CMS super responds to community accusations
Cutter Morning Star School District Superintendent Nancy Anderson issued a statement Tuesday in response to recent allegations and criticisms made by residents of the district.
The statement was requested by the newspaper after protesters gathered outside of an event on campus Thursday. The district and its legal representation have not responded to requests for information about the ongoing suspension of two employees.
Cutter Morning Star Elementary School Principal Jann Gibson and Kent Wasson, a coach and teacher, were placed on administrative leave pending an unspecified investigation on Oct. 11. The Sentinel-Record submitted a request under Arkansas’ Freedom of Information Act for communications with employees about the situation.
Superintendent Nancy Anderson emailed employees and informed them of a meeting called for the evening of Oct. 11 for the elementary staff. The Cutter Morning Star School Board approved the hire of an administrative substitute in a special meeting earlier that evening.
Multiple sources with the district and in the community told the newspaper complaints were filed with the Arkansas Department of Human Services. Law prohibits the DHS from confirming or denying the existence of maltreatment cases.
Several district patrons allege Gibson and Wasson have been treated unfairly by the district. Displeasure with the handling of the suspensions was followed by accusations of financial missteps and poor leadership.
About 60 members of the community attended the district’s last regular board meeting on Oct. 30. Many in attendance wore black shirts with the hashtag #standwithjann.
Several parents raised questions about spending after they scrutinized the district’s financial records. Parents questioned travel expenses for board members, as well as Anderson’s travel to Little Rock and hotel charges ranging from $42.18 to $561.84.
A Cutter Morning Star policy for licensed personnel provides reimbursement only on overnight trips, defined as travel of 90 miles or more one way in length. Travel for licensed personnel within Arkansas is eligible for a maximum of $40 per day and up to $50 per day for travel outside of the state.
“I make sure my board members are all informed of required (Arkansas Association of Educational Administrators) and other professional development training and meetings that I and our administrative team attend,” Anderson said. “There have been no audit findings in the last four years that indicate any misappropriation of school district funds including travel expenditures.”
Criticisms were also made in regard to the high turnover rate of staff at Cutter Morning Star.
“Hiring and retaining highly qualified staff as required by the Arkansas Department of Education is a challenge for any school district and especially for a small school district, and more especially for a school district just coming out of fiscal distress,” Anderson said. “In the past, we have not been able to afford the raises that surrounding districts have enjoyed that have increased their salary schedules.”
The ADE classified the district as being in fiscal distress in December 2011. Former Superintendent Lance Robinson’s contract was bought out and his predecessor, Carl Hughes, was hired as interim superintendent.
The fiscal distress tag was removed from Cutter Morning Star after Anderson’s first year as superintendent. She said she conducts exit interviews with staff members to ascertain how to decrease turnover.
“Most often they tell me they can make more money by going to another district,” Anderson said. “In addition, some turnover is due to members of our staff being recruited for advancement to larger districts, as well as administrative positions in other districts.”
Anderson said some employees were recruited to the ADE or the Dawson Education Service Cooperative, while others opted for retirement or to stay home to raise their children.
“When we outsourced food services, custodial and special services, such as speech therapy staff, then that led to some of those employees being hired by those companies and no longer on our district payroll,” Anderson said. “And, unfortunately, some positions were just eliminated to cut personnel cost to keep us out of fiscal distress.”
All five board members were in attendance for the Oct. 30 meeting when Mark Rash and Eddy Slick were reaffirmed as president and vice president. Other members of the board are Donna Fincher, Jared Hawthorn and Sandy Walker.
Cutter Morning Star plans to hold its next regular board meeting Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. in the board room of the administration building, 2800 Spring St.