City Employees – Everett Leader Herald

Grabbing (literally) The Leader Herald

By Josh Resnek

Shown above is what appears to be a city hall official wrapping his hands around the Leader Herald freshly delivered and placed in the newspaper rack only moments before last Wednesday shortly after noon.

Maybe the official was preparing to move the papers to another location, most likely a trash bin somewhere inside the hall, where these particular papers end up from week to week.

Maybe he changed his mind after he noticed a photographer taking a photograph of him grabbing the papers.

I think that is most likely.

He looked up at the photographer and decided it might not be a good idea to hall the Leader Heralds away.

After all, you don’t want to be a city official caught removing Leader Heralds from a city hall newspaper rack. This would indicate unfair behavior to some, theft to others.

It might also indicate to those unaccustomed to city hall protocol under the present administration, that Leader Heralds are to be stripped from their place in the newspaper rack as soon as they arrive.

This is a weekly occurrence.

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$14,000 pay hike for mayor while cutting jobs, salaries

Layoffs happening as city faces tough financial times

BY JOSH RESNEK

Many of those who have recently been laid off or had their salaries cut by the mayor have decried the mayor accepting a $14,000 raise in his own salary.

“What the hell is that all about?” asked one former city employee laid off two weeks ago who wished to remain unnamed for fear of retribution.

“How can he have the gall to accept his salary being raised so substantially while stripping others of their right to work?” she asked.

Last week, the city reported that the mayor handed back the $12,000 car allowance given to him by the city council in 2019 – a car allowance many believe he never used to either rent or to buy an automobile.

At the time the city council granted him the allowance, he threatened the city council with reprisal if they failed to enact the allowance for him.

“After all I do for this city, you’re going to treat me this way,” he told the council at the time.

“Maybe I’ll have to look into your expenses. How will you like that?” he prodded the council.

Aside from the car allowance of $12,000 which the mayor has given up, he received also a $14,000 automatic raise as part of the 2020 budget.

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— Eye on Everett —

Bloodbath at Everett Public Schools

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BY JOSH RESNEK

Crazy and unprecedented happenings littered today’s end of year department meeting at Everett High School. Principal Erick Naumann has called a full staff meeting for Wednesday at 10AM to address sweeping budget cuts to come.

Superintendent Priya Tahiliani is making good on her promise to save teacher-to-student instruction. And teachers are saying this is the most massive budget cutting of administrators they have ever seen.

The emphasis was on making sure as many certified classroom teachers were retained in anticipation of DESE Covid-19 regulations in the fall.

The mandate calls for class sizes of 10 or less. This is a huge issue in Everett schools as classes are routinely 30-35 students. So now, instead of one teacher per 30 students, it will have to be three teachers per 10 students.

Everett High School. (Photo by JIM MAHONEY)

It has become, as one department head stated, an “All hands on deck” situation with certified teachers. The sweeping changes also requires all EPS staff (outside of one building principal, one vice principal and a skeleton crew of clerical /secretary type) have a teaching certificate in some content area and will be teaching a full course load. This includes all coaches, all substitute teachers, etc. Here’s a list of the cuts:

– Entire “Academy Model” has been revamped and streamlined to run through Principal Erick Naumann and Vice Principal Christopher Barrett. Potentially there will be two Deans who will only make a 10,000 dollar stipend on top of their regular pay will assist in disciplinary matters.

– All Assistant Principals of Academies positions are eliminated. Consequently, Dr. Omar Easy’s position of Executive Assistant Principal is eliminated.

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FY 2021 budget not to be found, Everett in the dark on finances

Today is June 18th and the new fiscal year starts in less than 2 weeks.

No one except the mayor knows what is going to be done.

I watch the City of Everett’s website, waiting for – at the very least – a draft of the FY 2021 budget.

Nothing, as we have come to expect.

As Shakespeare said: Nothing can be made from nothing.

Not a single thing about the upcoming budget has been posted.

This state of affairs is not the way to run the city when the financial situation has become so potentially perilous.

The embattled DeMaria administration spends far too much trying to have the taxpayer pick up the tab for his legal bills and not enough time working to improve the quality of life of the good people of Everett.

At the June 8th City Council meeting the mayor talked about his discretionary account for legal services, but I could find no mention of that account in the City’s FY2020 budget.

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Looking at the News

Doing something different more important than what is right

By Josh Resnek

A closer examination of last week’s School Committee hearing finds the majority of members acting out a philosophy and keeping to it rather than playing by the book and making choices based on excellence.

Excellence means less than philosophy when it is mind over matter when picking a new leader of the Everett Public Schools.

School Committee members shot down an effort to add three local candidates to the list of finalists for public interviewing for the superintendent’s post.

“I’ve reviewed the cv’s. They are all wonderful people but this is a $85 million Gateway school system. It is not starter superintendent’s position.These finalists know nothing about the city of Everett. They’ve never served a day as a superintendent. I’m also upset that people who spent a lifetime making the Everett Public School System what it is didn’t get a shot. Let’s consider all candidates. That’s a motion.”

You would have thought McGlaughlin had committed a crime indicating that Acting Superintendent Janet Gauthier, Assistant Superintendent Charlie Obremski and High School Vice-Principal Dr. Omar Easy had been tossed under the bus without an interview by people claiming to know what they are doing in a best choice contest.

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