Freeport Schools
Meeting News

Friday, May 18, 2001, began a flurry of activity by the Freeport School Board, as the newly elected board members, Joe Cattano and Michael Raab, flexed their muscles after having been snubbed by Board President Ronald Ellerbe on the night of their election.

Photo: Dr. Eric Eversley (center), chats with board member Sunday Coward (left) and an unidentified person shortly after being named the District's superintendent.

On election night, May 15th, shortly after the election of Cattano and Raab, Ellerbe moved for an executive session to discuss a matter of personnel. It has always been the policy of the Board to invite the new trustees to participate in executive sessions immediately following their election. A minute after what appeared to be an invitation by Board member Grover for the Cattano-Raab team to join the executive session, they did an about face and came out. Your reporter asked Cattano why they left. Cattano answered, "Ellerbe told us to leave."

On Friday, May 18th, FreeportNYNews (FNYN) learned that Cattano and Raab had sent a letter to the Board, politely demanding to meet with the Board regarding its selection of the new superintendent. Cattano and Raab were completely in the dark regarding the selection of the superintendent. FNYN asked for a copy of their letter, which was clearly the public’s business. Cattano said, "The letter must come from Ellerbe. I consider it Board business."

As a result of that letter, two emergency Board meetings were called by the District Clerk, Mary Bediako. The first emergency meeting was called on Monday, May 21st, at the highly unusual time of 9:00 p.m. The notice was not posted on the district web site until 4:00 p.m. on the day of the meeting. It was only due to the efforts of a concerned citizen, who found your reporter standing in front of Village Hall at 8:55 p.m., that FNYN learned of the meeting. Raab, who also attended the evening’s Village Board Meeting, said nothing about the emergency meeting.

At 9:15 p.m., Raab still hadn’t shown at the Board of Education board room. Your reporter asked Cattano if he was sure Raab knew about the meeting. Cattano said, "I know he knows. He said he would be here." Raab did show up, followed shortly by Joyce Brown, the consultant who directed the superintendent search. This time, after Ellerbe moved into executive session, Cattano and Raab weren’t asked to leave.

The week’s second emergency meeting was called for May 23rd at 06:30 p.m. in the district’s administration building. This time Bediako didn't call it an emergency meeting and while she did manage to post a meeting notice on the school buildings as required, she did not notify the press, nor did she correctly post the meeting on the district’s web site, having left out the meeting time. Interestingly, this is the same district web site which Board President Ellerbe has repeatedly claimed was the way in which the district keeps the public informed.

When Ellerbe was asked why "tonight's emergency meeting was not posted on the district web site" he responded, "We didn’t have an emergency meeting tonight. We had an executive meeting at six thirty." Bediako added, "The executive session was posted on the Internet."

Your reporter asked, "Can you tell me why there was no time posted on the Internet, Mr. Ellerbe?" Ellerbe answered, "No I can’t." He didn’t ask Bediako where the time went.

The Clerk's failure to once again notify the press and to post the time of the meeting on the web site were further examples of the many violations of New York State’s Open Meetings Law, that both the Clerk and the Board routinely ignore. Cattano and Raab were invited to this meeting, along with Dr. Eversley, the soon to be appointed superintendent.

After the "executive session" adjourned, the regularly scheduled action meeting of the Board of Education convened at approximately 7:30 p.m. in the New Visions school. Dr. Eversley took a seat with the Board and watched a performance of students, which was not explained in the evening’s agenda. A program listing the names of the students performing was also not available.

Resident Alan Jay asked the Board. "Is there a law against enlarging the board to seven members, instead of five?"

As Ellerbe stared blankly, unable to come up with an answer, interim superintendent Nydick once again came to his aid, explaining that a proposition could be put on the ballot.

Ellerbe asked Jay if he was considering running for office. The audience laughed when Jay answered, "If I were to run for office, I would be a dictator of the school board. I don’t tolerate opposition" and somebody added from the audience, "Neither do they." .

Your reporter, who is also a resident, tried to bring out some of the accomplishments of Dr. Eversley, telling the Board, "I did some research. Newsday said ..."

Ellerbe, apparently not having read the evening’s agenda, immediately interrupted, "Is it a personnel matter that is on the agenda tonight? Are you discussing that?"

The evening’s agenda included a resolution, which stated that the President of the Board of Education [Ellerbe] be authorized to execute a contract with Dr. Eversley to serve as Superintendent of the Freeport School District.

Your reporter continued, "It’s about Dr. Eversley, I’m quoting Newsday. It says, ‘Eversley, 52 taught and coached football in Minneapolis, and later served as an administrator in an affluent suburb near Denver. His last job was as superintendent in Proviso Township, Ill., a blue-collar suburb of Chicago. There, he imposed a student dress code, to underline the need for academic seriousness. He also worked to upgrade school facilities and to raise test scores, though those remain low. Associates describe his administrative style as low-key.’"

In a separate article in Newsday, Dr. Eversley wrote, "In the next six years, 62 percent of Long Island’s school superintendents will be eligible for retirement ... But schools need sustained visionary leadership to address the complexities and challenge of public education today."

Your reporter also mentioned another Newsday article "People on the Move / New BOCES Chief Has Made Career a Learning Experience" in which Dr. Eversley explained his philosophy. "Every student can learn effectively in our schools ... Education is everybody’s business."

Your reporter told the Board, "I don’t think anybody would disagree with that" and then continued, "Now let’s take a look at the November 16, 2000 Newsday. It says, ‘Less than three years after recruiting its superintendent from a Chicago suburb, Eastern Suffolk BOCES is once again in the market. Superintendent Eric Eversley yesterday confirmed that a Nov. 9 letter from the BOCES board notified him that his three year contract would not be renewed when it expires in June. Eversley said he was disappointed by the board’s decision, but proud of his agency’s record, including its recent recognition by a national accrediting board.’"

Your reporter, addressing Dr. Eversley continued, "Neither the Board, nor you at your interview with the public told the folks that your contract with BOCES was not being renewed. I don’t have a problem with that, other than that the community didn’t know. I would suggest that you read the ERM Report, which was a report that was commissioned by the Board, which said the number one problem in this community was that people don’t trust that they are getting the real story. I really believe that you and the Board owe us an explanation. If you didn’t tell us, then the Board of Education should have."

Ellerbe responded, "Mr. Lilker. You are misrepresenting the facts. Mr. Eversley’s history with BOCES was discussed by the Board and I believe that it was raised at one of the forums, if I am not mistaken."

Your reporter told Ellerbe, "I am not misrepresenting the facts. I did not know about it until I read it in Newsday this past Saturday. It was never discussed in public by this Board. I have been to every one of those meetings and I have listened to the tapes of those meetings. That discussion is not there. The pubic had the right to know."

An examination of the audio tape of Dr. Eversley’s pubic forum with consultant Joyce Brown and the community revealed that not one word was mentioned about Dr. Eversley’s BOCES contract. Eversley’s resume was also void of any mention of his impending release from BOCES, or any other place that he had worked during his distinguished career.

Ellerbe’s claim that the Board discussed Eversley’s release from BOCES is misleading, as this was never discussed by the Board in any open board meeting. Ellerbe’s apparent reference is to a matter discussed in executive sessions, which are closed to the public.

The Leader, which gives the official news of the Village and the School Board, was also void of any mention of Eversley’s release by BOCES.

Debbie McQuillin, former PTA counsel Co-president, who was barely intelligible due to the poor acoustics, seemed to say that the issue of Eversley’s rejection by BOCES was discussed at a PTA forum. This forum, as usual, did not appear to be announced on the district’s web site and was unknown to the community at large. McQuillin’s remarks apparently jogged Ellerbe’s memory and confused him. Ellerbe said, "I do remember that being discussed at the public forum."

Lorraine Barry, Co-president of the Atkinson PTA and a teacher at Atkinson said, "The PTA members from each school met with Mr. Eversley. Mr. Eversley was extremely forthcoming in explaining his situation with BOCES." Barry, who also attended the public forum with Eversley, never claimed that the matter was discussed there, as Board President Ellerbe had claimed.

At the conclusion of the evening’s Board meeting, Dr. Eversley, now the newly appointed superintendent addressed the public. "I am delighted and thrilled to be coming to Freeport. I appreciate all the comments that were made here this evening. It is an expression of a community, who may be involved in some disagreement, but people who come together. We all need to come together, in a team fashion, to do what is necessary for the welfare of the children. I know that is what we are all about. That is what I am committed to. I look forward to working with this Board of Education and the new members coming to the Board, and all of you to make that happen. Thank you."