The Aurora college board has known as a particular assembly to debate the actions of Superintendent Rico Munn after he despatched a letter to all district workers accusing the Aurora academics union of “dishonest and inappropriate” claims in an ongoing and public dispute over methods to deal with schooling within the pandemic.
The Tuesday assembly has just one agenda merchandise, a personnel matter, however, in contrast to most personnel discussions, this one shall be public. There won’t, nevertheless, be public remark.
Board member Marques Ivey confirmed that the assembly was known as by the vast majority of the board to debate the superintendent.
“We’re going to judge the state of affairs as a complete to see what occurred,” Ivey mentioned.
Aurora’s superintendent and the academics union have been at odds a number of instances over time, together with over when and methods to provide in-person instruction throughout the pandemic. The college board, whose majority was elected with union help, has performed a extra hands-on function than others, typically overruling Munn on college opening choices. The disagreements heightened tensions between the board and superintendent over the right function for every of them.
A recurring concern from the board is whether or not Munn has accomplished sufficient to interact the group or academics about troublesome choices.
The latest dispute began over plans to contemplate eliminating asynchronous studying Fridays. After an unplanned and heated dialogue of the thought eventually Tuesday’s college board assembly, the superintendent despatched a sharply worded letter to all district workers members wherein he disputed union claims and accused the union of working in a divisive method.
Munn described the method taken by union management as “emblematic of a rising and deliberately divisive tone” and “a need to not have a real working relationship that advantages each workers and college students.” Countering union claims, Munn wrote that he consults usually with academics, and the district has adopted science and information in its reopening choices.
Ivey mentioned he was involved that the letter had gone out to all workers and never simply the board of schooling. For many who could have seen the letter and felt confused, “the board has acquired it, and the board is taking motion.”
However his essential concern, he mentioned, is to contemplate if the district’s “prime government is working in a good {and professional} method,” and whether or not workers really feel like they’re getting the perfect from their management.
“I believe it’s essential to judge these issues,” Ivey mentioned. “I can’t let you know how the assembly’s going to go. You hope these items could be repaired. That workers can really feel assured within the management and the board can transfer ahead.”
Munn mentioned Saturday he felt the claims of the union letter had been harmful, and because it was a public letter, he felt the district had to reply to appropriate the file.
“Every little thing we do is public,” Munn mentioned. “I don’t assume a distribution listing issues. It’s a public letter a method or one other.”
Munn additionally mentioned he has acquired feedback from workers who “reached out to help what I needed to say. I believe individuals admire listening to the reality instantly from me.” Personnel issues could be mentioned in closed government session, however Munn mentioned he selected to make Tuesday’s particular assembly public on condition that the assembly shall be about two public letters.
“There was no victory for APS kids on this fashion of communication each methods,” board member Kevin Cox mentioned. “I consider each member of our workers deserves to be handled with the utmost respect. Whether or not or not that communication was explicitly in violation of a specific coverage, it robs our workers of dignity that I consider they deserve. They’ve an excessive amount of on their plates to take care of proper now, and I at all times help staff.”
Within the district’s most up-to-date written replace on rising in-person studying, Munn famous that the district was contemplating whether or not to vary the asynchronous studying day. Up till now, the district has left Fridays as a day for college kids to do unbiased work to permit academics extra planning time. Munn advised the varsity board he’s involved that scholar engagement drops considerably on Fridays.
As of mid-February, Aurora elementary college students have the choice to go to highschool in-person 4 days per week each week, whereas center and highschool college students stay on a hybrid schedule. College students in all grade ranges and all studying modes nonetheless have Fridays as a digital unbiased work day.
Leaders of the academics union responded to the replace with a letter of their very own, despatched to the board however not the superintendent, arguing that Munn has not taken instructor voices into consideration in these plans.
“Because the Board of Schooling ceded management of COVID and studying mannequin choices again to Superintendent Munn, he has compelled by and rushed main adjustments with out regard to concern from academics, constructing leaders, and the group,” the union’s board of administrators wrote. “Mr. Munn continues to misrepresent the voice of [the Aurora Education Association] and has not included the affiliation in any choice making or solicited enter since earlier than winter break.”
Munn particularly denied that and mentioned the letter itself contradicts these claims.
Union President Bruce Wilcox couldn’t be reached for remark Saturday.
After Munn gave the board his common replace on the standing of in-person studying, board members requested questions in regards to the union’s claims. They then introduced in Bruce Wilcox, the union president, and mediated a brief backwards and forwards spat between the 2 leaders.
In the course of the assembly, Munn known as the union’s letter “offensive” and mentioned it “grossly misstates and misrepresents any variety of issues.”
Wilcox saved his feedback transient however defined that academics who’re offering instruction on the identical time to college students who’re in entrance of them and who’re on the opposite aspect of a display want the additional time to plan.
Shortly after that alternate, A.J. Crabill, a marketing consultant from the Council of the Nice Metropolis Faculties who has been working with the board to enhance their management, criticized the board for that interplay. When the board president tried to clarify that board members felt they needed to consider if the superintendent is following their steerage to at all times search enter from workers and group, Crabill advised them that the dialogue had not achieved that.
“You acquired no significant information out of your superintendent concerning this compliance, so you haven’t any higher clue,” Crabill mentioned. “Don’t confuse that for ‘that is us monitoring.’ That didn’t occur this night. You simply had a random dialog.”
Crabill has inspired the board to be much less concerned in each choice Munn makes and as a substitute observe usually scheduled monitoring of their targets. On Tuesday, he advised the board that if his boss tried to judge him the best way the board simply had, he wouldn’t really feel valued or supported as an worker.
Ivey mentioned that in asking questions in regards to the letter, he didn’t imply for the dialogue to devolve into that public argument. “It was meant to generate dialogue,” he mentioned.
Within the letter Munn wrote after the assembly, he mentioned he needed to appropriate the misinformation that was within the union’s letter, together with that he has not consulted with academics and different workers.
“It’s my duty to make it possible for, significantly in a time of disaster, that truthful info is communicated to our group and to our workers,” Munn mentioned in an interview.
Within the letter, he added, “My deepest hope is {that a} clear response can permit us to maneuver our focus again onto serving our college students within the most secure and most acceptable atmosphere we will present.”
Requested if he was involved about preserving his job, Munn mentioned he stands by his actions and is devoted to the district and its college students.
Munn’s present contract goes by June 2023. The board can select to finish the contract early for sure causes reminiscent of “incompetency, neglect of obligation, immorality, unsatisfactory efficiency, insubordination,” or felony convictions. To take action, the board should give the superintendent three enterprise days advance written discover of the alleged trigger.
In any other case, the board could terminate the contract by paying a severance, which should be $200,000 if the termination occurs earlier than June 30, 2021.
Learn the complete letters beneath: