When a beloved administrator is involuntarily reassigned, questions arise.
On March 12, 2018, the Mahomet-Seymour Board of Education voted 6-0 to involuntarily reassign Lincoln Trail’s Assistant Principal Courtney Porter, who has held the post for 10 years.
The March 12 board packet posted on the Mahomet-Seymour School District website on March 9 read “Topic: Approve the Resolution Reference the Proposed Reclassification of an Administrative Employee.”
The Mahomet Daily asked for clarification on the administrator to be reassigned and did not receive an answer.
During the March 12 meeting, Board Member Cheryl Melchi read the resolution: “I make a motion that the board adopt the resolution reference the proposed reclassification of an administrative employee, Courtney Porter, as presented. And that the Superintendent may authorize and be directed to deliver or cause to be delivered a notice to the employee as specified in the resolution.”
Board discussion did not follow the reading of the resolution, but the board voted 6-0, with Jenny Park abstaining.
The Open Meetings Act allows boards to discuss personnel issues in closed session.
After the meeting, Superintendent Lindsey Hall confirmed that Ms. Porter would be reassigned to the classroom.
When word about the involuntary reclassification of Courtney Porter spread, community members filled social media with an outpouring of support for Porter.
“Mrs. Porter is the one who can be found with the students at lunch, greeting parents, interacting with staff in the office, taking phone calls from concerned parents, etc. This is certainly a loss to the kids at Lincoln Trail,” Kamie Manuel wrote on the Mahomet Daily’s Facebook page.
“This is such a huge loss for Lincoln Trail, the kids and the whole district! She is AMAZING! She is always there supporting the kids and cheering them on in the lunchroom, the Dawg Walk, music concerts, field days, in the hallways – the list goes on. She is in their hearts and they love her! We should all be disappointed and concerned about this decision,” Heather Lowrey Hibbs wrote.
While some commenters were shocked by the district’s decision to reassign Ms. Porter, other community members wondered if Ms. Porter wanted to be reassigned, and offered their support in her decision if she did.
During the same board meeting on March 12, within the consent agenda, the board approved the voluntary reassignment of Chris Forman, the district’s Instructional Technology Coordinator.
The next day, the Mahomet Daily asked Hall questions about the reassignments and hires of two additional educators to replace 2017-18 retiring teachers. Those questions were unanswered.
Still hoping to put some of the pieces of the puzzle together, the Mahomet Daily then asked several questions regarding the definition of an involuntary reassignment, the process of an involuntary reassignment, how an involuntary reassignment works when the reassigned is placed into the bargaining unit, tenure clarification and if there will be any additional steps moving forward.
The Mahomet Daily asked:
“Can you explain the difference between voluntary and involuntary reassignment to me? Within the last (March 12) board packet, it states that Chris Forman will be voluntarily reassigned. The packet also states that Courtney Porter is being involuntarily reassigned. Can you explain the difference in terms as it relates to those who hold administrative positions?”
Hall answered, “Voluntary is when one volunteers or offers. Involuntary is the opposite.”
While the rest of the questions in the email remained unanswered, Hall summarized her answers with a statement:
“You acknowledge these are personnel issues, so I am certain you understand the district’s position. Specific individuals will not be discussed.
“What I can offer as a generality is that once a person holding an administrative position either requests (volunteers) a return to the classroom, or is reassigned (involuntary), if they have earned tenure in that district they must be placed into a position for which they are licensed/certified.”
Hall referenced Illinois School Code 105 ILCS 5/10-23.8B, which states that administrators who are being “reclassified by demotion or reduction in rank from one position within a school district to another for which a lower salary is paid” must not only receive a letter from the board notifying them of the reclassification by April 1, but that the administrator is allowed a closed session and an open session hearing in front of the board.”
When asked if Ms. Porter has asked for a closed hearing, Hall responded, “It wouldn’t be appropriate to disclose what choices an employee has/has not made at this point in the process. If an employee in this situation would choose to disclose that information, then I guess that would be up to him/her. We would follow the legal process under the Open Meetings Act in terms of posting an agenda.”
The Open Meetings Act states that board agenda must be made available to the public 48 hours prior to the meeting.
The Mahomet Daily reached out to Courtney Porter, who declined to comment, but referred the Daily to her lawyer. The Mahomet Daily will speak to Ms. Porter’s representation next week.
Curious about the communication process in regards to the reassignment of Ms. Porter, the Mahomet Daily sent a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request on April 9 seeking communication regarding the reassignment process of Ms. Porter. The request asked for communication between employees and board members from March 1 to April 9.
The district response received on April 16 included three emails between Hall and Porter.
An email sent by Ms. Porter to Hall on Monday, March 5 states, “since I learned of this on Wednesday, I haven’t had sufficient time to review and consider all the options. I need time to fully evaluate each option. I would like to request an extension on informing you of my decision until Friday, March 9, 2018 at 4 p.m.”
Hall wrote back, explaining to Ms. Porter that in order for the district and the district attorneys to have sufficient time to complete the board packet to post on the website on March 9 and write a resolution for the March 12, 2018 board meeting, the district needed to have her decision between “one of three options” by March 7 at 4 p.m.
Within the reply, Hall also noted that Ms. Porter was to speak to the staff at Lincoln Trail on March 5. She wrote, “Your professionalism and care in doing so is expected and appreciated.”
In the March 6 email included in the FOIA response Hall asked to meet with Ms. Porter to review the paperwork that would accompany an administrative reassignment by the board.
At the time of the email, Hall acknowledged that Porter had not made a decision and would have until 4 p.m. the following day to make the decision.
While the FOIA response does not answer many questions community members have asked, it does give the community a simple timeline and some insight to Ms. Porter’s reassignment.
After 10 years with the district, Ms. Porter was notified on Feb. 28, 2018 that she would have to make a choice between “three options.” While the three options are not outlined in the emails, it is assumed that one of those options was an involuntary reassignment.
Because the email asking for an extension was sent by Porter on March 5, 2018, it is known that Porter had a preliminary deadline of March 5. There were six days between Feb. 28 and March 5 for Ms. Porter to make a decision on her future in the Mahomet-Seymour School District.
It is also known that Ms. Porter was given an additional two days to decide after her extension was granted.
Because Hall defined involuntary and voluntary for the Daily, it is also known that Ms. Porter did not choose to be reassigned to the classroom.
After talking with Ms. Porter’s representation next week, the Mahomet Daily hopes to have additional information regarding the involuntary reassignment of Courtney Porter.
