The Partial Observer by Evelyn Culpepper

Open Letter to the Oneonta Community, Board of Education

Tonight, the Board of Education pushed through a motion to quietly hand a $15,000.00 salary expansion to the superintendent’s daughter. One board member attempted to table the vote for discussion, but because not a single other member had the courage to second his motion, it was swept through in silence before the public could get their questions answered.

There is a horrifying double standard and shady maneuvering on display in our district, and it is time we talk about it openly.

This year alone, multiple teachers were forced to resign. They were told that their letters of recommendation would be withheld until their resignation letters were physically in hand—a coercive tactic that conveniently ensures they cannot collect unemployment.

At the exact same time, we have dedicated secretaries—the backbone of our schools—some of whom are currently taking home just $25,000.00 a year.

To the public and the clerical staff, the district cries “budget constraints.” Yet, those teachers who were bullied into resigning were explicitly told their dismissals were not due to budget constraints.

Despite this supposed budget crisis, the district’s checkbook is magically wide open for the superintendent’s family.

The superintendent defended tonight’s vote by saying “many people in this district are related.” Let’s call it what it is. This isn’t the first time a position has seemingly been manufactured for his close relatives—we already have a transportation head position held by a relative paying around $80,000.00. Now, his daughter is handed a $15,000.00 raise and the title of “district data coordinator” without a single public job posting.

A district data coordinator handles sensitive student information systems, strict data privacy compliance and complex state reporting. If these reports are mismanaged, our district could literally lose our state funding. In other districts, this role requires a computer science degree or extensive IT experience. (For reference, here is one job posting for Waverly School District in Tioga County: https://www.tiogacountyny.com/media/9636/district-data-coordinator.pdf)

The individual the board just handed this expanded role to has a bachelor’s degree in English and a professional background centered on graphic design and social media. (LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/angela-brindley-b601a0177).

Two external agencies quoted over $130,000.00 more to do this exact same job, apparently. If the board believes they are getting a bargain by paying an inexperienced relative $15,000.00 to do a highly technical job that agencies price at over $145,000.00, it is too good to be true. Placing someone with zero technical background into a role that controls our funding and data privacy is a massive liability.

Finally, we need to acknowledge the elephant in the room. Tonight, there were so many people who wanted to stand and speak their three minutes of truth, but stayed in their seats because they were terrified of the repercussions. There is such a deep-rooted culture of fear and retaliation in this district that residents are genuinely afraid their family members—whether they are district staff or students—will be targeted if they dare speak out against the administration. A public school district should not operate through intimidation. No one should ever have to fear retaliation just for demanding accountability for how their tax dollars are spent.

There is a misconception in local politics that once a board approves a vote, the community just has to accept it. That is 100 percent false. A local board of education is not a supreme authority; they are subject to state law. By pushing this through, they just created the official paper trail we need to escalate this over their heads.

Here is what we can do as a community right now:

• The state comptroller’s office has a division specifically dedicated to auditing local school boards for fraud, waste and financial mismanagement. Nepotism and bypassing civil service rules to hand out unposted $15,000.00 raises are massive red flags. Any taxpayer can submit a tip directly to their investigations unit at http://www.osc.ny.gov/investigations.
• Under New York Education Law Section 310, any resident of a school district can file a formal appeal to the state commissioner of education to review and overturn an action taken by a local board of education if it violated policy, including conflict of interest or nepotism rules.

Many of us stood at public comment tonight to call out this ridiculous, unqualified hire and to advocate for our underpaid secretaries. The vote may be over for one part, but the accountability is just starting.

Our community, our students, and our hard-working staff deserve equity, transparency, and a district that doesn’t bully its educators while enriching its own.

Evelyn Culpepper is an Oneonta mother and past middle school PTO secretary, with a professional background in family court, mental hygiene legal services, and the Unitarian Universalist Society.