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Responding to a recommendation from the California School Boards Association, the local elementary-middle school district has a new policy to guard against nepotism in its ranks.
Prior to adoption of the policy, the Mountain View Whisman School District did not have any specific rules prohibiting district employees from being supervised by a relative or someone with whom they share an intimate relationship, said Superintendent Craig Goldman.
“I think that there are many members of the community that will appreciate an explicit policy on this issue,” Goldman said.
The board of trustees for the district adopted the policy at its Aug. 19 meeting. All members present voted unanimously to approve the policy. Steve Olson was the only board member not present at the meeting.
When asked why a policy was not already on the books, Goldman said that the district had rules related to sexual harassment and conflict of interest. “We see this policy as one that adds clarification, not that is fundamentally different than what we had before,” he said.
The new rule “prohibits the appointment or continuing assignment of any person to a position for which his or her relative (or a person with whom he or she has an intimate or romantic relationship) maintains management, supervisory, evaluation, or promotion responsibilities.”
Goldman said that the rule is not meant to discourage district employees from recommending relatives or dating.
“The policy does not prohibit district employees marrying, being related, or having romantic relationships,” Goldman said. “It sets a standard around supervisors and subordinates, and creates a mechanism to ensure that conflicts of interest don’t exist.”
If two people enter into a romantic relationship that violates the new policy, they will be able to work with the superintendent toward a “collaborative resolution.” If none can be reached the superintendent has the authority to reassign one or both of the individuals involved.
Goldman said that the district’s decision to adopt the policy is not directly related to the controversy that surrounded former superintendent Maurice Ghysels over his affair with Carmen Mizell, the principal of Landels Elementary School. Rumors circulated on the Voice’s Town Square forum over supposed favoritism that caused Ghysels to transfer Mizell from her position at the lower-performing Castro School.
Ghysels denied those rumors, saying that as soon as he and Mizell became romantically involved he transferred his supervisory role to Mary Lairon, the assistant superintendent.
“Soon after his relationship was established,” Goldman said of Ghysels, “there was a change in the supervisory structure. That would have been consistent with the new board policy.”
Goldman said that the board of trustees is sensitive to the possibility of a superintendent becoming romantically involved with any other district employee. His contract and future superintendent contracts will contain a clause delineating how the district will proceed in the event that such a relationship should arise.
The objective of the new policy is to “maximize staff and community confidence in district hiring, promotion and other employment decisions by promoting practices that are free of conflicts of interest or the appearance of impropriety.”
Mountain View Whisman nepotism policy
Mountain View Whisman nepotism policy
Mountain View Whisman nepotism policy
Long overdue but at least it’s a start.
First allow Ghysels to sneak out the back door, and then come out with a policy. What a joke. Get rid of Mizell and finish this sordid episode.
The district is still run like a little fiefdom. How is it that the ex-board member Higgins is one of the few temporary teachers hired back after all the lay-offs this Spring? Now there’s a glaring conflict of interest. It’s all about who you know at the district office, not what you know.
Just take a look at all of the recent reports regarding corruption in our local city government and school district administration. Where the is smoke you can be sure there’s fire. Go to the web link http://www.thecartelmovie.com. There will will see a clip from a documentary that’s being aired across the nation.
…………… Listen, Learn and “Just Think About It”…………..
Citizens need to get involved be this country is turned into a third world country…..It’s your children and grand children will never know, have or appreciate the life and freedoms you had………..”Just Think About It”…………….
I’d agree with Thom. The Voice (as the representative of the press) was instrumental in bringing this issue to the public. Some unknown “whistleblowers” were responsible for bring it to the Voice – and the Board (hopefully) was embarrassed by their first response.
– Let me see – does this EVER HAPPEN in private enterprise? (take a walk to HP headquarters in Palo Alto and ask). I recently lost a few $ hundred in a stock account because of THAT!
Seems like the system worked to correct itself – this experiment in democracy is working. If you still don’t think so – where was your school board candidate????
There is still plenty of house cleaning in the District Office to restore a professional climate to the city’s elementary school district. Both the associate and assistant supes, Totter and Lairon, need to move on. The old ways aren’t welcome anymore.
Hello, I am a bitter, loveless, no-fun educator-hater who would like to join this discussion.
“The policy does not prohibit district employees marrying, being related, or having romantic relationships,” Goldman said.”
Oh, well that just won’t do. Marriage, romance and relationships often lead to FUN, and that is NOT ALLOWED amongst public servants, who I believe should cover themselves in dirt and leaches and wear sackcloth and walk everywhere on their knees. I don’t know what any of them are making but whatever it is it’s too much. Out with (Person #1), (Person #2) and (Person #3) and come to think of it, out with all of these parasites and let’s replace them with hobos we find on the street, who know their place.
Also, Maurice Ghysels is Satan.
NEVER FORGET!
Reader:
From what I recall, they were married at the time, only to other people, so I doubt that marriage, for them at least, was all that fun.
Beyond that, you completely missed the point of all this.
Conflict of interest are ruining this country for hard-working, honest, and ethical people seeking a fair chance and opportunity. Most would say all those qualities are intertwined.
Nonetheless, we still have ex-board members getting preferential treatment from the human resources director. It goes something like this: You approved my salary increases and change of titles and pay categories, I’ll hire you out of all temporary laid off teachers.
This story is more about PR and trying to create the poor manner in which Maurice Ghysels conducted himself and the way in which the board tried to cover it up. It is interesting that one of the same board members who hired Ghysels is now back working as a teacher. Interesting, but not surprising. Definitely a conflict of interest existed there.
Too bad the state legislature failed to pass a bill that would make mandatory disclosure of pay, allowances and benefits of public employees. The insider jobs that control these are the ones most prone to nepotism. Follow the money. You’ll never get rid of nepotism until you expose the old who-you-know networks and administrative loop-holes public officials have been taking advantage of for years.