This from the
Herald-Leader:
The Fayette County school board voted Sunday to terminate
its contract with superintendent search firm PROACT Search Inc.
But board members want to continue the search for a permanent superintendent to lead Fayette County Public Schools.
Chairman
John Price called Sunday's meeting in the wake of what he termed "very
disturbing allegations involving the CEO of PROACT Search," Gary
Solomon, that came to light in a Chicago Sun-Times article.
The
article, posted Thursday, said that about 15 years ago, Solomon, in an
Illinois school district where he taught, faced allegations of making
racial slurs and sending inappropriate emails to a female student.
The
newspaper previously reported that Solomon's principal-training company
is under federal criminal scrutiny for a deal with Chicago Public
Schools.
 |
| Gary
Solomon |
After the vote to terminate the contract, Price said in
an interview that "with the allegations against Mr. Solomon we felt we
could not move forward in confidence with his company."
"For the
good of our students, for the good of our search, we need to move
forward to terminate our contract as soon as possible," Price said.
The school board is trying to find by July a replacement for Tom Shelton, who resigned in December.
Price
said the board wanted to try to stick to the July time line and would
look for another firm to vet the candidates who have applied and accept
more applications.
He said those who have applied through Proact would be given full consideration.
Halting
the search probably would delay the hiring process by a year, Price
said, but he added, "If we don't find the right candidate, we will not
hire at this point and time. We have to feel confident that we've got
the right person for the job."
He said board members might be able to make more decisions about the search at Monday's work session.
Acting superintendent Marlene Helm said she was willing to help the board for the short term.
Before going into closed session Sunday morning, board members talked with Solomon by speaker phone.
Solomon
said there are 30 applicants for the job. He said he was willing to
recuse himself from dealing with the search if the board would continue
to work with his colleagues.
The school board has paid about $9,000 on its $22,000 contract with Proact Search.
A
spokesman for Solomon did not immediately respond to a request for
comment after the board vote Sunday. But in a statement to the
Herald-Leader Friday, Solomon wrote:
"Niles Township recently
released a disciplinary hearing transcript that includes a discussion of
emails from the late 1990s that I allegedly authored, one or more of
which, admittedly included racial slurs."
"Although these were
fleeting statements in the context of a private conversation from many
years ago, I make no excuse for such abhorrent, racially, and ethnically
insensitive comments, regardless of my intent. Those closest to me, my
life's work, and my actions know that such language is not a true
reflection of my feelings, beliefs, or thoughts. I apologize for such
harmful and insulting language, which I deeply regret."
Dennis
Culloton, a spokesman for PROACT, said Friday that Niles Township High
School released a transcript of a disciplinary hearing that took place
in 1999 when Solomon was a high school dean and teacher. He was accused
of sending inappropriate email to a female student, the Sun-Times
reported.
"The hearing lasted numerous days over numerous months and was never completed," Culloton said.
"While
he vigorously defended himself against the charges and before Mr.
Solomon could present his defense, Niles Township agreed to
confidentially settle the parties' employment matter, which included
Niles Township paying Mr. Solomon $50,000. No law enforcement authority
of any kind, including the police and (social services), then or since,
ever filed charges or rendered any adverse finding against Mr. Solomon
for the alleged occurrences," Culloton said.
The Sun-Times said
district trustees approved paying $50,000 to Solomon and the law firm
that represented him to settle the dispute with the district in February
2000. Under the terms of the deal, Solomon resigned, the newspaper
said.
Fayette school board members expressed concerns Sunday about
the public's faith in the superintendent search in light of the
allegations against the PROACT CEO.
The district is looking for a
superintendent who will close the achievement gap between minority
students and others and bring equity for all students.
Fayette
County Education Association president Jessica Hiler, who is on a
committee that will screen candidates, and William Saunders, president
of the local chapter of the NAACP, said they thought the board made the
best decision in ending the contract with PROACT.
"We're behind them 100 percent," said Saunders.
Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2015/05/03/3833418_fayette-school-board-in-closed.html?rh=1#storylink=cpy
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