gilda day petition

7/30/2019 Gilda Day Petition

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STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION CHARTER COMMITTEE

STATE OF GEORGIA

GILDA DAY individually and on behalfof 119 similarly situated employee educators ofFloyd County School System,

Petitioner,

vs.

FLOYD COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT,and SUPERINTENDENT JEFF MCDANIEL

Respondents.

.:

PETITION TO HOLD SUPERINTENDENT MCDANIEL IN BREACH OF THE

CHARTER AGREEMENT, TO REVERSE THE REDUCTION IN FORCE, AND TO

TERMINATE THE CHARTER:

COMES NOW GILDA DAY individually and on behalf of 119 other similarly

situated RIFd employees of Floyd County Schools, and hereby files this petition pursuant to

the States invitation for public commentand in response to the Superintendents letter dated

April 24, 2013.

INTRODUCTION

The Superintendent and locally elected officials of the School District are currently

intruding and infringing on the people of Floyd Countys right to common sense,

Constitutional local self-governance by breaching the requirements of the charter system

contract. As such, the Reduction in Force should be reversed, all programs and resources

reinstated for Fiscal Year 2014 and this State should terminate the charter system due to the


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Superintendents persistent failure to adhere to material terms of the peoples charter

agreement pursuant to O.C.G.A. 20-2-2068.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND:

1.

It is important to have an understanding of the historical background of the issues

presented. Floyd County Schools (FCS) is a charter system where parents, teachers, and

community members of Floyd County have the right, responsibility, and duty oflocal self-

governance concerning the important decisions that impact their local schools. In order to

obtain this charter status, FCS entered into a charter agreement with the State Board of

Education. FCS must abide by this contractual agreement in order to maintain the charter

system. Pursuant to the Charter Agreement, members of the community, parents, principals,

and teachers must make up a Local School Governance Team (LSGT) and Local School

Coordinating Council (LSCC) to make the important decisions that include budgets and

staffing for local schools.1 These important decisions must not be made unilaterally behind

closed doors or dictatorially decided by the elite few in positions of governmental power.

Rather, the people of Floyd County through their community leaders, parents, principals, and

teachers who are members of the LSGT and LSCC have the duty and responsibility to local

self-governance and involvement in these vitally important decisions including such matters

as budgeting and staffing. To date, the Superintendent and District are in breach of the charter

agreement because they did not include, inform, or involve the LSGT, LSCC, parents,

1 See Page 4, Item 13, section B of the CharterSchool Level Governance: The Governing Council shallmaximize school level governance which is defined as decision making authority in personnel decisions,financial decisions, curriculum and instruction, resource allocation, establishing and monitoring the achievementof school improvement goals and school operations. Also see:http://www.floydboe.net/charter/local_school_governance/innovation_begins_with_you
http://www.floydboe.net/charter/local_school_governance/innovation_begins_with_youhttp://www.floydboe.net/charter/local_school_governance/innovation_begins_with_youhttp://www.floydboe.net/charter/local_school_governance/innovation_begins_with_you


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principals or members of the Floyd County community in the decision to implement a

Reduction in Force which relates both to budget and staffing decisions. Nor did they seek

input from the local schools governance or principals in the decisions as to which positions

and personnel would be affected. Not only did FCS breach the charter system agreement, but

they also breached their own Floyd County Board of Education Reduction in Force policy

which requires the administrator's observations and knowledge in choosing which educators

to RIF by failing to involve any Principal input from each local school. Additionally, they

have breached the majority if not all of the Essential Innovative Features as required by the

Charter agreement on page two, number five, sections a-j: a modified calendar, high school

scheduling designed under a hybrid block model, Physics First for 9th graders, LINKS classes,

freshman academies such as High School 101, and utilization of community partnerships and

resource management (using school governance teams to set budget priorities.)2.

Shortly after he took office, SUPERINTENDENT MCDANIEL informed the people

of Floyd County that 120 of their communitys educators will lose their jobs after this school

year and recently he suggested that more lay-offs are to come in the future. Even though the

Board of Education approved the budget and found FCS to be in excellent financial standing

just a few months ago, there has been no explanation and no hard and fast numbers provided

by SUPERINTENDENT MCDANIEL as to where this supposed sudden budget deficit has

come from and why. In fact, it appears that once the projected revenue numbers are actually

out, they will show that such a claimed deficit is indeed false.


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3.

When analyzing financial records and statements reflected on the Board of Education

website, FCS appears to continue to be in good financial shape. It makes no sense for the

Superintendent to even be able to comment on the projected revenues since at the time of the

RIF and to date there has been no indication of projected state or local funding, i.e. tax digest

releases or preliminary allotment sheets from the state for FY 14. At the time of the RIF, the

Superintendent had no figures to support a realistic projection of revenue for FY 14. In fact,

the General Assembly had not even started its session so there were no budget projections at

all on the state level. To date, the Governor has already ruled that K-12 is exempt from any 3

percent cuts in state funding. On the local level, digest projections were not possible.

Furthermore, the Superintendent did not account for any additional funding that came via

charter system, the equalization increase in 2008, and mid-term adjustments. He also did not

account for additional local revenue or any local revenue for that matter. Nor did he raise the

option of the Board raising the millage rate back to previous levels in an effort to save school

funding, jobs, and precious resources.

4.

Superintendent McDaniel also did not take into account the furlough days that saved

our District some three million dollars. Perhaps this is because he is trying to do away with

furlough days. Notably, keeping the furlough days prevent the Superintendent and his

administrators from being able to utilize state funds to provide themselves raises pursuant to

O.C.G.A. 20-2-216.6. Nevertheless, taking into consideration the furlough days, another

three million dollars should be credited to the budget revenues. Having three million dollars in


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additional revenue should help reverse the RIF, saving countless educators jobs and vital

school resources.

5.

Upon examination of our financial records posted on the Board of Education website,

it reflects that we are in excellent condition and will end the fiscal year with a significant

credit fund balance. In December, property tax was listed as very good and state revenues

were listed on target. In March, property tax revenue was listed as excellent. At the most

recent Board meeting this past April, they projected an ending reserve balance credit of

$5,000,000. Nevertheless, how can it be claimed that FCS is in the red with a deficit when

in fact we are in the black with a healthy ending reserve balance? Despite this,

Superintendent McDaniel has made the decision to slash vital positions and programs

impacting the entire Floyd County educational system.

6.

The Charter Advisory Committee is a state level body state-level body with nine

members. Three members are each appointed by the Lt. Governor, Speaker of the House and

the Chair of the State Board of Education. On April 12, 2013 the Charter Advisory Committee

voted unanimously that FCSs failure to consult with its school and system governing

councils constituted a breach of the charter system contract, including but not limited to page

2, item 5, section hResource management (i.e. using school governance teams to set budget

priorities) and page 4, item 13 section bSchool Level Governance. The Governance

Council shall maximize school level governance, which is defined as decision making

authority in personnel decisions, financial decisions, curriculum and instruction, resource


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allocation, establishing and monitoring the achievement of school improvement goals and

school operations.

7.

Before the Charter Advisory Committee recommends to the State Board of Education

whether FCS actions constituted a breach of contract and warranted termination of the charter

system contract, on April 16th, the Charter Schools Division Director Lou Erste asked

Superintendent McDaniel if there had been any remedies of the situation which included a roll

back of the RIF plan, reversal or revising the RIF plan or restart and modification of the FY

2014 process.

8.

On April 24, 2013, Superintendent McDaniel wrote a letter in response. In this letter,

he did not address any remedy of the breach of charter system contract such as reversing the

RIF or modifying the budget process. There are few cited examples of any LSGT involvement

since he became Superintendent and none of them address the issues brought forth as possible

violations of the charter. The one about facility priorities is part of SPLOST planning and has

been conducted under SPLOST II and III. He also claimed that the LSCC will in the future

participate in the 2013-1014 budget process on May 16 and May 30th. But this is a case of too

little too late, simply backtracking after the damage has already been done. Even worse, to

prove that Superintendent McDaniel is deliberately circumventing the local school

governance requirements, he admits that he intends to hold the first budget meeting with local

school governance on May 16th, the very day after contracts need to be issued on May 15th,

thus effectively keeping the LSCC from having any meaningful impact. If the LSCC

recommends that a RIF is not necessary and the budget deficit is not as claimed,


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Superintendent McDaniel will have succeeded in further circumventing the local governance

by holding the budget meetings AFTER the deadline date has been passed by one day.

9.

Not only is the right of the people of Floyd County to local self-governance under

attack, so are the Floyd County teachers constitutional, civil rights to due process.

Defendants have disclosed their intent to erode this constitutional right to due process,

robbing teachers of their right to a fair dismissal appeal, by claiming that they can simply

because Floyd County is a charter system. Defendants counsel recently stated that it intended

to deny all Floyd County educators the right to a fair dismissal hearing appeal, writing:

Floyd County Schools became a Charter System in 2010 and as such was exempted [from

the Fair Dismissal Act]. . . As such, we do not believe that the State Board has jurisdiction, or

will exercise jurisdiction, over any appeal that you may later wish to pursue for your client.

Nevertheless, Defendants position is absolutely false and reflects an attempt by the

government to infringe upon the rights of the people. Under the Georgia charter statute,

charter schools and systems are subject to all civil rights laws that protect both educators and

students. See O.C.G.A. 20-2-2065 (b)(5). And, under Floyd County Board of Education

policy, Defendants are subject to all provisions of O.C.G.A. 20-2-940, including providing

educators the right to appeal. See Floyd County Board of Education policy GBN.

10.

Without proper banking and financial regulations, Americans ended up with the

subprime mortgage disaster that created financial havoc on the entire United States, plunging

our economy into years of recession. Just as banking regulations are necessary to protect

American consumers, state school laws, rules and regulations are necessary to protect our


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students, schools, teachers, and communities. These rules hold local school superintendents

and school districts accountable and prevent dictatorships that wreak havoc on entire

communities. If there is no accountability, class sizes can skyrocket, Teachers of the Year can

be laid off, outstanding programs such as the Professional Learning Center and the College

and Career Academy can be destroyed, and scheduling options to accommodate the specific

needs of Floyd County students can go haywire. Most importantly however, the students of

Floyd County Schools will lose vital services, resources, and educators because Reductions in

Force are wrongfully implemented in clear violation of the charter system contract by

circumventing the right of the people to local self-governance. Plaintiff files this petition

because SUPERINTENDENT MCDANIEL has violated the trust of the people of Floyd

County by irrevocably breaching the charter system contract, by excluding the local school

governance and by implementing a Reduction in Force which was not necessary and should

be reversed.

WHEREFORE Petitioner Gilda Day individually and on behalf of all 119 other

similarly situated educators demand:

(a) That the Charter Committee and the State Board of Education affirm the

recommendation of the Charter Advisory Committee that voted a unanimous opinion that

FCSs failure to consult with its school and system governing councils constitute d a breach of

the charter system contract and;

(b) That the Charter Committee and State Board of Education terminate the charter

agreement pursuant to O.C.G.A. 20-2-2068 in order to hold the Superintendent fully

accountable;

(c) That the Reduction in Force be reversed;


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(d) That all programs and resources from the 2012-2013 school year as required by the

charter agreement be reinstated and continued and;

(e) That this State Board, the Governors Office and SACS investigate these

governmental officials who are infringing on the rights of the people of Floyd County to local

self-governance.

Julie OinonenAttorney for Gilda Day, PetitionerGa. State Bar No. 722018Williams Oinonen LLC44 Broad Street Ste 200Atlanta, Georgia 30303Ph)404-654-0288 Fax) 404-592-6225

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