Chapel Hill-Carrboro schools finance chief resigns over unapproved $767,070 contract
An assistant superintendent with the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools resigned Monday over issues related to a $767,707 contract that the school board did not approve.
Jennifer Bennett, the district’s assistant superintendent for business and finance, gave the district her letter of resignation Monday, according to district spokesman Jeff Nash.
A district news release sent Monday afternoon about the circumstances leading to Bennett’s resignation was signed by all seven school board members and noted “the seriousness of the policy violation regarding the contract with Education Elements.”
Bennett’s resignation is effective April 30, Nash said in an email. Jonathan Scott, director of business and finance, has been named interim chief financial officer, Nash said.
Administration officials signed the professional development contract with consultant Education Elements in June. District officials have said there was confusion about whether the contract needed board approval, because the money was to be paid in increments of less than $90,000.
District policy requires the board to approve contracts worth more than $90,000.
The contract’s approval also did not include a pre-audit report required under state law.
However, a “master services agreement” signed June 27 included the total cost and noted that invoices would be issued for each payment due under the agreed-upon payment plan.
In addition, an email obtained by The News & Observer and The Herald-Sun last week from Bennett to Education Elements official Jason Bedford also suggested structuring the payments to avoid the policy requiring board approval.
“Need to get you guys to modify the SOW (statement of work)/Contract if you can since if we include the whole potential payment value then we have to take this to the Board since over our $90K threshold and ....,” Bennett wrote in the June 26, 2019, email to Bedford.
“It is clear to us that our policy required the Education Elements agreement to be submitted to the Board for approval and for comment by our community,” the board said in Monday’s statement.
School district paid over $342,000
School board records obtained Jan. 28 by The N&O and The Herald-Sun show Superintendent Pamela Baldwin briefly updated the board on the work with Education Elements in at least two written reports. The reports are not dated, but the dates associated with other sections of the report indicate they were written in June and July.
Board member Amy Fowler has said there was little or no discussion about the work until it appeared on the Nov. 21 agenda. The board launched an investigation after that meeting, and the contract was suspended. The district ended the contract in January after making the last payment to the company.
In total, the district paid Education Elements over $342,000 for the work.
Board Chair Mary Ann Wolf has said in an interview with The N&O and The Herald-Sun that the district has learned enough to continue the work on its own. The work aligns with the district’s instructional framework and strategic plan, she said, which emphasizes personalized learning styles and a “culturally relevant” classroom atmosphere.
Teaching coaches, principals, assistant principals, specialists, and a team of teacher and student service leaders have gone through the training, Jessica O’Donovan, the district’s assistant superintendent for instructional services, told the board in November.
The second phase would have looked at how to roll out the program’s tools to teachers this summer, she said.
Public meeting set for March 5
Monday’s statement noted several steps that the board already has taken to address the issue, including issuing public statements when the problem became apparent and at a Feb. 13 meeting, obtaining reports from administration officials about the contract work that already has been done, and clarifying current policies and procedures to ensure a similar incident does not happen in the future.
In addition to looking for a new finance leader, the board plans to hire an outside expert to review all contracts and processes, and offer recommendations for improving financial oversight and transparency, the statement said.
A special meeting will be held at 7 p.m. March 5, where the public can comment on the situation and changes. The board also will use that meeting to talk about contract policies and a new whistleblower policy that is being developed.
“We appreciate that each person who has written, asked questions, or voiced concern about this issue comes to this place with concern for our staff and students,” the board said. “Similarly, our Board is committed to each and every student in this district, and we will continue to work to ensure that our schools are places where our staff and our students can thrive.”
This story was originally published February 24, 2020 at 4:45 PM.
