tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post237385217928802127..comments2024-01-08T03:21:35.616-05:00Comments on DeKalb County School Watch: At least the lawyers are getting rich...Cerebrationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11161868015604029471noreply@blogger.comBlogger89125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-34858598638757729502010-07-31T12:11:26.656-04:002010-07-31T12:11:26.656-04:00All the demographic data for a school can be found...All the demographic data for a school can be found on the GADOE State Report cards. Here is Lakeside's, does not include this past school year:<br /><br />http://reportcard2009.gaosa.org/(S(nwmnbj455tu1rs555rwtx055))/k12/demographics.aspX?ID=644:3060&TestKey=EnR&TestType=demographicsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-37308749951934551892010-07-31T12:09:10.897-04:002010-07-31T12:09:10.897-04:00The additional legal costs were spent as the board...<i>The additional legal costs were spent as the board cut $104 million from its budget, including laying off 289 workers and mandating furlough days for staff.</i>Cerebrationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11161868015604029471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-56725640424146836232010-07-31T12:04:13.099-04:002010-07-31T12:04:13.099-04:00UPDATE:
Ex-schools chief's trial means more l...UPDATE:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.ajc.com/news/dekalb/ex-schools-chiefs-trial-582114.html" rel="nofollow">Ex-schools chief's trial means more legal fees for DeKalb</a><br /><br /><i>Former Superintendent Crawford Lewis’ trial at the end of August likely will mean higher attorney bills for DeKalb County schools, which has already overspent its legal budget by millions of dollars.</i><br /><br />This doesn't even touch on the civil case with Heery/Mitchell. We've already spent enough on lawyers to have built an auditorium at Cross Keys or Chamblee - the last two remaining high schools that were not included or were bumped from plans for auditoriums at all high schools.<br /><br />Nice trough these lawyers have been feeding at - from both sides!Cerebrationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11161868015604029471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-21408615674267540502010-07-26T13:36:10.844-04:002010-07-26T13:36:10.844-04:00To your point, Anon July 20, 2010 8:46 PM -
You a...To your point, Anon July 20, 2010 8:46 PM -<br /><br />You are correct, and the Census is very clear regarding the "Hispanic" label. They do tag the extra "white/non-Hispanic" separately. In fact, using that label, DeKalb county is only 31% white. (Just "white" accounts for 40%.) But they have no Hispanic/black label. Strictly labeled Latinos account for 10.4%. <br /><br />http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/13/13089.html<br /><br />Our school collection data is somewhat murkier. I began questioning this when I read the principal's report from Lakeside dated Feb 9, 2010. In it, Principal Reed claims Lakeside is 55% white, 33% black, 2% Indian, 1% multiple race, and 8% Asian, however, there is no category at all for Hispanic. <br /><br />Well, that is until you scroll down the page to the attendance numbers. There he categorizes the 165 students who missed more than 15 days of school into categories of male/female and Hispanic/Not Hispanic. (38 are Hispanic.) So - apparently, there are Hispanics at Lakeside after all. In fact, in another column he points out that there are 37 Hispanics in 11th grade, along with 35 Asian, 94 black, and 154 white. Of the total 330, 27 with disabilities, 31 English learners and 87 Economically Disadvantaged.<br /><br />So, 37 of 330 juniors are Hispanic which is about 11%. I wonder what that number is school-wide. He doesn't tell us - we only get 11th grade so that we can see who is passing the graduation test (AYP data).Cerebrationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11161868015604029471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-92149439476954100202010-07-26T11:55:36.450-04:002010-07-26T11:55:36.450-04:00Special ed cases are probably included. This is a ...Special ed cases are probably included. This is a national issue about appropriateness of services and who provides what.<br /><br />School systems often fight provision of services for fear of setting a precedent!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-71939572099003882432010-07-26T11:08:54.341-04:002010-07-26T11:08:54.341-04:00Well, now, we have no idea because there is no tra...Well, now, we have no idea because there is no transparency on the issue. We have no way of accessing exactly how much of our tax dollars our school officials are spending on attorneys - unless we file an open records request ($). Even then, I have a feeling we would not get the whole picture.<br /><br />The only truly transparent action the board could take would be to join the hundreds of school districts nationwide who are posting their check registers online for taxpayers to see.<br /><br />Check out the movement promoted by a Texas education advocate -<br /><br />http://www.peytonwolcott.com/CheckRegisters_Alaska_Louisiana.htmlCerebrationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11161868015604029471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-1631541781740338862010-07-26T10:56:44.556-04:002010-07-26T10:56:44.556-04:00Does the total dollars spent on legal fees include...Does the total dollars spent on legal fees include money spent on special education legal fees? The county spends an exceptional amount of money fighting with families on their definition of what the system should provide their child. To take that a step further, the county not only pays the Dekalb lawyers to argue these private lawyers, Dekalb pays to privatly educate a child in their home despite appropriate services offered in schools.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-30148544122789353332010-07-26T09:15:52.401-04:002010-07-26T09:15:52.401-04:00I'm sure that King and Spalding will get their...I'm sure that King and Spalding will get their share, irregardless.<br />They RUN Georgia. Sutherland Asbill<br />was connected to Vernon Jones during his last unsuccessful congressional run. Walker probably pushed to get them on board, as a former Vernon disciple. As for Alexander? Maybe she belongs to the right church.<br /> Interesting idea about kickbacks- are these firms hired on a billable hour basis? If someone at the school board keeps the meter running there might be a <br />"gentleman's understanding".<br /> I used to wonder about some of the constantly deferred zoning decisions that the county board of comissioners made, moreso after noticing that most of the deferrals were handled by a firm that many on the board were rather fond of.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-9953211444992669182010-07-24T11:20:11.862-04:002010-07-24T11:20:11.862-04:00Now comes the Oct 2 meeting -
Mr. Bowen reminded...Now comes the Oct 2 meeting - <br /><br /><i>Mr. Bowen reminded the Board that the purpose of this meeting was to receive information from the Superintendent, as requested by the Board during the September 28, 2009 called meeting, regarding re-negotiating the flat fee rate for legal services.<br /><br />Dr. Lewis stated that he had met with the two firms (Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan and Alexander & Associates), and that an agreement had been reached. He noted that both firms had agreed to provide legal services to the school district and to the Board of Education at a flat rate of $1.7 million beginning October 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010. Dr. Lewis stated that this flat rate fee excluded complex litigation, bond work and expenses. He stated that Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan’s fees, beginning October 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010 would be $1,085,000, and Alexander & Associates would receive $615,000 for the same time period. Dr. Lewis further recommended that the General Counsel will be responsible for the legal health of the district, and all other counsel present and\or future will report to the General Counsel. As General Counsel for the District, Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan will make the assignment and determination of how cases will be shared going forward, consistent with the Board’s previous action. Dr. Lewis concluded that after several long and exhausting meetings, both firms have now agreed to the conditions outlined in the recommendation and also noted that both firms are very supportive of this agreement. He asked that the Board accept and approve the recommendations to allow the District to move forward and fulfill its mission of educating all students in DeKalb County Schools.<br /></i><br /><br />This is when the vote to accept the plan was unanimous...Cerebrationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11161868015604029471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-64994603619091474762010-07-24T11:15:10.034-04:002010-07-24T11:15:10.034-04:00From the Sept 28 Called Meeting Minutes -
Dr. Lew...From the Sept 28 Called Meeting Minutes -<br /><br /><i>Dr. Lewis reaffirmed that during the called meeting on Friday, August 28, 2009, the Board of Education charged him with moving forward to begin negotiations of flat rate fees with the newly appointed General Counsel – Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan and Alexander and Associates. He also reaffirmed that both firms had previously submitted their proposed flat rate fees, however, given the current financial challenges of the school district, the Board felt that both firms’ proposed fees were too high. Dr. Lewis stated that during the negotiation period, he spoke with both firms individually to talk about their flat rate fees and the Board’s objective to save money given the current state of the economy and budget challenges. During those discussions, each firm was provided with a copy of the school district’s legal fees from the past two fiscal years, as well as fees for the immediate past calendar year, which averaged approximately $3 - $3.2 million dollars. Dr. Lewis concluded that both firms - Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan and Alexander & Associates have now submitted their final flat rate fee proposals for the Board’s consideration.</i><br /><br />ok, so but bruhaha is about this Sept 28 meeting where Lewis was supposed to have presented flat rate fees to the board from both Alexander and Sutherland that would show a savings to the district. There was also a proposal from Sutherland that they would do all of the work for $1.7 million (a savings of over a half-million). But Alexander did not submit a similar proposal - just a proposal for the same work they had always done only at a flat rate instead of hourly billing. Cunningham and Walker thought this was very unfair and racially motivated. They could have voted to reject Womack's proposal to accept Sutherland's bid and then they could move on and vote on the two separate proposals on the table. Cunningham suggested using Sutherland's $1.7 million price for the total legal contract, but splitting it up between them and Alexander. That's what the board passed at this meeting. Of course, the firms had to agree and Lewis was to renegotiate - which is what was presented at the Oct 2 meeting.Cerebrationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11161868015604029471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-50535875530970427582010-07-24T09:49:55.393-04:002010-07-24T09:49:55.393-04:00...And so are the superintendent/assistant adminis......And so are the superintendent/assistant administrators/coordinators/directorsin Dekalb County Schools!!!! <br /><br />BOE needs to restructure salaries outside of the local schools!!!<br /><br />http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_bell_salariesAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-69342728910413306412010-07-24T07:43:22.285-04:002010-07-24T07:43:22.285-04:00So, I went and read the minutes of the meeting and...So, I went and read the minutes of the meeting and the article is a bit misleading. At first, both firms were individually over what the board wanted to spend.<br /><br />There was a second called meeting on October 2, 2009 where the firms came back and had put together a package that combined was about the same as each had originally proposed together.<br /><br />So, the new law firm offered to do all services for 1.7 million. A few days later, Sutherland et al and Alexander had worked out a deal to do the job together for the same 1.7 million. <br /><br /><i>Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan as General Counsel for the period beginning October 1, 2009 and ending June 30, 2010 in a total amount of $1,085,000 and Alexander & Associates for the period beginning October 1, 2009 and ending June 30, 2010, in a total amount of $615,000. It is further recommended that the General Counsel (Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan) will be responsible for the legal health of the district and all other counsel present and\or future will report to the General Counsel. As General Counsel for the District, Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan will make the assignment and determination of how cases will be shared going forward, consistent with the Board’s previous action. Dr. Speaks seconded the motion. With a unanimous vote, the motion passed.</i>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-72951280719906730192010-07-23T21:56:21.689-04:002010-07-23T21:56:21.689-04:00Looks like there's a called meeting to discuss...Looks like there's a called meeting to discuss legal fees. Good. I only hope someone asks the question that if diversity is the issue and DeKalb taxpayers are footing the legal bills, how many "diverse" attorneys and support staff are benefiting from the decision to use that particular firm.<br /><br />And while they're at it, a clarification of the term "diverse" would be appropriate. Does this mean only African American? Or in the case of DeKalb County does it equally include Caucasian, Indian, Latino, Asian, African, Island Pacific and others?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-57063713011540414762010-07-22T14:47:13.384-04:002010-07-22T14:47:13.384-04:00See what happens when a board loses the public tru...See what happens when a board loses the public trust? We "go to" the worst possible scenario at every announcement. Sad. <br /><br />I don't think it's so much hidden though. I mean, it's well-known (thanks to Jim Walls at Atlanta Unfiltered) that we paid Judge Moore about a half-million dollars to deem Atherton "bully-free" after Jaheem's suicide.<br /><br />We do have many, many cases settled with the school system - it would be interesting to review an in-depth accounting of every penny. <br /><br />Time for that audit! Any candidate who does not promise to push hard for an audit will not get my vote.Cerebrationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11161868015604029471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-26081826755273803772010-07-22T12:57:34.688-04:002010-07-22T12:57:34.688-04:00Maybe I need to clean up my mind but I was thinkin...Maybe I need to clean up my mind but I was thinking the same thing. That's a lot on money being spent on legal fees yet nobody in position to do something about it, is really concerned about it.<br /><br />I was thinking along the lines of kickbacks (RICO), though.A Motherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13231200660367002550noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-21319429965531611202010-07-22T11:26:18.103-04:002010-07-22T11:26:18.103-04:00OMG CERE!!!!
With all the alleged corruption in t...OMG CERE!!!!<br /><br />With all the alleged corruption in the district this thread got me wondering if this could happen:<br /><br />Suppose you had a rogue attorney who supported the friends & family plan. Is it possible for them to recommend to someone to file a lawsuit, which then the district would settle behind the scenes?<br /><br />With $3M+ per year in legal fees, some of these lawsuits must have been settled. I have never seen a settlement judgment come as a board agenda item, have you?<br /><br />While the details of a case is, the judgment award should not be protected by Executive Session / Open Meetings. So who's making these decisions? And who's approving the payments? And who's receiving the payments????<br /><br />They can't hide behind the insurance companies as the district was for several years self insured. I can't believe in all these years no settlements were made. Does anyone know where the checks-and-balances are on this topic?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-91410673397419707672010-07-22T09:42:38.756-04:002010-07-22T09:42:38.756-04:00On Common Ground News published a pretty good conc...On Common Ground News published a pretty good concise report on the meeting at the time as well -<br /><br /><a href="http://ocgnews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=636:tempers-flare-over-school-districts-legal-services&catid=25:community-news&Itemid=70" rel="nofollow">Tempers flare over School District’s legal services</a>Cerebrationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11161868015604029471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-89490197334316136262010-07-22T07:16:49.181-04:002010-07-22T07:16:49.181-04:00Thanks for the link 6:55am.
What stuck out to me ...Thanks for the link 6:55am.<br /><br />What stuck out to me wasn't so much the dysfunction of the board, but the dysfunction of the finance staff. According to Anon (July 20, 8:49am) Turk set the legal budget at $934,816. According to the minutes provided the past few years legal expense has been between $3M and $3.2M., not including expenses from more "complicated" cases.<br /><br />Why would the board intentionally under-budget legal fees by a couple of million dollars knowing they'll need to make a mid year budget adjustment? Maybe the answer is to either 1) to stay under the radar that there's so many legal problems due to poor leadership or 2) to keep paying 2 law firms for legal work, some of which may overlap. <br /><br />Regardless, they significantly under budgeted. And we should be told the truth why.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-21796126469667135542010-07-22T06:55:47.856-04:002010-07-22T06:55:47.856-04:00Let me start by saying that I don't support th...Let me start by saying that I don't support the decision to use two firms or how it was made. However, reading the minutes is very insightful to understand how the board ended up here.<br /><br />Unfortunately, the minutes are in word form and so I can simply attach the link, but I can tell you how to find them.<br /><br /> https://eboard.eboardsolutions.com/Meetings/ViewMeetingOrder.aspx?S=4054&MID=10513<br /><br /> If you pull up the agenda for the Nov. 2 2009 meeting and read the minutes for the 9-28 (not the exec session one) and 10-2 meetings, you get a much better picture of what was going on.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-66021418088260609072010-07-21T23:25:22.369-04:002010-07-21T23:25:22.369-04:00How can anyone vote for any member of this board w...How can anyone vote for any member of this board who would allow two attorneys firms to be paid this kind of money. We are the laughing stock of the school board legal attorney groups. First of all they cannot believe Ms. Alexander has been making all the money she has the last few years. That is unthinkable as she has farmed so much of the school business out and second of all the school system keeps her on because of race and continues to pay her a big salary along with another big firm. <br /><br />Decisions should not be made along race. Decisions should always be made on what is best for the children. Today it is discriminatory to not hire a firm because they are too black or too white or not to hire a firm because of this. However, this is what happen here in Dekalb. Dr. Walker admits he did see color when making his decision. How can this be just and fair in the 21st century? The color of a person's skin does not justify if he/she should get a job. A decision should be made today on qualifications along and the price given by the firm.<br /><br />How can we allow these board members who voted "yes" to remain on the board? We must vote against them regardless of who we are. We must move this school system into the 21st century. We must have board members who have visions in the 21st century and are not stuck back in time.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-57472585383827870322010-07-21T23:05:00.289-04:002010-07-21T23:05:00.289-04:00Do anyone out there know when the trail will start...Do anyone out there know when the trail will start for lewis, pope/reid and the others?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-85970892160713961842010-07-21T20:30:08.878-04:002010-07-21T20:30:08.878-04:00http://www.ajc.com/news/dekalb/dekalb-schools-dive...http://www.ajc.com/news/dekalb/dekalb-schools-diversity-trumps-575198.html<br /><br />This is the link for an artice on AJC.com. It discuss additional money paid for the DCSS lawyers. <br /><br />How many para educators, or teachers or necessary support staff members could we have hired for that amount?<br /> Please remember these words. You will see a change this year. Whatever you want to believe, we have lost some valuable staff members. Even though all of them did not work in the schools, they did things to support the schools.<br />There is no use in trying to agrue this point now. But, just wait and see the ramifications.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-78816213119038815072010-07-21T18:44:04.288-04:002010-07-21T18:44:04.288-04:00@ Anonymous 6:29 pm
Jen Sansbury certainly tried ...@ Anonymous 6:29 pm<br /><br />Jen Sansbury certainly tried her best. She's the one that published the 2004 Compensation Ernst and Young's auditor's presentation to the BOE (the meeting that you won't find on the BOE website - no notes, no agenda or record of the meeting). Jen's article from the AJC archives:<br /><br />“Study: DeKalb schools overpay workers”<br />Date: April 2, 2004 Publication: Atlanta Journal-Constitution<br />The DeKalb County School System overpays more than 2,500 nonteaching employees to the tune of $14.8 million, but officials said the district may not be able to address the issue in time to affect next school year's budget.<br /><br />Ernst &Young consultant Jim Landry told school board members Thursday that some positions are "overvalued" and carry "inflated titles. "He did not cite specific examples and took care to ……….”<br /><br />I downloaded the full article for a small fee. It's interesting reading.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-53633955670712462832010-07-21T18:29:07.046-04:002010-07-21T18:29:07.046-04:00I have said this before in other posts. This will...I have said this before in other posts. This will continue until everyone in CLew-less' former cabinet is fired and we elect real BOE members in November.<br /><br />I'm so happy Ms. Mateucci of the AJC is doing some incredible reporting on DCSS. Kristina Torres never did anything like this when she was on the DCSS beat. I still think Clew and Ms. Torres had some kind of agreement where she would not to report any of the shenanigans that have been happening for the past 5 years.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-25469380795555163582010-07-21T18:26:25.590-04:002010-07-21T18:26:25.590-04:00Anonymous said...
I guess these 2 attorneys are ...<i>Anonymous said... <br /><br />I guess these 2 attorneys are worth more than 25 teachers with a Masters degree and 3 years of experience. That's what we would pay in salary and benefits for them. The next time Ms. Tyson and the BOE say we need to cut teacher positions and pack up to 36 kids in our math and science classes, we need to remember these 2 attorneys and ask them what is the return on investment we have gotten with these lawyers. We know the return on investment in our children's education we would receive with 25 highly qualified teachers.<br /><br />July 21, 2010 6:03 PM</i><br /><br />Great observation! Maybe this is a correlation the Board and administration can't pretend not to understand the impact of reckless spending on peripheral items.A Motherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13231200660367002550noreply@blogger.com