Johnson resigns Mercer post

This from the Advocate Messenger:

Embattled Superintendent says he'll step down Dec. 31

HARRODSBURG - Those who thought a resolution to the saga of Superintendent Bruce Johnson and the Mercer County Board of Education had been reached should remove their bookmarks, as a surprising new chapter has been written.

Tuesday night at the end of a special board meeting, Chairwoman Glynda Short read a short letter from Johnson announcing his resignation as superintendent effective Dec. 31.

The announcement came as a shock to not only those in the audience but also to board members and staff. Short said she had received the letter only a few moments before the meeting. To call the last two months tumultuous for Johnson and the board would likely be regarded as an understatement, and Tuesday's turn would seem to mark the second time in the span of a few weeks that Johnson has announced his intention to leave the district.

In early May, Mercer announced a vast number of budget cuts for next school year, including elimination of 42 jobs and reduction of the kindergarten program from full day to half day.

This, and Johnson's ensuing proposal of a 3.5 percent salary cut for all district
employees as a way to hypothetically fund full-day kindergarten, sparked
controversy.

Eventually, full-day kindergarten was saved by moving around $250,000 in capital outlay funds, and the idea of salary cuts was scrapped. But during a near-month long period of uncertainty when the budget remained tabled and the capital outlay funds solution was a secret, Johnson came under heavy scrutiny, and research conducted by The Advocate-Messenger confirmed what was widely rumored: Johnson was by far the area's highest paid superintendent, earning $155,827 this year.

In late May, Johnson offered the school board the option to release him from his contract. At a May 27 meeting, the board met behind closed doors for 2-1/2 hours to discuss personnel but said no action would be taken.

Two days later, the 2008-09 budget was approved, with the capital outlay plan finally being revealed. Johnson said he wished to clarify his position and withdrew the option he'd placed before the board.

"If I decide to retire," Johnson said, "I will put in writing to the board asking them
to release me from my contract." And now he has. Johnson's announcement comes merely days before his new contract, which was signed Jan. 31, was to take effect. The contract would have started July 1 and run through June 30, 2012.

"I have to say that I'm not totally surprised by it, but I'm not necessarily happy about it," said Short. Erin Milburn, a teacher at the high school who served as a teacher representative at the meetings, often questioning board policy and encouraging amendments to make information more accessible, was also present at the meeting. She praised Johnson in what she called "a smart move."

"I think it shows wisdom on his part, and I think the decision was done with dignity and with respect to the chaos that's been going on," said Milburn. "He's trying to do the right thing, and I appreciate that." ...

Backstory here.

Johnson to stay on with Mercer

This from the Advocate-Messenger, photo by Charlie Cox:

Tentative budget approved

HARRODSBURG - Bruce Johnson has decided to stay on board as the head of Mercer County schools. He made his plans clear at the end of Thursday night’s special meeting of the Mercer County Board of Education, during which the long-awaited approval of the 2008-09 tentative budget also took place.

The two events would seem to provide temporary bookends for what has been a seemingly endless saga of Mercer’s fiscal problems.

Thursday’s meeting was in sharp contrast to the one on Tuesday that offered a two-and-half hour executive session and no comment or resolution of Johnson’s status or the budget...

...All eyes were on Johnson as he entered the room at Thursday’s meeting, and Chairperson Glynda Short called the meeting to order, acknowledging the sizable crowd in attendance.

She introduced two guests, Larry G. Stinson, associate commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Education and Brad Hughes of the Kentucky School Boards Association. Both men addressed the crowd and stayed after the meeting to speak with those who had questions.

Since the board has asked the Department of Education to conduct a full review of the system, Stinson said he was on-hand to explain what exactly will be looked at. According to Stinson, agents will inspect all of the financial records, attendance records, personnel records, audit reports, and examine operations not only of the current Mercer County system but of the two former school districts as well from two years before the merger...

Mercer school board makes no announcement on superintendent's future

This from the Danville Advocate-Messenger:

HARRODSBURG — Those looking for a sense of resolution to the ongoing saga of Superintendent Bruce Johnson and the Mercer County School district will have to wait a bit longer. Despite buzz to the contrary, the Mercer County BOE made no announcement Tuesday night of Johnson’s future relationship with the school system.

Tuesday night’s special meeting of the Mercer County Board of Education may have had only two items on the agenda, but that didn’t stop dozens of concerned citizens, parents and teachers from attending.

The Mercer County BOE will meet again 5:30 p.m. Thursday with three items on the agenda. Among those items are approval of the tentative budget and a public participation forum.

Scheduled for Tuesday's meeting were an approval of minutes from the special May 13 BOE meeting and an executive session to discuss a personnel issue, and while no one would confirm or deny whether the issue pertained to Johnson, many believed that to be the case.

Last week, Johnson sent mixed signals about his intentions with Mercer County schools. In a May 21 meeting with school system administrators, Johnson revealed he intended to resign effective in December. This was confirmed by Mercer County Fifth-Grade Academy Principal Dana Cobb, who was present at the meeting.

The issue complicated even further when, later that day, Johnson released a statement through Lisa Gross at the state Department of Education stating he’d offered the Mercer board the option to release him from his contract.

As he entered the auditorium Tuesday night, Johnson was smiling, a difference in demeanor in a month that’s seen Mercer County fall under the state spotlight for financial woes.

In early May, Mercer County schools announced $2 million in cuts for the 2008-09 tentative budget. Among those were the elimination of 42 jobs — 22 classified and 20 certified — as well as a reduction in the system’s kindergarten from full-time to half-day.

Johnson proposed systemwide 3.5 percent salary cuts to free up funds for the program, a notion that drew the ire of most teachers and staff. A suggested poll of faculty was never conducted, and the idea was scrapped.

Since then, however, the board announced the system will be able to fund full-day kindergarten for next year, yet declined to offer an explanation on how. The issue remains murky, and the tentative 2008-09 budget tabled and unapproved.

It took only 22 seconds for the board to approve the minutes from the last meeting and enter the executive session. Attorney Bill Barnett joined the board as members exited the auditorium.

Crowd waited for announcement

Most in the crowd remained calm and patient during the two hours and twenty minutes of the executive session, proving the requested presence of Harrodsburg Chief of Police Ernie Kelty to be unnecessary. However, when the board descended the staircase at the meeting’s conclusion, the audience's chatter went silent with anticipation of an announcement.

But that wasn’t to be the case.

“After the executive session, we’ve had discussions that could lead to the dismissal of an individual employee,” said Chairperson Glynda Short. “There was no action taken, but an additional meeting will be held after the results of our requested financial review. That’s the only statement we have.”

Johnson didn’t return with the board after the private session, and the meeting was adjourned without him to the audible groans of those in attendance.

Short’s remarks for the board may have been brief, but she did offer personal comments of her own.

As reporters from The Advocate-Messenger and The Harrodsburg Herald placed their recording devices on the board’s table, Short could be heard making several sarcastic comments.

“Maybe they’ll get it right this time if they’ve got a microphone up here,” Short said to other board members. She repeated this statement twice.

Short, when asked to elaborate on her remark, said that she was misquoted by The Harrodsburg Herald’s C.J. Ratliff in his story from the board’s last meeting. Ratliff offered he recorded all of the board meetings and welcomed Short to review his past recordings with him. The invitation was declined.

After last week’s developments, calls from both newspapers to Short went unreturned. Short explained the reason for this was she was out of town.

Alvis Johnson, a former employee of the Harrodsburg district, was on hand at the meeting. Johnson sympathized with both sides. He said he knows what it’s like to be in the board’s position of scrutiny but also felt for the parents who came to the meeting looking for closure.

“I am I little disappointed for the parents who sat and waited for more than two hours for them to take action.”