Notes from the Co-Chair of the Site Council at Burroughs regarding Mr. Cadotte

This e-mail contains several parts concerning the situation with Principal Tim Cadotte:

1. The official MPS notice that will go out to the community in three forms: in backpacks, via the Burroughs e-mail blast, and in the forthcoming Burroughs Bulletin.

2. An e-mail response that Bridget McGinnis and I sent to school board members (not including Chris Stewart) and top MPS administrators on Sunday, April 19.

3. Additional information not included in the official MPS notice.

4. My take on responses at this point in time (my personal opinion; i.e., NOT speaking on behalf of the Burroughs Site Council).

In addition, see StarTribune Metro section, Tuesday, April 21, 2009, Principal on leave after words with board member.

http://www.startribune.com/local/43321082.html?elr=KArks:DCiUnP::DE8c7PiUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUU

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1. The official MPS notice.

April 21, 2009

Dear Families of Burroughs Community School,

We are committed to keeping you informed and want to make you aware of a recent situation involving your school. Tim Cadotte, principal at Burroughs, has been placed on an administrative leave of absence pending an investigation. Data privacy laws prevent me from sharing further information about this situation.

Marsha Seltz, a retired Minneapolis Public Schools principal formerly of Lake Harriet Community School, has agreed to serve the Burroughs community as interim principal until the matter has been resolved. We thank Mrs. Seltz for her assistance and welcome her to Burroughs.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to call me at (612) 668-0140.

Sincerely,

Dr. Marianne Norris

Associate Superintendent

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2. E-mail response to MPS.

April 19, 2009

Dear Sir or Madam:

It has come to our attention that Tim Cadotte, principal of Burroughs Community School, has been summoned to appear before Deputy Superintendent Bernadeia Johnson on Monday morning, April 20, and may well be served with papers to place him on administrative leave.

It seems that this action is in response to a confrontation between School Board Member Chris Stewart and Mr. Cadotte on the afternoon of Friday, April 17 in the outer office at Burroughs. Mr. Stewart attacked Mr. Cadotte with aggressive language, including the charge of "racist." A heated exchange followed. Several witnesses can testify to the nature of the exchange.

Mr. Stewart's animus seems to be generated by his reaction to a statement the Burroughs Site Council made in response to the MPS initiative "Changing School Options." This public statement was openly arrived at by the Burroughs Site Council. The Site Council didn't see the statement as controversial in the least. It is a simple statement of Site Council priorities for MPS to consider as MPS restructures the district. MPS asked for input and feedback on its plans. This was the Site Council contribution to that effort.

In a survey of Burroughs parents conducted from April 13 - 17, 96.6% of the 465 Burroughs families who responded agreed with the Site Council statement.

For this effort, and the great demonstration of support in favor of it, to be met by charges of racism is dumbfounding. The claim is baseless and without merit. Those who engage in this sort of language engage in a form of intimidation designed to silence those with whom they disagree.

To imagine racist intent or racist content where it does not exist is bad enough. But to attack the Burroughs Site Council effort and Mr. Cadotte personally with this slander is beyond the bounds of civil discourse. Such behavior demeans the MPS reform effort, and it dishonors the offices and institutions of those who traffic in it.

To discipline Mr. Cadotte in any way for his connection to this benign Burroughs Site Council statement, or for his reaction to Mr. Stewart's baseless provocation, would be a travesty of justice.

Please see to it that your colleagues separate fact from fiction in dealing with Mr. Cadotte on Monday. Please encourage them to resolve this dispute amicably, so that we can return to civil discussion and debate about the important issues MPS has at hand.

Sincerely,

Kip Wennerlund

Burroughs Site Council Co-Chair

Bridget McGinnis

Burroughs PTA President

p.s. We have had no contact with Mr. Cadotte regarding this issue, and we are in no way acting at his direction. While the Forum lawyer, or MPS, may demand that he not involve Burroughs parents in this matter in any way, we, as parents, taxpayers, and loyal MPS supporters, do not operate under such constraints.

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3. Additional information: What else we know, and don't know.

Mr. Cadotte has been placed on paid administrative leave. This means he can't set foot in the building. He can't access his e-mail account. He can't talk to anyone about the situation until the process has run its course. From what I've been told, the process could last anywhere from days, to weeks, even months. Given that MPS has already placed an interim principal, it's probably going to take some time.

We don't know what if any "charges" have been made against Mr. Cadotte. We don't know when this information will become available. We don't know if MPS will be investigating only the incident with Mr. Stewart, or something else. I've heard a rumor (hopefully just a rumor) that there may be a "list" of issues. But clearly, the precipitating incident was the confrontation provoked by Mr. Stewart, and Mr. Cadotte would not be in his present predicament but for the reckless behavior of Mr. Stewart. Yet it is Mr. Cadotte who is now in professional limbo, and Mr. Stewart returns to the School Board to continue making important decisions for the district, free to toss around incendiary and slanderous language as he sees fit.

I have word that Tim is holding up OK under the circumstances. He understands that he has overwhelming support in the Burroughs community, and that a great many people are eager to do whatever they can to help him. He is under express instructions to do nothing to direct anybody regarding this matter. I am not acting at his direction. I have not communicated with him.

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4. My take on responses at this point in time (my personal opinion; i.e., NOT speaking on behalf of the Burroughs Site Council).

A great many people have been contacting me by phone and e-mail looking for ways to assist Mr. Cadotte. I apologize for no longer being able to respond to everyone individually. For what it's worth, here's my take on responding at this point in time.

First, as with the Hippocratic Oath, Do No Harm. We have already contacted the school board and MPS administrators on behalf of the Burroughs community (the e-mail included above). This lets them know that we are watching and paying attention to how this unfolds. Inundating them with more of the same likely won't improve the situation for Mr. Cadotte. I'm not trying to discourage anyone from making their own contacts. But please, first, realize that the top MPS administrators are the ones who are overseeing the present investigation and that they are the ones who will be recommending what, if any, course of action to take. The board of education would vote on any punishment that MPS might recommend. Therefore, I don't think it makes a lot of sense to fire off angry e-mails and phone calls to the very people who will be deciding Mr. Cadotte's fate.

Each individual has their own call to make on this. But in any contact, please consider whether you think the contact, and the tone of the contact, will help or hinder Mr. Cadotte's cause. Communicating with respect, and without making threats, will be more persuasive, in my view. Expect the generic response that this is a personnel matter under investigation, and therefore, they are unable to comment.

Second, there will be no coordinated response coming from the PTA or the Site Council at this time. Site Council, by nature of its makeup of parents, teachers, and administrators is limited in what it can do in terms of advocacy, particularly when it comes to something that would be seen as insubordination. There may come a time for a coordinated response outside of these school-connected institutions. That time may arrive sooner rather than later.

But for now, we need to get more information about the "charges," and the process. We have made clear to MPS that we are deeply concerned about this incident. The media is pursuing the story. Mr. Cadotte knows that the overwhelming majority of parents are in his corner.

.

Kip

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Kip Wennerlund
5257 Irving Ave S
Minneapolis, MN 55419-1127
phone: 612.285.1380
e-mail: kwennerlund@usiwireless.com

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