The first North Shelby School, facility wise, was better than nothing. Staffing the first North Shelby School actually turned out well over time. The staff actually interacting with the special needs students and basically did the best with what they had. Most of the time. There still was some cover-up situations forced on the staff when things went amiss.
Like when the 15 year old mentally challenged white girl was caught having sex with a 22 year old black boy on the North Shelby School activity bus that took them to an event in Raleigh. The parents of the white girl found out and complained so the Cleveland County DSS was called in and took the girl from school put her in a foster home. Basically away from her parents as a punishment. As for North Shelby School staff (at that time), they claimed the girl was 16 and there was no statutory rape. The parents showed me the girl’s birth certificate, which DSS and school officials also had, and the girl was 15. The parents were poor and got no justice. Same as usual for Cleveland County. Only when the girl “aged-out” of the system was she able to see her parents again.
OK. Now let’s fast forward a bit and examine what is going on with the North Shelby School and the various goings on with the now merged school system called Cleveland County Schools (CCS). Especially the CCS School Board.
The CCS School Board says their Strategic Plan shows that a NEW North Shelby School facility was their Number 1 priority in 2008 and again in 2013. Hokum, all Hokum!!! The CCS Board spent about $40 million to build the Shelby Middle School (for 800 students yet only 400 students attend) and the renovation of the Old Shelby High School to have a first class and fancy Central Services office complex for the CCS big wheels and administration. The priority for a new North Shelby School was last for the CCS Board, not first. Same as auditoriums for Burns and Crest High Schools. The CCS School Board, when examined closely, have all, except for Danny Blanton, been bald faced liars about many things. From the school credit card fraud cover-up, to the $millions in waste, to the sex crimes, to building the New North Shelby School, to building auditoriums at Burns and Crest and who knows what else.
And, besides all of this discussion about strategic plans, where is this strategic plan CCS talks about so much? If such a strategic plan actually exists, it is a public record and I have asked for it in writing. CCS, Put up or shut up about any such Strategic plan. But no dice from CCS. No strategic plan has been provided and no acknowledgment to my legal request-made in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act as well as North Carolina Public records laws. It certainly appears that the CCS Board is not only bald faced liars about what is in their strategic plan that effectively does not exist, they are crooks too for not following the law.
I should say liars, crooks and more. Let’s just stick to the lies for a bit. Recent lies, but in no particular order.
In the past several years both James Love Elementary School and Graham Elementary have received multiple failing grades. Both are at the point of the State Board of Education taking over the operation of those schools. Misuse of North Shelby School students have figured in to CCS covering up the failures at James Love and Graham.
