Fired Administrators Sue Reading School District For More Than $150,000 In Damages

Map of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States Public School Districts (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A group of administrators suddenly fired in April by the Reading School District has filed a lawsuit seeking more than $150,000 in damages.

The administrators claim the district violated the terms of their employment contracts by not providing 30 days’ notice before terminating the contracts.

After a series of retirements and resignations of several top administrators following the 2010-11 school year, the district found itself in need of a leadership team.  The district turned to a group of retired administrators who had been working with the district through the state’s Distinguished Educator Program.

The district hired several administrators, including acting superintendent J. Drue Miles, on a temporary basis.  They were asked to lead the district for up to a year, or at least until the district was able to permanently fill the slots.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=412251

Reading School District Officials Summoned To Harrisburg

Map of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States Public School Districts (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The state secretary of education called Reading School District officials to Harrisburg on Thursday to determine if the situation in the district is as bad as it appeared in a three-part Reading Eagle series.

Although it is rare for a school board to be called to Harrisburg to address budget and other problems, board member Pierre V. Cooper and state Sen. Judy Schwank, who were at the meeting, said the board was not called on the carpet.

“I wouldn’t say that,” Cooper said Friday. “They (Education Department officials) asked about things they read in the newspaper and about what progress we are making on the budget.”

Education Secretary Ron Tomalis declined to comment on the meeting.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=385756

Reading Schools Budget Fiasco Blamed On Mismanagement

Map of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States Public School Districts (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It’s easy to see that the Reading School District has some major problems.

A $53 million budget gap. Claims of nepotism and favoritism. Local, state and federal investigations.

But how far does the dysfunction go?

The Reading Eagle has conducted an investigation of the district leadership, looking at issues ranging from finances to contracts to hiring practices. The results show a pattern of behavior that is at best neglectful and wasteful.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=383087

Five Reading School District Administrators Will Stay On Till The End Of The School Year

Five interim Reading School District administrators have changed their minds about leaving their posts before the end of the school year.

After a two-hour executive session on Wednesday, the school board announced that the temporary administrators, including Acting Superintendent J. Drue Miles, will complete the school year as initially planned.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=360003

City Of Reading School District In Freefall

Editor’s note: Evidently, the Reading School District has some very serious issues.  Recently five top administrators, including the Acting Superintendent of Schools, resigned en masse.  We posted this article the other day.  A new article has “popped up” about another huge problem in the district and a follow-up article to the mass exodus of leadership.

The Reading School District’s human resources department is broken, says a firm hired to evaluate the department.

According to a report, the department has several serious deficiencies, with the most important being its structure.

“Key members of the current staff lack the qualifications and experience necessary for their roles, and staff is not being effectively utilized in that some core (human resources) functions are not currently being performed,” the report reads.

The report encourages the district to reorganize the department, including making personnel changes.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=358177

Here is a follow-up article on the mass exodus of administrators:

Teachers and fellow administrators have thrown their support behind five Reading School District administrators who announced their resignations Friday, while the school board has called a special meeting to figure out how to handle the sudden departures.

Citing philosophical differences with the board, J. Drue Miles, acting superintendent, and four Cabinet members announced Friday that they will resign their posts effective Feb. 17.

The other administrators leaving are John Stoudt, acting assistant to the superintendent; Roger Brubaker, acting director of finance; Guadalupe Matias, acting director of elementary education; and Joe Santoro, acting director of secondary education.

All the administrators were hired over the summer on a temporary basis to fill in for administrators who had left their positions.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=358153

5 Reading City School District Leaders Leaving; Blame Board

Acting superintendent, 4 other interim administrators have had it with directors…

 

Citing “philosophical differences” with the Reading School Board, five of nine interim administrators hired in the summer – including the acting superintendent – have decided to call it quits.In a letter sent to board members on Friday, the administrators said they will terminate their contracts effective Feb. 17, giving the board six weeks to find replacements.

Those resigning are: J. Drue Miles, acting superintendent; John Stoudt, acting assistant to the superintendent; Roger Brubaker, acting director of finance; Guadalupe Matias, acting director of elementary education; and Joe Santoro, acting director of secondary education.

 

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=357596