After being reminded by public comments made during a CCC BoT Meeting and at least three mentions in articles posted on this website for the past year the CCC BoTs have finally seen the light. Kinda like the mule who finally gets hit over the head with a two by four, they get the message that they are a governmental agency in the United States of America and Pledging Allegiance to the Flag is expected of them by the citizens.
So, finally, at their May 8, 2018 meeting BoT member and Commissioner Johnny Hutchins makes the Motion to add a Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag to the meeting agenda and every meeting thereafter. Despite all these years of NOT doing their civic and patriotic duty, the BoTs vote unanimously to add the Pledge to their agenda. However, there was no Flag in the room, so they (and we) recited the Pledge to a Flag someone said was flying outside the building. I never saw the Flag, so it was like just Pledging Allegiance to the West. I reckon they will have a Flag in the Room at their July 10, 2018 meeting. Stay tuned and I will let you know about that.
But, don’t get your hopes up too high that the CCC BoTs are straightening up their act. This decision to Pledge Allegiance came right at the May Primary elections that almost took out Commissioner Chairman Eddie Holbrook in the Democrat Primary race.
Other bad signs that it is business as usual, monkey business that is, for the CCC BoTs came out in that particular BoT meeting. The BoTs, under a Federal Lawsuit already filed and another one on the way, hired themselves a lawyer that told them, waiving a lawbook in the air, that North Carolina Law prevented them from releasing information regarding a second investigation of numerous complaints flying around CCC. Allegations of dumbing down classes, misappropriation and misuse of funds, discrimination in hiring and firing, etc. Sources indicate the lawyers advice was based on the fact that the complaints and allegations had legal merit and the lawyers didn’t want the investigation material released as it would implicate the BoTs in wrong doing.
After the meeting I went up to the lawyer and asked to see the lawbook he had just waived around. He showed it to me, I wrote down the info and went directly to the CCC Library to check out a copy. They did NOT have a copy. I asked them to obtain a copy as their lawyer had just waived the book around and the public needed access to that lawbook to read for themselves what it said. Lawyers and judges always hate it when members of the public want to read the law for themselves. But that is why the first laws in America regarding education of children were written in 1642. Two reasons, First, so citizens could read the Bible themselves and not depend on “State” churches telling them what the Bible said. Second, so the general public could read the law for themselves and not have to always depend on lawyers to read the law for them. So, here it is 376 years later and the “state” churches and the lawyers still don’t want people to inform themselves on what is moral and legal. It is certainly too bad that in the last 50 years of crazy Supreme Court rulings citizens have made it easy for the false religions and false legal rulings to go unchallenged because the people are too dumb or too lazy to read and inform themselves on the teachings of the Bible and what the laws actually say.
Another strange thing in the meeting happened during the Committee Report sections. The BoT’s have, over the years, adopted the poor practice of having BoT members become Chairpersons of Committees that submit reports during BoT meetings. This poor practice has devolved into just an easy way to cover-up what is going on. CCC Staff (who mostly-maybe all-report to the Executive Vice President Shannon Kennedy and not the BoT Committee Chairman) produces the reports and send them out to the BoT members a few days before the meeting. The majority of the BoTs apparently never read the reports, just approve them at the meetings. Very few questions are asked and it appears the BoTs know what they are doing when it is obvious they don’t. Then they vote to approve the report unanimously.
However, The Cirriculum and Student Development Committee, Chaired by Rev. LaMont Littlejohn, report, noted as Exhibit M on the original Agenda was not hyperlinked on the agenda like all the other reports. Then, after the fact, the Agenda is “doctored” to remove all traces of the written “Exhibit M” notation. Since minutes of meetings and the meeting agenda are public records as well as legal historical records doctoring such records are a sure sign of something amiss. And illegal. Same as not providing public records for inspection by the public when requested.
The cirriculum and student development at CCS and CCC, as related to workforce development in Cleveland County. have been determined to be in a “crisis” situation. Doctoring such official legal documents at CCC BoT meetings is a big time no-no that the CCC BoTs just don’t seem to understand. Just like they don’t understand that responding to Freedom Of Information Act and Public Records Requests is also required by law. But, perhaps they do understand. Doctoring records and illegally refusing to make public records public may just be smaller crimes than the crimes they might be covering up. Perhaps that is what is going on here. But, who needs crooks in governing bodies??? Little crimes or big crimes, citizens want NO crimes. If the CCC BoTs can’t do the little things right and in accordance with the law, they should all just resign on the spot.
But then the next item on the agenda was the Continuing Education and Workforce Development Report by Chairman Allen Langley. That report was totally not about workforce development but was about auditing hours and resolving audit findings. Not a peep about the workforce development “crisis” and any problem resolution there. One very troubling part of that report was regarding “Under aged students Enrolled in Courses art CCC and Reported for Budget FTE.” There were three students 15 years old enrolled. One in a welding class and two in firefighting classes. All hours were reported as being charged to the CCC FTE Budget.
I don’t know what the FTE Budget is, but I do know that 15 year old students enrolled at CCC (too young to drive to class) in such classes indicates the Cleveland County Schools are lacking, big time, in their workforce development programs and sending kids to CCC that are too young to be accepted in such classes. And CCC is getting illegally paid for such activity. No wonder the CCC lawyer (and BoTs) wants to keep the complaint investigations secret.
Now, the School Board, the Commissioners and the Governor are in the process of appointing CCC BoTs for new terms. The School Board appointed Chris Monroe to replace Chris Turner who did not seek re-appointment. CCS clearly stated they want their appointments to support CCS. That is Code for “Covering Up for CCS.” No change there. No word about the new Governor’s appointment except it is certain that the Democrat Governor will not re-appoint Republican Wayne King. The Commissioner’s appointment is another thing. At the June 5, 2018 Commissioner’s meeting there was a big split vote on this CCC appointment that caused a delay. Then at the June 19, 2018 commissioner’s meeting the Commissioner’s re-appointed CCC BoT Chairman Wes Westmoreland without discussion although several other people had lobbied for that appointment on the troubled and gridlocked CCC BoT.
So, either the Commissioners gave Wes Westmoreland some new marching orders on what they are expecting Westmoreland to do on the CCC BoT or decided to keep the same ole same ole. I expect it to be the latter. Meaning no changes for the CCC Board leanings. Meaning no needed further changes to the imbedded CCC staff who have caused most of the problems and scandals to start with.