Superintendent stays by 4-3 vote

MAT-SU -- In the midst of a flurry of naysayers and supporters, the Mat-Su Borough School board last week narrowly voted to keep Superintendent Pat Chesbro.

Board members Linda Menard and Carl Gatto indicated early on that they would not vote to retain Chesbro as school superintendent. Member Larry DeVilbiss, however, voted against extending Chesbro's contract only after asking to table it for further consideration and being voted down by the rest of the board.

"I would have liked to have supported the superintendent after my full consideration, but if you're not going to give me that … you lost my vote," DeVilbiss said.

He said that while he entirely agreed with Chesbro's approach to academics, he wanted to be able to address concerns about the superintendent's principal-selection process before offering her another contract.

The majority of the board, however, supported Chesbro and said while there may be areas to improve upon, they felt having continuity in leadership was important, especially in light of budget talks and employee contract negotiations. In a 4-3 vote, the board agreed to extend Chesbro's contract.

"I'm frankly proud to have made the motion to retain the superintendent tonight," member Rob Wells said. Wells said it is nearly impossible to move forward with district business when searching for a new superintendent.

"And I think we've made progress with this superintendent," he said.

He pointed out that history was made when the district won full funding from the Mat-Su Borough Assembly last year and, while he said the community could share the credit, he felt it was largely due to the superintendent's efforts to communicate with borough officials.

A vocal group in the audience, however, did not share Wells' views.

While most of the several-hundred people packed into the school board chambers at Palmer High last week were there as part of a union demonstration, a group of 20 or so either testified or stood behind those who spoke to demonstrate their feelings about the superintendent's contract.

Those who said the board should not retain Chesbro primarily cited concerns about the principal selection process at Colony and Palmer high schools. Speakers said they did not feel the administration was involving the school communities in the selections and that qualified candidates weren't being considered while other, less-successful principals remain in the system.

During one particularly tense moment in the meeting, Colony High English teacher Prudence Plunkett began to read a letter with 47 signatures addressed to the superintendent, expressing concern over the administration's search for a new Colony High principal. As she began to read the letter, Chesbro interrupted to say she objected, that the letter was private and addressed to her alone, although it had been copied to all board members.

Plunkett argued that, as the authors of the letter, they had the right to read it into public record. Board president Dan Contini, however, said personnel matters, including those having to do with the superintendent, could not be discussed during a public school board meeting.

According to a board policy written in 1995, people cannot orally complain or make charges against any district employee, including the superintendent, regardless of whether or not they identify the employee by name or position. Instead, such complaints are to be submitted as written testimony.

Plunkett sidestepped the issue by paraphrasing the letter and not directly naming the superintendent. She said the administration's approach to choosing a new principal at Colony High has made it "impossible to believe that this administration has the best interest of students at heart."

Colony High teacher Dawn Brettrager also testified against retaining Chesbro, saying that the superintendent had not provided the necessary support to Colony High in the wake of last year's difficulties. Two teachers were found guilty last year of having sexual relations with students. Following a district investigation, principal Bill Harlow was transferred to central administration and vice principal Mark Okeson to Wasilla High. Okeson is currently in arbitration with the district over the transfer.

Okeson's mother, Gloria Okeson, told the board the district administration has made life difficult for her son and has lied to her family several times.

"I feel it's a real slap in the face to our family and what we've contributed to the community," she said. "I beg you to not renew her contract."

Gatto said he heard this message from the community loud and clear. Before voting against extending Chesbro's contract, he suggested opening the position to applications.

"The superintendent might be the best person for the job, but I'd like to find out," he said. "Can we do worse? Certainly. Can we do better? I think so."

He described Chesbro as having a leadership style that doesn't bring people together. Instead of encouraging dialogue, Gatto said, the superintendent has typically used directives.

"This community knows something is desperately wrong and only the group at this table can do anything about it … and I know in my heart how you're asking me to vote," Gatto said, garnering applause from a portion of the audience.

The superintendent did have supporters in the crowd, however.

Former school board member John Fairfield described her as a "gem of a superintendent" who has proven herself in the district as a long-term employee, first as a teacher, then as a school principal and finally as superintendent.

"We have somebody who is a consensus builder," Fairfield said. "We need to hold on to her. We need to encourage her."

Like several others during the night, Fairfield pointed out that the district has proven unable to hold on to its leaders.

"This community has been very rough on its superintendents," he said.

Tony Pippel, who said he spoke for 15 Palmer High families, agreed, saying it has been a history of "conflict and turnover, conflict and turnover … you're probably not going to like the next guy any better."

The day after the meeting, Chesbro said it was clear that some board members and community members have concerns about her ability to lead the district.

"But I believe many of the things that were said or implied last night simply aren't true," Chesbro said. "It was a long night for me and I would like feedback in a little different way."

She said when she applied for the position two years ago, she made it clear the district had some significant communication problems that bred "mistrust and suspicion." While she said she might not have resolved that problem as successfully as she would have liked, it continues to be one of her goals. Another of her goals has been to encourage constructive criticism that leads to change rather than harming individual people.

Looking back over the past two years, Chesbro said some of the highlights she recalls is her work to build "action profiles" to identify and begin working on district problems and the efforts to increase safety at all school buildings. She said she has also strived to improve relations with the assembly and borough, "… and I do think it's better than I've seen during my tenure as a district employee," she said.

As for the community's reputation for being hard on its school superintendents, Chesbro said she plans to stick around as long as she feels positive about the people she is working for. Change, she said, takes time.

"I told them when I took the job that I needed five or six years … I will not, however, kill myself to do it," she said.

The superintendent and school board have yet to agree to the final details of her contract. Under her last agreement, Chesbro's annual salary and benefits totaled $126,000.