Editor:

The recent turn of events in our school district seems to indicate that we are continuing in a downward spiral. With a superintendent who claimed that her tenure would be “transparent,” there are now more questions than ever. Our district is mired in distrust, suspicion and a sense of hopelessness. That two members of our school system have been asked to tender their resignations is just another example of the revolving door of administrators who have been driven out by a school board that seems to be playing follow the leader. The over 500 signatures collected from people in our district sent a clear message that they did not like the direction in which we were heading. Here we have to men who have a vested interest in our community. They are firmly entrenched in Springville, chose to raise their families here and are very visible around town. They want to see successful programs in academics and athletics and would probably be very happy to see their own children settle back in the Springville area to perpetuate this success. Even if you have a personal issue with either of these men in their capacity as administrators, for whatever reason, you must agree that the treatment of them has been deplorable. Mr. Dickinson, in particular, was informed that he was on paid administrative leave until December 31, with no action being taken on his position until the board meeting of November 17. On October 22, he received a certified letter from our superintendent stating that he is not on unpaid administrative leave “pending a determination of whether his probationary employment will be terminated.” Also, he is not allowed to “enter upon any premises owned or operated by the district without the superintendent’s express, written consent.” He must also “refrain from attending any athletic events involving students from our district, whether they are conducted at home or away.” His son plays JV football and basketball and he can’t attend his games, home or away? When he asked permission to attend his son’s game on Saturday he was told he could not “because there wasn’t enough time to set up monitoring of the situation.” He ended up watching the game using binoculars, standing behind the fence at the end of Greenwood Place. As an officer of the court, Mr. Dickinson’s attorney offered to escort and sit with Mr. Dickinson at the game. Still he was denied. Will he also be banned from Parent/Teacher conferences? This man is a taxpaying parent of three S-GI students and this tactic is clearly meant to humiliate and embarrass Mr. Dickinson. We should be ashamed of our superintendent.

Reasons for Mr. Dickinson’s dismissal are varied. The use of chewing tobacco and incorrect certification both have been mentioned. Mr. Dickinson admits to tobacco use. His certification letters were in order when he was hired. If, for some reason, the certification is now incorrect of this position, then don’t we owe him the benefit of a little time to complete extra certification? This past summer, Mr. Dickinson received an excellent yearly evaluation by our superintendent, who even asked him not to apply for the Section VI executive director position because she “wanted him to stay here for a few more years yet.”

This entire episode is just another example of what one parent at the last board meeting called the “toxic atmosphere” of the S-GI school district. We elected our School Board members and hired our superintendent to promote our district and improve things, always keeping the students in mind. This does not seem to be happening. I urge all concerned citizens to attend the next school board meeting on Tuesday, November 3, at Colden Elementary School, 7 p.m.

Sandy Emerling

Carl Emerling

Boston