In 2004, Dr. Brown hired Ernst & Young to conduct a salary study to determine if people had the proper job description and in addition, according to the actual work performed, were employees being paid proper, competitive wages. The funds for the study were approved in September, 2003, according to board meeting minutes: "Authorized the firm of Ernst and Young to conduct a single salary compensation study for the DeKalb County School System at a cost of $341,000."

Soon after, Brown was fired and Lewis was hired as his replacement. The study later revealed millions of dollars of overpayments to non-teaching personnel, however Lewis dismissed the findings and buried the study. The study has never been posted or discussed by the board since. All references to the study have been removed from the board's website. Worse, a follow-up study was never conducted, although these types of studies are recommended every 4-5 years. Since our board threw out the results of the 2004 study, DCSS has basically not conducted a salary study for well over a decade, if ever.

In December, 2005 responding to a news story which reported that the Ernst and Young study results showed $14,000,000 in yearly salary overpayments, Dr. Lewis stated to the BOE that the DCSS overpayment in non-teaching salaries was $1.8 million, but he was not going to adjust them. $1.8 million overpayment of non-teaching salaries over 5 years is a $9,000,000 cost to DCSS taxpayers for no additional value in personnel performance.

The Board of Education ignored any financial benefits to DCSS by restructuring the pay scale and accepted Dr Lewis's recommendation to simply rename these employees positions by giving them different titles.

====

In our opinion, DCSS should conduct a salary and compensation audit ASAP and be document each position (e.g. Dispatch Clerk, Bus Driver, Administrative Assistant I etc.) in the system, including a detailed a job description and the minimum requirements. In addition, each position should be placed on standardized pay scales. This should be placed on the DCSS website so that taxpayers can see what the jobs entails and how much each job pays.

At the September 15th, Emory Lavista Parent Council meeting, Shayna Steinfeld asked Ms. Tyson to unbury the 2004 salary audit done by Dr. Brown's administration. Tyson said she plans to look hard at CO salaries, and there will need to be a bridge between the '04 audit and a newer audit. She admitted the audit got buried, and said one should have been done every five years (meaning there should have been one in 2009).

If Ms. Tyson wants transparency for taxpayers, she needs to move on this immediately.

We taxpayers pay 61 Human Resources personnel approximately $4,500,000 in salary and benefits. They should have time to put this in a format taxpayers can view just like they've done for teachers.

Because we have nothing like this, for example, secretaries to "upper management" make twice the salaries of secretaries in other departments or the schools even as they perform the same functions. That's why the Ernst and Young audit advised standardizing job titles and functions. If you do the same job function, you should be placed on the same salary schedule under the correct number of years of experience.

Please let the board know that although we are pleased at the recent hiring of an internal auditor, the citizens expect an externally conducted salary audit - ASAP. All of the current posturing, charrettes, websites, 2020 visions, mean nothing while they continue to support the bloated salaries and job descriptions of so many at the top --- bleeding money from the very people our tax dollars are being generated to benefit -- our children.

66 comments:

Anonymous said...

The salary audit had DCSS overpaying administrators by an incredible $15,000,000 a year.

That is $150 mil over ten years.

It is no wonder that principals, asst. principals and teachers all want to work for the Central Office. The salaries are inflated, and they do not have anywhere near the day to day workload and pressure of in-school staff.

Resources need to go back into the school house. Not only are administrators overpaid, we have way too many non-school house staff, whether Central Office, MIS, School Police, etc.

Anonymous said...

I could be totally wrong but don't "we" the taxpayers actually own the results of the audit!!

The DCSS ordered the audit and I assume it was paid for by county funds (aka the county taxpayers.) Since it was paid for by the taxpayers, ownership should flow to the taxpayers.

There should be no right to privacy in this matter.

It may be a different story had C. Lewis paid for the audit/study out of his own personal checking account but I doubt that is the case!

Does this now become a FOIA issue or should the report just be released?

Anonymous said...

DCSS continues to promote teachers into 'coaching' titles. It is rumored that if you have a connection in HR, certification credentials can be 'made up' so that the state issues certification to non-qualified individuals. Certification needs to be audited, also.

Cerebration said...

Here are some examples of real-world salaries from Yahoo News today -

*Unless otherwise noted, all career and salary information comes from the National Employment Law Project's report "Where The Jobs Are: A First Look at Private Industry Job Growth and Wages in 2010."

#1 Degree - Nursing

There is no hotter degree than nursing. Fortune puts it atop its list of fastest growing jobs. The U.S. Department of Labor agrees, forecasting "excellent" job prospects for nursing graduates.

Growing Career: Registered Nurse
Wage: $31.41/hr
Salary: $65,330

Growing Career: Nursing Aide, Orderly & Attendant
Wage: $11.75/hr
Salary: $24,429

#2 Degree - Medical Assisting & Administrative Support

According to an August 2010 report from the Economic Policy Institute, medical assistants are one of the five fastest growing occupations in the country, just behind nursing. More good news: in less than one year, you can train to become a medical assistant or work in administrative support by earning a certificate. More comprehensive degree programs are also available.

Growing Career: Office Clerk
Wage: $12.45/hr
Salary: $25,899

Growing Career: Receptionist & Information Clerk
Wage: $12.15/hr
Salary: $25,275


#3 Degree - MBA

As the business world continues to rebound and hire again, more managers are needed to lead the way. By getting an MBA, you'll help boost your earning and career opportunities.

Growing Career: General & Operations Manager
Wage: $43/hr
Salary: $89,423

#4 Degree - Accounting/Finance

The failure of some big banks does have a silver lining for accounting and finance majors since more regulations and increased transparency mean more work for accountants. An associate's degree in accounting/finance can get your foot in the door of this rapidly expanding industry.

Growing Career: Bookkeeping, Accounting & Auditing Clerk
Wage: $15.93/hr
Salary: $33,132

#5 Degree - Criminal Justice

Communities will always pay people to keep them safe, which makes a criminal justice degree a valuable commodity in today's tight job market. According to the Department of Labor, opportunities for security guards are expected to grow 14 percent between 2008 and 2018.

Growing Career: Security Guard
Wage: $11.45/hr
Salary: $23,827

#6 Degree - Business Administration

Economic concerns have companies scrambling to find better, more efficient ways of doing business. Studying business administration remains one of the most relevant degrees you can get, whether you want to work in the public or private sector, for a big company or a small one.

Growing Career: First-line Supervisor/Manager of Office and Administrative Support Workers
Wage: $22/hr
Salary: $45,754

Anonymous said...

@ Anonymous 10:29
"I could be totally wrong but don't "we" the taxpayers actually own the results of the audit!!

The DCSS ordered the audit and I assume it was paid for by county funds (aka the county taxpayers.) Since it was paid for by the taxpayers, ownership should flow to the taxpayers.

There should be no right to privacy in this matter.

DCSS taxpayers paid for this Compensation Audit, therefore, the taxpayers own the audit. Results have never been published for taxpayers.

Please reference BOE meeting 9/8/03 Item number 03.14:
"(the BOE)Authorized the firm of Ernst and Young to conduct a single salary compensation study for the DeKalb County School System at a cost of $341,000."

The minutes from the April 1, 2004 BOE meeting in which Jim Landry, the independent auditor from Ernst and Young, presented his findings are not posted on the DCSS BOE website. Indeed, there is no record of this meeting on the DCSS BOE website. We know the April 1, BOE meeting took place because it is referenced in a later BOE meeting and because the AJC reporter Jen Sansbury reported on the meeting the next day April 2, 2004 (see AJC archives). Why would there be no meeting or minute notes on the DCSS BOE website when such large sums of county money were being discussed?

Minutes of this meeting and Jim Landry's audit results should be made public.

Anonymous said...

There have been parents who have been trying for 2 years to get the Ernst & Young audit into the open. The FOIA, which THEY requested, is still outstanding. These stakeholders have also sent emails to Tyson, Moseley, Thompson, and Ramsey to ask why the Ernst & Young audit was hidden by Clew. One person even asked Tyson at a meeting, when Tyson was talking about transparency, why the audit had been hidden from public view? She gave a weak response, saying the audit is too old now to be brought back out into the open. Sounded like to me it's the same excuses why some meetings minutes, which had been edited and hidden by CLew, still have not been brought out into the sunlight for all to see. Just check out the DCSS website. There are a lot of meetings minutes that are missing. Some have been edited to the point, they barely exist.

The Ernst & Young audit has something in it that Clew did not want the public to see! Why else would he work so hard to bury it? I'm amazed the DA's office has not asked for a full copy of it in the discovery process. I wonder if it shows something that could be damning to CLew?

Folks, demand transparency and ask tough questions at these charrettes this week and next. Make sure they hear your voices how disappointed you are in the lack of transparency and the fact that it's still business as usual, while this Clew inspired leadership remains in place and continue this ridiculous path off a cliff!

Folks, before the election, this blog and others were getting the BOE and leadership into such a defensive mode. After what Tom Bowen said, saying that no message was sent on election day, we must crank it up again to make sure Mr. Bowen and the inept BOE get the message again that people are angry at the current conditions at DCSS. We must hold these corrupt people accountable for the disaster they have created.

I'm nervous that the newly elected DA will NOT investigate DCSS further and this Pope and Clew trial will be an expensive farce. WE MUST HOLD OUR LEADERS ACCOUNTABLE! NOTHING WILL CHANGE UNTIL EVERYONE IS GONE!

Cerebration said...

Additionally, we need to ensure that those who retire and collect a pension are following the employment rules :


This is from the TRS website:

"All TRS retirees may engage in the following types of employment without jeopardizing their monthly benefit:

Substitute teaching at the substitute daily rate
Private school teaching
Teaching in a state other than Georgia
Employment in the private sector
Employment with a State of Georgia agency
Self employment
Employment in non-TRS covered positions
'Temporary' employment in a TRS covered position (not to exceed 3 months in a fiscal year)."

pscexb said...

A few years ago, there were a few retirees that were either being paid at a scale above the job description or working longer than allowed by TRS. It made the news and supposedly rules were tightened to prevent this.

Knowing the questions asked about Dr. Calloway earlier, Cerebration's post seems to address why she does not have a conflict. I don't think those that work for independent charters are a part of TRS. Assuming this is true, there is no conflict with her working for LPA.

Anonymous said...

If the charter school is considered a public school, shouldn't it be part of TRS?

If the teachers are not part of the teacher retirement system, what are charter schools doing to provide these teachers with retirement benefits. Charter school teachers usually make less money in salary than a public school teacher. Just curious.

Anonymous said...

I thought the TRS made an exception for educators who either returned to the classroom or school level administration.

I know that you can't return to being a central office administrator.

Also, how do we know Callaway is actually drawing retirement?

Anonymous said...

At the last Emory/LaVista parent council meeting, Tyson made it clear that any work on reducing the central office would be done by the next superintendent. She said there are only so many things she has time for, and they picked facilities needs assessment and the redistricting effort. She said the next super would do the central office evaluation. If you want her to change her mind, you will have to make some serious noise.

Anonymous said...

Anon 1:36.. Exactly! This is exactly what they wanted. These items in your list will take over 24 months to implement. Just think if the BOE had asked the interim Super to trim the central office first! That's what interims are for? Do the dirty work and say so long! The next Super would have the same problems that Johnny Brown had, though Johnny did have a lot more baggage than some expected.

pscexb said...

Just think if the BOE had asked the interim Super to trim the central office first! That's what interims are for? Do the dirty work and say so long!

I actually disagree with this statement. Interims are just that, temporary in the position until the next full time person is hired. If they wanted someone to get the house in order, the Board should have hired a corrective superintendent with a 18 - 24 month contract and specific objectives to meet for bonus eligibility. This person could even help the Board screen prospective candidates for the full time position, if desired. Ideally this would be a retired superintendent that has a good track background in instruction, finance and organizational structure. This may sound tough but these resources do exist.

Though some disagreed with the decision, that's what Clayton County did during their troubles. It definitely made things easier when the permanent superintendent was hired.

For the definition of interim I've always understood, I think Ms. Tyson is doing more than expected.

Anonymous said...

I agree. Personally, I think Ms. Tyson may move into a Georgia DOE, federal, or learning company position since she has superintendent of such a large school system on her resume. However, if she does stay on after the new superintendent installed, she will not be well positioned with the Central Office staff if she made significant cuts in that area. Many members of the BOE would not be pleased either if their friends and family were impacted in the administrative and support budget cuts.

If the BOE had wanted to right size the DCSS staff (1230 Central Office and 7500 support personnel to 6300 teachers), they would have hired an interim superintendent with no ties to DCSS.

Anonymous said...

Should any worker at DCSS care more about how other workers view them over what is right and just for the children?

THE ONLY REASON ANYONE IN DCSS HAS A JOB IS BECAUSE OF THE CHILDREN!!!

Anonymous said...

Speaking of a connection in HR and "made up" credentials -- A certain board member who keeps her personal interests at the forefront probably would not like an audit of salaries. Seeing as how her daughter is paid as an RN in a school but has no nursing training. She works as a clinic assistant but is paid as an RN. That doesn't happen accidentally, so yes, certification should be audited too.

Anonymous said...

The BOE went with Ms. Tyson on the recommendation of Dr. Lewis.

Anonymous said...

Speaking of the BOE, I hope District 7 voters remember Ms. Roberts did not want Dr. Lewis to step down from his job as superintendent. She abstained from voting to have him step down"
"Board Vice Chair Zepora Roberts was one of the abstainers. Rather than accept his temporary resignation, Roberts said the board should have stood up for him.

“Actions speak louder than words,” she said. “Our superintendent has not done anything wrong. I am in support of him.”"

See the full story:
:http://championnewspaper.com/news/articles/321superintendent-steps-down-from-job-for-now-as-construction-investigation-widens321.html

"

Anonymous said...

@ anonymous 3:11

What BOE member has a daughter paid as an RN but is not licensed as an RN? I would very much like to look up this employee on the state Salary and Travel site to see what she was paid in 2009? How do you know she doesn't have a nursing license?

Anonymous said...

@ Anonymous

"There have been parents who have been trying for 2 years to get the Ernst & Young audit into the open. The FOIA, which THEY requested, is still outstanding. "

This is what the Georgia FOIA says:
"Government agencies must either comply with or deny a written request for public records within three working days after receiving it.

This is from the georgia.gov website:
"An agency must produce records responsive to a request within three business days absent exceptional circumstances. If the records cannot be produced within three business days, the agency must inform the requestor, in writing, when the records will be produced, the cost to produce the records (if any), and, if applicable, the specific legal authority exempting the records from disclosure, by Code section, subsection, and paragraph."

It seems odd DCSS would not have given parents the Ernst and Young audit summary since:
"If a person knowingly and willfully violates the Act by failing or refusing to provide access to records not subject to exemption within the statutory time frame, the person may be found guilty of a misdemeanor and fined up to $100. Destruction of records to avoid their disclosure under the Act may be a felony and subject to substantial fine and imprisonment."

Georgia Open Records Act website:
http://law.ga.gov/00/channel_modifieddate/0,2096,87670814_87670967,00.html

Remedies for non-compliance:
http://law.ga.gov/00/article/0,2086,87670814_87996542_88002505,00.html

Anonymous said...

@3:11pm Agreed; the salary issue is critical, but there should be a full audit of qualifications, as well. The state issues certificates but the documentation (a recent change) like test scores and mandatory classwork, goes to DCSS HR,and they validate credentials, so if you have a connection to someone on the inside...

Anonymous said...

There are only a few females on the board. I am assuming this is Sara Wood's daughter.

Anonymous said...

By the way Womack was trying to get a reaction out of her tonight. It was interesting to watch. He really likes Ms. Woods a great deal. They appear to be best friends on the board.

Anonymous said...

Darn! If this Lewis-Pope shenanigans had been discovered in 2007, Lakeside would have gotten a brand new high school!!

Time to advocate and militate for the main building to be an add-on to the new add-ons!!

Anonymous said...

DeKalb needs to go back to an open salary schedule where there is no secret about anyones' credentials nor placement on the salary schedule. Why is Robert Tucker around making a BIG salary when Ron Ramsey was hired after he retired to do that job?
Why are sects. now called Administrative assts. without degrees and make $100,000. Now what does a chemistry teacher with a masters degree make?
There is no consistancy in pay since Lewis started sending memos to add 5 or 6 thousand dollars to his favorites salaries without any regard to performace just loyalty to the "king". Yes, let's come clean, get rid of ALL retirees in any capacity and let them live by states rules. Title I needs to be under new leadership and new direction by an outsider who maybe a new outside Supt. will bring on Board.
This will begin to help the morale problem. Pay the line teachers & administrators in the school house more than most of the central office personnel and let them run there ships and be accountable.

Anonymous said...

Look, with enough people living in Dekalb County to elect the likes of Copelin-Wood, Cunningham, Walker, and probably Zepora, all of this discussion is really irrelevant. This Board will most likely increase taxes next year. This will drive people who are simply fed up with this mess and who pay substantial taxes now out of this County. Dekalb will not be able to attract people to replace the lost revenues. Businesses will also increasingly leave this county - and take their taxes with them. This will require even higher level of taxes and the cycle will eventually lead to an implosion. The people left in this county will not be able to pay the taxes necessary to run this school system.

I suppose that you can see that I'm pessimistic about this county. Our own residents have chosen this inept, bumbling, and incompetent school board and now we all get to live with the results.

Our best hope is for SACS to do its job, find what all of us know is there, and then for Governor Deal to get the turkeys of a School Board gone.

Anonymous said...

If there is someone in a school saying they are a nurse this is very much against the law. If she is being paid the salary for a nurse this also would be against the law. This makes me sick to think that we have people in the system that should be there to help our children and they are not. When is sacs going to do there job and stop all this. I am so tried of this system and i will be so glad when my children are out of this mess. I have been trying to sale my home for over a year and we will be gone. I knew we were in trouble when that picked lEWIS FOR A SUPER.

I think lewis is trying to keep that lawyer because he is probably not charging him the full price or nothing at all. Hopeful he will have to get a new one and all the money he and pope stole from our children they will be broke. From just looking at all that is going on nothing will probably ever be done to any of them. The board is corrupt, central office, hr,they all are like dogs fighting over a bone to see who can make the most money.

Anonymous said...

Robert Tucker should have been gone a long time ago. How is tsa not picking up on this? Robert was a jerk long time ago and he has no life. All that money he is making and no life. He is holding a job that someone else should have. They keep him around to cover for Ramsey who works when he wants to. When all is said and done dekalb and new birth will have some secrets that will rock dekalb county.

Anonymous said...

I am sorry i mean trs.

Anonymous said...

Big Article on New Birth today...

http://www.ajc.com/news/dekalb/church-confirms-long-trips-733966.html

Responding on Monday to four lawsuits alleging that Bishop Eddie Long coerced young men into sexual relations, New Birth Missionary Baptist Church acknowledged that the accusers accompanied the pastor on trips but said it could not confirm or deny whether anything inappropriate took place.

Anonymous said...

12:34 We're probably footing the bill for the lawyer that Lewis wants to keep. Probably a deal that they'll only charge him the $100,000 that the board had promised him.

Anonymous said...

If Sara Copelin-wood's daughter is a nurse in a DCSS school, she must hold a LPN or RN license. Look on PATS. There is a recently posted nurse position for Panola Way Elementary. A LPN or RN license is required for this position. I have seen this statement on other blogs, but it's unimaginable that HR would hire a medical professional without a license.

See below from PATS posting:
"Panola Way Elementary is currently seeking a highly energetic and GA-licensed school (RN-LPN) nurse to work with elementary-aged students. The ideal applicant must be dependable, conscientious, and a team player. Duties include but are not limited to the following: conducting and/or coordinating school health programs, including screenings, assessment of immunization status, and testing for hearing and vision as appropriate; performing student health procedures and assisting students with administration of medications; assuming the responsibility for selection and referral of students in need of medical and dental care; reporting to parents, school personnel, physicians, and other health agencies on school health issues; and organizing and coordinating school health fair and other health related programs to benefit students, staff, and the community at large. The applicant must have a working knowledge of federal, state, and local laws and regulations affecting the delivery of school health services, normal and abnormal child development, and educational principles and approaches pertinent to children with various intellectual and learning disabilities, special needs preschool children, and principles of nursing. Additionally, the applicant must exhibit a kind and caring manner, be able to communicate effectively with children and adults, be flexible and organized."

Anonymous said...

@ Cerebration

"Communities will always pay people to keep them safe, which makes a criminal justice degree a valuable commodity in today's tight job market. According to the Department of Labor, opportunities for security guards are expected to grow 14 percent between 2008 and 2018.

Growing Career: Security Guard
Wage: $11.45/hr
Salary: $23,827"


DCSS has 218 Security employees at a cost of $12,500,000 in salary and benefits. This is an average of $57,300 per Security employee.

This is an area that sorely needs to be looked at for outsourcing, yet Ms. Tyson has not earmarked this area for outsourcing consideration. I know BOE member Walker has a son who is a Security guard so he can't be too keen on possible right sizing in this area, but what's the reason the rest of the BOE have refused to look at any adjustments in this area. Womack stood strong for keeping the canine units in the 2010 budget. The rest of the BOE went along with him while they cut over 400 teaching positions in the last 2 years and packed students into ever crowded classrooms.

Does the BOE think classrooms can't run without dogs, but they can run without teachers?


source: 2009 state salary and travel audit.

Anonymous said...

Anon@8:41 Although the school nurse job in PATS indicates that a Georgia license is required in the PUBLIC listing,that may not be the case. HR needs to be audited along with salaries, etc. Qualifications, credentials, and licensing apparently don't matter if you have an 'inside track.'

Anonymous said...

Sarah Copelin-Wood's daugher is Thomakia Copelin and she is the nurse at Oak View Elementary. She was recently arrested and returned to school the very next day. Look it up on the DeKalb Sheriff's site for confirmation. I'm sure Ms. Woods had something to do with the cover-up.

Anonymous said...

@ Anonymous 3:28 pm

"Although the school nurse job in PATS indicates that a Georgia license is required in the PUBLIC listing,that may not be the case. HR needs to be audited along with salaries, etc. Qualifications, credentials, and licensing apparently don't matter if you have an 'inside track.' "

When a job is posted on PATS, DCSS must require that personnel meet the criteria or they can face a lawsuit so if PATS says the school nurse job requires a nursing license RN or LPN, then this job requires a nursing license whether you are applying from within the county or outside of the county.

Anonymous said...

Facing a lawsuit has rarely impeded some of the questionable actions of DCSS leadership, as has been demonstrated this past year. There should be a complete AUDIT of the system.

Anonymous said...

Having a school nurse that is not an RN or LPN when you specify that those are the required credentials on the official school website is surely an ethics violation if that person is related to a BOE member. I don't think DCSS HR would have hired her if she didn't have an LPN or RN license.

Anonymous said...

Look for her certification:
https://secure.sos.state.ga.us/myverification/Search.aspx

Ella Smith said...

I have seen situations where there has been someone staffed to worked in the nurses station who is not a RN who works for a RN who serves a cluster as a clinic aid. They do have training. However, I do not know what the situation is here. All individuals who work in the office and take care of the health issues in schools are not school nurses. However, some of them are school nurses. I do not know what DeKalb County does. However, all counties do not have school nurses working in the school clinic. They have clinic aids or assistants. I am not for sure that schools could afford nurses at every school. That is why they used to have cluster nurses and clinic aids with training. I may be wrong but I am assuming this may still be the case in some areas. I know this is the case in Fulton County.

Schools with high special needs populations with health issues may need school nurses. Sometimes this is a deciding factor. If there are children who need medical procedures that a clinic aid is not qualified to do then a school nurse would need to be hired instead of a clinic aid.

Anonymous said...

I don't think the nurse at our elementary school is an RN. And she isn't the daughter of a board member.

What are the qualifications of the clinic workers?

Anonymous said...

Sarah Copelin-Wood's daughter Thomakia Copelin in a little trouble (and it's a felony):

Offense Date
28-JAN-10

Charge Level / Code and Description
FINANCIAL TRANS CARD FRAUD/Felony

Filing Date
08-FEB-2010

COPELIN, THOMAKIA ROSHAY
DOB: 08-MAY-74
SPN: X0405631
BOOKING DATE: 28-JAN-10 01:23 PM
RELEASE DATE: 29-JAN-10 03:37 PM

Anonymous said...

So DCSS employee Thomakia Copelin is facing felony charges. Would a regular DCSS employee who's not the daughter of a BOE member be in trouble with Ron Ramsey's office of Internal Affairs?

Anonymous said...

There was just that news piece about a teacher in GA who was indicted for trying to poison her husband and she is keeping her job.

http://articles.cnn.com/2010-11-05/justice/georgia.teacher.poison_1_ambien-prescription-melatonin?_s=PM:CRIME

I am not sure what leeway school systems have until someone is convicted if it happens off school property and not involving school funds.

Anonymous said...

Wouldn't these incidents show up on one's criminal back ground check?

Anonymous said...

Who audits the auditors?

Anonymous said...

I was told you can not have a felony and work for the school system. Years ago i worked with the finger printing and back ground checks and let me tell you hr has cover up paper work all over the county. We have employees out there that should not be working with children. We need to demand that ms. tyson bring in a private company and do back ground checks and i can assure you the walls will come down. If this would happen look out Friends and Family.

Anonymous said...

There is a difference between a felony charge and a conviction. The charges listed here were in late January. Given how slow justice moves in DeKalb, I am guessing that this hasn't come to trial yet.

Not defending SCW or her child, but just stating the facts.

Everything is a mess in DeKalb including the prosecutor's office.

Anonymous said...

Background checks are also done when certification is up for renewal for teachers and administrators. Not sure about other employees. They may have their background check done once and work for the system for years without another check.

Ella Smith said...

I know the clinical assistants do have training. However, I am not sure to what extent. I do know that all clinical workers in Fulton and Gwinnett are not certified nurses so I assuming this may be the case in DeKalb also.

Anonymous said...

A salary audit conducted on the salary of the children of the Family and Friends would be very interesting.
What about Dr. Callaway's children? Plus, some of the other DCSS family and friends that are making a high salary and donot have the correct credentials.
Just do a complete audit from the palace on Mountain Industrial to the schools and etc.

Anonymous said...

@ Ella

The PATS posting for School Nurse species the requirement of RN or LPN licensure. That's as specific as saying a teacher must have a certificate in biology to teach biology. There's no equivocation here.
https://pats.dekalb.k12.ga.us/

Anonymous said...

I think that when you work with children you should have a clean record. But we had a super that had more than one DUI. And now Lewis, pope and moody. what more can i say.

Anonymous said...

School nurse and clinic workers are two different positions I think.

Anonymous said...

Can't somoene report the arrest to the state governing boards? SACS? the media? Someone should care..... not just us.....

Anonymous said...

State governing boards care after a conviction.

See the article above about teacher who was arrested for poisoning her husband.

Anonymous said...

Copelin-Wood barely had ovver 50 percent to win her campaign race. I wonder if it had become public that her school employee daughter had been charged with felony fraud, would she had received less than 50 percent, and be in a run-off right now with Corey Wilson?

Anonymous said...

Gene Walker's son inherited his father's questionable ethics:

http://www.ajc.com/news/dekalb/finalist-for-dekalb-housing-629737.html

Anonymous said...

Our county commisioners are no better when it comes to ethics:

http://www.ajc.com/news/dekalb/dekalb-candidate-got-county-735572.html

Anonymous said...

Corruption is rampant in DeKalb. Remember the school system is a symptom of the problem, not the illness itself.

Gene Walker's son got the job...

http://www.crossroadsnews.com/view/full_story/9925940/article-Development-expert-to-helm-embattled-DeKalb-Housing-Authority?instance=home_more_headlines

Anonymous said...

And then there is this jewel from DeKalb:

Stan Watson got transition money and the use of a secretary before the election had even been held. I know he ran unopposed but still, really?

http://www.ajc.com/news/dekalb/dekalb-candidate-got-county-735572.html

In September, Watson wrote a letter to Commissioner Larry Johnson, the presiding officer, for $15,000 to hire an administrative assistant for his “transition effort.”

On Oct. 25 – a week before the election – Johnson told Watson that he could have $5,000, according to records obtained by the AJC. His part-time secretary started Nov. 1.

County officials said Watson is not receiving a salary, just the secretary. The money will come from leftover dollars in the commission’s central staff budget, Johnson said. Johnson also said no vote was necessary because it was under $100,000.

Commissioners Jeff Rader and Connie Stokes said they didn’t know that the money had been awarded since no vote was taken.

“It’s more important now that the commissioner come in prepared and their staff knows what to do,” Johnson told the AJC. “We have a $30 million deficit, the pension, furloughs and all kind of problems. This is an imperfect storm and we’re trying to get him acclimated.”

Prior to Johnson’s letter, Gannon wrote a letter objecting to the money.

“This would seem to be a bad precedent to set, especially during this time of budget shortfalls that will continue into 2011,” Gannon wrote. “With only two months left before the holiday break $15,000 is equivalent to a salary of $90,000.”

Anonymous said...

Opps, we were posting at the same time.

And you are right, corruption, stupidity and selfishness is the norm in our county.

Anonymous said...

Let's hope that the cluelessly out of touch BOE Chair Tom Bowen and the other members of the BOE and massive number of Central office administrators read the report.



http://www.ajc.com/news/dekalb/study-politics-deters-growth-737423.html

Study: Politics deters growth in DeKalb


Political infighting, public school problems and lack of coordination have caused DeKalb County to miss out on economic development opportunities, an Atlanta consultant said.

A study obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution found DeKalb’s economic development model is “inefficient, dysfunctional and sends the wrong message to firms considering doing business in the county.”

Consultants also found that the county’s school system is one of the major detractors for DeKalb.

“A lot a negative publicity surrounding academic performance has damaged DeKalb’s ability to attract business,” Tinsley said.
The chamber has already cited beleaguered schools as the number one problem, including recent negative publicity surrounding an accreditation investigation, allegations of teacher cheating, a superintendent indicted for corruption and other ethical violations.

Ellis said he has made an effort to talk weekly with the school board chairman and interim superintendent to make sure there is an improvement in communication.

“We can’t afford any longer to look at county government and the school system at different tables,” Ellis said. “We can’t move on doing things the same old way.”

Anonymous said...

Keep in mind, Ronald Ramsey will not touch the children nor their parents (Family & Friends)if they are sent to his office.
He really needs to work on the Palace before he tries to dismiss people on the lower levels of the Palace.
Let us pray and hope that SACS will uncover the Family and Friends Plan, Greek Connection,s Church, etc mess. It is rampant on the South end of Dekalb. This is why the scores are terrible. Grown folks stepping, parading Greek wear as though they are in college and using clubs with Greek colors to entice the children instead of teaching standards.Check out the middle and high schools if you need to see a Greek fashion show and during the month of February, principals step with their fraternity or sorority. Can you believe this?

Anonymous said...

And may I add to the above blog that Ron Ramsey's department of Internal Affairs will even knowingly bring down innocent people to protect these friends and family.

Anonymous said...

It is puzzling why the educators on the South end of the county are more interested in wearing Greek clothing and symbols instead of teaching children.
Administrators are given jobs based on their fraternity or sorority connections. While Calloway and Clue was in office, this type of behavior was promoted during especially during job interviews.
Ronald Ramsey frat connections landed him the job as the missing director over no internal affairs.He will investigate everyone except his friends, churchmembers, frats and others. Look at how he turned his head when all of the corruption was exposed by the television stations. Yet, he is still being paid a high salary with DCSS and as a missing Senator or whatever he is called. Family and Friends are in still in power and hopefully the salary audit will be revealed with the investigation of SACS. This is why the county went broke trying to pay all of the incompetent people in the Palace.