Commentary: Reasons the Sevastopol Recall is Needed

Attempts to reach the two candidates opposing the incumbents were unsuccessful. In lieu of that, we provide an excerpt from the Sevastopol Parents & Community United Facebook page:

1. The Sevastopol School Board is currently deeply divided. …A board so deeply divided is the most important reason for the recall. We have hit the dreaded stage where if we say blue, they say red. If we say fine, red it is; they switch to blue. There is no compromise, only stubborn mindedness, and that is not acceptable for our small school.
2. Todey and Behme have done nothing to try and unite the board, or unite the school. They knew about complaints of [former Superintendent Linda] Underwood’s leadership over a year ago and did nothing. Over two dozen letters were submitted by various staff members to no avail. When people wrote letters, Todey told them it is illegal for the letters to go directly to her, that they instead must follow the chain of command through Underwood even though she was the subject of the complaint. Some teachers were even written up for breaking the chain of command for simply attempting to contact Sue Todey….
3. Behme and Todey have said at board meetings for months that details about [former elementary Prinicipal] Mrs. [Mary] Donaldson’s leave of absence will never be discussed, disclosed, or released because it is a personnel issue. Suddenly now once there is a recall election scheduled, everything is made public. Why now is it fine for this to come out?
   Sevastopol has lost three administrators in the last few months. One was forced out. One was bought out. One couldn’t stand it and left on his own accord. This is not normal. How did this happen?… Had Todey and Behme not supported Underwood 110 percent none of this would have gotten so far. They were rubber stamps for Underwood even while she was under investigation for harassment and even as they were negotiating her buyout. They knew she ruled with an iron fist, they knew the investigator cited a workplace just shy of a “hostile environment,” they knew dozens of staff wrote letters over a year and half ago about her bully tactics, and yet they put more trust in her than the staff members who have lived and worked at Sevastopol for 10, 15, or 20 years. On top of that they gave her a 10 percent raise to not work next year.…This recall is about what is right for the common good. This recall is about a school that was turned upside down. This recall is about board members who think they are more important to the school than other board members, and more important to school than those who work there every single day.
4. Todey and Behme didn’t do their due diligence when hiring Underwood. They didn’t do their due diligence when others notified them of what was going on. In fact they silenced the people who work at school every day who tried to bring forth concerns. They scorned citizens who asked questions. They blamed instead of taking responsibility. They laughed in the board clerk’s face saying that there would never be enough people that would sign the recall. They tried threatening lawsuits against those involved in the recall.…This is not healthy for our school. Too much damage has been done and we need a fresh start.