At the special CALLED meeting held March 15, 2021 the Cleveland County School Board voted 6-3 (Phillip “Poodle” Glover, Coleman Hunt and Dena Green voted NO) to restart schools for Grades 6 thru 12 beginning April 12, 2021. For a two-week period beginning April 12, the schools will operate four days a week. After that, five days a week.
So, why wait an additional month to re-start grades 6-12? After a year of shutdown?? That was the recommendation of Superintendent Stephen Fisher. Let’s get “Spring Break” behind us. Note: “Spring Break” is what the Schools and others now call the Easter Holidays. They apparently think they can’t acknowledge the Bible or Jesus Christ or they will be sued.
Yet, on the other hand, news that very day from the CDC warned of travelling during the “Spring Break” for fear of additional spread of the COVID 19 pandemic.
Now, here we are. Cleveland County Schools are keeping themselves shut down for an additional month, sending those that can afford it to the Beach or somewhere with a crowd, kids in tow. Risking additional spread of COVID. And THEN restarting schools. One positive test and schools may shut down again. It is like-that is the plan all along. Keep schools shut down to justify shutting them down to begin with. And appease the Teachers Union (NCAE) in the process. Folks, go figure. I would have voted to start schools full time January 4th and have saved at least a semester of education for our children. Waiting until April 12th leaves only 6 to 7 weeks of school for the entire 2020-2021 school year.
At the school board meetings, I have attended (ALL OF THEM), I can’t ever remember hearing anybody explain how this lost time in our children’s education will ever be made up. (Or paid for!) In fact, at this March 15th meeting a full senior class graduation is planned. Even after missing 7 of the last nine months of school. One would have to expect that the 46% rate of seniors graduating from CCS, in the best of times; who can’t read, write or do math at a proficient level will increase dramatically. Upwards of 75% to 85% would be a reasonable and logical extrapolation. Apparently, CCS plans on just pushing those struggling students out the door and be done with them since CCS has already spent all the money allocated per child. And then some.
There is some good news coming out of the March 15, 2021 Special Called School Board meeting. My Article titled: Crazy School Board “Special Called Meeting” for Monday, March 15 @ 6:00pm!! They are gonna waste $168,700 just because they’re stupid!!! Actually, Double Stupid on top of being Double Crazy!! It is YOUR tax money that is being wasted. We will do the math!!! got some major attention from the School Board. This article was published March 14, 2021, the Sunday before the Special Called School Board meeting. (I have attached the link to that article at the end of this article for your convenience.) The original agenda for the March 15 Special Called Meeting had a second item. The purchase of 2,410 new Chromebook Computers for $872,136.83.
My previous article mentioned above showed that, after only 8 minutes of research, I had located an alternate supplier (Walmart) for all of those computers for a savings of $168,700. Additionally, that article showed that those 2,410 computers did NOT actually need to be purchased at all. I had everything laid out specifically and the correctness of my Article was above reproach. The School Board’s planed waste was proven and undeniable.
When the March 15, 2021 Special Called Meeting rolled around, that second item on the original agenda, the purchase of 2,410 Chromebook Computers, had completely disappeared. That item had not only disappeared, but not a word about that original agenda item was spoken by the School Board. Or to me.
The most important thing about this is that $872,136.83 was not wasted on 2,410 computers that were not necessary in the first place. All because one informed citizen (Robert A. Williams-ME) did just 8 minutes of due diligence, spotted the waste and informed the public. And sent an advanced copy of that article to each of the School Board members, Supt. Fisher, the County Commissioners and a number of others.
What this proves, beyond a doubt, is that more public input from citizens should be sought out and encouraged by the Cleveland County School Board and other local and state governmental agencies. Instead, the Cleveland County School Board has basically excluded just about all public input from anybody. A Citizens Participation item on every governmental agency meeting is required by North Carolina law, but any citizen that speaks up in Cleveland County School Board meetings, their words go in one ear of every school board member and out the other ear. Thanks to School Board Chairman Robert “Luke” Queen and approved by every school board member, what a citizen actually says during Citizens Participation is not even recorded in the official minutes of the meeting. As for the March 15, 2021 Special Called Meeting of the School Board, NO Citizens Participation was even allowed. I got around all that discouragement by drafting that March 14th article, publishing it to the world and sending copies to all the School Board members and many others. I am positive that article saved CCS and taxpayers $872,136.83 but was not appreciated by the School Board as well as Tim Moore (who I also sent an advanced copy to).
I am sure Tim Moore, the School Board, Commissioners and the CCC Board of Trustees would rather have wasted that $872,136.83 than have me find the waste and then tell on them. I actually gave it much thought to just write my article about this particular waste, go to the Special Called Meeting and watch the School Board Approve $872,136.83 in wasted spending and then tell on them. At MY leisure. As you can see here, I chose not to do that. And, $872,136.83 in hard earned taxpayer money has not been wasted. Yet anyway. Who knows whether or not CCS will send out 200 employees with school credit cards and purchase the 2,410 Chromebook Computers, one at a time? That way each purchase amount will be less than the amount that requires school board approval. It is an old trick already widely used at Cleveland County Schools. That nobody has been disciplined or prosecuted for.
So, folks, just like former President Ronald Reagan used to say, “When you can’t make them see the light, make them feel the heat!!” If you know of unethical or illegal shenanigans going on at Cleveland County Schools, the Commissioners, DSS, CCC, Health Department or any other governmental agency-let me know. I protect my sources.
The link to my original article is here.
Read for yourself the article that Robert A. Williams wrote and published that saved Cleveland County Taxpayers $872,136.83 at one whack!!!