If Hunter-Harvill is one of the three finalists, may God help them
Brenda Battle-Jordan is the President of the Westwood Heights Board of Education, in doing some of the coverage on the candidates being considered for the Superintendent of Toledo Public Schools, I referenced a quote from Battle-Jordan in relation to one of the lawsuits filed by Dr. Deborah Hunter-Harvill, stating the lawsuit was “frivolous” — Battle-Jordan found some of the coverage related to the TPS Superintendent search on Glass City Jungle and posted several comments.
The dissension and turmoil in the Westwood Heights School District related to the employment, the administrative suspension, the lawsuit and the settlement issues related to Hunter-Harvill was briefly referenced here and in the Blade (link):
Another candidate, Deborah Hunter-Harvill, sued the Westwood Heights Board of Education near Flint, Mich., last fall. The parties settled this month.
As part of the settlement, she resigned, according to the district’s central office, contacted by The Blade yesterday.
She and a school board member butted heads over her disciplining a principal for having a poker night fund-raiser at his school, according to published reports. She could not be reached yesterday.
After reading one comment in particular written by Battle-Jordan here, I wanted to talk to her to get clarification:
[If] Dr. Deborah Hunter- Harvill is one of the three finalists, may God help them, she came to our district, with suing in her plans, she said it to one of our board members, “I will sue this district if you get in my way” that was the way she started out, she was playing the race card game too…she even wanted me to remove my youtube videos of some of our school board meeting.
Battle-Jordan gave me her phone number to contact her if I had questions, so I called her and I asked her about the “playing the race card” accusation she directed at Hunter-Harvill, since both women are African American. Battle-Jordan said that Hunter-Harvill targeted several white employees and community members including former Superintendent and current Board member James Mitchell. She said that Hunter-Harvill targeted Mitchell early on and suggested on more than one occasion his decisions were based on race. Battle-Jordan said when she defended Mitchell and employees who were white, that she felt were doing a good job, she was called an “Uncle Tom” by supporters of Hunter-Harvill. Supporters of Hunter-Harvill attempted to have Battle-Jordan recalled as a board member twice, they did not get enough signatures to get that recall effort on the ballot. Mitchell was a part of a successful recall effort that targeted board members that had supported Hunter-Harvill’s removal of employees last year, (link).
Battle-Jordan also expressed concern with this being the third lawsuit Hunter-Harvill had filed, she said she contacted Blade reporter Christopher Kirkpatrick after reading his above linked coverage, provided him with information via fax concerning that and some of the concerns she shared with me, including her wanting it to be clear that the settlement that was paid out to Hunter-Harvill was only the contracted amount Hunter-Havrill would have earned had she remained superintendent. She said Kirkpatrick’s response to her was “sounds like you have it out for her (Hunter-Harvill).”
Battle-Jordan, during the hour I spoke with her, expressed more concern for her community, the education of children and how James Mitchell and others were treated, than giving the impression that this was some type of a personal vendetta against Hunter-Havrill. Questions were raised during Hunter-Harvill’s evaluation related to staff morale issues, not following board approved policies/procedures (one example was Hunter-Harvill changing the discipline policy at a high school without board approval) and a high number of days away from the job of superintendent to attend seminars paid for by the district, some related to National Alliance of Black School Educators, which Hunter-Harvill was former president of (link) She also confirmed that no one from OSBA or Toledo Public Schools had contacted her to ask about Hunter-Havrill’s performance or the 9th grade program that was created and she was not aware of any other board members there being contacted.
How does this all tie into Toledo? Beyond the obvious, how a superintendent behaves under fire is important and some of the video clips of Hunter-Havrill’s behavior did not demonstrate professionalism. Serious questions were raised in my mind about Hunter-Havrill’s ability to handle a large urban district like Toledo, that has community members not afraid to speak their minds, after watching two videos in particular. In one Hunter-Havrill becomes very upset and states she needs her husband and her attorney to come to the board table after school district performance questions are raised by one board member and an audience member speaks out of order, telling the board member “you can’t talk to her like that” Link to that video, another video was from early on in Hunter-Harvill’s employment as Superintendent, Link to that video, she takes issue with media coverage, speaks over the Board President, tells a member of the audience that she did file a police report, that she will file a police protection order if necessary and that she will not allow her name to be slandered.
Westwood Heights was going through some major challenges, they went through 7 superintendents in a several year time period, board member recalls and test score issues, while things are not completely solved there, Battle-Jordan said things are “night and day improvement” now compared to when Hunter-Havrill was superintendent there.
With it being reported that it’s possible the Toledo Board of Education members may select a superintendent tomorrow and that Hunter-Havrill is one of the three finalists? Let’s hope board members take a very long look at the three finalists and ask some hard questions before making a decision. I realize it’s been suggested that Toledo should consider superintendent of color and that Hunter-Havrill is the only non-white finalist, if it is going to be between the three, I sincerely hope race is not a main factor in the Board’s vote.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uckuLe2HJY&NR=1
I wanted to know what the vetting process was for those candidates and I want to know BEFORE they vote.
This is beyond ridiculous. We don’t need more contentious people involved here…we have plenty. Thank you very much.
June 13th, 2010 at 9:43 pmHave you forwarded a link of this to any of the Board members? This is more than concerning, and I hope very real questions are raised. The major problem I am having now is that the Board supposedly made a commitment to allow the community an opportunity to meet the ”finalists” and engage in dialogue with them. What happened to that process? Maybe The Urban League was not invited, but I sure hope someone was. We are in the midst of serious times, with serious issues and we need SERIOUS leadership to address and confront these challenges. NOW is the time for effective and transcendant change.
June 14th, 2010 at 3:34 amGood job Lisa now they can make a knowledgeable determination, Brenda Battle Jordan Westwood Heights School Board President,2008,2009 and 2010.
June 14th, 2010 at 9:34 amListen….hear it? Theme from “Jaws.”
June 14th, 2010 at 9:59 amIt would seem that the Board of Education would have gathered this information prior to deciding who the three finalists are. It doesn’t sound like our local blog publisher had a lot of trouble getting this information, so hopefully the Board of Ed. already has it. I do not quite understand how the three finalists were picked. The person being discussed here has enough seemingly questionble background information available that it doesn’t make a lot of sense that they would be one of the finalists? Maybe the ones who were eliminated had even more questionable backgrounds? One can only hope that the local politicians on the Board get their act together on the issue of hiring a new superintendent better than they have on all of the other issues they have faced in the previous 12 months. Without having any information other than what is posted here concerning this potential superintendent, it sounds like a perfect fit with the fringe group “whacko’s” that tend to dominate local issues and impede progress.
June 14th, 2010 at 10:12 amBrenda, thank you again for your comments, had you not commented, I would not have searched deeper.
John and wwjbd – a person can appear on paper and in interviews differently and references they give are of course, references they give. If the video did not exist, most would not believe it. There are quite a few other videos, those two were the ones where it was clear that Hunter-Harvill was speaking. It wasn’t quite that easy to find and as pointed out, Ms. Battle-Jordan had tried to contact the daily paper.
Some of the issues/concerns were known, I can’t answer as to how the three finalists were decided beyond speculating which I’d prefer not to do. My goal in writing this was to get information out there that I thought needed to be a part of the discussion.
June 14th, 2010 at 10:39 amI’d also like to know where the Blade reporter gets off discounting very important information of this nature knowing what a tremendously negative impact it could have on our school district.
I’ll say it again – we DO NOT NEED more of this kind of behavior. We don’t want it, we don’t need it and frankly the children don’t deserve it.
Shame on that Blade reporter. Shame, shame, shame.
June 14th, 2010 at 12:59 pmI have hesitated to comment on Toledo Schools as we live in Washington Local School District. But I have come to the conclusion that what affects Toledo Schools affects us also, especially in housing values.
I would not count on the local school board having any of this information. At the last meeting, if the reports are correct, they all acted worse than 2 year olds and they seem unable to even play in the same sand box. With this leadership how can they make an educated choice for superintendent?
June 14th, 2010 at 1:17 pmTPS does not need this crap.
June 14th, 2010 at 2:37 pmJackie
June 14th, 2010 at 2:40 pmWhat an absolutely excellent question. I believe that the entire greater Toledo area is affected by the actions of the largest school district in the area. The actions going on recently lead me to think that a different model should be looked at to set up governing bodies for school systems. I see that one of the county comissioners is proposing a different structure for area government. Maybe someone ought to be looking at the same notion for school systems. Those presently charged with running school districts seem to have “lost” the notion of what they are about and spend way too much time either playing to the media or pandering to some special interest group, and not looking at what is best for the larger system. My personal belief is that hard, unpopular decisions need to be made, quickly. JMHO
What’s interesting is when you read the media coverage, watch the videos and follow the community division in the Westwood Heights School District then compare that to how Hunter-Harvill describes it in her bio:
The written word conflicts with what the videos and with some in the community have shared, as well as some of the linked media reports.
June 14th, 2010 at 8:29 pmIs it all over,what happen ?
June 14th, 2010 at 8:43 pmIt’s not been announced yet what took place or what decisions made.
June 14th, 2010 at 9:00 pmThey went into executive session where they interviewed the three finalists tonight. No decision was made tonight, the Board is going to be interviewing some additional non-traditional candidates on Wednesday.
June 14th, 2010 at 10:26 pm13abc’s coverage – (link):
Two of the candidates chose not to meet with the media tonight after their interviews. Those are Richard Drury, a former superintendent out of Wheaten, Illinois and Jerry Pecko, a former superintendent from the Akron, Ohio area. The third welcomed the spotlight. Dr. Deborah Hunter-Harvill says, “I want an opportunity to serve this community, so here I am.”
Doctor Deborah Hunter-Harvill is a former superintendent in the Westwood Heights school district in Flint, Michigan. Before that she was a school principal for Detroit Public Schools and a school reform director. Hunter-Havrill says she wants to push school reform in the face of the district’s economic crisis.
June 15th, 2010 at 12:04 amI think the school board is getting it by interviewing “non-traditional” candidates.
June 15th, 2010 at 8:30 amLet’s hope so,they should look deep and deeper before they leap.
June 15th, 2010 at 8:57 amI am a former superintendent of the Westwood Heights School District. As a Superintendent you sit back and weigh the comments and agenda of individuals. What I want to stress is that no Superintendent or CEO of any business, industry or school district will go unscathed and not be criticized at some point for the decisions or positions they have taken.
Being a leader is at best political and difficult. I write not to criticize people for their belief or politics but rather to say let some issues rest. Hunter-Harvill is doing what she is passionate about and that is being a school leader. For everyone who disagrees or holds ill will, there are others who sing her praises.
School districts are complicated structures dotted with several groups with different agendas. However, the one agenda she espouses is working with children and communities. Let not any of us be on a destructive campaign to ruin a life or career because of disharmony and many times simple dislike.
It is for the Toledo Board of Education to choose their future leader. Every leader is not always a fit. If pair of shoes feel tight and uncomfortable we move onto the next. If one would do a study of Superintendent’s, they will find that there are difficult Boards with which they must work and no resources. Unions can be difficult to work with, parents and community agendas. The point being that if this is not a good match we move on. Let’s not assume that a school board is always correct in their decision making and that a Superintendent is always perfect and has the correct solutions to every problem.
School superintendents inherit problems and are expected to have a magic potion to fix them in many situations. Westwood like many other school district has had several turnovers of Superintendent’s in a short period of time. Agendas change, school board members change, there is always a shortage of money and thus many times a recipe for disaster. But the goal remains the same and that is to educate the school community.
Let’s remember in this situation that Deborah Hunter-Harvill deserves her chance at Toledo. We need to also remember that the Toledo School Board has done and is doing their homework where she is concerned. She has made it to the finals and it is for them to decide if she is a fit. It is easy to criticize when we have not walked in someone else’s shoes. Their is a fine line that permeates between civil criticism turning into trying to destroy someones character and lively hood. Yes we are all entitled to voice our opinion but I truly want to believe that destruction of character and pure malice are certainly not the intent.
If the Toledo Board of Education is ready for Hunter-Harvill and she for them, I am sure they will turn the district around because they both want better for that community and I know instinctively the community wants and will be a model for the nation.
June 15th, 2010 at 10:48 amI’m glad that they are looking at other people.
June 15th, 2010 at 1:16 pmLisa Renee,
My name is Tamasha Harrold. I am also, a School Board Member of Westwood Heights (Trustee of my own choosing), and I wish you had received a more objective point of view on Dr. Deborah Hunter-Harvill. I was not a fan of Dr. Hunter-Harvill while she worked in our district, because I didn’t like some of the things she had done, but what I did like is her determination and the care that she carried for our students and our community. Given the right circumstances and a fair chance Dr. Hunter-Harvill will be an asset to the right school district. I am the Board Member that Dr. Hunter-Harvill told that she was going to sue the district if she didn’t receive what she was promised by our ex-board president. But in all fairness to Dr. Hunter-Harvill, I believe that if she was given a fair chance to grow with our Board of Education, and within our district. She would not have sued. Brenda Battle-Jordan has personal issues against Dr. Hunter-Harvill. Brenda voted yes to hire Dr. Hunter-Harvill, and then all of a sudden she was dead set against her for reasons that are still unknown to me. When Brenda was elected School Board President in 2009-2010 the power struggle between the both of them began. Dr. Hunter-Harvill has left our district to move on with her life. We should allow her, to do, just that. Thank you for this opportunity to be heard.
June 15th, 2010 at 2:58 pmThanks for your comments Jerri-Lynn, however, the videos speak for themselves and as pointed out, none of the TPS school board members had spoken with board members from Westwood Heights.
Everyone does have their critics and their supporters, but this community needs someone who can handle a great deal of stress and pressure.
June 15th, 2010 at 10:11 pmLisa. Well put, I thoroughly agree with your last comment. From what I have gleaned reading the GCJ and following the threads, this candidate would seem to be prepared to take the sytems down the present path of imploding, even faster! I would also tend to agree with Mr. Jones, comment #2, but I am not sure that the TPS systems would attract the caliber of leader required to do as he speaks.
June 16th, 2010 at 6:59 amLisa, you are God sent, thank you for all of your hard work, and your support for your School District, /Community and Society as a whole,Brenda Battle Jordan.
June 21st, 2010 at 2:58 pm