Teachers, board blast process

CEO’s teacher selection system for excellent schools draws ire

“Every teacher in the high school has to apply next week for their jobs . ... ” — Jay Pickering, Lorain Education Association president

Lorain High School teachers and school board members are responding in fury following a closed-door meeting with district leadership Feb. 22. The meeting came following a Feb. 21 announcement from Lorain City Schools CEO David Hardy Jr. at his monthly Town Hall that teachers would have to go through a “selection process” to remain employed at Lorain High School as part of a plan to build excellent schools. Lorain High was identified as the worst performing school in the district and branded an Empowerment School. “It was a conversation that we had as a team to talk about the future to give our teachers space to ask questions and think through things they’re grappling with and make sure they understand the process that ensued,” Hardy said. “And to ensure we have a space to understand what challenges we’re facing and move forward.”

Lorain Education Association President Jay Pickering said teachers were given no warning about the announcement of the selection process before the Town Hall and were told every teacher would be evaluated beginning in about a week lasting until May. “(Hardy) announced his plan which is a timeline, not a plan,” Pickering said. “Every teacher in the high school has to apply next week for their jobs. “It was a really bizarre meeting and he didn’t really answer any questions directly. There were a lot of tears by teachers today. “He wouldn’t say if every teacher would have a job next year. These younger teachers won’t know if they will be employed next year.”

The process

In an interview with The Morning Journal on Feb. 22 after the closed-door meeting with the teachers, Hardy said the process would take place over the next few weeks. “We know that their lives and days are extremely busy, so we wanted to make sure it is something that allows them to showcase the wonderful things they already do and have conversations with the leadership team about being a part of this transformation,” he said. “Or maybe there are folks who decide they would like to be somewhere else in the district, then we would invite folks who are external to be a part of that selection process. “But not until we have exhausted all of our opportunities to really talk to our teachers, to understand our teachers who are in this high school and ask them to be a part of what is necessary to move to the next level. At that point, our school leadership team will make decisions on who they would like to see be a part of Lorain High going into the 2019-2020 school year.” Pickering said he believes the decision may be retaliation following a survey conducted by the Lorain Education Association which indicated 98 percent of teachers did not have confidence in Hardy’s leadership.

No access

The Morning Journal and Lorain City Schools Board of Education member Tony Dimacchia both were denied access to the teachers meeting. Dimacchia said building security and Chief Operations Officer Jeff Hawks physically blocked the door. In a statement to The Morning Journal, Dimacchia blasted his exclusion and said district officials threatened to call police if board members attempted to gain access. “Let me be clear to Hardy, Hawks and the rest of the staff that denied the board of education access to the meeting today,” Dimacchia wrote. “These aren’t your buildings. The people of Lorain elected us to be good stewards of their tax dollars. These buildings are technically under the ownership of the BOE (Board of Education) and the citizens pay for them.” Dimacchia said the lack of transparency and decision-making leads him to believe Hardy aims to turn Lorain High into a charter school. “I feel sorry for the great educators of Lorain,” he said. “And I hope they know that this is just another intentional attack on the teachers and a retaliatory act for the honest feedback in the survey that was just released. “Leading by intimidation and fear will do nothing more than rally this community. He will start his charter school movement with (Lorain High School) and our elementary buildings will be next. “It’s time that this community and our teachers start to fight. Hardy and his circus have to go.” Hardy said in denying access to Dimacchia, he wanted to keep the conversation about teachers. “This was a conversation we were having with teachers,” he said. “And I wanted to make sure we heard the teacher’s voice and voices of those who are in our high school and wanted to make sure we were having a conversation about just that.” Pickering said he is especially concerned about limited contract teachers who are not protected by tenure. He also criticized Hardy for a lack of transparency and is examining legal options. “We’re researching what he’s doing, and we’re trying to figure out legally if he’s allowed to do it,” Pickering said. “It’s all very sudden. What’s really bad is, in my mind is, he should’ve met with the teachers first before he makes the discussion at the Town Hall.” With Lorain High already down five teachers, Pickering stressed the school is facing issues with micro-managing by district administration and having difficulty getting substitute teachers. With the possibility of more teachers leaving the school in the selection process, it leaves more questions than answers, he said. “We’re missing five teachers at Lorain High School, now,” Pickering said. “How is it you want to harass the teachers that are there? “What teacher would want to come to Lorain after learning about this happening? The kids are going to be at risk because we’re going to be filled with subs and we can’t get subs.”

Board president response

In a letter in response to Hardy’s proposed selection process, School Board President Mark Ballard strongly criticized the move and the decision to bar Dimacchia. “Isn’t it ironic that in 18 months of ‘leadership,’ our CEO has not allowed the Ohio Department of Education to evaluate the Lorain City Schools, has never been evaluated by the Lorain (Academic Distress Commission) and has not taken any accountability for the declining scores during his tenure, yet he is requiring any staff members who wish to remain at (Lorain High School) to participate in a ‘selection process’ to determine if they are the right ‘fit’ for the school going forward,” Ballard wrote. Ballard called for the Lorain Academic Distress Commission to evaluate Hardy following the appointment of the new commission chair. “Perhaps, this newly constituted (Academic Distress Commission) might not believe that Mr. Hardy is the right fit for Lorain and exercise their power to terminate his employment,” Ballard wrote. “If nothing else, it couldn’t make things any worse and would be exactly the same level of respect that he has given to (Lorain High School) teachers.”