NAP- Neighborhood Alliance of Pawtucket

on 02-25-2009 02:39

By DONNA KENNY KIRWAN

PAWTUCKET - The mother of a 12-year-old elementary school student has lodged a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education against Schools Supt. Hans Dellith over discriminatory comments he allegedly made to her and her son during a recent meeting.

The woman, who asked that she not be identified, said that she had contacted attorney David Coughlin, chairman of the School Committee, on the advice of a friend on Feb. 11, the day after the alleged incident occurred.
She said she relayed her experience to Coughlin and asked him for information on the proper channels to go through to make a formal complaint.
The woman, who noted that both she and her son are African-American, said that the alleged offensive conversation took place during a Feb. 10 meeting with Dellith that had been scheduled to discuss her son's recent suspension from school. She acknowledged that her son has behavioral issues and that school personnel had implemented a formal "behavioral plan" for him in December.
The mother claimed that in the course of the conversation with her son concerning what to do about his behavior, Dellith asked the boy if he "should be sold as a slave in the Sahara Desert" and also asked him if he thought "he should attend an all-girls school."
The woman also claimed that Dellith "implied" that in the future, the child could end up being a "Welfare case" and a "Medicaid recipient."
The woman said that the conversation had involved only her, her son and Dellith and said there were no other witnesses to the comments.
The woman said her son has been enrolled in the Pawtucket school system for about two years, since she moved to the city from Massachusetts. She said that because a behavioral plan had been put in place for her son this past December, she found it "shocking" that he was suspended so soon and that the two were asked to meet with Dellith.
Based on the information that Coughlin gave her, the woman said she asked the attorney to send a letter outlining her complaint to the Office for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Education in Washington, D.C.
Asked what she is hoping to achieve from the complaint, the woman said she would like an acknowledgement from Dellith that this incident happened. "And an apology would be nice," she added. She also said she would like to see more training about cultural diversity take place within the School Department. "There are many poor Cape Verdean parents in this area and they shouldn't have to go through this," she said.
Coughlin said that while he serves as chairman of the School Committee, he wrote the letter on the woman's behalf in his individual capacity as a citizen of the City of Pawtucket, and not as a member of the school board.
In the letter to the Office for Civil Rights, Coughlin stated that the complaint is "for discrimination on the basis of race, color and national origin which is prohibited by Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and sex discrimination which is prohibited by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 relating to treatment of students by an institution that receives federal financial assistance."
Coughlin said that before sending the letter, he had read it over the phone to the complainant who had stated that the allegations as he wrote them were "true and accurate."
Several attempts to reach Dellith for comment on the matter were unsuccessful.
Stephen Robinson, attorney for the Pawtucket School Department, said that due to a strict confidentiality policy regarding such internal complaints, he could not comment about the matter or even confirm that there is such a complaint against Dellith.
The woman said that she does not know yet if she will take any further action against the school superintendent regarding the incident. She said she is waiting to see what the outcome is from the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights. 

on 02-27-2009 00:55

By DONNA KENNY KIRWAN

PAWTUCKET - One day after a Times article reported that a parent has lodged a discrimination complaint with the U.S. Department of Education against Schools Supt. Hans Dellith, a group of key administrators and teachers have come out to voice strong support for the school chief.

Earlier this week, it was learned that the mother of a 12-year-old boy has alleged that Dellith made racially discriminatory comments to and about her son during a Feb. 10 meeting to discuss the boy's suspension from school. The woman said she contacted School Committee Chairman David Coughlin, who helped her draft a formal complaint that was sent to the Office for Civil Rights.
Coughlin said he made the complaint on the woman's behalf as a citizen and taxpayer of the city, not as a representative of the School Committee.
Dellith did not respond to several requests for comment about the allegations. However, a group of about 60 people, mostly teachers and administrators, showed up at a special session of the School Committee scheduled for Wednesday night. Several came armed with letters of support for Dellith they had been hoping to read publicly at the meeting.
According to numerous sources, the meeting was abruptly adjourned after a dispute among School Committee members over items slated for closed-door discussion.
Those who had wished to read letters or make statements were denied the opportunity given that there was no "public input" session scheduled that night.
JoAnn LaBranche, assistant to the superintendent for high school reform, told The Times that she had wanted to publicly read a letter representing a core team of nine administrators and teachers who have worked closely with Dellith. She and several other administrators said they were frustrated at how the meeting had gone, and with the way the Dellith situation has been handled.
LaBranche noted that the core team are all highly dedicated professionals who would never consider working for a superintendent "who did not always have the best interests of the students at heart." 
"Certainly none of us would, even for a moment, tolerate a superintendent who demonstrated prejudice or bias towards any individual or group of students based on race, ethnicity, gender, economic status or any other possible factor," LaBranche said.
She added: "If anything, our experience has been quite the opposite. We have witnessed a superintendent whose door is always open to our families and who always puts children first." She called the complaint against Dellith "ludicrous."
Speaking on behalf of the core team, LaBranche said the way the School Committee appears to be handling the Dellith incident sends a message that, based on an unsubstantiated allegation, "any or all of us could face disciplinary action, and should have no expectation that this School Committee would stand willing or ready to defend their professional staff members against such allegations."
LaBranche criticized several School Committee members, and Coughlin in particular for the way he has been running the meetings as chairman. She and others also faulted him for his involvement in the complaint case, even as a citizen, saying it raises questions of conflicting interests.
Janet Carroll, Title I coordinator for the School Department, said she has been in the education field for 40 years and has collaborated with Dellith and numerous other school superintendents in the state. She praised Dellith for professionalism and management skills, calling him "one of a limited number of educational leaders, one who has students at the center, teachers and parents as the key players and leadership staff who know the difference between a boss and a leader."
Charleen Christy, president of the teachers union, also spoke well of Dellith's professionalism. She said that whenever allegations have been made against teachers, Dellith has always displayed sensitivity to keeping the matter confidential until it was thoroughly investigated. "This flies in the face to have this done to him," Christy stated.
As to the aborted meeting, Coughlin later said it had been slated as a closed-door session, even though the agenda appeared to list a public item pertaining to the fiscal year 2009 budget. He said the action to reconvene in open session was intended strictly to report the executive session votes and to seal the minutes, and no public input element was ever intended.
With committee member David Chellel absent, three other committee members, Nicole Nordquist, Joanne Bonollo and Amy Breault Zolt had sought to have two agenda items, a discussion pertaining to the budget and an item entitled "legal advice - administrative leave," moved to open session. Their action failed in a 3 to 3 vote.