Schools debates public information request

Access to information dominated discussion at a special meeting of the Lorain City Schools Board of Education on April 9.

In the wake of a public records request filed School Board President Tony Dimacchia, board member Yvonne Johnson took exception to the notion the Board was being “kept in the dark” by CEO David Hardy Jr. on information regarding turnaround principal candidates suggesting information from the district was readily available through town hall meetings and other public sessions.

Lorain Schools hosted a community meet and greet on April 7 where interviews took place for turnaround principal finalists by community panels.

“So I read from Tony (Dimacchia) that said that all of us were kept in the dark. It was simply a matter of coming to the meeting where the CEO (Hardy) was holding it. It was open to the public. They could have met all of them. They sat in a semi-circle and mingled with us and we had a chance to talk to all of them. It bothers me when I see something that says all of the Board of Education because all of us are not in the dark and we do know about the new hires and fires. And we go and talk with the

CEO and other administrators and we find out the information,” Johnson said.

Johnson added at the April 7 meeting she was able to obtain information on the candidates despite information not being provided directly to the Board. In response to Board member Tim Williams, Johnson alluded to the need for the Board to be flexible in how they receive information.

“We don’t receive our information that way anymore. We receive our information from going to the town hall meetings. We receive our information from going to the eight-o-clock community meetings. The CEO has decided that his tool of communication has changed and he had the authority to do that. So he’s not going to send information the way we request it because he already, as the CEO, has an entirely different way of us receiving the information. And if we don’t go along with that we don’t get the information the way we should. So we have to be flexible now to understand that we are working with a change agent and he is not doing anything the way we used to do it,” Johnson said.

Dimacchia clarified in the letter he was speaking on behalf of himself as a Board member and no one else and reiterated his stance of the lack of information being provided by the District.

In a statement to The Morning Journal, Dimacchia said it’s important for the Board to receive information to get an accurate picture of the District’s situation.

“It needs to be clear that the information I’m requesting should really be given to the Board without making a public records request. But this is the culture and climate that the CEO has created. So I guess that we will just continue to make the requests,” Dimacchia said.

“It is also important to know that even though the CEO has these town hall meetings that he gives information to the public… It needs to be understood that information is not always true and accurate information. My requests are for getting the real information and not just something that sounds good to the community.”

Williams concurred with Dimacchia in suggesting sharing of information directly with the Board.

“The fact that we have to receive information by public information request is crazy. The fact that we have to go and request information is crazy. Information about the district, whether we are making the decisions or not, should be provided to us. Why? Because of our responsibility as elected officials. Not because we get to say who’s fired, who’s hired or how much they make. It’s not about the decision, it’s about the information,” Williams said.

In a public records request Dimacchia filed April 5 with Hardy and Chief Strategy and Information Officer Joshua Hill, who remains the school district treasurer stated:

“We the undersigned members of the Board of Education have been kept in the dark about the new hires, fires and changes in the district,” Dimacchia said in the letter.

“We apparently are unfortunately going to have to rely on receiving information pursuant to our state public records law,” he said.

Dimacchia asked for a number of documents regarding the turnaround principal positions including:

• Evaluations of all non renewed/released/fired principals being replaced by “turnaround principal positions.”

• Communications between the school district central office, selection committee and other people involved in the firing, nonrenewal and release of principals.

• Names, resumes and credentials of all the applicants for turnaround principal positions.

Dimacchia also requested the school officials treat the public records requests as standing requests because the board will continue to ask for the information every several weeks.

“We the undersigned members of the Board of Education have been kept in the dark about the new hires, fires and changes in the district.”

— School Board President Tony Dimacchia