For over a year now we have all witnessed the demise of CCSD. District leaders have let politics influence the curriculum, security is every parent’s biggest concern, and anyone can see the finances are in absolute disarray.
Meanwhile, the superintendent chose to paint $180,000 murals, tied up millions for a pipe dream while we lost teachers daily, entered into useless consultant contracts, and continues in her spendthrift ways. With recent publicity of her own personal financial missteps resulting in legal actions, one can only be concerned for the multi-million dollar budget she resides over.
The latest misuse of funds brings multiple employees and past board members into question. Last February, then Chairman Bowman, owner of Perfect Image Portrait Studio, presented a clearly self-serving portrait policy. When asked by other members about his obvious conflict of interest he was not only extremely unprofessional but insisted any purchase of portraits would go through the district’s procurement process. By policy, the procurement process is required for any purchase more than $10,000.
To date no bids have been posted for portraits. Never mind the chairman’s promise of procurement. Today the district office is adorned with new portraits that cost $14,740-conveniently billed in two invoices to avoid the $10,000 benchmark. Compounding the mess, $9,990 was taken from a building rental account and $4,750 from a board budget account sending it deep into the red. What kind of bookkeeping do we have here? Who ordered these & who approved these invoices? Who signed the checks?
While purchases like this are being made…Teachers are having to buy supplies out of their own pocket. Students don’t have textbooks; some don’t even have in-classroom teachers. Bus pickups at 5am because we can’t “afford” to pay drivers…WHILE PURCHASES LIKE THIS ARE BEING MADE!
Board, we need new leadership. It’s time. It’s long overdue.
-Concerned Citizen
