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Redmond
stripped of duties
by Diana Dillaber Murray, The Oakland Press, January
11, 2003
For more articles visit
www.bridges4kids.org.
Although Oakland Schools Superintendent James Redmond retains
his title, the duties and authority of the position have been
transferred to Deputy Superintendent Dan Austin.
The Board of Trustees of the intermediate school district made
no decision to terminate or discipline Redmond after an almost
five-hour closed meeting Friday evening, which was scheduled
to discuss his status.
Trustee Janet
Thomas said during a break that Redmond's responsibilities had
been transferred prior to Friday's meeting.
Thomas said
she did not know whether the board would make any additional
decisions regarding Redmond at its regular meeting 3:30 p.m.
Tuesday.
The board also
discussed Friday how it plans to deal with other issues
addressed in an investigation by The Whall Group, an Auburn
Hills-based forensic investigative firm. Board President Helen
Prutow said after the closed meeting that the trustees will
examine all 16 recommendations made in the Whall report on
Tuesday.
Though
Redmond, 51, is no longer responsible for the workings of the
intermediate school district, he will continue to receive his
nearly $274,000 annual salary and perks. His contract, which
protects him from being fired for any reason, including
wrongdoing, doesn't expire until Sept. 1, 2006.
A clause in
Redmond's previous contract, which expired in 2002, would have
allowed the Board of Education to fire him mid-term for "acts
of moral turpitude," but that was removed in June from his new
contract. Board members argue, however, that Redmond
could be terminated for any violation of Oakland Schools board
policy despite the fact that a termination clause is not
included in his contract.
The board's
decision to transfer Redmond's duties comes in the wake of a
six-month investigation by The Whall Group. The group has been
looking into employee allegations against him since July.
Specifically, the probe has targeted Redmond's role in the
MINDS Institute, a nonprofit education materials production
company that has ties to related, for-profit companies.
Redmond is
chairman of MINDS, which is funded by the Oakland Schools, and
in turn pays for the work of the MINDS Institute's for-profit
group affiliates. Farmington Hills-based consulting firm
DataServ, one of those affiliates, employs Redmond's son and
the daughter of Assistant Superintendent Jan Van Dam. The
MINDS Institute was founded in 2000 by Redmond and several
others, including representatives of DataServ, which Oakland
Schools hired to oversee the installation of a $13 million
fiber optic system. Redmond has long denied any wrongdoing.
While the report raised many questions, it did not cite any of
Redmond's actions as criminal.
The Whall
Group also has looked into the legality of funding for the
new, $29 million Oakland Schools headquarters building under
construction on Pontiac Lake Road in Waterford Township. The
district now operates out of a building at 2100 Pontiac Lake
Road, but plans to move to the new building across the street.
In addition to his salary and benefits, Redmond also will
continue to receive other perks outlined in his four-year
contract.
The
five-member school board, whose members are elected by local
districts' school boards, sets policy and is charged with
hiring the superintendent to run day-to-day operations.
Members are: President Helen Prutow and trustees Tony
Rothschild, DiAnne Cagle Leitermann, Carol Borich and Thomas.
Friday marked
the fifth closed meeting of the district's Board of Education
to discuss The Whall Group's findings. Neither Redmond nor his
attorneys attended the meeting. To date, the investigation
into Redmond's work has cost the district more than $130,000,
which doesn't include the cost of school district-paid
attorneys. Redmond has asked that each meeting be private,
which is his right under the personnel exemption of the Open
Meetings Act, Prutow has said.
Oakland Schools oversees special education and technical
education programs throughout Oakland County and offers the
county's 28 local public school districts a variety of
services including pupil accounting and auditing services,
standardized testing analysis and consulting on a wide variety
of educational topics.
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