Most members of a Vigo County School Corp. diversity task force have been dismissed because they wanted to examine the report that detailed results of an investigation into racial harassment at West Vigo High School, those former task force members said.
The members received notification today from interim Superintendent Tom Balitewicz that “your services on the team conclude today. We appreciate your time and contributions on this important team.”
Among those dismissed were Sylvester Edwards, president of the Greater Terre Haute branch of the NAACP, and Chris Newton, a Vigo County Superior Court judge.
The VCSC Equity Leadership and Advisory Team was formed to develop a corporation-wide plan to address issues around race.
“It’s a slap in the face, what the school corporation is doing to this committee,” Edwards said. “We wanted to see the results of the investigation. … If we don’t know what are the wounds or the illness, how can we heal?” Task force members were told the investigation cost $17,000, he said. Edwards said that in March, the group drafted a letter and requested to see the full investigative report, with the understanding some information might have to be redacted.
“It’s kind of strange how harsh the school corporation came down on the people supposed to be there to solve problems for the community,” he said.
Task force members let go included a judge, a principal, a parent and college faculty members.
“Who are they going to get to solve this problem in the community?” Edwards said. “What better than the people already selected to do so? Who will they replace us with, or are they going to replace us?”
Members let go were informed by email, rather than the district meeting with them, Edwards said.
“I’m disappointed,” Newton said when contacted. “I think we had an all-star group that could have really accomplished some things and set out some goals to make the school corporation better, and it’s just disappointing we are not going to be able to compete that task.”
Newton also said, “It’s a little stunning and hurtful they didn’t try to discuss this with us. … I’m disappointed about the whole thing.”
Those dismissed from the group — which make up the vast majority of the advisory team — plan to meet next week, when they will have more to say, Newton said.
Amy Lore, Vigo County School Board president, provided the following response: “The Vigo County School Corp. Equity Leadership and Advisory Team is one important piece of a multifaceted, holistic approach to address racial issues within the school corporation,” Lore wrote. “We appreciate the commitment and careful consideration demonstrated by members since the team’s formation by Interim Superintendent Dr. Tom Balitewicz in January 2023. As the work of the VCSC Equity Leadership and Advisory Team advances, we look forward to its support to help the district cultivate a learning environment that is welcoming and belonging for all.” The district had no further comment, said Katie Shane, interim director of communications. Shane did confirm 10 members of the task force are no longer serving and five members remain, including school board member Stacy Killion.
A March 17 letter written by lawyer Teri Lorenz on behalf of most of the task force members stated that “receipt of the entire report is a condition precedent to proceeding with the work of the team. Said members believe that their not being privy to the entire report undermines the credibility of their work.”
Lorenz was a member of the advisory group.
While the group did receive a report summary on March 10 from Jon Mayes of the Bose McKinney law firm, Lorenz responded that “the brevity and lack of specificity” was problematic and unsatisfactory.
Lorenz’s letter concluded that the majority of the team felt that without access to the full report, it would “undermine our work and tarnish our reputations.”
An email from Matt McClendon, VCSC chief diversity and inclusion officer, to those task force members on Thursday, read in part: “At the March 10, 2023, meeting there was discussion regarding why the report could or could not be released. In the end, the administration committed to providing a summary, and that was acceptable to many on the VCSC Equity Leadership and Advisory Team.
“Indeed, many team members did not believe viewing the full report was necessary to the work of the team as sufficient information could be gleaned from a summary. Toward that end, we have been preparing a summary as committed on March 10.
“But now, in the March 21 letter, you have demanded that not a summary be released but the full report be provided ‘as a condition precedent to proceeding with the work of the team.’
“You were invited to join the VCSC Equity Leadership and Advisory Team earlier this year. In accepting the invitation, none of you conditioned your participation on receipt of the report. The moving goalposts and change in conditions precedent to your participation distract the team from the important work of helping the VCSC address root causes.
“A copy of the full report will not (indeed cannot) be provided. Therefore, since your time on the team is ending, I thank you for your contributions. You will be receiving notice of the conclusion of your service on the VCSC Equity Leadership and Advisory Team in separate correspondence,” McClendon’s email concluded.
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