D150 public comments on the web for all to hear

The Peoria School District 150 Board of Education decided last month to discontinue live broadcasts of the school board meetings on public access cable television starting in May. Instead, they are going to show the meeting a week delayed, and they’re going to excise the public comment portion of the meeting — that is, they are going to censor part of the official meeting because they don’t want the public to see it.

However, since the school board meetings are open meetings, recordings can be made by any member of the public. Former Journal Star employee Elaine Hopkins made an audio recording of the public comments and posted it on her blog, Peoria Story. Kudos to her for keeping the public informed while the school board tries to keep the public in the dark. There are still a few kinks to work out; for instance, she’s uploaded the file in WAV format, which is uncompressed and makes for a hefty download. Once she learns to compress it into a reasonably-sized mp3 file, we’ll really be in business.

It’s funny. These comments used to be available only to those who watched the meeting live on Comcast Cable in Peoria. Now they’re available on demand to anyone in the world who wants to hear them. The school board’s attempt to suppress the broadcast of these comments has resulted in even wider distribution! I love irony.

231 thoughts on “D150 public comments on the web for all to hear”

  1. Frustrated- Sorry for the confusion. Yes, I am referring to the McArdle civil suit. D 150, Broderick, Hinton and Davis are all defendants in this case. The attorney representing the district can’t also represent her because they technically have competing interests since Davis is accused of a crime against the district. Davis was an agent of the district so the district is obligated to provide her with representation in the suit. The interesting thing is that the same attorney did represent all of the defendants for several months. Does that answer your question?

    BTW- Davis does have her own criminal attorney and rumor has it she has a another (3rd) attorney attending proceedings with her.

  2. Costly – this I understand. Thank you. Sounds like you have on pulse on theses matter. Tell what how the current HR director has assisted in avoiding HR missteps?? or NOT?

  3. Wow! Just read this comment on Emerge Blog:

    Anonymous said…
    Mary Davis was in court today. seems she was given the “red carpet treatment”. Didn’t have to stand in the hall during the “cattle call” like everyone else. She and her attorney got escorted to Judge Gorman’s chambers for a “private chat”. Somehow, that just does not seem right. I mean, she is looking at 16 felonies. Do you think Joe Blow off the street would get that kind of preferential treatment? What gives. Don’t believe it passes the “smell test”. She is a thief.

    If that in fact happened, it would be a significant breach of Judicial ethics ( if a prosecutor was not present). Anyone have any suggestions as to how we can find out if this is true?

  4. It would not be hard to believe that MD received special treatment. She receieved special treatment between April – Sept 2009 when she was allowed to continue working even though there was significant evidence of financial wrong-doing.

  5. Come on… wake up and smell the habeus corpus!

    THAT is our justice system… money and position get different treatment than working class people, and the average Joe Paycheck. Are you really surprised or just trying to make a point?

  6. Mary Davis does not deserve special treatment. She is charged with stealing from kids, well meaning parents and destroying innocent people’s careers in an effort to cover up her dishonesty. Any “resources” she has have come at the hands of the taxpaying public who she is now accused of betraying. Additionally, most reasonable people realize that the actions of this woman will cost an already stressed school District hundreds of thousands of dollars to remediate her alleged crimes. This woman should submit to the judicial cattle call in full view of the public to answer to the charges just like any other accused person and the players in the case would be well advised to be mindful of that. People are watching.

  7. DistrictWatch Alert: New meeting place–Monical’s Pizza on Lake and Knoxville (4408 N. Knoxville). Godfather’s evidently has gone out of business. We will be at Monical’s at 6 p.m. this Sunday, May 12.

  8. Someone arrested and cuffed at Roy Ricketts. Quick – Call Norm Durflinger so he can get Triggs on dammage control! They must issue apologies ASAP!

  9. I thought there was no validity to the claims that prompted the $19,000 investigation. What gives? Can anyone verify that someone was arrested? Is it related to the recent investigation? If so, how come the $19,000 investigation did not uncover any problems?

  10. She may not deserve special treatment but she will given it because she was an high level administrator and won a law suit against the district…

    American Justice is not justice. Justice is just a name. Think of it as JUST-AS IF IT WERE.

  11. I heard–and I believe it’s accurate info–that one person (not Ward) was arrested but later released. I heard (not so sure about this) that it’s possible that one or two others might be arrested. It does seem as though it was a bit premature (before police had a chance to look into the matter) for Durflinger to have declared that the in-house investigation and cost were unnecessary–wishful thinking, perhaps.

  12. Thanks for weighing in Sharon. Once again, something I thought sounded like a “bad joke” might turn out to be true. This investigation has interested me. As I said before, my source, an IT expert (IMO) tells me that it is almost impossible to delete on-line activity and equally difficult to track equipment being sold on the internet. In the event the trail of crumbs leads back to an identifiable individual, there are too many outs (i.e. it wasn’t my fault: my laptop was stolen out of my car…I accidentally left my computer at a coffee bar…my house was broken into and a lot of stuff was taken, etc.). In these events, the questioner would actually have to do some work and see if the stories were valid. Think that happens?

  13. Dear Norm, Time to eat your words. The journal star just posted a story about the employee from Roy Ricketts that was taken to the police department, interviewed, but not charged. The funniest part of the article is Norm talking about how after spending almost $20 grand, the district found no wrongdoing…….I think I just peed myself…….

  14. Another arrested in D150!!! Shock there!!!!! Supposedly an aid was arrested at Woodruff for passing bad checks. Fliers passed out at school for an underage party in Taft for Saturday night. Just some examples of how much we need to improve in our distict and community.

    On another note our new leader was scheduled to visit Woodruff on Thursday at 9:30: as of 10:15 she was enroute.

    Well doesn’t that model a good example for why our kids should not be tardy now does it?

    Also the students she visited with were not a true cross-section of our population,but some of the other better well behaved students. This information was provided by one of the students that was chosen to represent Woodruff for Dr. Lathan’s visit.

    Cherry picking at its best.

    I believe for Dr. Lathan to see what she is working with we need to immerse her in what is the true diversity that makes up our student population in this district. Then and only then, will she truly know the task at hand.

    If in fact she wants to work together as a team, she needs to meet all of the team members. We are only as strong as our weakest link. Correct!

    Punctuality, Honesty, Integrity and Transparency are only some of the cornerstones of what we need for our distict and communtiy to be successful. So lets incorporate them in our everyday operating procedures from the highest adminstrator down to our students.

    Time will tell if we have purchased true leadership or another Kay Royster.

    Until proven otherwise I remain skeptical.

  15. I recall Mrs. Wolfmeyer expressing how happy she was to learn that the committee ( the one planning the merger of the two student bodies) discussed safety and other issues with about 30 students from both PHS and WHS. The discussion doesn’t do much good if the gang members and/or those who aren’t the student leaders aren’t part of the discussion, also. Oh, I, also, remember Mrs. Spangler stating that there aren’t any gangs in District 150 schools. It’s a shame when the admin and board not only don’t want the public to know the truth but also, and more importantly, when they don’t want to know the truth themselves. Remember Mrs. Ross frequently states she doesn’t want to hear any more bad things about District 150 students from the podium.

  16. This is the new change that has come with D150’s new leader…….
    The current security chief is retiring and she is actually going to interview one applicant who has been fired from at least two previous jobs..one for sexual harassment. he gets bad work reviews, seldom is at his assigned school and falsifies overtime records.

    A second applicant was forced to resign from his previous job, works his own hours, falsifies overtime and spends most of his day at work in a closed room at school with his paramour.

    The new superintendent will interview consider those two for the chief of security’s job simply because they are minorities yet she has refused to interview and consider most of the very qualified white applicants for the job. The second one described above is going to get the job because he is the least qualified BLACK applicant.

    With that kind of discrimination and dishonesty why would you ever think that District 150 could ever conduct an honest investigation like this technology investigation?
    Remember they fired an employee for reporting an administrator that is currently under indictment for SIXTEEN felonies. The honest employee was fired and the soon to be felon is still being payed.

    This is madness in how this school district has been operated and WILL CONTINUE to be operated under the new superintendent.

  17. A good source informed us Dr. Lathan’s husband has his Obama bedazzled suit jacket with the phrase “WE DID IT” for all of the one sided occassions.

    It is so sad that educated leaders have to discrimminate to push forth their own political agendas.

    This just shows from past practice they do not support the most qualified.

    Here we go again!!!!

    Can’t we all just come together for the common good?

    That is what Jesus would do after all!!!!!!

  18. I made my post before I read Skeptical1–sorry, Dennis. Why is the Lynn Smith post showing up multiple times? Skeptical1, I will be criticizing Lathan when she makes wrong decisions, etc., but your statement is so full of stereotypical thinking, that I have a hard time not commenting. By the way, leaders (educated or not) have often discriminated against someone (all types) to push forth they own agenda–that practice wasn’t invented by black people–it has just taken them longer to get the political power to be as dishonest and as discriminatory, etc., as their white counterparts.

  19. Three times in a row for me–but I do want to add a bit to this post on discrimination. No one in authority (black or white) should be allowed to use his/her power to treat others unfairly–especially, when it comes to hiring practices and other workplace injustices. I have no problem with anyone who seeks justice against such discrimination. However, I do believe its disingenuous to believe that black authority figures discriminate more than did or do their white counterparts in similar positions of authority. In District 150 alone, we all know people who got jobs for which they weren’t as qualified as someone else simply because they were friends with the right people–this is not a new phenomenon and we need to be honest enough not to view it as some new form of injustice practiced only by black authorities.

  20. Sharon when the new superintendent goes to visit the schools and shows an OBVIOUS tendency to speak to black employees, walk right past white employees then rig the interviews to replace the security chief then what do you call that?
    This is not hearsay this is what I have seen.

  21. Lynn, when 30% of the student population is white, in a city where about 60% of the population is white, 90% of the District teachers and administrators are white, what do you call that? This is not hearsay, this is a fact. You’re gonna cry racism because the new superintendent talks to some black employees?

  22. Lynn, I do know that when Terry and Sammy went (and spoke during the public comment time) to her first meeting with the board (a committee of the whole meeting), Dr. Lathan did make a point to come to visit with them–and they aren’t black. I know a white teacher who told me that Dr. Lathan spoke warmly to her. So I am not ready to accept your generalizations as truth. I am curious–at which schools did you witness this behavior and to which black employees did she seek out and which white employees did she ignore? How did she rig the interviews? I have heard from others that the “wrong” person will be offered the job of security chief–I just don’t have any personal knowledge on which to base my opinions right now. Has the security chief been chosen? I know one thing for sure–in this very “white” world, Dr. Lathan didn’t get this far in her career without having to relate to and win over some white people. Dr. Lathan comes to Peoria at a severe disadvantage when so many are ready to compare her to Dr. Royster only because she is female and black. So far I have had a tendency to believe that Dr. Lathan in her earliest days here sought out the company of the more powerful people in our community (and few of them are black)–and waited too long to make herself known to teachers, the general public, etc. Case in point when she didn’t show up at the Kiwanis luncheon where she was supposed to speak–that was not a good start. Racial harmony is a two-way street (maybe three or four). Our behavior toward her is just as telling as is hers to us. I am waiting to see how Dr. Lathan handles her relationship with the teachers and their union; I am waiting to see what decisions she makes about summer school, an alternative school, Johns Hopkins at Manual, Edison schools, discipline issues in schools, etc. She is at such a severe disadvantage–taking over a school system that is deeply in debt; even if she has some good ideas, there is no money to carry out any innovations. I’m just not ready to put her on the chopping block just yet–especially, because she happens to have been born with black skin. However, I won’t hesitate to criticize decisions that I feel are wrong for District 150 young people.

  23. Sharon I agree with you that she has a big obstacle in overcoming both Royster and Hinton’s legacy of incompetence.

    There were several white applicants for the security chiefs job that had outstanding qualifications yet they weren’t even called for an interview.

    Here’s how it is playing out………

    Fifteen applicants applied but only four were offered interviews**************…

    The Hispanic Male……OOPS been fired from two previous jobs one for sexual harassment and with us he consistently receives poor work reviews. But he is a minority and that will look good but he won’t be hired.

    The female….OOPS very unhappy worker who files too many union grievances and has too many workman’s comp claims…But she is a minority and that will look good that we interviewed her…but too much baggage so she won’t be hired.

    The white male….OOPS he has worked for us one times before, left and has been rehired and he brown noses too much…But he is a white male and we can say that we didn’t exclude white males…..but not very loyal and he might leave us again so he won’t be hired.

    Our final applicant…the black male….We have found the right man even though we had to coach him(he received a personal call from the superintendents office ) on filling out the application!!! The least qualified or experienced applicant but we are trying to replace as many retiring old white administrators as we can.Since he has none of the ‘faults’ of the other three applicants ……YOU’RE HIRED!!!!!

    The moral of the story****************************

    In other words we have stacked the deck…..It appears that we have been very diverse in our hiring practices and that should look good even though we are currently defending ourselves in two discrimination lawsuits filed by white employees.

  24. One more thing Sharon….The new superintendent is taking some marching orders from Mr. and Mrs. John Timmes….and if you know anything you know that that is BAD NEWS. The one who is going to replace Ron is John Timmes’ candidate.

  25. Lynn – the Board and Dr. Lathan are having conversations regarding our security services that extend well beyond just the hiring of our departing chiefs replacement. Met our new Facilities Director on Wednesday. His department will have more to do over the summer than in any other time period I can remember. Hiring the best applicant is what I hope we will always attempt to do. The Board hires one, as they say. I believe we did it well with Dr.Lathan. She is taking marching orders from the board. She will be drawing in, and asking support from, the broader community. She is leading a band that hasn’t been “in step”. To suggest otherwise would be in error.

  26. Jim,
    I hope your extensive security services discussions include security being to work on time and being available. Too many times I have seen security officers leave their post unattended even when they are at work. Instead the securtiy wand lays on the desk as students file through the doors. When called for help with a fight they are either the last ones there or tell teachers it isn’t a big deal and to stop complaining.

    Maybe we could implement building surveys to help improve the safety and security of our students and staff. Students and staff shouldhave input into the safety of their schools. The way it is now anybody could enter our buildings with drugs, weapons or whatever else they want with relative ease.

  27. Jim, thanks for weighing in on this one. And, Lynn, Kathryn and John Timmes have had the ear of many superintendents (black and white) for most of my 43-year teaching career–and they often had my ear, too, so why should I suddenly be surprised that John would have a favorite in the hiring of a security chief? It would be strange if he didn’t. I will be interested in watching how this turns out. Lynn, you obviously have “insider” information about this whole situation; I can’t agree or disagree because I really don’t know what is going on with this hiring. However, whatever choice Dr. Lathan makes, this is just one choice; I’m not ready to jump to the conclusion that this is an indication of how she will make all other choices–it might be and it might not–let’s wait and see. And, Jim, is right; the board, I believe, does vote on this choice, so ultimately the new security chief will be their choice. And, he is, also, right in that we aren’t all marching to the same drummer–that probably won’t change.

  28. Jim, don’t even get me started on the BoE always trying to hire the BEST applicant. Surely you would not like me to LIST all the best applilcants this BoE has hired in the past oh, say 5-6 years……..you’re killing me here. Those that you hired in positions of power are going to cost the district, ie the taxpayer a bunch. The city of Peoria can’t even get semi-intelligent people to run for the school board, let alone make SIMPLE decisions(hire people based on ability not race or relative to). Anyone with half a marble for a brain has already moved away. I don’t see anything getting better AT ALL unless this district gets rid of affirmative action (like the rest of the country has done).

  29. Sharon,

    This is the first time you have disappointed me.

    Stereotypical you say. Honest reliable information on the new superintendent I say.

    If it walks like a duck, looks like a duck and quacks like a duck.

    Then it must be a duck!!!

    Ducks do come in many colors. Just like people.

    We just need leadership that picks the best candidate regardless of race, creed or color.

    I am just not sure about her at this point. It just seems that she is not off to a such good start. I hope she is a strong finisher!!!

  30. Skeptical1, when opinions seem to be formed based primarily on race, then I cringe. So you really have information about Dr. Lathan’s husband having a bedazzled Obama jacket. I wasn’t sure she had a husband much less that she had a husband with a bedazzled jacket. Also, why bring Obama into this discussion and what is a one-side occasion?

  31. Jim why is it that certain VERY qualified white applicants didn’t even get a call to be interviewed for the security chief job?
    They have stacked the deck to hire the least qualified black male for that position or it certainly appears that way.

  32. skeptical1 you are so correct about security officers goofing off, leaving work early, always late, falsifying overtime etc and it is two of those that are seriously being considered to replace the current incompetent security chief. One of those that commits all of those infractions IS GOING to be the chief.
    Sharon did you know that Timmes daughter is now a consultant for District 150?

  33. When you have to deal with worrying about being the most qualified applicant and being over looked for your skin color EVERY SINGLE TIME in your life you apply for a job – then you get to complain.

    It would blow your righteous mind to know who many times I should have filed a discrimination lawsuit for not getting a job HERE IN PEORIA because of the color of my skin. It wouldn’t even do any good to inquire, because attorneys here in Peoria don’t take such cases from black people.

    You gets no sympathy here.

    EmergePeoria

  34. Emerge: I agree that there are two sides to every coin, but I find it very hard to believe that in 2010 you (being the most qualified, with impeccable credentials) would be overlooked because of your skin color. What types of jobs are you applying for? What is your past job history? I have been overlooked many times because I wasn’t black.

  35. I agree that NO ONE should be overlooked because of skin color. But what this poster is trying to do is take this topic in a different direction because it is telling the truth and someone reading it doesn’t like that.

  36. Coin:

    I find it hard to believe that you find it hard to believe (not to be harsh) but frankly I don’t care.

    The simple fact that you [Coin] think you can ask me to justify my qualifications and credentials is telling in and of itself.

    My comment is directed to Lynn Smith and the rationale behind her believing that just because a black person is the decision maker, her methods of interviewing and hiring should be questioned.

    Lynn: Do you think Norm would have handled this differently? Have you made your plea to him?

  37. “The simple fact that you think you can ask me to justify my qualifications and credentials is telling in and of itself.”

    Of course, it is telling. Isn’t that what a job interview is supposed to do? I am not asking you for your experience and credentials, but the employer is. I am simply pointing out that skin color should NOT be a factor one way or another…..qualifications should……period.

  38. You know Lynn, I do have sympathy for you if you really feel like you are being discriminated against. It is not a good feeling and I really should have been more sensitive to what you must be going through internally if what you are dealing with is discimination.

    You will need as much emotional support as you can get and if you can find it on this board, so be it.

    Try talking with Norm, he is still available. Good luck.

    EmergePeoria

  39. What is it with the Timme’s? She needs to RETIRE, really. She is so out of touch with reality. How do these people get an “in” with every superintendent?

  40. Mrs. Timmes is a retired/rehired from District 150. Her husband was a Peoria Police Dept. employee till he retired, then got hired to “help” D150……..They are in their 80’s, I believe……..time to go to Florida!

  41. To question……

    I won’t go into a essay about the Timmes’ but just think of how bad cancer is for the body then you’ll have some idea.
    The new superintendent will plummet like a rock if she continues to listen to people with their philosophy.
    Mr. Timmes’ favorite term for a white people is….barracudas

  42. Jim I think you are a great guy and you have done some wonderful work for the kids of District 150. I really don’t think you want to touch that Pandora’s Box on hiring the new black security chief much less open the box by inquiring as too why they excluded so many qualified white applicants yet elected to interview applicants with minimal qualifications, previous firings and sexual harassment complaints.

  43. Lynn, no, I didn’t know that Johnna (sp) Timmes is a consultant in the district, but I don’t know that any laws have been broken by giving her a job—there are many relatives of District 150 employees (black and white) on the district’s payroll. I am definitely on Emerge’s side in this argument, especially the with regard to the person who states that she/he can’t imagine discrimination in 2010 against black people. And I would be very careful about questioning or doubting someone else’s explanation of his/her experiences of discrimination—and Emerge proved in her later post that she acknowledges and sympathizes with the veracity of your claims about being discriminated against. I think that first we should clarify private and public sector jobs. Lack of discrimination in the public sector (schools included) has undoubtedly improved but that is not so in the private sector. There are about 7 children in my life who are destined to be judged by the color of their skin at one time or another—I want them to live in a different world than the one represented by some of the comments on this post—and by many of the frightening comments I read on the PJS blog. I have known Kathryn Timmes (and her family) for a long, long time—we both were at Roosevelt at the same time in the 1960s. I undoubtedly don’t agree with all of Kathryn’s views, etc., but I, also, know that people in Kathryn’s age bracket experienced discrimination in their lifetime that most of you can’t even imagine or don’t even want to acknowledge. I have enjoyed a relationship with many black people from that era, and am grateful that they trusted me enough to let me in on some of those experiences—and what they taught me definitely enabled me to be a better teacher of black young people in this community, and I am grateful to them. As I have told Emerge before, it is time for her generation to have a stronger influence in this community, and I am glad that she puts herself in a position to enter into what sometimes are undoubtedly unpleasant experiences for her. We don’t always agree—I appreciate, however, that she always hears me out.

  44. District Watch reminder: Meeting at 6 p.m. tonight at Minicals Pizza on Knoxville and Lake. Godfather’s is evidently out of business.

  45. Sharon I never said that it was illegal for his daughter to be employed with District 150 and if I implied that then I apologize. You and I both know that is one of the areas that District 150 bleeds money…consultants. The only two areas that take more money from District 150 than consultants is overpaid administrators and lawyers.

    One of District 150’s main problems is doing the same stupid thing over and over again and expecting a different result. That is the definition of insanity.

    District 150’s security department has been led by an incompetent person for many years and they are going to do the same thing by putting another person of similar morals in that position then expect things to change for the better.

    I certainly hope that the new superintendent is just the medicine that District 150 needs but from seeing the same leeches already attaching themselves to her and her administration makes me concerned that…HERE WE GO AGAIN.

  46. Lynn, this is what is great about blogs; we eventually get to some common ground. If you know me or anything about me, then you know that I agree about consultants. I am curious–in what capacity is Johnna Timmes a consultant? Also, I don’t understand why you are waiting until now to complain about the current security chief–so publicly, at least. Whoever Dr. Lathan appoints to whatever position should, of course, be held to high standards, and, I believe, that anyone who observes less than what is expected of a person holding the position should make it public. We now have the avenue (blogs, FOIAs, etc.) to hold employees accountable. Now we are arguing about past mistakes, etc.–I guess, at this point, we just move forward and hold Dr. Lathan and the board accountable for their choices. I plan to do that–but I don’t see any reason why race should have a bearing on the problem–if Dr. Lathan has chosen a person who can’t or won’t do the job, then report those inadequacies and see what happens. She is the superintendent and that job does hold certain privileges and even more responsibilities–she has plenty of people watching her.

  47. Also, I don’t understand why you are waiting until now to complain about the current security chief–so publicly, at least.

    Sharon think about that for a moment…….

    If they have already stacked the deck for their chosen candidate then what would make someone possibly believe that if someone complained they would listen to them?

    I already know of complaints about the soon to be black security chief that has been brought to Ron and Dimke’s attention and it was brushed aside. Ron has let certain security officers run amok from not being at work when you are suppose to be, leaving work SERIOUSLY early or arriving SERIOUSLY late, calling in sick for the day then working overtime in the afternoon or evening,going to other jobs while you are suppose to be in your school etc I can go on and on but surely you get the point that this WILL CONTINUE if they hire any of Ron’s former inner circle.

  48. Sharon – you should of all people know that once an insider gets on the D150 payroll, they’d have to be video taped murdering and cannibalizing someone before the District monarchy would consider termination- That or allow 2 grade schoolers to walk to Pekin via I74. Oh, wait – that wouldn’t do it either.

    Sorry to say that concerns about the status quo under a lathan Admin don’t seem to be too off beat. Especially when her fans confirm for all to see that as long as she discriminates black on white it’s OK. What is up with picking one white, one black, one hispanic and one Asian to interview? Are they jelly beans? Is interviewing the top 4 candidates a foreign concept?

    I suppose this is what you get when a Board of Ed. shops out the responsiblity for a new Superintendent to a Regional Committee with no skin in the game.

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