In an e-mail to Joplin R-8 board members obtained by the Turner Report, Huff said there was nothing to the report:
Checked it out with Ron Lankford and Ron Wilken, DESE area supervisor. I know you will find it a shock that there was nothing to it. No complaints...no investigation.
Lankford, of course, is the former superintendent of the Webb City School District and is now a top official at DESE.
In that Sept. 19 post, I wrote the following:
The Joplin R-8 School District has spent more than $2 million over the past four years for teaching/learning coaches.
The use of Title I and IDEA funds to pay for the salaries of people who have been serving more as administrators-in-training and as the eyes and ears of upper administration in the district schools, appears to be coming under state scrutiny.
Jefferson City sources told the Turner Report that DESE is investigating the district after receiving complaints, from patrons, from legislative sources...and from within administration.
While the specifics of the investigation are still being kept hush-hush, people who have taken their concerns to the state department say state officials have examined documents that raise questions about the administration's use of Title I and IDEA funds, both federal programs, but both of which also operate under strict state guidelines.
One concern, a source close to administration told the Turner Report, was the use of Title I funds to pay for the teaching and learning coaches. State department officials say there would be no problem with the coaches if they were helping teachers who were working directly with students. The problem has been that the coaches have been told their job is to work with principals, not teachers, and the coaching positions, which have become a training ground for open principal positions in the district, have all of the appearances of an additional layer of administration. Coaches have also been told that their job is to be the eyes and ears of administration in their buildings.
The payments for coaches from the Title I program also led to the elimination of reading teachers... who were working directly with the students.
If the state is examining the payment of coaches from Title I and IDEA funds, it will also be looking at the question of whether coaches who work at non Title I schools have been receiving funds, a violation of both state and federal laws.
Joplin High School, for instance, is not a Title 1 school.
During fiscal year 2013, $182,495 in Title I funds have been spent on teaching and learning coaches, while local taxpayers are paying $415,649 for a total of $598,145.
Fiscal year 2012 is also being scrutinized since $187,480 of the coaches' salaries comes from Title I and IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) funds. IDEA funds are strictly designated only for use with those working directly with students who have IEPs (Individual Education Plans). Local taxpayers paid $355,224, while another $45,547 came from Title II A, a program that is designed for use in improving teacher quality. The total for 2012 was $589.251.
The transferring of hundreds of thousands to local taxpayers to pay for the extra layer of administration came only during the last two years, according to district documents. During fiscal year 2011, $314,885 came from Title I and IDEA, while Title II A funds covered the remaining $142,941 in salaries. The total for the year was $457,806.
Fiscal year 2010 documents show $38,372 in local funds, with $236,655 from Title I and IDEA (the district documents that I have do not separate how much funding came from either) and $248,421 from Title II A, for a total of $521,448.
As Huff was reassuring the R-8 Board of Education that everything was all right, his top lieutenant, Assistant Superintendent Angie Besendorfer was already telling those teaching/learning coaches how they were to respond if anyone questioned them about the items that were mentioned on The Turner Report.
In an e-mail sent out the same day to the teaching/learning coaches, Besendorfer wrote the following:
I wanted to provide you with a few talking points just in case you are asked about the facts in the article posted in a blog regarding Joplin Schools coaches. I've copied the article below. I want to be sure that if you are approached you have factual information.
*Joplin Schools have not been notified of any complaints or concerns shared with DESE. We have reached out to our state supervisor to confirm nothing exits (sic).
*The financial information is likely to be factual regarding numbers but it misrepresents many things and implies wrong information.
*We originally had ARRA (Stimulus funds) to pay for the TLCs; however, we didn't have that when the original decision to use a coaching model was adopted. At that time we planned to use Title I funds and some local funds that were repurposed from secondary dept. specialists. We were able to use ARRA funds instead.
*Elementary coaches can be paid from Title I since ALL elementary schools are Title schools. In fact, Title I requires a specific amount of money to be allocated to PD. We choose to use this model for daily job-embedded PD.
*Secondary coaches have been appropriately paid from other sources, including local dollars. Title 2 is also an acceptable source because it is exclusively designated for PD in order to improve teachers.
*The numbers reflect an increase in coaches which was due to the addition of 21st Century coaches paid from local dollars.
*Bottom line is that Joplin Schools follows federal guidelines. We have annual audits and federal funds is a big part of those. We always get clean reports including the 5 previous years.
*There is no need to address to this group that our coaches support teacher AND principals. You are not administrators or spies, etc.
I hope you won't worry about this. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.
The information that I used in my initial story about the source of funding for the teaching/learning coaches came from a Sunshine Law request made by someone else that was later sent to me. When that request was initially made, though the information is public, Huff took the unusual step of letting all of the teaching/learning coaches know that someone was looking into the funding and was seeking personal information about how much these people were making. The request, though there is nothing in the Sunshine Law that requires this, was held up while Huff told the employees that someone was looking into their salaries (which is information the public has every right to know).
The teaching/learning coaches also received an e-mail that day from Sarah Stevens, the district's director of curriculum, instruction, and assessment (and a former teaching/learning coach):
Hello everyone,
I just wanted you to be made aware that the sunshine law request that was made this summer has gone public.
The article that was sent to me did not have our names or individual salaries, but rather an article on how the district paid for our salaries and the total amount of money spent over the years.
There are several misrepresentations and accusations that are not true.
Angie will be sending out an email later tonight with the facts and some talking points to help you if you are asked or confronted about it.
Thank you!
Sarah
Certainly C. J. Huff, Angie Besendorfer, and Sarah Stevens must be happy that they are under the belief that no one is investigating the Joplin R-8 School District. Otherwise, the word obstruction would certainly come to mind.
Worried, were they, that their names and salaries would be punished and others could see what they make as opposed to what they produce? All salaries are available, anyway. So maybe they've been sweating this because they know what they're doing is wrong? That's the more likely scenario. Honesty is always the best policy. Too bad it's not used by these people.
ReplyDeleteDon't you wonder why the board puts up with being lied to like that? I'd think that would be enough to cost these people their jobs. Should be enough.
ReplyDeleteKind of makes you wonder what else they've lied about, doesn't it? Ready to apologize to Mr. Turner yet, school board?
ReplyDeleteEvery level of admin from TLCs up got talking points. Can't trust people to think and talk for themselves. They might tell the truth if they do that. If there are any left that know how to be honest.
ReplyDeleteIt seems obvious that the reason Huff made such a big deal about not revealing the individuals's salaries is because once you know who made what, it becomes obvious that Title I and IDEA money were paid to people who should not have been receiving any.
ReplyDeleteRandy Turner for Joplin Board of Education!!
ReplyDeleteCJ Huff is a horrible man, he has ruined teachers spirit and hurt so many people along the way!
ReplyDeleteMaybe the days of strong arming, intimidation, stalking, spying, and coercion are coming to a close. If I was dumb enough to work closely with that group, I'd cut and run now while I could. It's not like things will get better from here for any of them.
ReplyDeleteLook at all the people that have been hired since the tornado and ask yourself how any of them are paid. If the district was so broke before the tornado that my sister couldn't have an electric pencil sharpener or a desk lamp, then how the hell do you people think they're paying everyone now and going on all those trips? They've spent money on those things that they shouldn't have. Simple math. It doesn't matter what their intentions are, the law is the law and they should have to obey it like us common folk. End of story.
ReplyDeleteThey have surely figured out by now that their would-be friends and supporters have turned against them. A few weeks ago the TLCs were told to inform administrators when teachers are not carrying out their soft skills plan. One TLC was overheard saying, as they were leaving, how excited she was to be able to report her teachers. This certainly goes against Angie's talking points, but it is worth reporting so all concerned know that they are being watched, listened to, and informed on everywhere they go. Assume that the walls have ears.
ReplyDeleteAny board member or administrative member of RVIII who wishes to remain in good standing in the eyes of the public should start doing what they can to publicly distance, lest they be painted with the same brush. You will be held accountable for being complicit, even if it is complicity through inaction. Not accountable just in terms of votes, but your personal reputations that you have spent a lifetime building are at risk.
ReplyDeleteIt's already too late for Huff and Besendorfer, but their egos will cling to every flimsy straw necessary to prevent being made self-aware of their individual failings (in their mind, it will be an ignorant populace rather than personal mistakes). Don't make that same mistake. Even if for the purpose of self-interest and not because of a sense of responsibility to the community, do what you can to help clean house. The writing is on the outer wall and only those inside the building can't read it.
It would almost be bearable if the kids were learning something for the misappropriated funds. But they're not. It's just wasted money all the way around so administrators can brag about all their programs they started. In the mean time we've lost a ton of good teachers and the kids know less every year. This kind of cluster making would cost lots of jobs at the top in the business world. Apparently it's acceptable in education in Joplin. So long as the buildings look pretty for the cameras, nothing else counts. Despicable!
ReplyDeleteAccording to what I've been able to find CJ Huff makes approximately $150,000.00 or more and Angie Besendorfer makes approximately $125,000.00 or more. If you have the time and are willing to do the research you'll find it
ReplyDeleteFrom a purely business perspective, I have to say Joplin Schools haven't seen much return on their investment in personnel and technology. It would never stand in my world. Time to alter course.
ReplyDeleteWhy do I believe huff would know more on this "investigation" than you? Because NOONE is giving YOU top secret info. Sorry Randy. You come across like a scorned ex-employee who got fired.
ReplyDelete7:45 - He's getting in-house emails, obviously. Email that is addressed to board members and such. So there's that, yes? You keep on drinking the kool-aid, there, 7:45. I LOL @ you, just like everyday.
ReplyDelete7:45--
ReplyDeleteYou are wrong and you know it. You are just seeking revenge because Turner dared tell the truth about something/someone close to you. So hush.
The district would fare far better if they would invest in teachers instead of gimmicks. Kids already know technology. What they lack is basic skills and content. Great teachers move kids to do great things. Initiatives do nothing but create busyness for a short amount of time until the next initiative comes along. It's simple business.
As far as what their leaders have done on a moral sense, 7:45, you should be able to relate to. Wrong deeds require that we eventually accept a personal responsibility for our actions. We will hope that happens here sooner than later.
Why do those administrators keep lying, even when the evidence to contradict them is so obvious and available? Just keep on digging seems to be their philosophy.
ReplyDeleteWhy are they still here is my second question? Is the Board not embarrassed by their behavior? The rest of us are.
Why is it that only in Turnertardland does the "voices" in Randy Turner's head telling him anonymous tales from unattributed sources seem to have any meaning?
ReplyDeleteWhat if, as seems likely, nothing real comes from what Turner claims that his anonymous sources tell him?
Does a tree falling in the woods make a sound if nobody hears it? I'd put more credence in what the Geiko Gecko says about this matter than what Turner says to his credulous tards in Turnertoontardville.
That said, even if Turner is right, we will always be inordinately grateful to CJ Huff for ridding our school district of a tedious tard like Turner. Insofar as I'm concerned, that ought to be grounds for lifetime job security for its own right.
9:21 - I put more credence in Turner than you because:
ReplyDeletea) he has been right in the past on other issues, e.g. Speck/MSSU,
b) he receives legitimate emails from the inside, suggesting that there are multiple people within with legitimate grievances who feel strongly enough that they are willing to risk employment,
c) there are enough thoughtful comments on the blog from individuals with varying writing styles that confirm or lend credence to the grievances as expressed
d) he receives isolated but persistent messages of hate from a smaller number of individuals (yourself included) suggesting that someone is sincerely disturbed by the coverage and/or has a vendetta against Turner,
e) personal observations of high turnover in the R-VIII and of the general negative impressions in the educational communities surrounding Joplin
...and probably other points that I am forgetting. Circumstances cause me to give more weight to the 'R-VIII is a hot mess' hypothesis than to those whose "rhetoric" consists of F-grade insult comedy at best.
Now say my name....