THE MEN AND women who lead Virginia Beach Public Schools came to their offices with a desire to improve educational opportunity for the city’s children. They may have different ideas in how to achieve that goal, but they should all be pulling in the same general direction.
It is disappointing, then, to know that for months some of those individuals have been embroiled in a professional and personal dispute that has no doubt distracted from that common purpose.
It’s an embarrassment to the district and sets a poor example for the thousands of school children who depend on these officials to make Virginia Beach schools the best in the commonwealth.
This summer, Superintendent Aaron Spence filed a grievance against School Board members Victoria Manning and Laura Hughes, alleging the two had subjected him to “abusive conduct” and contributed to a “hostile work environment.”
So says a letter from an attorney representing the two members and a third, Carolyn Weems that was obtained by The Pilot. It says the grievance was discussed during a closed-door session of the board and followed Spence’s annual evaluation.
Manning and Hughes told a Pilot reporter that they believe Spence was retaliating for their frank assessment of his performance. The three members also say the closed-door session violated the state’s open-meeting law and should have been held in public.
That law gives broad latitude to public bodies to discuss personnel issues in private — a perpetually frustrating aspect of Virginia’s Freedom of Information Act — but does not require them to do so. The school district’s FOIA officer declined to make a copy of Spence’s complaint available.
When asked about the situation by Pilot reporter Briana Adhikusuma last month, Spence said in an email that he has “the right to expect to be treated with professionalism and with respect by the School Board” and disputed that he alleged anyone subjected him to abusive conduct.
The dispute exploded into public view earlier this month when the board engaged in hours of discussion — in open session this time — about how to conduct the people’s business, including comportment with open-meetings laws and how members interact with one another and the superintendent.
That may avoid the threat of litigation so cavalierly mentioned in the attorney’s letter, but it’s unlikely to drain the reservoir of ill will that’s collected throughout the dispute.
It is vital, of course, that public bodies adhere to Virginia’s FOIA. If the board had been taking liberties or violating that law, that should not be tolerated.
However, Virginia Beach expects its public officials to stay focused on the task at hand and not engage in petty, personal squabbles. Board members have a right to be frank about how to achieve their goals and it is their job to assess the superintendent’s performance. That’s why they were elected.
But everyone needs a carefully consider why they chose to serve in a public office and if they remain committed to doing the people’s business in a respectful, professional and agreeable way.
