It's like a Monty Python skit. Without the laughs.
October 29, 2008 - From the News Star (Monroe, Louisiana)
State Superintendent Paul Pastorek has asked 4th District Attorney Jerry Jones to investigate the possibility that members of the Monroe City School Board and Monroe Mayor Jamie Mayo may have violated the state's bribery statues.-----------------
Pastorek questions whether members of the board violated the statutes in attempting to place board member Brenda Shelling's daughter Cassandra Shelling in several positions in the district.
In April, Mayo appeared before the board urging members to overturn their decision not to retain Superintendent James Dupree. Brenda Shelling initially voted against renewing Dupree's contract, but switched her vote, making her the final vote needed to renew the contract.
Cassandra Shelling was considered for a position as principal of Carroll High School, a teacher at Wossman High School and a teacher at an elementary school. Shelling could not hold the Carroll principal postion as long as her mother is a sitting member of the school board. She did not hold the proper certifications to hold the high school teaching position at Wossman.
INFO:
You wanna see some scary pictures, these people fit the bill. link
And their October 11 board meeting sounds like a Monty Python skit.
The bottom line seems to be that there have been several attempts to hire boardmember Shelling's daughter who had been previously employed and fired six years ago from the district following a tenure hearing regarding her conduct on school grounds.
In August, Cassandra Shelling, was a finalist in the search for principal for Carroll High School until her mother said she learned that immediate family couldn't hold any position except teacher. Next, the daughter was considered for the elementary school.
The school board has dithered on renewing the school superintendent's contract. They eventually rehired Dupree in October, with Shelling the deciding vote. A few days later Dupree placed Cassandra Shelling at Wossman High School to fill a newly created position.
Dupree claimed that her placement came upon the recommendation of principal Sam Moore. Moore later stated that he had not interviewed her for the position. In an e-mail to the board, obtained by The News-Star through a Freedom of Information request, Moore informed Dupree that he had discovered that Cassandra Shelling's qualifications would not allow her to teach high school.
Meanwhile, the school board is stonewalling a newspaper's attempt to obtain additional documents.
CITY INFORMATION:
Monroe, LA Wikipedia entry
As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 53,107, making it the eighth largest city in Louisiana. The University of Louisiana at Monroe is located in the city, as well as Delta Community College. The racial makeup of the city was 36.78% White, 61.13% African American.
MONROE CITY SCHOOLS:
The school district rates a 6 (with 10 being highest) at GreatSchools.net
There are 9098 students in 21 schools.
Observation: Usually you see some sort of consistency in the school ratings. But Monroe schools are all over the map. For example, there are three high schools. One is a 9 while two are rated 3. High schools are good measures of what a child has learned as they pass through the school system. This isn't a mobile population composed of immigrants.
Graduate Exit Exams
test scores for Carroll High School here. 100% black student population
test scores for Neville High School here 57% black, 41% white
test scores for Wossman H.S. here 99% black student population
Carroll and Wossman are rated a 3. Neville is rated a 9.
Carroll is a magnet school with, clearly, nothing attractive about it.
