081602 Petition

In the Matter of Continuing Illegal Expenditure of School Moneys with the Employment of Uncertified Administrative Personnel From a Resolution Adopted 7/12/02

To the Commissioner of Education,

Petitioner, Joseph P. Giardina, respectfully alleges,

1) Petitioner resides in Mount Kisco, New York and is a taxpayer in the Bedford Central School District (herein District).

2) Respondent Bruce L. Dennis, PhD is employed as the Superintendent of Schools (herein Dennis) District.

3) Respondent Board of Education (herein Board) oversees the Bedford Central School District and is duly sworn to uphold the Constitution of New York State.

4) West Patent Elementary School (herein WPES) is one of five elementary schools under the jurisdiction of Respondent Board of Education.

5) Mr. James Alloy (herein Alloy) is the Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources in the District and was formerly a principal in the District for many years at the Fox Lane Middle School.

6) Upon information and belief, based on the 7/12/02 Agenda of the Regular Meeting of the Board of Education, Robyn Lane’s (herein Lane) employment status changed from elementary teacher at West Patent to the heretofore unknown position of “Teacher in Charge” at West Patent Elementary School beginning July 1, 2002 . (See Exhibit #1 and Exhibit #5)

7) Upon information and belief, based on the District’s summary description of position, the Superintendent is Chief Executive Officer of the schools and primary advisor to the Board of Education. His duties, among many, are:

a) To secure and recommend for employment the best qualified and most competent teachers and supervisory and administrative personnel and advise the Board on other personnel matters, including recruitment, salary policies, promotion…

b) To provide direct supervision of the central office administrators and principals…

c) To administer the approved budge and ensures that all expenditures are effectively carried out and;

d) To prepare and to submit to the Board recommendations on all matters requiring Board action, and place before the Board such necessary and helpful facts, information and reports as are needed to insure the making of informed decisions.

8) Upon information and belief, based on the District’s summary description of position, the Assistant to the Superintendent for Human Resources is under the supervision of the Superintendent and has the responsibility for all the duties and responsibilities of the personnel department. Among specific duties and responsibilities are:

a) To advertise and post all staffing vacancies;

b) To arrange, in collaboration with the Principals and other supervisors, for the screening and interviewing of applicants;

c) To insure that the credentials of recommended candidates conform to contract and law.

9) Upon information and belief, based on the 7/1/02 Agenda for the Annual Reorganization Meeting of the Board, Respondent Board accepted resignation of a Mrs. Kathleen Tuttle from her position as principal of West Patent Elementary School effective 7/31/02. (See Exhibit 2)

10) Upon information and belief, based on the District’s summary description of position, and elementary school principal is “in charge” of all aspects of the building’s operations and whose certification requirements is a “NYS School Administrator Supervisor Certification.” Among a myriad of managerial tasks, specific duties and responsibilities include, but are not limited:

a) To promote the development and delivery of quality instruction congruent with District goals and objectives;

b) To supervise instruction in accordance with current District direction

c) To direct, supervise and evaluate professional and civil service staff;

11) Upon information and belief, based on past practice, the acceptance of the Tuttle resignation was not a surprise to Respondents Dennis, Board, and Alloy and became effective 7/31/02. A replacement for “principal” has not been as such but the job function has been assumed with commensurate “principal” compensation in a new position euphemistically titled “Teacher in Charge.” No written or expressed job description exists. Re-naming the position of “principal” to avoid the Education Law and the Commissioner’s regulations is shameless subterfuge on part of Respondents.

12) Upon information and belief, based on the District’s advertising for available positions in the New York Times, Respondents Dennis, Board, and Alloy all had ample notice that Tuttle would be resigning yet did not advertise in the customary fashion the vacancy of principal for WPES.

13) When approving new administrative and teacher employees in District, Respondent District has habit of providing work, education and employment history on its agenda. (See Exhibit #3)

14) Education Law requires that Principal, department chair, assistant principal have the appropriate provisional or permanent certification to be hired in one of these positions in New York State. (Exhibit #4)

15) Upon information and belief, based on the exclusion of her qualifications on the 7/12/02 Bedford Central School District Agenda, Respondent Lane does not have a permanent nor provisional certification to be an elementary school principal in New York State.

16) Upon information and belief, based on a listing of IRS form W-2 for the year 2000 and Bedford Central School District Directory, Respondent Robyn Lane was previously and continuously employed in the Bedford Central School District as a teacher at West Patent Elementary School wherein she was paid $65,621.09.

17) Upon knowledge and belief, based on prior Commissioner Decision No. 13,568, when it is determined that no certified and qualified candidates exist to fill an interim position, the State Education Department can, under particular circumstances, issue a temporary administrator’s license.

18) Respondents had knowledge that Lane had not a permanent certification nor provisional certification to be an elementary school principal in New York State, nevertheless insisted she assume fulfill professional roll, duties and functions of elementary principal at WPES effective 7/1/02 until 6/30/02 at what amounts to a first year principal’s salary of $97,500.

19) Respondents euphemistically renamed “Principal” to “Teacher in Charge” in a willfull, premeditated act among cooperating Respondents to skirt Education Law and Commissioner regulations regarding necessary certification. In so doing, Respondents continue to violate the law by paying unqualified administrators from school moneys with an annual salary of $97,500 to Respondent Lane.

20) Upon information and belief, based on the District’s summary description of position, and elementary school principal is “in charge” of all aspects of the building’s operations and whose certification requirements is a “NYS School Administrator Supervisor Certification.” Among a myriad of managerial tasks, specific duties and responsibilities include but are not limited:

a) To promote the development and delivery of quality instruction congruent with District goals and objectives;

b) To supervise instruction in accordance with current District direction

c) To direct, supervise and evaluate professional and civil service staff;

21) The $97,500 salary amounts to an illegal expenditure of school moneys by the Respondent Board of Education.

22) According to NYS Education Law (Sec. 306) removal of any member of a board of education, district superintendent or any other school officer is warranted when same is guilty of any willful violation or neglect of duty under statute or any other act pertaining to common schools participating in state funds, or willfully disobeying any decision, order, rule or regulation of the regents or of the commissioner of education.

23) Upon knowledge and belief, the other four elementary schools in District have duly certified administrative staff functioning in the roles of principal.

24) Upon knowledge and belief, based on District’s display advertising for personnel in the New York Times, the District has one of the highest pay scales in NY State and prides itself on acquiring employees from a talented pool of applicants.

25) Petitioner just became aware of illegal appointment of Lane and realizes that technically the 30-day period in which to commence an appeal to the Commissioner is August 8, 2002. Although Petitioner has not commenced this appeal within the 30-day period set forth in Commissioners regulations (8 NYCRR 275.16), a district’s employment of an uncertified principal, if unlawful, is a continuing wrong, subject to complaint at any time (Appeal of Tropia, 32 Ed Dept Rep 606; Appeal of Nettles, 31 id. 437; Appeal of Sroka, 31 id. 513). Petitioner has made every effort to complete this valid appeal as close to the 30- day limit as is reasonably possible and requests the Commissioner to overlook the deadline given the gravity and nature of this appeal.

26) Petitioner also requests a stay of proceedings with respect to the rescinding the appointment of “Teacher in Charge” Lane since the school year has not begun and district taxpayers, parents and children deserve to have certified staff start the year.

WHEREFORE,

The respondents knowingly and fraudulently renamed the job of West Patent Elementary School principal to a euphemistic “Teacher in Charge” in order to avoid compliance with Education Law and Commissioner regulations concerning the appointment of qualified and certified personnel and the illegal expenditure of school moneys, Commissioner should

1) remove Superintendent Dennis from his position as Superintendent of Schools under Section 306 of NY Education Law;

2) remove Assistant Superintendent Alloy from his position in the District for his willful complicity in this fraud and neglect of under Section 306 of NY Education Law

3) rescind the appointment of Respondent Robyn Lane as “Teacher In Charge” and appoint a interim certified individual to be principal of West Patent Elementary School;

4) order Respondent Board to comply with the provisions of the Education Law and Commissioner’s regulations with respect to the appointment of supervisory and administrative personnel.

………………………….

Joseph P. Giardina

Petitioner Pro se

081602