By Antonio D. French
Filed Thursday, January 25, 2007 at 4:01 PM
READ IT HERE FIRST Labels: Breaking_News, Schools
Another special school board meeting has been called, this time to bypass what many call the ongoing "sabotage" of the district by three board members led by Board President Veronica O'Brien.
The meeting, scheduled for Monday, January 29, was called by Board Secretary Flint Fowler with the support of board members Bill Purdy, Peter Downs and Donna Jones. The only item on the open session agenda is a resolution authorizing Fowler, as secretary, to replace the board president as authorized signatory to all contracts approved by the Board and reviewed by legal counsel.
The issue, according to a district source, is the growing frustration with O'Brien who refuses to sign off on many of the contracts which the Board has voted to approve. According to the source, some unsigned contracts -- which include boiler repair contracts, moving contracts, and others -- go as far back as late summer.
"Venders cannot be paid and functions of the district are stopped," the source said.
He said the school district recently ended up paying approximately $60.00 per day in storage fees because O'Brien would not sign a moving contract which had already been approved by vote of the board.
O'Brien, along with board members Bob Archibald and Ron Jackson, supports a state takeover of the district.
Many would say that O'Brien's recent behavior, including trying to abruptly fire the superintendent and allegedly ordering expensive computers and iPods on the board credit card for her children's personal use, have passed the legal threshold to ask a judge to remove her from the board. But they fear who Mayor Francis Slay, who first appointed O'Brien to the board in 2004 and now also supports a state takeover, would appoint in her place.
Under the proposed takeover plan, Slay would again get to appoint a member to the newly created three-person board. The governor would appoint the primary member of the body with the President of the Board of Aldermen making the third appointment.
The first public hearing on that proposal is set for Tuesday from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. at Harris-Stowe State University.
The posted agenda to Monday's special meeting is as follows:
The Saint Louis Board of Education will hold a Special Board Meeting Monday, January 29, 2007 at The Administrative Building located at 801 N. 11th Street in the Foundation Room. The Special Board Meeting will begin with a motion to go into executive session at 5:30 p.m. The Executive Session is closed to the public pursuant to RSMO §610-021 (3). The Special Board Meeting will resume in open session immediately following the executive session and is open to the public. This notice is posted in compliance with RSMO §610.020. The agenda is as follows:
SPECIAL BOARD MEETING AGENDA
EXECUTIVE SESSION AGENDA
1. Call to Order
2. Roll Call
3. Motion to go into Closed Session
4. Human Resources Transaction Report
5. Adjournment
OPEN SESSION AGENDA
1. Call to Order
2. Roll Call
3. Resolution authorizing the Secretary to sign all contracts approved by the Board and reviewed by legal counsel.
4. Adjournment
6 Comments:
They should not fear whom Slay might appoint, because by the time all the legal wrangling around that is over, the April election will have occurred, Jackson and Archibald will be gone, and O'Brien or her successor, either one, will be a lame duck.
1/25/2007 4:47 PM
All I want to know is can we bring the V's basketball coach back if o'brien is fired?
1/25/2007 11:30 PM
Hell no
1/26/2007 12:10 AM
And the public wonders why others look at StL as a joke... whether it is City Hall, aldermatic deliberations, the SLPS, or Forest Park, the StL region has many free zoos. Will a "zoo-free" zone ever be established here?
1/26/2007 7:50 AM
Irons may be charged with mortgage fraud soon,so no he won't get his coach job back!
1/26/2007 10:14 AM
JAIL TIME PERHAPS???
1/27/2007 11:55 AM
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